Professional lessons to be rolled out to more year groups from September

Worsley’s newest padel facility, Padel 16, located at Worsley Sports Club, has recorded a successful trial run in delivering professional coaching sessions to students at local Bridgewater School as part of the curriculum lesson.

The first phase of the partnership saw three sessions delivered to year 10 students as part of their mandatory 45-minute PE lesson, with plans to now expand in the coming school year. The sessions were delivered by professional coaches, who gave the students a chance to try their hand at one of the fastest-growing sports in the world.

Though padel is not in the national curriculum for physical education, the team at Padel 16 were keen to inject something new into the programme of activities and introduce the students to the benefits of padel. Now, after positive feedback from students, both Padel 16 and Bridgewater School have agreed to expand the lessons to years 9-11 from this coming September. The sessions will increase from once a week to around three sessions delivered per week at the Worsley Sports Club facility.

Owned by professional footballer Fabio Borini, working alongside local businessman Anthony Bingham, Padel 16’s mission is to restore and transform local sports clubs, offering communities a refreshed space to connect, compete and socialise. Padel 16 opened just last month and has already proven a massive success in the local community.

Anthony Bingham, Director at Padel 16, said: “Partnering with Bridgewater School is the perfect next step in fulfilling Padel’s ambitions to respond to community wants and needs. The partnership adds real value to what we’re doing in the Worsley community, involving local businesses and schools to feel included in this up-and-coming sport.

“The next phase of this partnership is very exciting. Not only will we be expanding the padel sessions across more year groups, but we also have plans to offer ice baths and breathwork sessions, further broadening the students’ knowledge on health and wellbeing. We’re actively looking for more schools to collaborate with across Greater Manchester to really make a difference to the young people in our communities.”

Mrs Zoe Hewitt, Head of PE at Bridgewater School, said: “At Bridgewater School, we are always looking for innovative ways to enhance our extensive co-curricular and enrichment programme. Partnering with Padel 16 has given our students the chance to experience something both new and exciting. As one of the fastest-growing and most engaging sports, padel has really captured their interest and enthusiasm.

“We feel incredibly fortunate to have such fantastic facilities right on our doorstep, and the team at Padel 16 have been outstanding in the way they’ve supported and inspired our students. It’s been wonderful to see them embrace the sport so quickly, and we hope it’s something they’ll continue to enjoy both in and beyond school for years to come.”

For more information on Padel 16 or to book a court, please see here.