THOUSANDS of Wee County young people took advantage of physical activities offered as part of the Active Schools programme in Clackmannanshire last year.

Figures published by sportscotland show a total of 4,136 children taking part in sessions with 135,404 visits recorded during the last academic year.

The number of people delivering the sessions also increased by 3.3 per cent to 332, 87 per cent of whom are volunteers, showing the community's commitment remains high in the area.

Councillor Graham Lindsay, spokesperson for education at Clackmannanshire Council, said: "I'm delighted to see these Active Schools figures which show such a significant number of sport and physical activities sessions enjoyed by young people in Clackmannanshire.

"Our teams have always been at the forefront of delivering quality opportunities for pupils to get involved in sporting activities.

"Our recently-agreed Sport and Active Living Framework gives a focus for our future work, ensuring we work closely with our partners to keep this momentum going and help our young people develop a lifelong interest in physical activity."

Active Schools is one of sportscotland's longest running flagship programmes and saw a national increase of 0.4 per cent in activity levels last year with 7.3million visits made.

The aim is to provide more and higher quality opportunities for young people to enjoy sport and physical activity before school, during lunchtime and in the afternoon.

A key factor is developing partnerships and pathways between schools, sports clubs and the local community.

Mel Young, chair of sportscotland, added: "It is fantastic to see that Active Schools continues to grow year on year with more opportunities delivered and another increase in the number of people participating.

"Our mission is to help the people of Scotland get the most out of the sporting system at every level and Active Schools has a crucial role to play in engaging young people in sport and physical activity.

"We talk about making an impact together and Active Schools is a great example of working with the right partners in the right way to deliver results.

"The Active Schools network is reliant on strong local partnerships with schools, local authorities, sport development teams, regional managers from governing bodies of sport, volunteers and the clubs who welcome children and young people into their communities."