TWO-time national boxing champion, nineteen-year-old Francis Wright, is on a mission to get more young girls involved in sport. 

Two years ago, Francis landed her first job as an apprentice teaching assistant at Hare Street Community Primary School and Nursery. Since then, she has made a significant impact, enabling the school to expand the quality of sporting opportunities on offer for all pupils, including introducing a popular girls’ after-school boxing club. 

In January, she also learned she had passed her Level 3 Teaching Assistant apprenticeship with a PE Health and Wellbeing focus with Distinction.

Headteacher Neil Coster is an advocate of hiring PE apprentices and is delighted with what Francis has been able to achieve with the support of apprenticeship provider, ESF Apprenticeships, and his current PE team. 

“We know that the numbers of young women going into sport fall off a cliff once students get older,” Neil says. “I’ve been a secondary school PE teacher and seen this for myself, so it’s really important to get them engaged early on.

Francis offers our pupils a fantastic female sporting role model and has helped ignite a passion for all kinds of sport in our school.” 

“When I suggested an after-school boxing club, it was actually Neil’s idea to roll it out to the girls first,” says Francis. “I knew it made sense because it was something we could say was specifically for them – then involve the boys later. The girls got to be the first ones trying the gloves on!” 

“It’s giving the girls so many skills; helping them to build self-esteem, focus, discipline, and, as much as I’d rather not think about it, it’s also equipping them with rudimentary self-defense fundamentals they can build on as they get older,” says Neil. 

Two years ago there were limited opportunities to participate in school games tournaments and for pupils to attend fixtures. Now, both girls and boys participate in regular competitions, including a monthly cross-country league, supported by Francis and a dedicated PE team. The recently established girls’ football team played nine fixtures last year and are currently unbeaten in their last three games. There are also 24 extra-curricular clubs on offer, some of which run throughout the summer and Christmas holidays.

“I like to think we’re giving the children an opportunity to experience things at school that they wouldn’t normally necessarily have access to, or be able to afford.” Francis says, “Girls shouldn’t feel self-conscious about trying new sports – who knows, some of them might even come to the boxing gym (Harlow Boxing Club) where I train when they get older – I’d love that.”

Francis thinks more girls should consider professions where they can use their sporting skills. She also credits the apprenticeship with giving her an excellent start to her career ladder. “I started my apprenticeship because I wanted to be actively involved in sport, start my career and make a difference in children’s lives right away, it’s definitely given me that opportunity – I’d really encourage other young people to look into it, as it’s a great way to gain new skills,” she says.

Neil says that the apprenticeship programmes, alongside their initial teacher training programme, have offered “immense value” to the school. He describes Francis as a fantastic TA. “She doesn’t just turn up and teach PE lessons, she’s integrated herself into the entire school community.”

Henry Mead, Francis’s tutor from ESF Apprenticeships, added, “We’re very proud of Francis and we’re delighted she has been offered a permanent role at Hare Street Primary – it’s been a pleasure to see her skills as a teaching assistant develop.”