YOGA IN PARLIAMENT

On Tuesday, 11th July a group of Veseyens took part in the meeting of the AllParty Parliamentary Group on Yoga in Society which was held in the Houses of Parliament in London. The focus of the meeting was on the importance of injury prevention and reduction of concussion amongst children and adolescents playing rugby. The young speakers who play rugby for BVGS or Sutton Coldfield Football Rugby Club shared their exciting stories of practising Pitch Ready, a yoga-based programme developed by Joanna Fletcher, CEO of the YogoJo Foundation, a yoga teacher and mum of 3 rugby players. They were her inspiration to keep kids and teens safe on the pitch and let them enjoy playing the game that they love.

Ben Caddick (Y8), Alfie Fletcher (Y8), Jacob Fletcher (Y10) and Will Maynard (Y8) practice yoga on a regular basis during the co-curricular sessions at BVGS or in the Sutton Coldfield Rugby Club. They explained how practicing yoga improved their post-match recovery, helped guard against injury and improved general flexibility. They also explained how yoga-based practices have improved their performance both on the pitch and at school, and most importantly gave them advantage to succeed free from injuries and with improved body stabilisation especially around shoulders and hips. They advocated for yoga to be included as part of rugby training. Their voices were echoed by other speakers that included Geoff Fletcher, Chairman of Sutton Coldfield Rugby Club, Ryan Stuart, Director of Rugby and Matthew Weaver, Level 2 Coach at Leicester Tigers Academy. Rt Hon Andrew Mitchell, MP, who is a great supporter of bringing yoga into schools and sport to improve kids mental and physical health, was also present at the meeting and kindly arranged for a tour of the Houses of Parliament which everybody greatly enjoyed.