Joy Of Moving
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Joy Of Moving

Joy of Moving is a national school-based educational programme for children of P4-7 age.


The project aims to inspire children to get physically active and enjoy movement by teaching them a variety of challenges and games-based activities.

During the six weeks in schools, children learn about the importance of physical activity, the Eatwell Guide, meal planning and hydration, all through fun games. 

The programme  delivered in partnership with the SPFL Trust. Funded by Ferrero, Joy of Moving is part of its Corporate Social Responsibility programme which has already helped 4.4m kids move more across 34 countries.

The programme content is developed by independent nutritional, educational and sporting experts in line with the recommendations in the Government’s Eatwell Guide and the National Curriculum.

The SPFL Trust works Hearts, Celtic and Rangers to deliver the programme across at least 60 schools, reaching 3,600 children with 32,400 hours of activity and education.

This is part of the project’s national target to move over 21,000 children and deliver over 190,000 hours of activity and education across the UK and Ireland.

Schools can contact alanwhite@homplc.co.uk for more information should they wish to get involved.

Hearts Head of Community Alan White said: “Joy of Moving is another exciting opportunity for Heart of Midlothian Football Club to engage with pupils and teachers in our community. The programme will help us build on the fantastic relationships we have made over a number of years with our primary school network and allow more young people than ever before, the opportunity to learn about the importance and benefits of key concepts such as healthy and balanced diets, exercise and hydration, while having lots of fun in the process. This highly interactive nature of this programme, both in the classroom and sports arena, is something the pupils and our own coaches are going to love.”

SPFL Trust Chief Executive Nicky Reid comments: “We are delighted to welcome Heart of Midlothian to our Ferrero partnership to deliver the Joy of Moving programme to schools across Edinburgh. “We’ve seen tremendous success in Scotland, as part of a global movement that has engaged millions of kids. We know the importance of a balanced diet, combined with physical activity, but getting that message to land can be difficult. “This is where the power of our clubs come into play, because they have an ability to motivate and excite, very often to amazing effect. They are genuinely trusted to support the communities in which they are based. “We’re sure the addition of Hearts to the programme will only strengthen Joy of Moving in Scotland."

Charlie Cayton, Director of Corporate Affairs and Communication at Ferrero UK added: “In the UK, only 20% of children currently meet the Chief Medical Officer guidelines of taking part in sport and physical activity for at least 60 minutes every day. “In line with our company nutritional principles, Joy of Moving is an unbranded CSR programme designed to inspire active lifestyles in children and help them develop positive habits for adulthood. “We know that enjoying activity is the biggest factor to get kids moving in the primary 3 to 6. In fact, those who enjoy the activity they are doing are likely to do 33% more minutes of activity. Our programme is based on methodology developed by experts, which aims to inspires children to move through play whilst developing key skills in four major areas: physical fitness, motor coordination, cognitive functions and creativity and life skills. “We are proud to have been able to deliver this fantastic programme over the last five years through our long-term partnership with the SPFL Trust and partners. Together we have helped to inspire a passionate approach to moving in over 318,000 children and delivered over one million hours in schools.”