Culture Secretary Nicky Morgan MP saw how the Premier League Primary Stars programme engages young people in and out of the classroom when she visited a project run by Arsenal in the Community this week.
Morgan visited Ashmount Primary School in north London and took part in a PL Primary Stars reading session before going into the playground to watch Arsenal coaches deliver a PE lesson.
"Having somebody coming in from outside who the children can empathise with and having them and the coaches saying that reading and also maths are really important, it's obviously having a very positive impact," Morgan said.
"The fact that it's helping to build confidence and resilience and skills, clearly they are all having a fantastic time."
PL Primary Stars was launched in March 2017 and uses the appeal of the Premier League and professional football clubs to inspire children to learn, get active and develop valuable life skills.
There are now 106 football clubs delivering Primary Stars across England and Wales, with more than 16,000 schools involved in the programme.