EVERY primary school in Scotland could learn a few lessons from St Ninian’s in Stirling, whose headteacher pioneered the hugely successful daily mile for pupils and teachers.

Elaine Wyllie’s initiative is simple: every pupil, from nursery to primary seven, runs or walks a mile each day around the school’s track, affectionately known as the yellow brick road.

The daily mile has been shown to boost fitness, improve behaviour and concentration in lessons, and, perhaps more importantly, the children love it and it enhances their social skills. The other great advantage is that there is no time-wasting getting into gym gear – they just down tools whenever it takes the teacher’s fancy.

It’s heartening to see the Scottish Government encouraging other schools to take part in this “commensense approach” to children’s fitness. With childhood obesity at worrying levels, there has never been a better time to get our kids outdoors for fresh air and exercise.