Research in the world of economic development has discussed the power of women and the impact of their own economic and social growth and the positive impact it has on their family and the broader community. It stands to reason that such power would be evident when it came to physical activity and health. That seems to the basis of a new initiative from Sport England to get more women participating in sports.
You can read the full press release at http://www.sportengland.org/media_centre/press_releases/active_women.aspx, with an excerpt below.
Please note The Women and Sport Conference will be taking place today in London. For more details, please visit http://www.womenandsport.co.uk/
(Excerpt)
New drive to boost number of women playing sport
Sport England is today announcing a £10 million National Lottery funding round to encourage ‘Active Women’ – in a drive to get more women from disadvantaged communities, and women caring for children, playing sport.
The announcement is being supported by Sports Minister Gerry Sutcliffe, the Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation (WSFF) and Olympic gold medallist Denise Lewis.
Denise Lewis helps launch our Active Women funding round
At present, one in eight women regularly play sport in England[1]. Whilst this has increased significantly since 2005/2006[2], women’s participation still trails behind that of their male counterparts, with one in five men active[3][4] Sport England figures also show that women from disadvantaged communities play even less sport, with just one in ten taking part regularly.[5] and the gender gap increasing.
There are a number of challenges facing women wanting to take part in sport. Time constraints, childcare, transport, cost, friends to go with and self confidence can all represent barriers to women’s participation[6].
The ‘Active Women’ fund is the second of Sport England’s competitive themed rounds aimed at addressing some of biggest challenges to grassroots participation. It will help achieve our 2012 Olympic legacy goal of getting a million more people playing regular sport and our focus on building a world leading community sport system.
[1] 2.74 million women (12.8%) play sport three times a week. Source: Sport England Active People Survey July 08 – July 09
[2] Increase of 170,000 between Oct 05 – Oct 06 and July 08 – July 09
[3] 4.16 million men (20.4%) play sport three times a week. Source: Sport England Active People Survey July 08 – July 09
[4] Men’s regular participation has increased by 430,000 compared to 170,000 for women. Source: Sport England Active People Survey Oct 05 – Oct 06 and July 08 – July 09
[5] 714,100 women (9.1%) living in disadvantaged communities play sport three times a week. Source: Sport England Active People Survey July 08 – July 09
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