Young women and girls physical activity

Transcription

1 A WSFF Insight Factsheet Young women and girls physical activity This factsheet summarises the recent key findings around young women and girls participation in sport and physical activity. It brings together quantitative data from a number of sources including the NHS Information Centre; Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS); Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF); Youth Sport Trust (YST); Girlguiding UK; and Women s Sport and Fitness Foundation (WSFF). Physical activity - main findings Just a quarter of girls meet current recommended levels of physical activity a week Female drop off in sport starts earlier than males ; and the drop off is also more dramatic Despite PE being compulsory in schools, one in five girls still does no activity in a week. This is twice the proportion of boys For girls, being fit and healthy is the most popular reason for taking part in PE/sport. Other motivations include working as a team, making friends, being considerate and helping them to think about others think sports traditionally played by boys, such as rugby and football, are seen (by society) to be more important that sports played by girls Health Survey for England, 2008 Proportion of young people who take part in recommended levels of physical activity, by gender 29% Little or no activity 24% Recommended levels of physical activity 47% Some activity 44% Just a quarter of girls take part in 60 minutes of physical activity every day compared with a third of boys 24% Meets recommended levels aged 2-15 aged 2-15 Meets recommended levels = at least 60 minutes every day; some activity = minutes every day; little or no activity = less than 30 minutes a day 32% The proportion of girls taking part in the recommended levels of activity a week declines with age, particularly after the age of 10 Source: NHS The Information Centre, Health Survey for England for See note 1 Due to methodological differences between the surveys and the different questions asked, it is not possible to compare the different survey results. Further information about the surveys and respondent bases can be found at the back of the factsheet.

2 Proportion of young people who take part in recommended levels of physical activity, by gender and age 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% Physical activity by age By 15, half as many girls as boys are doing the recommended levels of activity. (15% v 32% respectively) interest in informal sport (and games) declines more rapidly than formal sport 0% Age are less likely to have low activity levels if their parents are active Source: NHS The Information Centre, Health Survey for England for Meets recommended levels = at least 60 minutes every day Participation in formal and informal activity by and age Informal sports/exercise activity levels by parents activity levels 100% 80% Formal sports/activities 35% 52% Low activity 34% 47% 60% Some activity 40% 20% 0% Age Source: NHS The Information Centre, Health Survey for England for 2008 Participated in activity at least once a week. Informal sport/exercise includes: cycling, hopscotch, trampolining, playing around e.g. kicking a ball around, hide and seek, skating, dancing, skipping etc. Formal sport/activities includes: football, rugby, hockey, lacrosse, netball, basketball, handball, cricket, rounders, tennis, badminton, squash, running, jogging, athletics, swimming, gymnastics, work out with gym machines, weight training and aerobics. 49% 35% 51% 13% 15% Meets recommended levels Low activity Father s activity levels Meets recommended levels Meets recommended levels 43% 10% Low activity Mother s activity levels Source: NHS The Information Centre, Health Survey for England for 2008 Children and Young People s Participation Survey, 2009 Proportion of young people who achieved 2+ hours of organised sport in the last week during the school day by gender and age 56% 53% 42% 59% 60% 59% 45% 63% 71% All 5-16 year olds All girls (5-16) All boys (5-16) Source: DCSF, Children and Young People s Participation in Organised Sport, Base: All aged 5-16 in R-11 who attended school or college for exactly 5 days in last week. England only. See note 2

3 Proportion of young people who took part in any organised sport in the last week, by gender and age (in or outside school) 77% 73% 91% 89% 72% 80% 90% 91% 83% 31% 49% All 5-19 year olds All girls (5-19) All boys (5-19) Source: DCSF, Children and Young People s Participation in Organised Sport Survey, Base: All respondents. Data not previously published Organised sport The three charts from the Children and Young People s Participation Survey refer to organised sport (that which is lead by an instructor/coach/teacher see note 2) are less likely than boys to take part in any organised sport a week 73% compared with 80%. The greatest differences between the sexes occurs from age 13 onwards Female drop off in sport starts earlier than males beginning at age 9-12 compared with age respectively. Not only does it start earlier, but it is also more dramatic, which is why the larger differences between the sexes in the older age groups. Between the ages of 5-8 and 17-19, girls activity drops by 66% (from 91% to 31%). While male drop out is less than half (from 91% to 49%) With respect to regular activity one in six girls achieve 5 hours + of activity a week (inside and out of school) compared with one in four boys Proportion of young people who achieved 5+ hours of organised sport in the last week, by gender and age (in or outside school) 20% 22% 19% 24% 12% 10% 15% 29% 34% 18% All 5-19 year olds All girls (5-19) All boys (5-19) Source: DCSF, Children and Young People s Participation in Organised Sport Survey, Base: All respondents. Data not previously published

4 PE and Sport Survey, 2009/10 % of pupils (5-18 yrs) who take part in 3+ hours of high quality PE and out of hours school sport in a typical week, by gender and year group 58% 58% 63% 65% 67% 71% 73% 61% 57% 53% 51% 46% 66% 50% 52% 55% 60% 61% 64% 67% 68% 56% 50% 44% 39% 33% 29% 28% 62% 41% 17% 15% All pupils Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6 Year 7 Year 8 Source: Department for Education, PE and Sport Survey, 2009/10. England only. See note 3 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11 Year 12 Year 13 Primary Secondary School provision of physical activity Almost three in five boy take part in 3+ hours of high quality PE and out of schools sports in a week, compared with just over half of girls The smallest differences by gender are in 1 to 7. The gap between the sexes widens as pupils get older, until by Year 13 the difference is 13 percentage points Overall 78% of girls in 1-13 participate in at least 120 minutes of curriculum PE, compared with 80% of boys. It looks like there is very little difference overall, and this is true for every year group in primary school However, on entry to secondary school a difference in participation levels by gender starts, rising to a 4 or 5 percentage point differential in 10 to 13 % of all pupils taking part in 120 minutes of PE in a a typical week by gender and age 80% 91% 90% 83% 94% 66% 53% 50% 78% 92% 93% 95% 95% 95% 95% 89% 87% 81% 49% 45% 11% 11% 94% 62% 7% 7% All pupils Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6 Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11 Source: Department for Education, PE and Sport Survey, 2009/10. England only. Where information given. See note 3 Year 12 Year 13 Primary Secondary

5 PE and Sport Survey, 2009/10 % of pupils (5-18 yrs) involved in inter-school competitive activities by gender and year group 50% 48% 57% 54% 62% 66% 44% 48% 57% 53% 60% 62% 68% 43% 40% 35% 28% 21% 73% 49% 47% 44% 38% 32% 24% 24% 60% 58% 40% 11% 10% 30% All pupils Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Year 4 Year 5 Year 6 Year 7 Year 8 Year 9 Year 10 Year 11 Year 12 Year 13 Primary Secondary Source: Department for Education, PE and Sport Survey, 2009/10. England only. See note 3 School provision of physical activity Athletics, football and dance are the three most commonly offered sports at secondary school for girls Sports more likely to be offered to girls than boys include dance, gymnastics, rounders netball hockey, trampolining, cheerleading, yoga and equestrian Sports more likely to be offered to boys than girls include cricket, basketball, rugby, golf, table tennis, softball, boxing and baseball Top 10 sports provided at secondary schools for girls Athletics Football Dance Fitness Rounders Netball Badminton Basketball Gymnastics Tennis 99% 98% 97% 97% 97% 96% 95% 94% 92% 87% Source: Department for Education, PE and Sport Survey, 2009/10 Top growth sports in schools 80% 76% 70% 71% 58% 59% 55% 46% 44% 41% 36% 35% Tennis Multi skills clubs 31% 26% 26% 21% 14% Fitness Orienteering Cycling Golf Badminton Table tennis 29% 27% 12% 17% 15% 12% 7% 4% 2% Rugby League Canoeing Archery martial Arts Rowing New sports on offer at schools While there are some core traditional activities on offer by almost all schools (e.g. football, dance and athletics) there are a number of sports that are growing in popularity. In particular, multi-skills and cycling have seen massive increases between and Source: Department for Education, PE and Sport Survey, 2009/10. % of schools offering activities

6 Taking Part Child Survey, 2009/ year olds Have done any sport In last 4 weeks days Top 10 sports and physical activities (weekly participation) Swimming 34% Football 48% Cycling Walking 20% Swimming Cycling 29% 19% Gym 15% Walking 18% 83% 87% 91% 81% Football Game skills 9% 6% Martial arts Gym 9% 6% Tennis 5% Tennis 5% Horseriding 4% Game skills 5% 2008/ /10 Netball Aerobics 4% 4% Cricket Golf 5% 3% Source: DCMS, Taking Part Child Survey, 2009/10. England only. Football includes 5-aside, swimming includes diving or lifesaving, cycling includes bmxing and mountain biking, walking is non-stop for more than 30 minutes), gym includes gym, gymnastics, trampolining or climbing frame, and game skills include hoops, hopscotch, throwing etc, aerobics includes keep fit. See note year olds Female participation for 5-10 year olds has declined in contrast, male participation has increased. Preferred sports for 5-10 year old girls include swimming (34%), cycling (20%) and walking () year olds There is a tiny increase in sports participation for girls and boys aged between 2008/09 and 2009/10 Netball, gym and walking are the top three sports for girls year olds Have done any sport In last 4 weeks days Top 10 sports and physical activities (weekly participation) Netball 23% Football 59% Gym 19% Basketball 21% Walking 18% Rugby 20% 95% 97% 96% 98% Swimming Football 17% Cycling Swimming 19% Badminton 10% Cricket Aerobics 10% Walking Basketball 9% Badminton 13% 2008/ /10 Cycling Rounders 9% 9% Tabletennis Gym 12% 10% Source: DCMS, Taking Part Child Survey, 2009/10. Football includes 5-aside, swimming includes diving or lifesaving, cycling includes bmxing and mountain biking, walking is non-stop for more than 30 minutes), gym includes gym, gymnastics, trampolining or climbing frame, aerobics includes keep fit.

7 Voice of the Young Survey, 2007 Top 8 reasons for taking part in PE/sport, by gender 37% 27% 27% 24% Young women (11-18) Young men (11-18) 8% 8% 6% 6% 6% 7% 5% 7% 4% 8% 4% 4% I like to be fit and healthy It is fun To develop new skills To achieve something I like winning Favourite lesson at school I like competing Great way to make new friends Source: Youth Sport Trust, Voice of the Young Survey, See note 5 What do young people enjoy doing? Spending time with friends is the preferred activity for almost half of all girls, followed by listening to music and then playing sport. For boys, sport is the preferred activity, and more than twice the proportion of boys as girls say this (31% of boys and 13% of girls) For girls, being fit and healthy is the most popular reason for taking part in PE/sport (37%). Not as many boys are drawn by the health benefits with just 27% giving this as their joint top reason for participation alongside it being fun are less drawn to the competition elements of PE/sport than boys half as many said their main reason for taking part was because they like competing Benefits of PE/sport: % of young people who agreed with the following statements, by gender Helps me to work as part of a team Helps me to make friends Helps me to be more considerate Makes me happier Helps me develop sense of responsibility Gives me a way of expressing myself Gives me a sense of belonging Makes me want to help others Helps me to think about feelings of others Helps me to have a voice Helps me to understand my identity Source: Youth Sport Trust, Voice of the Young, % 67% 79% 78% 69% 77% 65% 67% 62% 65% 58% 63% 58% 60% 57% 54% 52% 57% 50% 56% 94% 92% Young women (11-18) Young men (11-18) Benefits to taking part in sport are less likely than boys to say that PE/sport offers the benefit of making them happier and helps them understand their identity are more interested than boys in the benefits of working as a team, making friends, being considerate and helping them to think about others

8 Shout Out! 2007/ Attitudes Survey, 2010 Young women s views on sport 46% 69% Sports traditionally played by boys are seen to be more important than sports played by girls year olds year olds 72% 48% Playing sport and being healthy are very important The importance of sport A study by Girlguiding UK in 2007 found that young women think sports traditionally played by boys, such as rugby and football, are seen to be more important that sports played by girls. This pessimistic view increases with age The same study found that for seven in ten year olds, playing sport and being healthy are very important. However this view declines with age with less than half of year olds agreeing with this statement Source: Girlguiding UK, Shout Out! Survey, UK. See note 6 What young women would like to change about how they look top three responses given 7-11 year olds year olds year olds 33% 21% 8% 6% 14% 23% 14% 9% 9% 9% 7% 5% Want to be thinner Body shape Teeth Nothing Source: Girlguiding UK, Attitudes Survey, Respondents were asked If you could change one thing about the way you look, what would you change? UK. See note 7 Body confidence A more recent study carried out by Girlguiding UK in 2010, found a significant proportion of young women could identify at least one thing they would like to change about their appearance with being thinner, body shape and teeth the three top answers given The proportion of young women wanting to change how they look increases considerably with age at age % would change nothing, but by the time they reach 16-21, just 5% are confident enough to say the same thing Even as young as 7-11, girls are already worrying about their weight with 8% of them wanting to be thinner. Unfortunately, the number of young women thinking this increases sizably with age. By the time they reach one in three young women wants to be thinner

9 WSFF/BMRB - Omnibus Survey 2008 The top 5 items that young women consider essential to have at sports facilities Privacy e.g. cubicles 91% 80% Hair dryers Full-length mirrors 40% 31% 36% 62% Free towels Music 29% 18% 25% 25% year olds year olds Source: WSFF, BMRB Omnibus Survey, Great Britain only. See note 8 How can sports facilities be improved to encourage more young women to get involved? Privacy and hair styling is a particular issue for school-age girls 91% said changing cubicles were essential, 62% said hair dryers and 31% said full length mirrors When WSFF asked young women to consider how sports facilities could learn from shops, providing clean changing rooms was the most popular answer given For year olds friendlier helpful staff and hair styling facilities were also high on their list, while for older girls having a range of things to do in one place and the ability to try before you buy were popular responses Learning from the shopping experience what would encourage more girls to take part in sport? Top 5 answers for young women year olds year olds 57% 62% 43% 43% 43% 29% 36% 34% 47% 44% 45% 41% 31% 29% 27% 24% 14% 19% 12% 15% Clean changing rooms Friendlier helpful staff Hair styling facilities Better areas to socialise Range of things to do in one place Discounts The ability to try before you buy Longer/better opening hours Shuttle buses Celebrities advertise services Source: WSFF, BMRB Omnibus Survey, Question asked If sport facilities were to learn from shops, which of the following do you think would encourage more women and girls to take part in sport?

10 Notes 1 Data taken from NHS Information Centre Health Survey for England (HSE) Children aged were asked questions directly about their physical activity, while the parents of children aged 2-12 were asked the questions on the child s behalf. Existing literature suggests that children are less likely that adults to accurately report physical activities. A total of 7,521 young people aged 2-15 were interviewed in England only. 2 Data taken from the DCSF Children and Young People s Participation in Organised Sport Omnibus Survey, Organised Sport is defined as sport, dance or other physical activity which is organised and led by an instructor like a coach, teacher, sports leader or someone else, including any training for events or competitions. Outside the school day is defined as either before school starts or after lesson ends including the weekend. In and out of school is defined as both during the school day i.e. during lesson time, including PE lessons, lunchtime, or break times and outside the school day as described above. Respondents are asked to recall the previous seven days of activity not including the day on which the interview took place. See table below for bases. England All respondents = 11,821 Male Age 5-8 Age 9-12 Age Age ,878 1,714 1,581 1,544 1,039 Female Age 5-8 Age 9-12 Age Age ,943 1,438 1,567 1,815 1,123 Those aged 5 to 16 in R-11 who attended school or college for exactly 5 days in last week = 6,267 Male Age 5-8 Age 9-12 Age ,177 1,222 1, Female Age 5-8 Age 9-12 Age ,090 1,027 1, Data taken from the Department for Education (formerly DCSF) PE and Sport Survey, 2009/10. All partnership schools in England were surveyed with responses from 21,436 schools (99.8%) and 357 FE colleges (99.4%). PE is the planned teaching and learning programme in curriculum time that meets the requirements of the national curriculum for physical education. High quality is defined as producing young people with the skills, understanding, desire and commitment to continue to improve and achieve in a range of PE, sport and health-enhancing physical activities, in line with their abilities. School sport includes any activity that requires physical skilfulness and is part of the school s planned formal, semi-formal, supervised or led provision. School sport typically takes place out of school hours. England 4 Data taken from the DCMS Taking Part Child Survey 2009/10., and girls age 5-15 were asked about their engagement and non-engagement in sport activities during the four weeks prior to interview. To count, the respondent must have participated in the activity for at least 30 minutes. England 5 Data from the Youth Sport Trust s Voice of the Young Survey, Base = 1,122 young people aged from under 11 to 18; 524 boys and 598 girls. Great Britain 6 Data taken from Girlguiding UK Shout Out! Survey, Bases: girls aged =1,039; girls aged =581. UK 7 Data taken from Girlguiding UK Attitudes Survey, Around 1,200 girls aged 7-21 were asked their attitudes to key social, political and economic issues. UK 8 Data taken from the WSFF s BMRB Omnibus Survey, November Bases: girls aged =56; young women aged = 62. Great Britain Women s Sport and Fitness Foundation 3 rd Floor, Victoria House, Bloomsbury Square, London WC1B 4SE Tel: insight@wsff.org.uk