Lack of confidence in primary girls stop them from getting active

Data released by children’s charity the Youth Sport Trust (YST) shows a confidence crisis in girls is stopping them from getting active from as young as the age of seven.

The research involved 5,454 boys and girls aged 7 to 11-years-old across England. It shows that even in primary school, almost twice as many girls as boys report that a lack of confidence stops them being active in school.

The research shows a correlation between levels of confidence and levels of physical activity with the least active girls most likely to be affected by lack of confidence. Among less active girls, 32% said confidence was an issue preventing them from being activity.

The study was carried out through the Girls Active programme, which is developed by the charity and delivered in partnership with This Girl Can and Women in Sport. The programme is funded by Sport England through the National Lottery and delivered in over 450 schools.

It consults girls and empowers them to take the lead giving them influence over PE, physical activity and sport, making it more appealing and relevant to their everyday lives. In the past year the programme has expanded into primary schools through Girls Active Stepping Up for Change which sees secondary school-aged girls becoming role models to engage primary school pupils in physical activity. More than 63,000 girls have been reached because of Girls Active.

Ali Oliver, Chief Executive of YST, said: “The fact that confidence levels in girls falls considerably behind boys from as young as age seven is deeply concerning. We know that lack of confidence is a major factor in why girls are less active than boys throughout their time at school. The alarming finding of this research is that this gap starts to open at such a young age.

“At a time when young people are struggling with their mental health, stress and growing levels of obesity, it has never been more important to unlock the power of sport and play to help them tackle these challenges and thrive in life.

“Physical activity and sport have a huge part to play in developing young people’s confidence and resilience. But we know that the gap between girls’ and boys’ levels of physical activity only grows as they get older. It is vital that the confidence crisis is tackled in primary schools if we are to give all young people the best start in life.

“The Youth Sport Trust is working with teachers and girls through Girls Active and Stepping Up for Change to address the barriers girls face and support them to influence the PE and sport offer in their school to build confidence and increase all girls’ participation.”

Overall, boys at primary school said they are more active than girls with 39% of boys saying they do more than 60 minutes of activity a day, compared with 25% of girls.

Through Girls Active Stepping Up For Change, primary and secondary school-aged girls receive training from YST and inspirational athlete mentors. Girls work together at the training and beyond with younger girls being mentored and supported to take positive action in their own schools to improve the physical activity experience for all girls.

 

Read more