The sports participation gap between girls and boys is significantly wider in certain parts of the UK, new research commissioned by Sky has revealed.
The Public First research, commissioned by Sky, maps the sports participation gap between girls and boys across all 650 UK Parliamentary constituencies.
While girls aged 11-18 play an average of 84 minutes less sport each week than boys nationally, the gap ranges from almost zero in Westmorland and Lonsdale to more than two-and-a-half hours every week in Birmingham Perry Barr.
The research identifies clear regional hotspots. Constituencies in the West Midlands and North East have the widest average participation gaps, while those in the South East, North West and Scotland have the smallest.
Public First’s analysis found that whether a young person lives in an urban or rural area is the strongest predictor of variation in the participation gap.
Girls living in urban areas miss almost 100 minutes of sport each week compared with boys, while the gap falls to around 75 minutes in rural communities. The research suggests this reflects a combination of safety concerns, social barriers, greater reliance on organised sport, and lower access to facilities.
Access to sports facilities emerges as another major factor. In areas with the lowest levels of sports provision, the participation gap is 46 per cent wider than in places with the highest provision, reflecting girls’ greater reliance on clubs, teams and organised opportunities to be active. The analysis also found participation gaps tend to be larger among girls from ethnic minority backgrounds.
Sky’s chief sports officer Jonathan Licht said: “Every girl should have the opportunity to experience the confidence, friendships and sense of belonging that sport can bring. Yet too many girls are still missing out, and this research shows the barriers they face are not the same everywhere.
“Closing the gap means tackling inequalities in access and investment, starting in publicly funded settings where opportunity should be equal for every girl. Now is the moment to turn evidence into action and deliver lasting change for girls across the country.”
The findings build on Sky’s Game Changing report, published last year, which found girls miss out on 280 million hours of sport every year compared with boys.
Together, the data shows that while national action remains essential, targeted action in the communities where girls face the greatest barriers will be critical to closing the gap. As the Game Changing report recommends, a critical first step is to make equal access to sport a legal requirement in publicly funded settings, ensuring girls and boys have the same opportunities to participate wherever public money is invested.
Sports Minister Stephanie Peacock said: “Every girl deserves the chance to experience the benefits that sport can offer, but too many are still missing out. That’s why the government is investing £400million to improve facilities across the country, with a focus on underrepresented groups including women and girls, and over £1billion to help schools deliver sport.
“We know that girls face many barriers – from a fear of judgement to safety concerns – and our This Girl Can campaign with Sport England is tackling them head on. The campaign inspires women and girls to take part, and we have a range of programmes dedicated to removing practical obstacles. We’re determined to drive a decade of change for women’s and girls’ sport.”
Closing the participation gap helps everyone win. Public First estimates that empowering girls through sport could generate £570 million in annual productivity gains and save the NHS £73 million a year, with this new research showing the North of England alone could unlock up to £124m in benefits by levelling the playing field.
Alongside the research, Sky has launched an interactive online tool to enable politicians and policymakers to better understand the factors driving the participation gap in their constituency, and the economic and health benefits that could be realised at a local level by closing the gap.
The new constituency level research strengthens the case for the recommendations set out in the Game Changing report.
In addition to equal access to sport in public settings, recommendations include ensuring girls take part in a minimum of two hours of PE every week at school; a national day to celebrate girls and women in sport; helping girls feel confident in their kit through updated guidance; and increasing visibility through targeted tax relief on women’s sport production.
