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The Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation (WSFF) has responded with cautious optimism to the release of new Active People Survey[1] results which show a slight rise in women’s overall participation in sport.

According to the figures released by Sport England, the number of women regularly participating[2] in sport is slightly up from last year’s 2.727 million to 2.761 million (12.8% of all women), while the number of men taking part has decreased slightly. However, the gender gap still remains: over 1.4 million more men took part in sport over the same period compared to women.

Sue Tibballs, Chief Executive, WSFF commented: “We know that there is huge latent demand from women wanting to do more sport and exercise. We are pleased to see that the decline from 2007 has been halted and are now seeing a positive increase in activity numbers, albeit small. However, to turn this small growth into significant growth next year, sports need to work harder to address the barriers that prevent women from taking part”

While the charity is also heartened to see there have been significant increases in once a week participation in netball, athletics and canoeing, there are still too many sports where female participation continues to decline.

Supported by Sport England, WSFF will continue to work with national governing bodies in sport to help them better understand the women’s market, and tailor their product, delivery and promotion to meet their interests and needs.

“We are working closely with Sport England and individual sports organisations to increase their understanding of their female audience. In doing so we believe we can increase the numbers of women taking up, and benefitting from sport and exercise, whether that’s within a formal club environment, or simply visiting their local swimming pool,” Tibballs concludes.

-ENDS-

For more information please contact Ruth Kieran on 020 72731744 or [email protected]

Notes to editors

The Women’s Sport and Fitness Foundation (WSFF) is the charity that works to make physical activity a part of life for women and girls. Today, 80% of women don’t do enough physical activity to benefit their health, while half of young women think it is more important to be thin than healthy and only 2% of newspaper sports coverage is dedicated to women’s sport. WSFF is working to change these statistics by:

•  Providing consultancy support to help sport and fitness deliverers give the customer what she wants
• Working with the media and brands to foster a culture in which being active is attractive
• Persuading senior decision makers to use their influence and resources to help achieve our vision.

[1] Active People Survey 4 – 2009/10

2  Regular participation is defined as taking part in at least 30 minutes of sport at moderate intensity at least three times a week.