City MP Stephen Morgan and Portsmouth leading women in sport, including homegrown Olympic swimming hero Katy Sexton MBE, have launched a new city-wide initiative to break down barriers to opportunity for women in sport.
Mr Morgan was joined by leaders from across Portsmouth’s sporting, academic and business communities at Fratton Park to discuss action to increase access to sport and physical activity among women and girls
The local MP and over 50 leading women in sport from Portsmouth previously met in April to discuss improving grassroots sport facilities in the city following a £100 million investment from the Labour Government.
Today’s event tackled barriers to participation and laid the foundations for a long-term strategy to make Portsmouth a leader in women’s sport.
Actions from the event included:
- Tackle access and affordability of local sports and activity facilities to remove barriers for all communities
- Boost visibility of women and girl’s sport from all ages across the city to inspire greater participation and recognition
- Create a one-stop hub for all sport and activity information in the city, making it easier for people to get involved
The event was in response to alarming statistics shared by Hampshire charity Energise Me using data taken from the annual Sport England ‘Active Lives’ survey:
- 49.1% of girls aged 5–16 in Portsmouth are not meeting the Chief Medical Officer’s guidelines for physical activity
- 1 in 4 adult women (25.1%) aged 16 and over are classed as ‘inactive’ – doing less than 30 minutes of physical activity per week
- Inactivity levels among adult women have remained virtually unchanged since November 2015 – 25.1% (22,800 women) today compared with 24.7% (22,000 women) in 2015 – despite ambitions for a year-on-year reduction
Commenting on the project, Portsmouth South MP Stephen Morgan said:
“Portsmouth has a proud sporting heritage, but too many women and girls still face barriers to getting active.
“That’s why I’ve been bringing together this expert group of leading women in sport. Today’s event is about listening, learning, and leading – to ensure every woman and girl feels sport is for them, both as a hobby and a career.
“By working together, we can start to shift the dial, break down barriers to access and opportunity in sport, and bring investment to our city by making Portsmouth a world leader in women’s sport.”
After competing in professional women’s sport for fifteen years, and now running a local swimming school, Katy Sexton MBE is more than aware of the barriers to activity facing girls and women in Portsmouth.
Commenting on the event, Katy Sexton MBE said:
“As someone who’s spent most of my life in and around sport, I know just how powerful it can be, not just for physical health, but for confidence and self-belief.
“Too many girls are still missing out because they don’t see sport as being for them. Today is about changing that.”
Speaking at the event, Debbie Laycock, Head Coach, Netball in the Community said,
“In every session I run, I see what sport can do for establishing friendships and building confidence. But I also see the challenges when girls drop out, and women say they don’t have the time, the money, or feel like they’re not ‘good enough’.
“This initiative is a game-changer because it brings the whole city together to show that sport is for everyone and we’re going to make sure it’s accessible to all.”
Stephen Morgan and the organising team will now build on the momentum of the event to develop an action plan that turns today’s conversations into meaningful, lasting change for women and girls across Portsmouth.
