Girls Active is delivered by the Youth Sport Trust, and was set up in 2013 following a 12 month action research project supported by Women in Sport, and funded by Sport England.
The main objective of Girls Active is to help teachers and teenage girls understand what motivates them to take part in PE and sport; developing an action plan based on their feedback on how it should be delivered. In addition, Women in Sport helped some of the girls to become role models within their school, setting up leadership groups which focus on how they could make PE and physical activity more appealing to their peers.
By age seven girls are already less active than boys and this disparity widens as they move from childhood into adolescence. Secondary-age girls are more likely to experience barriers to participation than boys. The biggest drop-off in participation occurs during the transition from primary to secondary school with disruption to friendship groups and declining body confidence affecting girls’ participation in PE and sport.
Girls Active is making a positive difference, with schools reporting that it is improving girls’ attitudes to school, raising confidence and self – esteem, and increasing levels of participation in sporting activities and fitness among girls. Women in Sport now manage the Girls Active Awards, on behalf of the Youth Sport Trust, which celebrate and showcase the incredible impact girls are having in inspiring and engaging girls to get active and enjoy PE and physical activity.
Nominations are made in five categories: Leader, Influencer, Personal Growth, Best Girls Active Group/ GLAMS/ Squad and Future Leader (primary school category).
Read more information on the Girls Active Awards here.