Energise Me at the Young Carers Festival
How the young carers festival helps voices be heard.
Lots of things affect whether a person is active or not. Our guides delve into some of these reasons and highlight ways to make physical activity more inclusive and appealing to all.
By delving into the lives of inactive groups, we aim to build a deeper understanding of what prevents people from being active. We want to help you connect with these audiences and spark active habits for life.
We will be adding more guides soon so watch this space! Subscribe to our newsletter to get them straight to your inbox.
Funded by Sport England, we teamed up with Bournemouth University to explore the role the workforce could play in increasing LGBT+ access to physical activity and sport.
The resulting Pride in Our Workforce research report reveals risks to LGBT+ communities’ enjoyment of physical activity and sport. But, importantly, it also highlights opportunities and a willingness to drive change.
We commissioned The Behavioural Architects to help us understand the views of vulnerable 14-19-year-olds in Hampshire and the Isle of Wight. We set out to learn how they feel about physical activity. We were curious about what motivates them to do things and what stops them.
When it comes to physical activity, it turns out there are all kinds of barriers preventing teenagers from being more active. We produced two guides based on the research:
“I don’t really like sports, unless I’m mucking around with my friends. I went to a kickboxing taster session with my friend Kate. It was a good stress release but when the instructor said it was going to cost £50 to buy the kit I sort of switched off. He also said I’d have to pay up front for a month. I have to stay late after school sometimes for extra lessons on a Wednesday so couldn’t always make kickboxing, so I guess I wouldn’t be able to do it all.
If I did it at the weekend, I wouldn’t be able to do anything else. I could probably do it two Saturdays a month say, when I don’t have to look after my mum or work at dad’s shop. But I’d need to be able to choose which dates” – Female, aged 15
How can you include youth voice in physical activity provision? Energise Me launched the Engaging Young People: A toolkit resource in 2023 to help teachers and coaches to deliver child-centred coaching and allow young people to influence their own experiences.
The two-part pack provides clear instructions on how to better listen to and understand children and young people, alongside practical activity cards with energising ideas for ice-breakers and engagement techniques.
Helping us tackle inactivity to boost health and happiness
