Changing population, changing participation

England is changing and not just around the edges.

Who we are as a nation, how we live, where we live, how long we live for and what we need to stay well are all shifting. And while these changes are gradual, their impact on sport and physical activity will be profound.

That is the central message running through Sport England’s latest Horizon scanning series on demographics.

Together the three reports offer a clear, evidence-led, picture of how population change is reshaping participation, demand and delivery, and why the sector cannot afford to stand still.

Because if we want sport and physical activity to stay relevant in ten years’ time, we have to design for the realities people are living today.

These reports are a prompt – and a practical steer – for all of us to build offers that reflect modern lives, strengthen belonging and reduce inequality rather than unintentionally reinforce it.

But this is not me presenting a distant future or abstract trends.

These shifts are already happening and they are already influencing who feels welcome, who takes part and who is being left behind.

Identity, belonging and a more complex England

Our first report focuses on identity and belonging.

It highlights how England’s population is becoming more diverse and how identities are becoming more complex and intersectional – changes that make communities harder to define, to understand and to monitor when using traditional approaches.

This first analysis also points to the way life stages are shifting – becoming more individual and less defined by chronological age – and it argues that sport and physical activity approaches should focus less on age, and more on lifestyle and life stage.

The opportunity for the sector is significant as sport and physical activity can foster social cohesion, but only if opportunities and the workforce reflect diverse interests and needs, and if communication and language barriers are tackled to make opportunities accessible.

Ageing, health and widening inequalities

The second report turns to ageing, health and disability.

England’s population is ageing and becoming more diverse in later life, with the report noting that the older population will continue to grow and diversify, reshaping what ageing looks like for future generations.

It also highlights a crucial tension: more people will live longer in good health, but inequalities in health outcomes are deepening, shaped by factors including income and ethnicity.

This creates diverging experiences of later life and a clear imperative for inclusive and accessible opportunities that reflect diverse needs. 

The report is equally direct about the role of sport and physical activity in prevention, supporting physical health, mental wellbeing, independence and social connection, and the responsibility the sector has to act intentionally where inequality is most entrenched.

Generations, place and the geography of opportunity

Lastly, the third report focuses on generations and place, and how geography shapes participation and delivery.

It describes how England remains separated by socioeconomic background and how economic uncertainty risks widening gaps between social groups and reinforcing existing regional inequalities.

It also points to urbanisation pressures alongside the risk of decline or disconnection in some rural and coastal communities and the role that sport and activity can play as community anchors, with local clubs sometimes doubling as social and support hubs.

For young people the report emphasises that their experiences are changing in fundamental ways – shaped by digital environments, evolving education landscapes and pressures on wellbeing – all of which affect how, where and why they engage in sport and physical activity. 

A moment for leadership

What links all three reports is a consistent conclusion: population change is not a side issue for sport and physical activity, but a defining challenge of the next decade.

These demographic shifts cut across policy, funding, workforce, facilities, design and delivery.

They challenge outdated assumptions about who participates, why they participate and what participation even looks like in modern England.

But they also present a powerful opportunity: to listen more closely to lived experience, to work across sectors and to design opportunities that reflect real lives rather than idealised ones so that sport and physical activity can play a central role in building a healthier, more connected and a more equal England.

The question is not whether change is coming. It already has. The question now is whether the sector is bold enough to respond.