According to the results from Sport England's latest Active Lives Children and Young People Survey Report, more than half of all children and young people (52.2%) aged from five to 16 are not meeting the Chief Medical Officer’s guideline of taking part in an average of at least 60 minutes of sport or physical activity a day.
The results also show that significant inequalities remain in activity levels, with Black (42%) and Asian (43%) children and young people, and those from the least affluent families (45%), still less likely to play sport or be physically active than the average across all ethnicities and affluence groups.
The outcomes are, of course, concerning, not only for the current physical and mental health and wellbeing of our children and young people, but also for their future too – if people aren’t active when they are children, they are also less likely to be active as adults.
Starting young and local
However, seeing results like these, has led the APNO and Active Partnerships network – a group of 42 organisations who are immersed in their places and that work with local communities and local partners in different parts of the country to help everyone live a more active life – to underline their commitment to working with children and young people.
It’s why we’re more determined than ever to support this key group – especially those who face barriers to be active – and to help them develop a life-long love of sport, physical activity and movement.
This week, around 100 people from across the Active Partnerships network and Sport England will be coming together in Birmingham to explore how we can better support young people through our work in place, as evidence suggests that the place where a person is born and lives has a huge influence on how likely they are to be physically active.