Nik Trivedi – Sporting Equals

Misinterpretation = Misunderstanding

Policy Context

• Localism, stronger civil society, shrinking the state

• Reducing public sector resources - new ways of delivering public services

• Local partnership working absolutely essential to promote inclusion

• Maximising opportunities from the profile of sport post Olympics and Paralympics

Why It Matters

• Not just a moral argument! • Current economic challenges mean sports providers face

considerable challenges to ensure their sports remain sustainable and adjust to changing times.

• Britain’s population is changing. • Level Playing field

Equality? Know your patch!!

• Identify who is not participating and why (insight)

• Will enable evidence based judgement as to what needs to be done

What we know

• The BME population is growing and changing

• Different variables within this audience profile e.g. age – significant population of young people in England are BME. Growing at a fast rate.

• Different ethnic groups have different needs which is reflected in participation rates that vary from 7% to 35%

• Fewer than 1 in 5 members of some BME communities are participating in physical activities as frequently as once a month

• An extensive and growing BME sports sector exists that NGBs and sports providers can tap into

Describe some of the barriers to participation for BME groups that you are aware of.

QUESTION – In groups of four (15 minutes)

Our Approach

BME attitudinal

Organisational

Cultural

Social and Economic

Barriers to Participation

How

• Community Engagement - Acknowledging the importance of faith & culture

• Marketing

- Messaging, Incentives, motivation and role models

Community Engagement

• Engage a range of people and extend the scope of those engaged to help understand expectations

• Consider promotion techniques, often pictures and visuals are a good way of getting messages across to BME communities

• Find out which BME community groups exist locally i.e; there may be a Polish group or a local Hindu forum who you could engage to attract new interest to the sport

Community Engagement

• Form partnerships and build relationships with grass roots BME & community organisations delivering sport and offering sport

• Use familiar cultural settings such as mosques and community centres for both recruitment and as venues for activities

• Recruit local ‘activists’, as an effective method of community engagement. The presence of these individuals can influence attendance and break down barriers particularly with parents and elders

The importance of Religion and Faith

• Large numbers of BME communities define themselves by faith rather than ethnicity

• Faith centres hold the key to community engagement, and are well placed to offer outreach services such as sport

• Faith centres are a central community resource accessed by individuals who may otherwise be disengaged from wider society due to culture, religion or language barriers

Faith Centre Model

• Engage faith centres with infrastructure to deliver and promote sports opportunities. Many with footfall of 30,000+.

• Approx. 250 major faith centres in London, Midlands and Yorks & Humber. Total footfall approx. 2 million.

• Faith centres want to keep their communities & YP engaged.• Project to broker relationships with sports clubs, NGBs, CSPs.• Research is key.

The importance of Religion and Faith

• After Christianity, Islam, Sikhism and Hinduism are the three main religions within the UK

• Mosques, Gurdwaras and Mandirs are a central part of these communities, and have a broader role in light of outreach, education and welfare services

• When considering sport & faith include single sex provision, religious dates, fasting periods and the appropriateness of clothing

Marketing to BME communities

• What is considered to be mainstream mass market media may not always resonate or achieve significant penetration within BME communities

• The influencer network is of far greater importance within BME communities, key gatekeepers need to be persuaded of the benefits of sport

• Language is a considerable barrier for first and second generation

members

Ethnic Media

• BME communities have an established and growing variety of specialist media content providers, across broadcast, radio, online and social media

– change attitudes and promote wider benefits of sport– encourage BME participation in sport & physical activity

• Its about specific messages to specific groups in a specific way (sustainability) • Combined audience of over 5.0 million BME individuals

Incentives and Motivation

• Key messages to encourage participation in sport

Opportunities

• The sports sector should develop strategies to engage with faith centres and commit additional resources to help broker relationships with faith centres as they will need support to work with mainstream providers.

• There is a need to train and up-skill some areas of the current sports sector to provide them with the confidence and understanding to engage with faith based groups.

• Sport needs to be repackaged in light of health and wellbeing outcomes to ensure the benefits of sport resonate with faith based communities.

Quiz?

1. Which category of sports men or women have been voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year the most times?

a. Footballersb. Cricketersc. Athletesd. Motor racing drivers

1. Which category of sports men or women have been voted BBC Sports Personality of the Year the most times?

a. Footballersb. Cricketersc. Athletesd. Motor racing drivers

2. How many world title fights did Mohammed Ali contest under the name Cassius Clay?

a. zerob. onec. fived. ten

2. How many world title fights did Mohammed Ali contest under the name Cassius Clay?

a. zerob. onec. fived. ten

3. Which of these is not one of the 5 colours of the Olympic rings?

a. blueb. yellowc. blackd. white

3. Which of these is not one of the 5 colours of the Olympic rings?

a. blueb. yellowc. blackd. white

4. Andy Goram has played which two sports for Scotland?

a. Football and Hockeyb. Football and Cricketc. Hockey and Cricketd. Football and Rugby

4. Andy Goram has played which two sports for Scotland?

a. Football and Hockeyb. Football and Cricketc. Hockey and Cricketd. Football and Rugby

5. In which country did the game of Squash originate?

a. Englandb. Irelandc. Franced. Japan

5. In which country did the game of Squash originate?

a. Englandb. Irelandc. Franced. Japan