EDDIE IZZARD

WOMEN IN SPORT
Check list for sports providers
Is encouraging women’s
participation part of your strategy?
Does your club promote equal
opportunities for women?
Are training sessions aimed
The number of female
role models, such
as cyclists Victoria
Pendleton and Jess
Varnish, is increasing
at a variety of abilities?
Are your training sessions a mix of
skills, drills and match play to attract
women and keep them engaged?
Is there a chance to meet and
chat with other players?
Are training sessions available
at a suitable range of times?
Are the images on your club
website suitable for returning
players or beginners?
Do your club’s communications
motivate people to want to
go along for a session?
summer, providing flexible tennis sessions
with no need to book or pay in advance.
The sessions are sociable, but there is
also some skills development for those
who want to progress. Similarly, Back to
Netball and Back to Hockey have been very
successful, offering flexible sessions which
involve some skills training, but are mainly
about having fun and not tying women into
team commitments.
Taking this further, Women in Sport is
currently collaborating with British Cycling
to find ways of progressing women to a
more competitive standard once they have
been hooked on an informal basis.
IN THE BOARDROOM
England Hockey is one governing body
which is currently performing well at all
levels: increasing participation at grassroots
level, improving elite performance and
getting good female representation in the
boardroom. Also, with Sally Munday at the
helm, it is one of the 10 governing bodies
which has a female chief executive.
Sport England has set the national
governing bodies of sport a target to have
25 per cent female representation on their
boards by 2017. Women in Sport has been
campaigning on this point, but, in light of
research which shows that 30 per cent is
needed to be effective, they want to see
NGBs exceed Sport England’s target.
Women in Sport’s annual report,
Trophy Women?, which looks at female
representation in the NGBs, boardrooms
shows some encouraging progression.
Ruth Holdaway, CEO of Women in Sport
“On the face of it, the numbers look
good, averages show that good progress
has been made, we’re 3 per cent up from
last year and pretty much at 30 per cent.
Six years ago we were at 20 per cent, so
that is good progress,” says Holdaway.
“However, looking at averages does
mask some of the problems, because those
sports which do really well, such as netball
and equestrianism, skew the results. Twenty
nine of the 46 NGBs are still not meeting
the 25 per cent target and they only have
12 months to get there.”
Holdaway says it’s also disappointing
to note that many of the barriers which
existed in 2009 remain: timing of board
meetings which clash with childcare; lack
of senior women as role models and a
masculine culture on boards.
“As well as addressing these barriers, we
would like the NGBs to be turning their
attention to the pipeline of women coming
through and looking at what they’re
doing to encourage talented women to
aim higher,” says Holdaway. “As well as
bringing in independent non-executives
from outside the sector, we want them
to incubate their own talent coming up
through the sport, looking at the structures
and making it easier for women to progress.
We don’t have time to wait for a generation
of women to come through, so NGBs
really need to commit to change: thinking
about the culture of the board, the timing
of meetings and recruitment practises to
create a level playing field for women.”
On the upside, Holdaway says the NGBs
are generally open to change, because they
have learned from the business world that
diversity at board level is not just about
ticking boxes, it’s good for the success of
the organisation. Going forward, Women
in Sport will be working with successful
NGBs to share good practice through the
development of a Checklist for Change.
Finally, there have been two
developments aimed at women this year
which reflect some fresh thinking. Sport
England’s This Girl Can campaign moved
away from air brushed images promoting
sport, while Bury Council’s I Will if You Will
campaign aims to remove practical barriers
to being active, encouraging women to
support each other and exercise together.
Let’s hope they can provide inspiration for
many more initiatives. ●
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sportsmanagement.co.uk issue 4 2015 © Cybertrek 2015