MOVE Congress 2019 presentation by Kate Dale, Sport England lead of the This Girl Can campaign, in the track 'Game-changers connecting physical activity and health' on 17 October. Sport England’s This Girl Can campaign is a successful example of tackling barriers to women and girls’ participation by showing positive, real life examples of women who play sport and get active regardless of their body shape and social background. “You can’t be what you can’t see,” is the message the campaign conveys by taking away glossy images of women being active, adopting a “no Photoshop” rule and making empowering statements that embrace reality as a good thing. The campaign has been rolled out in Australia and spun off into a new Fit Got Real campaign in the UK. The secret to its success, Dale said, was “talking to people, not making assumptions and understanding how they are really feeling.” Read more about the track: https://www.movecongress.com/game-changers-connecting-physical-activity-and-health/

1. #thisgirlcan
Changing the
conversation

2. Creating a lifelong sporting habit
We want everyone in England, regardless of
age, background or level of ability
to feel able to engage in sport and physical
activity.
Some will be young, fit and talented –
but most will not.
We need a sport sector that welcomes
everyone – meets their needs, treats
them as individuals and values them
as customers.
Sport England’s vision

3. Very stubborn gender gap
5
5.5
6
6.5
7
7.5
8
8.5
9
Jan-06 Jan-07 Jan-08 Jan-09 Jan-10 Jan-11 Jan-12 Jan-13 Jan-14
Men Women
Source: Active People Survey
1.75m

4. The BEHAVIOUR CHANGE
CHALLENGE
75% of women say they want to do more
exercise…
…yet the combined strength of the
health & fitness industry, doctors &
London 2012 has not closed the gender
gap…
why?

5. Being sweaty Not being fit enough
Family should be more important
Having a red face
Not being good enough
Studying should take priority Not looking ‘made up’
Looking silly
Bringing the wrong equipment
Time with friends should be more important
Changing in front of others
Not being competitive enough
Being the only new person
Exercise isn’t cool
Wearing tight clothing
Not knowing the rules Showing their body
Holding back the group
Wearing sports clothing
Being ‘too’ good
Not appearing feminine
Body parts wobbling when exercising
Wearing the wrong clothing/kit
Developing too many muscles
Being seen as too competitive
FEAR OF JUDGEMENT

6. A COMMUNICATIONS
CAMPAIGN…..BUT NOT YOUR
AVERAGE GOVERNMENT
CAMPAIGN
We needed something
different

7. THE THREE AREAS OF JUDGEMENT
PrioritiesAppearance
8/10
50%
girls aged 11-21 believe there is
too much discussion about
women’s weight in the media
of the same group say they would
like to look more like the pictures of
girls and women they see in the
media
Ability
BUTCH
RUBBISH
FAMILY
EXERCISE

8. Many women thought
they were alone

9. Aspirational imagery
wasn’t proving
aspirational
COMMUNICATIONS DESIGNED
TO ENTICE WERE ACTIVELY
PUTTING WOMEN OFF

10. it’s not about the…
…EXCEPT IF YOU DON’T GIVE A MONKEY’S
ABOUT COMPETITION

11. To liberate women
from the judgements
that hold them back
ROLE FOR
COMMUNICATIONS
• Creating useable
assets
• Positive
• #short
• For everyday use
• For partners

12. • FROM ASPIRATION BASED ON A PHYSICAL IDEAL…
• …TO RELATABLE BODY WITH MENTAL CONFIDENCE
The ‘new aspiration’

13. OUR MANIFESTO
Women come in all shapes and sizes and all levels of ability.
It doesn’t matter if you’re rubbish or an expert.
The point is you’re a woman and you’re doing something.

14. A celebration of active women
everywhere
• Streetcasting and no retouching
• Breadth of activities
• Variety of shapes, sizes & skill levels
• ALL with a ‘don’t give a damn’ attitude

15. • FROM ASPIRATION BASED ON A PHYSICAL IDEAL…
• …TO RELATABLE BODY WITH MENTAL CONFIDENCE

21. Social outreach
Creating and
curating conversation

22. Inviting the audience in

23. WE DROVE BEHAVIOUR CHANGE
2.8m women have done some or more
exercise as a result of This Girl Can
TNS Quantitative Campaign Tracking
1.6m of these women,
started exercising
TNS Quantitative Campaign Tracking
260k more women have
become regularly active
Active People Survey, April 2016

24. MORE WOMEN SUFFICIENTLY ACTIVE
Bring new women to:
BAMELSEG TEENS
2018: A NEW AUDIENCE FOR US TO
ENGAGE.

25. UNDERSTANDING THE LIVES OF WOMEN FROM
LOW INCOME BACKGROUNDS
Challenging present
•Struggle to see a bright future ahead.
•The present is challenging.
Short-term aspirations
•Focused on short-term goals.
•Strong focus on family.
Feel stereotyped
• ‘Shameless Effect’ has left them
feeling demonised.
• A lack of heroes or role models.
Girl power > Feminism
•‘MeToo’ feminism is not relevant.
•Respond to imagery of ‘Girl Power’.
Fear of failure
•Feel like they are consistently failing.
•Sense of pride in overcoming adversity.
Need to communicate to System 1. Seeking escapism. No brand has accurately
represented or reflected their lives.
Reflect realities of gender
inequality.
Inspire, don’t tell.

26. “My life and my choices are not respected”

27. Creating a lifelong sporting habit
What stops you

28. It’s really difficult with
schoolwork – some days I
have over 3 hours of
homework a night.
Teenagers
Resignation
I always think I’m going to
do this, but it doesn’t
happen. I’ll join the gym
but oh its late now.
LSEG (25-35)
If I don’t go for some
reason, if I’m working or
the kids have something
on at school, I feel really
guilty.
LSEG (25-35)
Guilt
I help my sister out a lot
with child care. If I don’t
make the time [for them] I
feel guilty.
LSEG (35-45)
If you’ve only got 20 or 30
minutes, is there any
point in doing it at all.
LSEG (35-45)
Inadequacy
My best friend has the
workout videos but I can’t
last half an hour & I end
up sitting watching her.
LSEG (25-35)
PRACTICAL BARRIERS HAVE BECOME EMOTIONALLY
CHARGED TRIGGERS TO FEELING JUDGED

30. BECOMING SUFFICIENTLY ACTIVE (150 mins)
IS A DAUNTING PROSPECT
Whether you are inactive… …Or fairly active
I just don’t have
an extra hour in
my day.
I just don’t have
the time to drive
to the gym and
then pay for
parking too.
The gym costs
£50 a month.
Where am I
going to find
that money?
I have 4
children, work
full time, work
nights. I just
come home
and crash.
People who go to
the gym have a
life where they
can do that. They
are single.
I used to do more
martial arts but
schoolwork gets
in the way.
Any more
doesn’t fit into
my routine.
Would need
someone to take
care of my
children which
just doesn’t work.

31. Unifying
insight…
Conventional exercise
makes activity
unattainable and makes
women feel inadequate
(…it’s just another
thing for them to fail at)

32. Our proposition:
FORGET CONVENTION.
IT ALL COUNTS.
A celebration of the women who have
stuck two fingers up at convention
and found ways to exercise that fits
with their lives.
A new inspirational and accessible
approach to exercise that positions it
as different sized building blocks that
add up to 150 mins per week

36. Creating a lifelong sporting habit

37. Creating a lifelong sporting habit
It’s not them it’s us….

38. 38
1. Get to know your audience
2. Talk to your stakeholders
3. Use relevant role models
4. Share authentic stories
5. Don’t nag, hector or scold
6. Create conversations
7. Don’t be scared to evolve
8. Go for it – and have fun
#ThisGirlCan
@kate_dale
Lessons learned