Concerns over pre and early teen girls health due to lack of activity
We've been speaking to Wiltshire and Swindon Sport about the barriers for girls taking part in sport at school
More than half of girls aged 11-14 aren't meeting activity guidelines, leading to concerns over their health, according to a report by Youth Sport Trust.
We've been finding out about the barriers girls have over participating in school sports and how a Wiltshire and Swindon Sport (WASP) are tackling it.
Dominique Oughton, WASP's Health and Wellbeing Manager, says it's "staggering" that so many girls are not getting the right levels of activity in their lives.
"There are so many benefits to taking part in physical activity, for everybody," she said, saying it helps boost mood, improve bone and muscle strength and can also lead to better performance and learning in the classroom.
And while many girls aren't active enough told Greatest Hits Radio that 64% of girls do want to be more active, inspired in part by the recent female role models such as the England Lionesses and Olympians like Jessica Ennis-Hill.
But what's holding them back?
The barriers and possible solutions
One of the major barriers for girls of early and pre-teen age is body image and the drop in confidence that can come with that, Dominique told us.
"The onset of puberty and having their period, the PE Kit, that's a major barrier," she said, adding: "Girls don't like to be watched by others either, they'd like to kind of do their own activity without being watched."
Dominique also cited peer pressure and disruption to teenage friendship groups also act as blocks for girls getting involved in sport and says that a different method of engagement is needed for girls.
And that starts by tapping into what motivates them.
"We know that activities that are fun and being with friends are the two strongest motivations for girls to take part," she said.
"By encouraging girls to move more in a fun way that they've almost had input to, you're more likely to engage and the girls to take part."
What Dominique feels is key is having conversations with girls, helping them have ownership of the games and sports they're participating in and working together to find solutions to the barriers preventing them taking part.
She added that having a coach or teacher that girls can engage with and build a rapport with is crucial.
Girls less active than boys by age 7
Dominique says that intervening early is key when it comes to getting, and keeping, girls active.
She told us that by age 7, girls are already less active than boys and that gap only grows in the transition from primary to secondary school.
WASP launched their She Can Be Active programme in 2023 and they work to engage with girls about their participation in sport, which helps them put on a festival of sport for girls to try their hand at and, hopefully, be inspired to take up on a more regular basis.
"We have what's called a pupil voice, where we are going out to the schools, we're talking to the girls, we're finding out what activities they would like to do.
"Then at our annual school games event, we will hold as she can be active festival, where the girls who have inputted what they would like to do all come together in a nice environment, and take part in lots of different activities."
It's not just traditional sports, with yoga, dance and Zumba all being included.
And while it's important for girls to be getting enough active movement, its key that the social interaction within the activities is also fun.
"Fun social interaction will certainly help increase those physical activity levels."