28th November 2007
Research unveiled today by the Youth Sport Trust has found that despite British teenagers often being portrayed as stroppy, overweight, binge-drinking Vicky Pollards, this is not the case for the majority of teens.
The survey of over 1,600 young people and adults reveals many teenagers are health conscious, socially aware and more likely to ditch their X-box for X-ercise.
The findings mark the start of the Youth Sport Trust’s annual School and Sport Partnerships’ Conference, which will focus on how the teachers, co-ordinators and coaches can deliver the vision to offer young people all the opportunities available through sport.
Culture Secretary James Purnell will open the two-day conference, which will also feature 1,500 delegates and guest speakers including include mountaineer Joe Simpson and Olympians Dame Kelly Holmes, the National School Sport Champion, and Roger Black.
Key findings form the research include:
- When asked to rank their top reason for participating in sport in school, almost twice as many young people (33%) said they did so because of the health benefits compared to less than one in five adults (18%).
- The well-known stereotype of “competitive dad” might not be so far off the mark. One in four dads (25%) chose either “winning” or “competing against others” as their top motivation for taking part in sport compared to 13 per cent of mums.
- When asked to rate their favourite leisure activity, “Playing sport” came second in popularity overall amongst teenagers, with one in five (21%) choosing it as their most preferred pastime, beaten only by “going out with friends” (39%). This firmly puts sport ahead of more sedentary pastimes such as playing computer games (only 7% ranked this as their favourite) and watching TV/DVS (only 6%).
- Playing sport actually came top amongst teenage boys with 31% ranking it their most favourite activity followed by going out with friends (30%).
- Nine out of ten (93%) said sport helped them work as part of a team, while four out of five (79%) believed it helped them make friends.
- Seven out of ten (73%) reckoned taking part in sport made them a happier person, while two thirds (66%) said it helped them develop a sense of responsibility.
Legendary Paralympian and mother Dame Tanni Grey-Thompson DBE, who is a Patron of the Youth Sport Trust, said: “These findings from the Youth Sport Trust turn the general perception that teenagers are a waste of space on its head. It’s clear that we are heading in the right direction in helping the next generation make the most out of the opportunities sport and an active lifestyle provide.
“However, it does not mean we should be complacent, we need to reach those youngsters who don’t currently take part in some kind of activity. I want to get the message across that it doesn’t matter if you’re overweight, skinny, have a disability, or worry about what you look like, you can still get a cut of the action – there’s a sport or activity out there for you to enjoy.”
Steve Grainger, Chief Executive of the Youth Sport Trust, said: “These results show that many of today’s teens have bags of passion and enthusiasm to get out there and become involved in sport in all its different guises, and are even more savvy than their parents about the range of benefits sport can provide.
“At the Youth Sport Trust, we are working hard to create opportunities for all young people to access five hours of PE and school sport a week by 2012. We are also keen to ignite the competitive spirit amongst young people, which this research suggests has been lost to this generation, to show our youngsters that competitive sport – and learning to both win and lose – is part of life. There is still much to do, but we are well on the way to creating the best PE and school sport system in the world.”
For a copy of the full press release click here