Activity levels are starting to recover following large drops caused by
coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic restrictions, Sport England’s latest Active
Lives Adult Survey report shows.
Covering the period between November 2020 and November 2021, the results show
that while activity levels obviously dropped as a result of restrictions
designed to stop the spread of the virus, they then stabilised and are now
starting to recover.
Between November 2020 and November 2021, 61.4% of the population were
active, and 27.2% were inactive. The recovery started in mid-March 2021 when
there was a rise of 3% to 61.2% of the population getting active (between
mid-March – mid-May), compared to just 58.2% 12 months earlier.
While numbers are still down compared to pre-pandemic, with 600k (1.9%)
fewer active adults and 1.3m (2.6%) more inactive adults, the recovery is a
testament to the work and investment that went into helping people stay active
during a period of unprecedented restrictions.
However, while this initial recovery is good news, the data shows that this
is not universal, with many people struggling, a trend that emerged before the
pandemic and which is why Sport England’s strategy, Uniting the Movement, has such a strong focus on tackling inequalities and
barriers.
When restrictions were lifted in July 2021, the number of people saying they
felt they had the opportunity to be active increased close to levels we saw pre
the emergence of coronavirus.
Team sports participation numbers bounced back close to pre-pandemic levels,
following large drops during restrictions. Football (+2% across mid-July -
mid-September 2021), cricket (+0.3% mid-July – mid-September 2021) and
basketball (+0.3% mid-September – mid-November 2021) in particular have seen
large numbers of returners which is driving the overall recovery in team
sports.
However, because pre-pandemic, the numbers taking part in team sports were
declining, Sport England is continuing to support this part of the sector to
recover and to reinvent how it provides opportunities to play sport and get
active. This builds on the £270million of funding it provided to support
grassroots sport and physical activity early on during the most severe
restrictions and includes its continuing multi-million investment into
community sport facilities.
There is positive news for older people with recovery to pre-pandemic levels
seen in activity levels for those aged 55-74 and 75+ while the report is also
clear which audiences continue to struggle.
Sport England continuse to work closely with partners across the sport and
physical activity landscape, not just to drive demand and increase
participation, but also to ensure the long-term viability of the sector through
a focus on work in areas like safeguarding, coaching, governance and leadership
development.
Overall population numbers hide stark inequalities with women, those from
ethnically diverse communities, those living in more deprived areas, disabled
people and people with long-term health conditions still less likely to be
active than others, and the pandemic has exacerbated the inequalities for the
least affluent, Asian people, disabled people and people with long-term health
conditions in particular.
The gap in activity levels between the haves and have nots has also widened
during the pandemic, with those that live in deprived areas seeing bigger drops
in activity levels than those in more well-off areas. For example, activity
fell 4.4% for those living in the most deprived areas (IMD 1-3) compared to
pre-pandemic compared to a 1.2% for those in the least deprived areas (IMD
8-10).
While initial drops have stabilised for most groups, activity levels for the
younger adults (16-34) have continued to fall at a worrying rate, continuing a
downward trend that started before the pandemic. As the sport and physical
activity sector recovers from coronavirus, it's vital that activity offerings
appeal to this younger generation so they can benefit from the profound health,
social and personal benefits that being active brings.
Sport England also continues to work with Active Travel England, the
government’s agency, to improve cycling and walking infrastructure to make
environments more suitable for the active travel with 51% of people saying they
intend to do more walking, running or cycling for everyday journeys, which is
likely to be linked to the cost of living crisis and rising fuel prices
potentially making driving less accessible.
Tim Hollingsworth, Chief executive of Sport England,
said the Active Lives report shows how activity levels are starting to recover.
“That’s testament to the dedication of all of those who worked so hard to bring
activities back safely when restrictions started to be eased,” he continued.
“Though this report clearly sets out the many challenges that lie ahead in
supporting people to play more sport and lead more active lives, the key
investments and resources we were able to provide during the harshest of
restrictions also played an important role in helping sports get back on their
feet.
“That the data tells us that this initial recovery is not universal is not a
surprise and that is exactly why our Uniting the Movement strategy focuses
resources and funding disproportionally towards the people and places that need
the most support to be active.”
