Why inequality in sport and activity costs £15bn a year
New Sport England research calculates that inequalities in the activity levels of adults cost £15.6bn a year. With a renewed political will to tackle inequalities and reduce the burden on public health, the research makes the unequivocal social and economic case for getting everyone active.
Today Sport England - alongside our partners State of Life, Sheffield Hallam University and Manchester Metropolitan University - has released a seminal report on the annual social value of sport and physical activity, which is calculated at a staggering £107.2bn.
The value is comprised of £96.7bn in wellbeing value for adults, children and young people participating and volunteering in sport and physical activity - and a further £10.5bn in wider savings to the health and social care system. This includes billions of pounds in savings for the NHS through the prevention of illness, reduced visits to the GP, and a reduced need for informal (unpaid) care.
The report illustrates the profound importance of the sport and physical activity sector for our national well-being, health and economy; we build wealth through health. Muddy kickabouts on local playing fields, country walking groups, urban swimming pools, town gyms and community dance classes are more than just exercise or spaces to move; they’re integral to the long-term health and wealth of the country.
But the report also makes clear that inequalities in activity levels represent a major social and economic burden. Sport England has developed a unique and important tool - The Inequalities Metric - to create a more holistic measure of inequalities in physical activity levels. By also acknowledging the impact of intersectionality and identifying which factors are most strongly associated with being less physically active, the metric groups the population by the number of characteristics of inequality a person has (either 0, 1, or 2+).
The Inequalities Metric identified the additional social value that would be generated if the physical activity levels of the whole adult population - and those most likely to experience inequalities - rose to the same level as adults with zero characteristics of inequality. This has been costed at £15.6bn a year, demonstrating the major wellbeing and economic loss driven by inequality in sport and physical activity.
Essentially, it’s a huge amount of unrealised social value; we are missing out on over £15bn a year in additional well-being value and savings for the wider health and social care system, relieving the burden on the NHS.
But why does missing out on this social value matter? Because as well as leading healthier and happier lives, more active people are less likely to need to access health services, more likely to be able to work, and better able to contribute to their community. It’s fundamental stuff: the backbone of society. And with a gloomy economic outlook and the NHS under immense pressure, it’s clear that we can’t afford to miss an opportunity like this.
The average active adult generates a well-being value of £2,500 a year. But for people and communities that experience the most intersecting characteristics of inequality - for example, a person who is disabled and on a low income - the well-being value of taking part in sport and activity is £3,800 - higher than for someone with only one or no characteristics of inequality
We gain more for society - in social well-being and savings to the public purse - by making sure that the people who experience the most barriers to taking part in sport and activity can participate. That is why tackling inequalities in participation is at the heart of Sport England’s Uniting the Movement strategy and underpins everything we do, with our resources unashamedly and disproportionately targeted to where they are most needed.
We also know how characteristics of inequality are often inextricably linked with where you live, with deprived communities often the least likely to be active. Our most recent Active Lives Adults Survey found that less than half of adults (49 per cent) are active in Barking and Dagenham – one of the most deprived areas in the country. In stark contrast, 79 per cent of adults are active in the highly affluent area of Brighton and Hove.
Sport England’s place-based approach sees us working in partnership with local organisations and leaders across the country, in order to create opportunities to get active that actually work for the local community. It’s local organisations that know who local people are, what they need to get active, and the community assets they have around them that can help.
Our research today affirms yet again why a laser focus on tackling inequalities in activity levels matters and why it must be prioritised. There is a deep reserve of annual social value and public savings that can be unlocked - £15bn worth - and it’s our job to grab it.
Regardless of background, bank balance or ability - if everyone can be active, then everyone wins.
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