Trans Inclusion in Sport and Physical Activity
At Gendered Intelligence, we believe sport and physical activity are for everyone!
However, statistics show that trans people are particularly underrepresented in sport and physical activity (SPA).
Whilst nationwide figures show that on average 33% of men and 45% of women are not active enough for good health, this figure rises to 60% for trans people, and 64% for those who don’t identify as either male or female.
[Source: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Trans People and Physical Activity: What You Need to Know, National LGB&T Partnership, 2016, referencing Health Survey for England, 2012, and the Partnerships own survey of LGBT people, 2015]
Gendered Intelligence aims to support SPA organisations to make a positive, practical difference to trans inclusion
We know that by increasing knowledge and confidence, we can enable SPA providers to create and implement realistic, welcoming, everyday trans inclusive policies and practices.
We do this through providing consultancy, information, guidance and training to all types and levels of SPA providers and settings.
We worked with National and international governing bodies, leisure centres, university sports facilities, swimming facilities, architects specialising in sport facilities, school / college PE staff, and local grassroots clubs.
Consultancy
We can provide consultancy around policy development, guidance writing, communications, FAQs, monitoring and reporting, problem-solving, research and outreach, in-house training cascade, and more.
Training
Full day training (and its remote equivalent of 4 x 2hr sessions)
- for National Governing Bodies, Active Partnerships and other organisations that need to make decisions and set policy around trans inclusion
- for front line organisations needing to implement trans inclusion in a practical day-to-day way
Short training (half day, 2 hour and remote equivalents) to build basic trans awareness amongst staff and support inclusive practices
Feedback
"Excellent session, great balance of being informative, thought-provoking and enjoyable - and practical. The session really helped gain a positive, informed understanding of this subject area. [The trainer] delivered this extremely well and did a great job” British Gymnastics
“Great session, has given me a knowledge foundation that gives me confidence to be more trans inclusive day to day.” – Dan Roberts, Development Officer (Workforce), Greater Sport
“Great variety of presentation and interaction. Very interesting and insightful. Made complex subject understandable. Lovely trainer who created an environment where people could be open and show their naivety.” - Jane Holdsworth, Equality Standard Assessor
“I have realised I didn't know half as much as I thought I did… there's lots more to learn.” – [Anonymous participant]
“Really insightful workshop. Incredibly delivered. Everyone needs to do this training.” – Luke Williams, Campaigns & Partnerships Lead, Snowsport England
“We were very pleased with the high level of professionalism and support provided by Gendered Intelligence in developing our trans guidance” - Funke Awoderu, Senior Inclusion and Diversity Manager, The Football Association
Forthcoming
- Further one-day training will be available in remote format for NGBs and Active Partnerships; each organisation will be offered free places for 1 or 2 people
- We are developing e-learning packages to increase accessibility, especially for those working / volunteering in front-line clubs
- Elements of our qualitative research will be made available online, illustrating the issues trans people can face in accessing SPA, and good practice examples of inclusion
- Additional iterations of any course are available for individual organisations on a paid-for basis, as is our consultancy
Background and Experience
Gendered Intelligence has been working to improve the inclusion of trans people in sport and physical activity (SPA) almost since the organisation was founded in 2008. From the early days, we knew trans people struggled to access sport, but that they loved it just as much as anyone else when enabled to take part. Activities on our summer camps and trans only swimming events showed us that young trans people wanted to take part and had a great time when they did!
Since then, we have worked in a variety of ways to improve trans people’s access to SPA:
- Working with the Football Association, developing their ground-breaking Grassroots ‘Guide to Including Trans People in Football’ (issued Mar 2016); currently working on a refresh / update (2020).
- Consulting with / training several National Governing Bodies such as the Royal Yachting Association, English Cricket Board, British Gymnastics, England Golf and BUCS (British Universities & Colleges Sport), and presenting to World Rugby around trans inclusion.
- Working with front-line providers of sport and leisure, including leisure centres, university sports facilities, swimming facilities, architects specialising in sport facilities, school / college PE staff, and local grassroots clubs.
- Foregrounding a ‘Sport’ strand in our 2018 conference ‘TransForming Spaces’, with speakers from the FA, Brighton Flat Track Roller Derby team and Sport England.
- Presenting on trans and non-binary inclusion at Pride Sports’ 2019 conference and in their 2020 webinar series.
- Alongside this, we aim to encourage trans people themselves to take up, or return to, physical activity and sport and all the benefits that can bring.
Working with Sport England
In 2019, our broad spectrum experience and multiple perspectives led Sport England to commission GI to carry out a major three-part project: - Qualitative research to inform new inclusion guidance (completed) - Training in support of trans inclusion (ongoing) - Written trans inclusion guidance (currently in development)
The support of Sport England has been vital in enabling us to take our work in the SPA sector to the next level – look out for more information and new developments in the coming months!
Contact us
Visit our main Training and Consultancy pages for more details
You can also get in touch with us at [email protected] or [email protected]
We are very happy to have an exploratory conversation about how we might be able to help.