Telegraph Women’s Sport launches new campaign: Girls, Inspired

Telegraph Women’s Sport (TWS) today launched Girls, Inspired, a new campaign to close the gender sports gap in schools and encourage girls to keep active through sport.

Launching in The Telegraph the campaign is putting equality and participation in school sport on the agenda with the following aims:

• To enshrine equality of opportunity in sport in the government’s School Sports Action Plan

• Campaign for new government guidelines, enforced by Ofsted, to put the benefits of PE on par with core subjects

• Encourage schools to empower girls and offer wider choice through ‘Girls Active’ and ‘This Girl Can’ schemes

Today’s launch coverage includes a range of case studies from first person experiences of pupils at schools, to a  school leading the way to make physical education a core part of its curriculum. Launch coverage will also feature other case studies and research alongside opinion and views from across the sports and education sector from grassroots to elite and government.

Anna Kessel, The Telegraph’s Women’s Sports Editor, said:

“According to the United Nations, sport has the power to change the world for women and girls.  And yet in schools it is all too often treated as a second class subject on the curriculum, aimed at the “sporty” kids, and ignoring the evidence that shows girls who play sport are more likely to be high achievers in the workplace, as well as benefit from better health and wellbeing.  As the newly launched Telegraph Women’s Sport initiative pledges to showcase elite sporting talent, we hope also to make an impact on grassroots sport. Generations of women and girls have been lost to sport and physical activity, it is imperative that we turn the tide and make PE a priority right now.”

Adam Sills, Head of Sport at The Telegraph said:

“The benefits of school sports are far reaching from mental and physical wellbeing to the positive impact it can have on academic performance.  It is therefore imperative that our children and particularly our girls, are met with the support, encouragement and sufficient funding they need when it comes to school sports. We believe this campaign has the power to universally increase participation in sports, while shining a light on the systemic inequalities holding back our girls from uncovering their true sporting potential.”

Notes to Editors:

About Telegraph Women’s Sport (TWS):

Telegraph Women’s sport is a new editorial initiative from The Telegraph which seeks to:

• Address the under-representation of women’s sport through increased editorial coverage in digital and print media.

• Celebrate women’s sport through the introduction of standalone channels, dedicated products and the integration of content into existing Telegraph sections.

• Campaign on key issues to inspire women’s participation in sport from the grass roots to elite level, and hold to account those responsible for its development and organisation.

• Grow audiences by investing in specialist women’s sports journalists and encouraging more female bylines.

• Develop the TWS brand to maximise its appeal with readers and /sponsors alike, and offer multiple opportunities for interaction and collaboration.

TWS is accessible through a dedicated online channel on the Telegraph’s news website and apps, on Twitter (@WomensSport) and Instagram (@TelegraphWomensSport), alongside a new weekly newsletter. In print, TWS will include coverage in the Sports section of the daily paper and an additional monthly supplement