If you want to make a healthy sandwich don’t forget you’ll need a healthy filling!

For my Welsh Sport_The Conversation a range of experts share their thoughts on the future of sport in Wales.

Rob Baynham, Further Education Sports Coordinator at Colleges Wales, asks whether by focussing on younger or older people we are missing "the bit in the middle". 

In a conversation around the long-term vision for sport in Wales, creating sustainable change and removing barriers to participation, you could ask what this has got to do with making a healthy sandwich? The aim of this blog is to challenge everyone to think a bit more about the filling or more precisely “the bit in the middle”, in this case 16-19 year-old young people.

Many government and Sport Wales initiatives to improve physical activity focus on younger children and early years – which makes a lot of sense. Others promote subsidised or new activity for the elderly – another very credible area for development.

However, my question would be: have we previously chosen two nice slices of granary bread, some healthy cholesterol busting low salt spread and then filled it with a huge bag of greasy chips? In other words are we too focused on interventions for the very young and older people while unintentionally forgetting the potential benefits of the people in between?

Working in a sector where there are 50,000 young people in full-time education, it is clear to see that some of the previous interventions both long and short term have not been totally successful.

For example, we know from the Sport Wales FE Survey in 2015 that as many as 50% of female learners in some vocational subject areas indicated “no current activity” as a survey response. With a bit of number crunching this relates to a cohort of 10,000 – 12,000 young female students who are potentially totally inactive, despite numerous recent initiatives in schools and community sport. So how can we change the filling to make it more healthy? Or what is the benefit of targeting the middle?

A short-term approach would be to create new activity focussing on getting these students to be more active without looking at the wider picture. There are obvious physical, mental and social benefits to getting the groups mentioned above more active, but do we always think about what happens next?

Using childcare students as an example, if they are inactive is it fair to assume they will be less enthusiastic about leading physical activity when working in early years settings? If they were a little more active on a regular basis, would they be more keen to lead physical activity sessions with the children they are working with, but maybe currently lack the confidence / skills to do so?

If they are also given some basic training in physical literacy, playmaker training or Dragon multi-skills as part of their studies (all relevant, low cost and student friendly) would this increase their confidence to lead new activity as well as becoming more active themselves?

The knock on effect of this type of work could be the following:

• More activity among female FE students  - potentially leading to them being more active and healthier moving into employment and as parents in their twenties and thirties.
• More activity for children in early years settings / pre-school – more physically literate children entering primary schools.
• More skilled and active workforce in childcare settings – more opportunities for sustainable physical activity sessions in early years settings.

In addition to these examples, targeting this age group could impact on other areas linked to a childcare student:

• If they enjoy leading activity for children could they develop these new skills to also lead activity for staff and parents in childcare settings?
• How can they be trained to modify activity to the available environment – using non-traditional spaces for sport and activity therefore creating new opportunities?
• Could this process also encourage young people to set up their own businesses, holiday camps and activity sessions for early years?

There are other groups of students on vocational courses in Further Education where similar interventions could have a knock-on effect, improving “fitness for employment” and having an impact on the future clients / customers they will come into contact with. Travel and Tourism, Health and Social Care, Hair and Beauty therapy and Hospitality are all examples.

On a more general level, with 50% of young people aged 16-19 studying in FE colleges in Wales, there are a huge number of potentially inactive future employees and HE students in this sector. Maybe of more concern, many of these young people will also be parents in the medium or not too distant future.

CollegesWales, in partnership with FE Colleges and Sport Wales, are developing new projects working on this type of intervention with young people. The aim is to create new activity that has a positive knock on effect for the target audience for the next 2-3 years. Challenges remain though when funding and projects tend to be over 2-3 year cycles and when sport and physical activity is not always top priority in education, compared to numeracy, literacy and inspection processes. 

Going back to the childcare theme, maybe a bit more kidology is needed?

• How can we convince young people that activity is a better option than inactivity, that it will help them in future employment and gradually becomes their idea to make this lifestyle choice?
•  How can colleges and qualification providers be motivated to embed physical activity, wellbeing and leadership as a priority for all learners when faced with other challenges in raising educational standards?
• What strategic change is needed at a national level to help realise the benefit of interventions linked to softer employment skills and personal development of young people aged 16-19?

In terms of the sandwich if you get the filling right then surely everything will taste a bit better?

Rob Baynham

The Welsh version of this thought piece can be read here. 

Now it's time to let us have your thoughts. Use the Comments section below to share your views. For more information and to give your views visit www.mywelshsport.wales

Sport Wales has launched 'My Welsh Sport _ The Conversation', an opportunity for everyone in Wales to give their view on Wales's sporting future.