Exciting times ahead with the release of the Play Her Way Strategy (2024-2028)!
This strategy is essentially Season 2 of the successful NSW Women in Sport franchise, following the soaring Season 1 Her Sport Her Way Strategy (2019-2022) which realised brilliant initiatives like 10 World Cups in 10 Years, the incredible rise and fame of superstar teams and athletes, a recognition of a new kind of values-based ROI for women’s sport and significant Government, corporate, brand and sporting code investment in women’s sport. At the grassroots level, we saw girls giving it a go through programs such as ‘Daughters and Dads’, ‘Girls Making Waves’ and ‘How I Roll’.
The golden thread that runs through both Strategies is the strong evidence-based underpinning of the Social Ecological Model (SEM) that works on the principle that to drive societal change, you need to act across multiple levels of the model simultaneously. Working within the complex interplay between individual, relationship, community, and societal factors will help propel lasting change for women and girls in sport. This approach is more likely to sustain impact over time than any single intervention. The consistent application of this approach over two strategy seasons allows time for maximum effectiveness and is a rare opportunity to deliver sustained system-wide change over what will be an almost 10-year period.
There is much talk of the unprecedented interest in women’s sport and the success of our female athletes and teams at the Olympics, Paralympics, World Cups and State of Origins/Grand Finals. This success doesn’t just manifest itself. It takes bold leadership across the entire sport ecosystem driven by clear strategy, investment, collective belief and leaps of faith. The NSW Office of Sport has continued to lead strongly from the front, creating real and meaningful change.
House of Kitch has been privileged be a part of developing both strategies, and to see the real impact of this work. This is about more than sport, it’s about an empowered future for all our women and girls.
Despite the progress there is more to be done. As the Strategy highlights: While an incredible amount has been accomplished, achieving lasting gender equality in sport requires consistent effort over many years to realise sustained population-wide impact.
Despite the collective advancements that have been made for women in sport under the previous strategy and the momentum and interest generated by hosting successful events, significant barriers still exist for women and girls to realise the benefits of participation.
So, what have we got to look forward to in Play Her Way?
Play Her Way will support the next wave of young females on their journey to the top of sport as well as ensure more women and girls can participate in fun, safe and inclusive sporting environments.
Key themes of the strategy include:
She Belongs - Leadership and culture - Developing sport environments based on inclusivity, equality and respect.
She Plays – Participation - System-wide approach to addressing barriers and opportunities for participation for women with a focus on adolescent girls.
She Wins - Partnership and investment - Innovative approaches to commercialise and generate funding through corporate value alignment with women’s sport.
Play Her Way has a key focus on teenage girls. Mental health issues for teenage girls are at an all-time high, with 79% of 14-19 year olds experiencing mild to severe mental health disorder. Poor self-esteem and negative body image are major triggers.
She Plays will implement a system-wide approach to addressing barriers and opportunities for participation to ensure women and girls feel supported, build body confidence and have autonomy and input into their sport choices. This will build participation and shift social narratives, redefining how women and girls play and perceive sport.
“Sport can help uplift young females now and into the future because it’s the best place to learn so many life skills. You learn teamwork, you learn resilience, you learn about committing to something and I think that the friendships you make in sport will last an absolute lifetime.” Maddy Proud, Swifts Netball Captain.
We are living in one of the most transformational moments in history defined by change. At the same time, we are seeing uplifting societal powers from strong female role models and leaders. Belonging, connection and a sense of worth are the new social currency, championed by the heavyweights of our national female sporting teams and professional codes.
While the Play Her Way drop is fresh, inspiration levels are at an all-time high, and this next Strategy is just what we need to drive an empowered and positive future for confident girls and women who feel their own sense of power in a supportive ecosystem.
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