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New content and features to help teachers engage young girls with PE lessons

7th February 2023

The updated Studio You is based on the feedback by teachers and pupils who used the programme in the last year.

Studio You’s Netflix-style library of video content aimed at engaging young girls with PE has been re-launched today with new instructors, more content and greater usability for teachers.

Originally launched in September 2021 and funded by Sport England, Studio You now has 50% of secondary schools in England signed up to it and more than 100,000 11-16-year-old girls have been reached through the campaign.

This update not only sees new content and instructors, but also allows teachers to filter content by Key Stages (3 or 4) and is based on Ofsted’s Intent/Implementation/Impact framework – enabling them to better incorporate it into their lesson planning.

A group of four girls of different heights, stay together and smile while looking at the camera

The new content and functionality comes after a new study from Hopscotch Consulting, the agency behind Studio You, showed nearly half of women in England (47%) didn’t enjoy PE activities, compared to only 26% of men.

Which is why Claire Edwards, This Girl Can’s head of campaign activation said it’s so vital that Studio You is based on insight coming from extensive research done with teachers and teenage girls.

“We know that many girls thrive in a traditional sport setting, that they love to play in a more competitive environment and that this can be a very important part of PE,” she said.

“But our research shows there are also many that don’t, and we wanted to find a way to support these less-engaged girls to get active and start building healthy habits for life to close the gender activity gap, which is stubborn and starts young.
 

We wanted to find a way to support these less-engaged girls to get active and start building healthy habits for life to close the gender activity gap, which is stubborn and starts young."

Claire Edwards

This Girl Can head of campaign activation

“The aim of the programme is to broaden the pool of activity choices on offer through PE so there’s something for every girl, and to provide teachers with some support on introducing new disciplines that they may be less familiar with.”

The Hopscotch research shows the gap in enjoyment between genders is stark, with 57% of women saying PE lessons made them feel judged, compared to 32% of men, while 56% said they felt uncomfortable (vs. 36% of men) and 54% felt anxious (vs. 36% of men).

A further 37% said they had a negative experience in PE opposed to just a fifth (20%) of men.

Studio You takes National Lottery-funded This Girl Can’s ambitions into schools and empowers teachers across the nation to break the PE mould, inspiring positive behaviours and attitudes physical activity in young girls.

Find out more

Studio You