New report highlights need to focus on supporting diversity & inclusion at every level of snowsport
GB Snowsport and the Home Nations Snowsport Governing Bodies, Snowsport England, Snowsport Scotland, and Snowsport Wales, are pleased today to publish the findings from diversity and inclusion surveying conducted in early 2021.
The report, which is also informed by wide-ranging discussions between the Governing Bodies through the previously announced Snowsport D&I Advisory Group, highlights significant backing from snowsport fans and participants for a greater focus on enhancing diversity and inclusion within the sport. Findings drawn from two surveys commissioned earlier this year demonstrate that, while snowsport has seen some positive developments around diversity and inclusion, there are clear areas for further development which stand to strengthen the sport’s resilience in years to come.
Among the key findings, the report’s findings show that one-in-five people have experienced or witnessed discrimination in snowsport settings, with disabled people, LGBTQ+ people, non-white people, and people from religious minorities all more likely to have experienced those challenges than the overall snowsport audience. The overall snowsport audience is also revealed to be unrepresentative of the UK population, with survey respondents more likely to be white, male, older, and more affluent than the general public as a whole.
Despite highlighting D&I challenges for the sport, the research also reveals that more than half of snowsport fans and participants support commitments to work more proactively to enhance diversity and inclusion in snowsport, revealing clear public backing for continued and new D&I initiatives.
Writing in the report, the Chief Executives of the nation’s four Snowsport Governing Bodies set out their commitment to continue working together to bring about progress in diversity and inclusion in snowsport, and highlighting the clear benefits of working collaboratively to achieve greater diversity.
The report comes at an important time for sport in Britain with recent updates to the UK Sport and Sport England strategies, as well as the Code for Sports Governance, all highlighting the importance of sport working to better reflect the makeup of Britain’s population in 2021.