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Equity through collective action
Sport NZ is committed to improving the opportunities, value and visibility for women and girls.

The Government's Women and Girls in Sport and Active Recreation Strategy aims to ensure that all women and girls, in all roles, are visible, feel positive about the contribution they make, and value being involved and participating in all levels of play, active recreation and sport. See our research, resources and funding to find out how we are addressing the inequities for women and girls in play, active recreation and sport.

Four uniformed girls smiling in a huddle
Women and Girls Action Plan: Our Roadmap to June 2024

This action plan sets out a practical roadmap for how we will continue making progress towards the three outcomes in the strategy – leadership, participation and value and visibility – until June 2024. It builds on the progress made towards our original commitments and represents an evolution in our response to Government's Women and Girls in Sport and Active Recreation Strategy.

Women and Girls Action Plan
Young Women With Surfboards
The Flow on Effect

The Flow on Effect is changing the conversation around female health, menstruation and physical activity. Whether you’re a young person or an adult supporting a young person, check out the resources and stories covering these topics.

The Flow on Effect
Girls on bikes
Impacts of Young Women’s Activation Fund

Read case studies about the impacts of nine projects supporting participation and leadership initiatives for young women to be physically active. This fund is now closed.

Impacts of Young Women’s Activation Fund
Government Strategy

The Government's Women and Girls in Sport and Active Recreation strategy sets out the vision to enable women and girls to realise their potential in and through play, active recreation and sport by removing barriers in the three priority areas of leadership, participation and value and visibility.

Women and girls strategy
Commitment progress

This report celebrates the achievements over three years to address the under-representation of women and girls in sport and active recreation.

Commitment progress
#itsmymove

#itsmymove explores factors like judgement, lack of confidence and fear of failure that are barriers to increasing participation by young women. Become part of the #itsmymove movement and help young women to be active and healthy their way.

#itsmymove campaign
Cricket banner for It's Time campaign
It's Time
Watch. Follow. Support.

Sport NZ research shows that there’s a gap in support for our female elite athletes when compared to male athletes. A gap in knowledge, how much we read, watch, attend and generally support our women on the world stage.

That’s why Sport NZ has launched the “It’s Time” campaign and is working with sports to showcase what’s great about women’s sport and how you can get in on the action.

Its Time
Stories
NZ Cricket paves way for female leaders on and off the field

NZ Cricket’s Female Leadership Development Framework aims to develop stronger female representation across the sport’s workforce – especially in the areas of governance, administration, coaching and umpiring.

NZ Cricket paves way for female leaders on and off the field
Sport Canterbury looks inward to move forward

Sport Canterbury has taken an interesting approach to ensuring more women and girls are engaged, valued and visible in all aspects of play, active recreation and sport. Leading by example, the organisation spent 12 months focusing on gender equity internally first before releasing their strategy to support the region.

Sport Canterbury looks inward to move forward
Climbing programme helps young women reach new heights

An Auckland climbing programme inspired by Sport New Zealand’s It’s My Move campaign is proving a hit with high school-age kōhine.

Climbing programme helps young women reach new heights
Bringing generations together in the great outdoors

Mother-daughter duo Julie and Bonnie Hansen had the time of their lives on a recent outdoor adventure day with a group of women and girls.

Generations joining for new outdoor experiences
WORD – World Off-Road Riding Department

Focussed on encouraging young people to enjoy mountain biking, WORD is working to build the confidence of young women, encouraging new friendships and fostering a lifelong love of mountain biking. Meet the amazing young women involved in creating and leading the mahi.

WORD – World Off-Road Riding Department
Journeys Central Otago Charitable Trust

Journeys Central Otago identified a need within the community to connect and develop self-confidence, resilience, and outdoor skills in young women. What started off as a pilot focussed on mountain biking and on-foot adventures has grown to involve a co-design approach to meet the needs of the local kōhine.

Journeys Charitable Trust
Sea Sisters

Started just over a year ago, Sea Sisters wanted to create a space for women to meet and be active together. Through the support of Sport NZ Tu Manawa funding, they have embraced an ethos of empowering young women to achieve goals they set themselves.

Sea Sisters
Group of three young women dancing next to one another
#itsmymove newsletter

Sign up to the bi-monthly #itsmymove newsletter to be part of the campaign journey.

Sign up to the newsletter
Resources
Media Analysis
Media Coverage of Women's Sport

Sport NZ and Insertia are conducting a major study of gender balance in sports media coverage and the journalists doing that reporting.

Media Coverage of Women's Sport
Governance
Board Gender Diversity

Supporting good governance through board diversity.

Board gender diversity
Building cultural inclusion in active recreation and sport

A research report which explores key themes around how Muslim women access active recreation and sport in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Read research report
Two girls partaking in a muddy challenge
Young Women's Profile

An in-depth, quantitative and qualitative analysis of young women aged 12-17. This report provides key insights into the perceptions of young women – their behaviour, experiences, needs and desires – to help those working with young women to support them on their physical activity journey.

Young Women profile - September 2021
Related news
Going With the Flow

Designed for youth, educators and outdoor practitioners, ‘Going with the flow’ is a new multimedia resource from Education Outdoors New Zealand (EONZ) which aims to inspire positive changes to outdoor practice and culture for everybody.

Read more
#itsmymove

Sport NZ launched #itsmymove in February 2022 - a campaign to help young women get and stay active their way. It has been developed to address declining physical activity levels in teenage girls.

Read more
Sport NZ announces increase in female board representation

Female voices in governance have been amplified across the sport and recreation sector, with the number of Sport NZ partner organisations achieving the board gender equity target rising from just over half in 2018 to 91% in 2021.

Read more

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