A new video-on-demand platform is hoping to inspire teenage girls to get active through fun PE lessons.
This Girl Can’s Studio You aims to increase the number of teenage girls meeting the Chief Medical Officer’s guideline level of physical activity for their age.
Currently 57 per cent of girls aged 13-16 are not meeting the guidelines, with a 52.9 per cent citing a lack of confidence and 57.2 per cent saying self-consciousness is a barrier to them getting active.
Studio You has been created with teenage girls and PE teachers, and is designed to break down these barriers. Supported by the Association for Physical Education, the Netflix-style platform is free and allows PE teachers to teach classes in activities such as yoga, boxing, Pilates and dance – all of which research shows would be popular among teenage girls than more traditional offerings.
Sport England has invested £1.5m of National Lottery funding into the platform, which features more than 100 videos and has been developed by Hopscotch Consulting.
“Many girls grow up to have a negative relationship with exercise,. Studio You is the resource we need to help them have a positive relationship with it instead. And for some girls, PE at school is their only chance to get active – so it’s important to make it fun and get the experience right for them,” said Kate Dale, Sport England’s campaigns lead.
“We know PE teachers want all their students to enjoy PE, but the pressures of school life and being a teenager make this challenging. Studio You is here to help teachers to get girls enjoying exercise, to close the gender activity gap and to help girls build healthy habits for life.”