Developing the future of sport in Wales

For My Welsh Sport_The Conversation, a range of experts share their thoughts on the future of sport in Wales.

Today - World Children’s Day - sees Children’s Commissioner Sally Holland outline how a ‘Children’s Rights’ approach could make the difference for sport.

Did you know that every time a child or young person engages in sport they are taking up one of the unique human rights that they are entitled to under the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (UNCRC): The right of the child to rest and leisure, to engage in play and recreational activities appropriate to the age of the child and to participate freely in cultural life and the arts? 

Many of you reading this will already be acutely aware that a positive experience of sport has a range of benefits including better physical and mental health, enhancing wellbeing and developing important social skills like confidence, motivation, leadership and team work. This would make several more rights a reality, including the right to life and to grow up and be healthy and the right to be the best you can be.

For these reasons I am pleased that Sport Wales has identified that any conversations about the future of sport in Wales should specifically consider the involvement of children and young people. I truly believe that this will make for better decision-making and stronger organisations.

As Children’s Commissioner for Wales I have had the privilege of seeing some excellent examples of initiatives in Wales to ensure that all children have a chance to take up their right to sport and health, including StreetGames and the Us Girls programme, summer Food and Fun clubs and many more. But it is clear that we have a long way to go before we have a truly inclusive sporting culture that every child feels they can play a part in.

The Young Ambassador Programme, run in partnership by Sport Wales, Youth Sport Trust and Local Authorities, is an example of how organisations can involve children and young people in other aspects of their sport. Young Ambassadors are not only role models but are involved in developing programmes and have a children and young person’s representative on the Sport Wales Board. Such opportunities recognise the right to express views and to be listened to on matters affecting them.

Enabling children and young people to participate in this way, beyond participating in the sport itself, can be considered part of a children’s rights approach.

Our children’s rights approach has five key elements: 

1. Embedding children’s rights throughout the organisation’s policies and culture;

2. Ensuring equality for all children;

3. Empowering children by giving them knowledge about their rights and the skills to take them up;

4. Creating opportunities for children and young people to meaningfully participate in developments;

5. Being accountable to children. 

I have heard first hand from children and adults that when organisations commit to a children’s rights approach the benefits to children and the organisation itself can go beyond what adults could have produced themselves. But please don’t just take my word for it; the video and documents which can be found on my website including The Right Way give more details about how a children’s rights approach can work in practice and real life examples of it in action. 

With this in mind I’d like to propose a challenge… to anyone reading this, whatever your role in sport: 

Take time to find out more about a children's rights approach and make a space to discuss this question with colleagues and/or children or young people you work with: 

How might our sport, club/group or organisation change if we took a children’s rights approach and what would be the benefits?

On your marks, get set, go!

Professor Sally Holland

Children's Commissioner for Wales

Now it's time to let us have your thoughts. Use the Comments section below to let us know how you think your sport, club/group or organisation might change if you took a children's rights approach.

Sport Wales has launched 'My Welsh Sport - The Conversation', an opportunity for everyone in Wales to give their view on Wales's sporting future.

For more information and to give your views visit www.mywelshsport.wales

You can read the Welsh version of this thought piece here.