While recent research has shown that the coaching workforce in the UK is relatively diverse in terms of gender, ethnicity and physical/mental health conditions, looking solely at the overall picture can mask the ‘pockets’ of inequality in which diversity is significantly reduced.
In sports club settings and high-performance coaching, only one in 10 accredited Olympic sports coaches are women. Further research also shows a disproportionate underrepresentation of coaches from ethnic minorities at the elite level.
The consensus is that much more work needs to be done to not just bring these populations onto the playing field, but also into sports coaching and leadership roles specifically, to deliver positive change at a deep structural and cultural level.
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