Facilities
Having appropriate facilities for all participants can help to engage and maintain more players, officials, fans, spectators, and volunteers.
Providing appropriate and accessible facilities for all participants can help to engage and maintain more people in sport, including as players, officials, fans, spectators, and volunteers. 10, 22, 74
LGBTIQ+ participants have reported that sports facilities, especially bathrooms and changerooms, are locations where they often feel uncomfortable due to gender expectations and experiences of harassment, abuse, and/or discrimination. This is especially true for transgender and non-binary participants. 2, 10, 13, 18, 21, 24, 26, 28, 37, 40, 41, 42, 63, 72
Failing to make facilities available for diverse genders (e.g. only unlocking male toilets/changerooms during training despite requests from non-binary or transgender participants for access to the designated female facilities) can potentially amount to discrimination under Federal, State or Territory legislation. 72, 75
Suggestions for practice
Universal design principles can help make existing or new facilities more inclusive. 72 Some general suggestions include:
- Having inclusive signage at facilities to clearly indicate that the space is welcoming (e.g. pride flags, safe space stickers) 49, 76
- Creating or modifying changerooms and bathrooms to create private spaces (e.g. individual, lockable cubicles with toilet, shower, and room to change). If space is limited to create individual cubicles other options can be, taller doors, room dividers, shower curtains. 21, 24, 28, 37, 49, 72, 75
- Ensuring that participants can use the bathroom/change rooms/facilities that align with their gender identity. 74
- Changing the use/signage on some of the facilities to gender neutral to provide an option where people of all genders are comfortable (especially non-binary and trans participants). 10, 21, 28, 72, 75
- Ensuring that all bathrooms/changerooms have sanitary bins. 72
- Communicating facility limitations to potential participants (if a club/organisation has limited control over the available facilities that they hire). This demonstrates awareness and consideration of gender diverse participants and allows them to make their own choices. 28
Resources and reading
- Let’s talk inclusion: Key considerations for the inclusion of 2SLGBTQI+ athletes, opens in a new tab, SIRC, (26 June 2024). SIRC has partnered with Canadian Women & Sport to build a new resource for sport leaders and organizations: Key Considerations to Promote the Inclusion of Women, Girls, and 2SLGBTQI+ Athletes. Here, we dive deeper into what’s needed to foster more inclusive sport spaces for 2SLGBTQI+ athletes. We have summarized 5 key areas of focus that were highlighted in the academic literature to help increase 2SLGBTQI+ inclusion in sport. These areas are (1) Policies, (2) Language, (3) Visibility, (4) Culture, and (5) Facilities. We will go through each area in more detail below.
- Guidelines for the inclusion of transgender and gender diverse people in sport, opens in a new tab, Australian Human Rights Commission in partnership with the Australian Sports Commission and the Coalition of Major Professional and Participation Sports, (June 2019). These Guidelines have been developed to provide guidance to sporting organisations on promoting the inclusion and participation of transgender and gender diverse people in sport. The Guidelines provide information about the operation of the Sex Discrimination Act 1984 (Cth) (the Act) in relation to unlawful and permissible discrimination on the basis of sex and gender identity, sexual harassment, and victimisation as well as practical guidance for promoting inclusion in line with fundamental human rights-based principles. Areas of focus include leadership, inclusion policies, codes of conduct, uniforms, facilities, and collecting and using personal information.
- Guideline: Trans and gender diverse inclusion in sport – complying with the Equal Opportunity Act 2010, opens in a new tab, Victorian Equal Opportunity and Human Rights Commission, (2017). This guideline outlines obligations under the Equal Opportunity Act regarding discrimination against trans and gender diverse people in sport. It provides practical guidance for sporting clubs and organisations about promoting an inclusive environment, being proactive in preventing discrimination and responding appropriately if it occurs.
- Free to exist: Documenting participation data on LGBTIQA+ young people in sport and physical activity, opens in a new tab, Ryan Storr, Carleigh Yeomans, Kath Albury, et al., Swinburne University for VicHealth, (May 2024). The aim of this mixed-method research project was to collect participation data on LGBTIQA+ young people (aged 16-25) in sport and physical activity, whilst exploring the experiences, needs and engagement of LGBTIQA+ young people in sport and movement settings. In total, 20 young people aged 16-25 years participated in 5 focus groups, and 506 LGBTIQA+ young people participated in a quantitative survey. Quantitative and qualitative data paint a concerning picture of young LGBTIQA+ people’s participation in sport and physical activity, with lower rates of participation and engagement than the wider population and high rates of discrimination when they do engage. However, more promising, are the perspectives of young people who want to engage in sport and movement, and their motivation for sport and movement spaces to do more to be inclusive. Our data highlight the need for policy makers, sport managers, and physical activity providers to undertake targeted LGBTIQA+ diversity and inclusion work to ensure that LGBTIQA+ young people can access safe, inclusive, and equitable environments that are free from discrimination. Ongoing education, training, and development related to LGBTIQA+ inclusive practices are important to ensure sport environments are inclusive of LGBTIQA+ people. The consequences of not doing this work are far reaching and may have significant long-term impacts and consequences for LGBTIQA+ people, including trauma, and physical inactivity throughout their life course. Ensuring young LGBTIQA+ people have positive experiences through adolescence and youth is crucial to encourage lifelong participation and to develop positive relationships with physical activity; sports and physical activity providers must make authentic commitments to ensure that sport and movement spaces are safe and inclusive for LGBTIQA+ young people. Young people want to see authentic pride efforts that engage all sections of LGBTIQA+ communities, efforts which attempt to address ongoing discrimination and hostility towards LGBTIQA+ people. Key findings included:
- Safety in public facilities was rated as the most significant barrier (5.1/7) to engagement in sport and physical activity, followed by the gendered nature of sport and activities, lack of appropriate or inclusive facilities, homophobic or transphobic discrimination and lack of a safe place (all scoring an average of 5.0/7).
- Game to Play? Exploring the experiences and attitudes towards sport, exercise and physical activity amongst same sex attracted and gender diverse young people, opens in a new tab, Dr Ryan Storr, Kerry Robinson, Cristyn Davies, et al., Sexualities and Gender Research, Western Sydney University, (2020). Young SSAGD people in this research expressed a strong desire to participate in sport and physical exercise, and an awareness of the benefits, however most had experienced numerous forms of discrimination in sport and exercise, especially in PE at school. It is critical that steps are taken to address the violence and discrimination that SSAGD young people experience in sport and exercise environments, including tackling homophobia, biphobia, transphobia and heterosexism. There were three key factors or drivers influencing SSAGD young people’s participation in sport in this research. First, safe spaces were critical. Safe spaces are characterised as environments offering safe and inclusive facilities, especially bathrooms and change rooms, and are free from homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. Second, these safe spaces need to be maintained and reinforced by those operating and managing the spaces, for example, sport providers, volunteers, and administrators. This is characterised by active participation, inclusion and equity policies. Finally, sporting opportunities must offer a chance to connect with peers, to create a sense of community and support, where young SSAGD people can be themselves.
- Non-Binary People, Sport and Physical Activity, opens in a new tab, Pride in Sports for Sport England, (2020). The word non-binary describes a wide array of different identities which fall outside of the gender binary, and can be related to, or completely separate from male and female gender identities. Whilst non-binary is often described as part of the trans umbrella, not all nonbinary people identify as trans. It is estimated that around 0.4% of the UK’s population identify as non-binary, although it is thought that non-binary identities may be on the rise, particularly amongst young people. Research conducted by the National LGBT Partnership in 2016 found that people who identified as something other than male or female were some of the most inactive people amongst LGBT+ populations. Sport England commissioned Pride Sports to devise policy guidance for non-binary inclusion in grassroots sport and physical activity. The following report reflects data and commentary gathered through desk research, as well as input from focus groups and individual discussions with nonbinary people. Key challenges are faced by non-binary people in the following areas: Gendered Spaces; Gendered Activity; Representation and Visibility; and, Language These barriers are addressed within the report through recommendations themed accordingly, whilst examples of existing adaptations made within mainstream grassroots sport to accommodate nonbinary people are also highlighted. Consideration is also given within the report to the specific challenge of school sport and PE and to the performance pathway.
- Pride in Our Workforce: Exploring the role of the workforce in LGBT+ participation in physical activity and sport, opens in a new tab, Bournemouth University for Energise Me and Sport England, (2020). Researchers from Bournemouth University concluded that the physical activity and sport workforce (LGBT+ and non-LGBT+) has untapped potential to play a more prominent role in providing opportunities for LGBT+ communities. They can help by Increasing LGBT+ representation within the workforce (in paid and unpaid roles); Being approachable, inclusive and understanding; Creating environments that feel safe and welcoming for LGBT+ communities; Actively promoting activities for and/or to LGBT+ communities. Some key findings included:
- Participants’ comments repeatedly cited changing facilities as sites of fear, lack of safety, and insecurity for LGBT+ communities. This is especially true for non-binary and transgender participants, for whom traditional male/female changing spaces present challenging environments.
- Review of LGBT+ Sport and Physical Activity Infrastructure, opens in a new tab, Scott Lawley, Sara Smith, Nottingham Trent University for Pride Sports and Sport England, (December 2018). The report draws upon desk research across the range of LGBT+ sports provision in England, and further in-depth research with 40 sports and physical activity providers, both of which took place in June 2017. Key findings included:
- LGBT+ sports groups face many challenges to their successful operation which relate to governance structures and to resources such as time, finance, facilities and volunteers.
- There is a ‘culture of gender-binarism’ in mainstream sports provision, including educational settings. This is evidenced in the gender-segregated layout of sports facilities, in rules and regulations which govern participation based on gender, and in hostile cultures and attitudes, all of which serve to exclude trans and gender non-binary participants.
- Providers of trans-specific sports sessions face similar practical challenges of cost, resources and capacity to wider LGBT+ providers. However, the gender-binarism of mainstream sport, negative attitudes encountered in mainstream sports spaces and a lack of support and wider education creates further challenges which must be faced in all spaces where trans-specific sport takes place in order to make them safe for their participants.
- Sport, Physical Activity and LGBT, opens in a new tab, Louise Englefield, Di Cunningham, Ali Mahoney, Pride in Sports for Sport England, (2016). In January 2016 Pride Sports was commissioned by Sport England to undertake a 10-week study examining the participation of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people in sport. The focus of the study was to review the existing research and reports into issues affecting LGBT participation in sport and physical activity and to evidence the impact of projects that are successfully addressing issues and delivering increased opportunities in sport. The study gave particular consideration to how provision, which has successfully engaged LGBT people, is also working to reduce physical inactivity and to engage those not previously participating in sport. This report summarises the work undertaken and makes recommendations to Sport England.
- Discrimination of sexual and gender minorities in sports and exercise, opens in a new tab, Kokkonen M, National Sports Council, Finland, (2014). This report is a summary of a study published in Finland and funded by a grant awarded by the Ministry of Education and Culture. Its starting point was concern about whether lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender identity (LGBTI) children, young people and adults have equal opportunities to adopt a physically active lifestyle. This study reports that more than one-third of LGBTI respondents were engaged in competitive sports and more than half in recreational sports. A detailed breakdown of survey results is provided.
- ‘Game to play?’: barriers and facilitators to sexuality and gender diverse young people's participation in sport and physical activity, opens in a new tab, R. Storr, L. Nicholas, K. Robinson, et al., Sport, Education and Society, Volume 27(5), pp.604-617, (2022). This study reports on 13 semi-structured interviews with young SAGD people aged 18–24 in Australia that explore their attitudes to and experiences of sport and physical activity. We found that SAGD young people are ‘game to play’: they hold strong desires to participate in sport and physical activity, and articulated how sport could be more inclusive. Using Bourdieu's concept of ‘capital’, we outline how young SAGD people identify sport as a ‘field’ that requires and fosters various types of capital. We explore barriers they identified that prevent the accumulation of physical and social capital associated with sport participation and physical activity, and their insights for how this may be fostered. The ‘field’ of sport presents as an exclusionary environment, which allows for both explicit bullying and more subtle discriminatory practices. Passive assimilation approaches are not enough to provoke substantial change and active intervention is required to decentre the heteronormativity underpinning these spaces, which has implications for policy and practice to advance the inclusion of SAGD young people in sporting environments.
- Specific Detriment: Barriers and Opportunities for Non-Binary Inclusive Sports in Scotland, opens in a new tab, Sonja Erikainen, Ben Vincent, Al Hopkins, Journal of Sport and Social Issues, Volume 46(1), pp.75-102, (2022). While non-binary gender identities have become increasingly visible in recent years, little research currently exists on the experiences that non-binary people have in sport, where most opportunities to participate are limited to two, mutually exclusive female and male categories. This article provides a starting point for addressing this gap, by reporting findings from a participatory scoping study that explored the barriers that non-binary people face in accessing sporting spaces, communities, and competitions. This study also identified strategies through which these barriers could be overcome, and non-binary inclusion facilitated. Taken together, these strategies suggest that genuine inclusion entails not only new ways of thinking about how gender operates in sport but also alternative ways of thinking about the meaning and value of sport itself.
- Experiences of trans persons in physical activity and sport: A qualitative meta-synthesis, opens in a new tab, Víctor Pérez-Samaniego, Jorge Fuentes-Miguel, Sofía Pereira-García, et al., Sport Management Review, Volume 22(4), pp.439-451, (August 2019). The purpose of this paper was to map and provide new insights to existing qualitative research on experiences of trans people in physical activity and sport. Searches in international databases identified 604 documents related with those issues. Of these, the authors assessed 31 studies in accordance with a reading guide. Finally, 12 qualitative studies were selected. Key issues are condensed into four cross-cutting themes: (a) language; (b) facilities and spaces; (c) transgendering strategies; and (d) abjection. The identified issues show how trans persons diversely experience and manage situations of verbal discrimination, resistance, occupation of spaces, identification, and rejection. The paper concludes with insights based on the distinction between gender conformers and gender transformers, and implications for sport managers in order to enhance participation, enjoyment, and wellbeing of trans people in physical activity and sport.
- LGBTQ+ Youth’s Experiences and Engagement in Physical Activity: A Comprehensive Content Analysis, opens in a new tab, Scott Greenspan, Catherine Griffith, Ryan Watson, Adolescent Research Review, Volume 4, pp.169-185, (February 2019). Research suggests that sexual and gender minority (e.g., lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning; LGBTQ+) youth report avoiding physical activity settings (e.g., physical education class, locker rooms, and sport fields) due to feeling both unsafe and uncomfortable. These feelings and experiences might deter LGBTQ+ youth from achieving well-documented physical, cognitive, and social-emotional benefits that are often associated with physical activity and sport involvement. A 20-year (1998–2018) content analysis methodology was employed to obtain a more detailed understanding of LGBTQ+ youth’s participation and engagement in physical activity and sport. Minimal literature was obtained (n = 13 studies), along with an overall pattern that sexual minority youth engage in less physical activity than other populations of students. This disparity was more conclusive for sexual minority males then sexual minority females. One study was inclusive of transgender youth and suggested that transgender youth participated in sport to a similar degree as their cisgender peers; though overall, transgender youth felt less safe in typically gender-segregated spaces such as bathrooms and locker rooms. This review shines light on discrepancies of engagement and feelings of safety in the physical activity and sport context among LGBTQ+ youth. This review further delineates methodological characteristics of the yielded studies as a means to comprehensively review this body of literature.
- Three strikes and you’re out: culture, facilities, and participation among LGBTQ youth in sports, opens in a new tab, Alex Kulick, Laura Wernick, Mario Alberto Espinoza, et al., Sport, Education and Society, Volume 24(9), pp.939-953, (2019). Our study uses a data set of adolescents, collected as part of a community-based participatory action research project led by high school students in southeast Michigan, USA. Respondents reported their sexual and gender identities, as well as experiences in youth sport, as well as safety using sex-segregated facilities (i.e., bathrooms and locker-rooms). Using mediation models based on linear regression, we found evidence that LGBQ high school students play sports at a significantly lower rate compared to straight students, and among those who play sports, LGBTQ respondents felt significantly less safe compared to straight and cisgender students. Opposite to the LGBQ and trans youth in this study, straight/cisgender youth also reported feeling safer using all facilities. The mediation models suggest that these inequalities help to explain disparities in rates of sports participation and feelings of safety while participating. These findings have important implications for policy, practice, and future research.
- ‘People have a knack of making you feel excluded if they catch on to your difference’: Transgender experiences of exclusion in sport, opens in a new tab, Owen Hargie, David Mitchell, Ian Somerville, International Review for the Sociology of Sport, Volume 52(2), pp.223-239, (March 2017). While there is a growing literature in the field of gender, sexuality and sport, there is a dearth of research into the lived experiences of transgender people in sport. The present study addresses this research gap by exploring and analysing the accounts of transgender people in relation to their experiences of sport and physical activity. These are examined within the theoretical rubrics of social exclusion and minority stress theory. The findings from in-depth interviews with 10 transgender persons are detailed. Four interconnected themes emerged from the interviewee accounts: the intimidating nature of the changing/locker room environment; the impact of alienating sports experiences at school; the fear of public space and how this drastically constrained their ability to engage in sport and physical activity; and the overall effects of being denied the social, health and wellbeing aspects of sport. The findings are discussed in relation to the distinctive quality of transgender exclusion, and the related distal and proximal stressors experienced by this particular minority group.
- Barriers and facilitators of physical activity and sport participation among young transgender adults who are medically transitioning, opens in a new tab, Bethany Alice Jones, Jon Arcelus, Walter Pierre Bouman, et al., International Journal of Transgenderism, Volume 18(2), pp.227-238, (2017). Transgender people (those who feel incongruence between the gender they were assigned at birth and their gender identity) engage in lower levels of physical activity compared to cisgender (non-transgender) people. Several factors have been shown to affect physical activity engagement in the cisgender population; however, the physical activity experiences of young transgender adults have not been explored. It is therefore the aim of the current study to understand what factors are associated with physical activity and sport engagement in young transgender adults who are medically transitioning. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with 14 young transgender adults (18–36 years) who had initiated their medical transition at a transgender health service in the United Kingdom. The data were analyzed using thematic analysis. Two main themes were identified: (1) barriers and (2) facilitators to physical activity and sport. Overall, the young transgender adults were insufficiently active due to inadequate changing facilities, body dissatisfaction, fears surrounding “passing” and not being accepted by others. At the same time, participants were motivated to engage in physical activity to increase their body satisfaction and gender congruence. However, participants felt there was a lack of safe and comfortable spaces to engage in physical activity and sport.
- Inclusive Spaces and Locker Rooms for Transgender Athletes, opens in a new tab, George B. Cunningham, Erin Buzuvis and Chris Mosier, Kinesiology Review, Volume 7(4), pp.365-374, (2017). The purpose of this article is to articulate the need for a strong commitment to transgender inclusion in sport and physical activity, including in locker rooms and team spaces. The authors begin by defining key constructs and offering a theoretical overview of stigma toward transgender individuals. The focus then shifts to the changing opportunities for transgender athletes at all participation levels, case law and rulings germane to the topic, and the psychological, physical, and social outcomes associated with inclusion and exclusion. Next, the authors present frequently voiced concerns about transgender inclusion, with an emphasis on safety and privacy. Given the review, the authors present the case for inclusive locker rooms, which permit access by transgender athletes to facilities that correspond to their gender identity. The authors conclude with the official AKA position statement—“The American Kinesiology Association endorses inclusive locker rooms, by which we mean sex-segregated facilities that are open to transgender athletes on the basis of their gender identity”—and implications for sport and physical activity.
- Growing up queer: issues facing young Australians who are gender variant and sexuality diverse, opens in a new tab, Robinson K, Bansel P, Denson N, et al., Young and Well Cooperative Research Centre, (2014). Growing up queer investigates the issues facing young Australians who are gender variant and sexuality diverse. More than 1000 young Australians aged between 16–27 years participated in a research study. Participants experienced homophobic and transphobic harassment and violence across different aspects of their lives – in schools, from families, in the workplace, on the streets, and at other public sites and sporting events, with almost two-thirds reporting homophobic or transphobic harassment or violence across different aspects of their lives. From the information acquired, the researchers hope to develop innovative, relevant and engaging educational resources that would contribute to increasing professional and community awareness of their experiences and needs.
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