Diversity, Equity, Inclusion
Partner Spotlight: Sporting Equals
Earlier this year Peloton announced the first pilot portfolio of global community partnerships as part of our four-year, $100M investment to fight against racial injustice and inequity, and the promotion of health and well-being for all. As part of our work, we specifically committed $20M to community investments and nonprofit partnerships fighting racial injustice and over the next few weeks, we're taking the time to learn more about our partner organizations.
Today, we are jumping across the pond to hear from Sporting Equals, the UK's leading charity for racial equality and diversity in sport.
To help the global Peloton community get to know your organization better, how would you describe your mission?
Sporting Equals, a national charity since 2007, is at the forefront of championing race and faith equality in sport and physical activity across the UK.
We exist to promote ethnic diversity across sport and physical activity, and we are the only organization in the UK to do so.
That mission must touch a lot of areas. How do you prioritize?
We have three primary aims:
To raise awareness and understanding of the needs of Ethnically Diverse Communities within the sports and health sector, in order to change attitudes and increase participation in sport and physical activity.
To empower individuals and communities to play a part in this change and achieve their full potential through playing sport and being active.
To advise and support policymakers and delivery bodies to be inclusive of all under-represented groups, drawing on our experience with ethnically diverse communities.
Our five outcomes are:
Increasing Participation
Identifying and Showcasing Talent
Diversifying Sport Sector
Improving Health and Lifestyles
Building Cohesive Communities
We are experts in engaging ethnically diverse communities into sport and physical activity as well as advising sports bodies in diversity and inclusion. We ultimately are seeking to build healthier, fairer and stronger communities by using sport as a tool for inclusion as well as mental and physical wellness for the communities we serve.
As you look back on your work, what are some of your most recent programs or partnerships that you’re particularly proud of?
A program we are particularly proud of would be our LeaderBoard Academy program. The UK population of ethnically diverse communities is 14%; but when it comes to governing bodies of sport there are only 5% ethnically diverse communities board members across the whole sporting sector. This low number of decision-makers from ethnically diverse community backgrounds ultimately affects all of sport. This Academy is designed to equip ethnically diverse community professionals and former athletes with the skills they need to be effective on a board and also influence equality, diversity and inclusion (particularly ethnically diverse community inclusion) in the boardrooms of sport.The LeaderBoard Academy has already shown its potential with over a third of graduates already taking up board positions. We will be launching our third cohort of LeaderBoard Academy undergraduates in July 2021 and are very excited to further diversify the boardrooms of sport in the United Kingdom. We're also proud of the Sporting Equals Charter. We've confirmed the commitment of over 50 sporting organizations. Following the ethos of the ‘Three C’s’, organizations are guided towards more inclusive practice by:
Capturing ethnicity data and intelligence
Committing to tackling underrepresentation at all levels
Celebrating positive role models and stories
This has enabled us to tackle systemic racism by working closely with sports bodies to review policies and internal practices to encourage greater ethnic diversity within the workforce, develop bespoke training opportunities educating the sector about engaging with ethnically diverse communities in their given sport and develop projects based on the findings of community-led research. We're also proud of programs like our Equally Active project, the development of our Associate Member network and the role we play in supporting fund distribution during the covid-19 pandemic.
Can you tell us a little bit about your work with Peloton?
We are proud to be working alongside Peloton to deliver an intensive year-long sport, health and fitness intervention to improve the physical health and wellbeing of ethnically diverse individuals. It will be targeted across London and empower these individuals to be the best versions of themselves.
We will work with our existing grassroots delivery partners within densely populated ethnically diverse communities. Activities will take place in faith centers and similar community and cultural settings. These are uniquely powerful venues for sport and fitness interventions due to their high footfall, social and emotional ties, welcoming environments and trusted status within their respective communities.
We will consult with our community-based partners to confirm 15 priority geographies based on the local impact of the pandemic on the health and wellbeing of Black and South Asian communities. Our team of community activators and capacity building specialists will work with each community partner to train a local team who will support the day-to-day delivery of activities at each site throughout the twelve-month program.
Our community activators will support local teams in our target locations to launch and deliver regular sessions to their local communities. These activities will differ depending on the interests of each community, but we anticipate sessions to feature a variety of sports including running, cycling, dance, tennis, table tennis, badminton, cricket, and general fitness. In addition to sport and fitness, our community activators will work with local volunteers to embed health, nutrition and wellness messages into sessions as well as providing specific health-focused workshops. We will distribute content, advice and guidance to support healthy behavior change across all target communities. Where appropriate, partners will provide opportunities for participants to access health services such as blood pressure checks. Thus, creating healthier, fairer and stronger communities throughout the duration of this project.
The work you do is inextricably linked to community. What is the role of community in your work?
Community is at the epicenter of the work Sporting Equals engages in, whether it's through our community-based projects, or advocacy work which is built on community input and steer we always strive to implement the voices of the communities we serve in everything we do. We do this through our Associate Member network and our two key advocacy groups, the British Asians in Sport and Physical Activity Board (BASPA), and the Sports Monitoring Advocacy Panel (SMAP).The role of ‘community’ is an invaluable one for Sporting Equals as we are built around communities, particularly ethnically diverse communities. We are a platform for their views, ideas, hopes and ambitions to take center stage and be heard.