For years, those of us working in the sports sector have bemoaned the absence of data to inform planning and to demonstrate the value of the work we do.
Now the sector is (relatively speaking) awash with data - we have Active People, the TNS School Sport Survey and Taking Part - the national survey of culture, leisure and sport.
Not to mention the management information most centres now collect, the monitoring required by funding bodies, CPA and local agreements; the detailed data bodies such as the FA is collecting through its annual affiliation process and local ‘census' surveys such as the Greater Manchester and Lancashire Year 9 Strata surveys, which are now in their third incarnation.
The irony of the situation is that we have now gone from a dearth of data to one where there is so much it's difficult to sort the wheat from the chaff. More importantly, we are so busy delivering we struggle to take the time out to review what we are doing and where we can improve.
One of the keys to engaging more people in sport and physical activity is to find the capacity to review and use the data available. Unless we do this, we shall never get ourselves in a position to be able to use this data to improve what we do.
Using data to engage more people in sport and physical activity means thinking differently. The market segmentation work undertaken by Sport England provides each local authority with a clear picture of the make-up of its sporting participation and clear pointers to ways in which groups can be targeted.
However, successfully using this data means adopting different approaches to the way in which services are operated and promoted. If you haven't looked at your profile yet, you should do - it provides a way forward. Check it out at http://www.sportengland.org/index/get_resources/research/se_market_segmentation.htm
If you shop at Tesco, you'll be familiar with the vouchers you receive. Have you noticed that they are never for things you buy regularly - but the things that people like you buy?
Tesco uses its mass of data on the spending habits of all its customers; it knows what you buy, when and how frequently you purchase. It knows what people like you buy so it can target you accordingly. This is why Tesco is by far and away the leading supermarket in this country. So if you do want to improve what you're doing, then you must find the capacity to interrogate and use the data available. With it, you really can make a difference.
In a similar vein, KKP has recently worked with Salford to look in greater detail at its Active People results. Comparison with similar local authorities illustrated that Salford has much lower levels of walking. Work is now underway to develop walking schemes and link this to the greenspaces strategy to identify more appropriate routes.
