‘This Girl Can’ Campaign Prompts Funding to get Local Girls Active

NATALEE KERR | July 26, 2018 |

VicHealth’s Active Club grants are getting more women and girls into sport.

Following the successful This Girl Can – Victoria campaign, the new $370,000 in government funding for more than 130 Victorian sports clubs aims to help create more opportunities for girls to get active.

Cricket, football, soccer and netball teams are set to benefit from the funding to meet the growing demand from Victorian girls and women.

The Geelong Soccer Club was recently successful in receiving the VicHealth’s Active Club grant for its ‘Giving Girls a Go’ initiative.

‘Giving Girls a Go’ is focused on providing increased opportunities for female participation in soccer through a series of initiatives aimed to attract new female members and help retain existing ones.

The Geelong Soccer Club’s strategy and planning director Peter Atanasovski was involved in sourcing the grants and says they have been important in supporting their female teams.

“For a number of years we had predominantly boys at the club, so it’s great to be able to receive such funding that will give the girls the same opportunity the boys have had for a far while now,” he told Dscribe.

The club’s junior and youth girls recently received new touch training balls they are able to take home to practice.

Funding will also help support the introduction of girls indoor soccer teams and training of female team coaches.

The girls were excited to receive their touch training balls which they can use to practice at home.

“We want to make sure that our club is inclusive and accessible to all so we try to keep our fees as low as we can. So any funding that we get just gives us that opportunity to provide that little bit more for them,” Mr Atanasovski said.

Watch the video below with the Geelong Soccer Club girls.

VicHealth was the first organisation in the world to license the This Girl Can campaign from England, which inspired close to four million British women to get active.

Australian females are a struggling demographic when it comes to being active, especially in terms of organised sport. Men and boys participate in organised sport at twice the rate of women and girls.

Studies have found that regular participation in sport and physical activity can significantly lower the risk for cardiovascular disease, stroke, hypertension depression and more.

This Girl Can – Victoria is focussed on encouraging and supporting Victorian women and girls to engage in physical activity and sport by breaking the associated barriers and stigma associated with females being active.

Watch the This Girl Can – Victoria campaign video below.