The Vision for sport in Wales is to create an active nation, with as many people as possible inspired to be active through sport. The following section explores a range of School Sport Survey data, looking at participation and provision, to help build a better understanding of sporting activity levels and opportunities for young people in Wales.
3.1 National participation
Across Wales, 97% of pupils took part in at least one sport in the last academic year, equating to over 304,000 pupils.
Participation in sport varies by setting. 50% (157,000) of pupils participated in extracurricular sport in the last year, while 65% (202,000) of pupils participated in community club sport in the last academic year.
Graph 1: Any participation in sport by setting
Footnote: Extracurricular sport refers to sport in a school club. This might be at lunchtime, after school, at a breakfast club, or with a school club online.
3.2 National frequency of participation
39% (124,000) of pupils took part in organised sport outside of the curriculum three or more times per week (Future Generations Indicator 38). This is a 9-percentage-point decrease from 2018, when 48% of pupils participated in organised sport outside of the curriculum three or more times a week.
Conversely, 36% (111,000) of pupils reported no frequent participation in organised sport outside of the curriculum (i.e., participated less than once per week). In comparison, only 28% of pupils in 2018 reported no frequent participation in organised sport outside of the curriculum.
Graph 2: Frequency of participation in organised sport outside of the curriculum
Footnote: Organised sport refers to any extracurricular or community club participation.
3.3 National frequency of participation in a community club setting
56% (174,000) of pupils took part in sport in a community club setting at least once a week in the last academic year. This is a 9-percentage point decrease since 2018.
The most popular community club sport to have been participated in at least once a week was football, with 61,000 pupils saying they took part in this sport regularly. A full breakdown of participation in a community club setting at least once a week can be viewed in appendix B.
Graph 3: Most commonly participated in sports in a community club setting at least once a week
3.4 National membership of a sports club
54% (170,000) of pupils said they were a member of a sports club in the last academic year. This is a reduction on the figures observed in 2018, when 59% of pupils in Wales said they were a member of a sports club.
3.5 National volunteering in sport
Pupils may also work toward an active nation by helping to deliver sport. Pupils were asked if they volunteer or help with a sport at school or in their community. 24% (75,000) of pupils said that they volunteer or help with a sport at school or in a community club.
In 2018, 32% of respondents said that they volunteer or help with a sport at school or in a community club.
3.6 Curricular provision of PE
The following information relates to the responses obtained from the teacher’ section of the survey.
On average, 93 minutes per week of curricular PE was provided in primary schools across Wales in the 2021/2022 academic year. Similarly, an average of 93 minutes per week of curricular PE was provided in secondary schools in Wales in the 2021/2022 academic year.
Table 1: Average curricular minutes of PE provided per week, by sector
2018
2022
Primary Schools
99 minutes
93 minutes
Secondary Schools
95 minutes
93 minutes
3.7 Online provision of PE and / or sport
This year’s survey also asked schools the extent to which they delivered PE and / or school sport using online methods.
78% of schools across Wales reported delivering PE and / or school sport remotely using online methods since the start of the pandemic, while 32% of schools delivered PE and / or school sport remotely using online methods since the start of the 2021/2022 academic year.
9% of schools also reported an intention to regularly use online methods to deliver PE and / or school sport in the future.
3.8 Factors influencing the curricular and extracurricular sport offer
Teachers were also asked which factors predominantly influence the sports on offer during curricular and extracurricular sessions.
Table 2: Factors influencing the curricular and extracurricular sport offer
Curricular sport offer
Extracurricular sport offer
The sport facilities available at the school or in the community
The availability of sport facilities at the school or in the community were reported as the most likely factors to influence both the curricular and extracurricular sport offer. Meanwhile, teachers reported that pupil preference influences around half of schools curricular and extracurricular sport offers.
