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Troy Kirkham
To investigate innovative and inclusive retention
strategies for youth participants in community sport Canada, USA, UK
National
Convention of
Churchill Fellows
Sport is far greater than simply wins and losses, and it certainly
isn’t about which team won or lost on the weekend. It has an
ability like no other to connect, unite and bond communities. It
has a long lasting impact on an individual’s physical, social and
emotional well-being and there is strong evidence to suggest
those who are active youth participants are significantly more
likely to participate in physical activity as an adult.
Subsequently, if we can achieve greater levels of youth
retention the ongoing wider community and health related
benefits would be substantial.
The social capital that is established through engagement in
sporting clubs contributes to society. Sport provides an
opportunity for inclusion, education and employment and has a
considerable cultural significance to all Australians.
This fellowship report looks to build on innovative international
approaches to physical activity and retention in youth sport
and make recommendations for an Australian context. It will
explore factors influencing retention, contemporary approaches
to accessibility of programs and provide a benchmark for future
approaches to retention of youth participants across local
clubs, State Sporting Organisations (SSO) and National Sporting
Organisations (NSO).
The conversations all lead to one key premise, in that there needed
to be an integrated or interconnected approach that sought to
coordinate and organise the key components impacting youth
retention, thus providing clear direction to sport.
Ultimately, retention comes down to relationships, and the
ability to maintain and enhance these relationships over a number of
years and through a number of key transitional phases within a sport
context. It is from this foundation that the proposed ‘Interconnected
Model of Youth Retention’ was developed. It looks to unite all the key
factors impacting youth retention, but also highlights
the importance of the relationships between these
components, and the interconnected manner in which
they impact or influence each other.
Pictured right
Troy met with Dr Jean Cote at
Queens University in Canada who
is the Director of the School of
Kinesiology and Health Studies
Upon embarking on this journey, there were eight key focus
areas that guided the discussions with the organisations that I
planned to meet with. These were:
The importance of unstructured play, along with the
development of fun, and the significant role that both of
these factors play in youth retention;
The development of physical literacy and fundamental
movement skills and the role that this development plays in
retaining participants long term;
Engagement strategies – with a particular focus on
diversionary programs;
The role that technology can play in youth sport retention
strategies;
The impact of parenting styles in youth sport retention –
particularly around female engagement and retention;
Socioeconomic influences – and the importance of programs
to support accessibility for all,
Youth advocacy – and empowering youth in program and
product development; and
Inclusive program development, ensuring opportunity for all.
However, the discussions provided so much more than the eight
key discussion points listed above. They provided insight and
knowledge around a number of factors that directly or indirectly
impact youth retention in community sport, and they helped to
shape and redefine my thinking around this topic.
26
Returning Fellows Feature
Pictured left and below
The Kirkham family made a
special visit to Madison Square
Garden to see the New York
Rangers play ice hockey