Mims Davies, the Minister for Sport, has pledged to make increased participation among young girls and women, and a transformation in the visibility of elite sportswomen, cornerstones of a new Government drive for sport.
In her first national newspaper interview since succeeding Tracey Crouch, Davies outlined how a cross-departmental school sport action plan this spring would target worryingly low activity trends among children, especially young girls. She also praised The Daily ­Telegraph’s “brilliant, leading” revolution in its coverage of women’s sport.
Sport England’s Active Lives survey found last December that only 17.5 per cent of children aged between five and 16 are meeting the Chief Medical Officer’s guidelines of more than 60 minutes of activity every day. Girls were found to be significantly less active; a finding consistent with similar research by the Youth Sports Trust, which reported in 2017 that fewer than 10 per cent of females aged up to 18 were meeting the recommendation.
Davies described the findings each a “wake-up call for the sector” and, as part of tackling this “huge challenge”, has called for physical literacy to be given the same status at school as maths or English. 

“We are really concerned about the inactivity of our youngsters,” said Davies. “If you don’t get a sporting habit for life when you come through school, it is more difficult to come back.
“We want a balance of sports and activity, physical literacture and well-being. As a minimum schools must ensure children are physically literate. It is just as important that parents encourage kids to be active as it is to read them books or do times tables.
“As parents, we have to not only think about their safety and opportunity, but their activities. Are they doing enough? Are they getting outside in the fresh air? Go out. Get muddy. Be adventurous. Children need to learn how to run, jump, throw, catch. Those basics will allow them to thrive in broader ways.
“If we don’t sort out participation – across schools, communities, ­governing bodies and making this a Government priority – we end up picking up the pieces in the Health Service anyway.”
Davies also cited a recent question-and-answer session with children in Hampshire. “One young girl put her hand up and told me that she wasn’t allowed to play rugby at school and that it wasn’t fair and equal. I think it is really important for schools to look at what availability there is.

“If there are concerns about risk, then governing bodies can help schools to understand or adapt how things are played. We have to make sure if you want to have a go, you have a fair chance.”
The detail of the school sport ­action plan is still being finalised across the Education and Health ­departments, as well as Digital, ­Culture, Media and Sport, but one specific Government target is for 500,000 people to be more regularly active by 2020, of which half are women.
“The answer has to come from across the country,” said Davies. “This is not just schools, this is ­parents, the wider community and governing bodies.” 
It is also the media. Davies joined Telegraph columnists Dina Asher-Smith, Judy Murray and Maggie ­Alphonsi at the Piccadilly Circus launch this week of Telegraph Women’s Sport. In an unprecedented publishing commitment, The Telegraph has pledged to address the under-representation of women’s sport through increased editorial coverage and will also campaign on key issues to inspire women and girls’ participation.

Davies described the initiative as “simply a massive chance to effect change” in women’s sport. “The more you see people who look like you the more you feel you can achieve it,” she said. “That’s visibility. That’s real equality. Sport for women shouldn’t be niche. Women’s sport on television remains too much of a novelty. We have some of the most amazing sporting stars on the planet. I recently met Nikita Parris. What a role model. What a star. Dina Asher-Smith, Laura Muir – so inspiring.
“There is a golden opportunity for media to hook into what is huge interest. There is a huge opportunity for sponsors and business. Not just to change and inspire our young girls and young people into more activity. This could change the whole activity of the nation.”
Davies, who became MP for ­Eastleigh in 2015 and was appointed Minister for Sport last November, said she fell in love with sport at school, where she played netball, football, rounders and was one of two girls in the cricket team. 
Her father “thought looking after us was watching sport on TV”, but that only reinforced this passion. 

“I loved the camaraderie – my best was 27 not out,” she said, laughing, before adding, “I like to think I was a pioneer.”
Davies entered politics after ­“being the woman who went to the council complaining about play ­facilities” and “got involved ­because I found people who hadn’t been to a leisure centre for 15 years making the decisions”.
Davies has two girls, aged nine and 13, who enjoyed getting active in local junior park runs and now compete in swimming and cricket.
Paula Radcliffe is a particular personal inspiration and, while Davies describes herself “as unfit as I have been for some time” and “pretty rubbish”, she will be lining up on Sunday at the Eastleigh 10 kilometre race. 
“With small children, finding the time became more ­challenging and that was where running came in,” she said. “Sunday’s race is sold out and 46 per cent of the participants are women. It is one of the fastest growing sports for women.

“You can put your trainers on and go … as long as you can find your sports bra.”
Davies has run in the London and Brighton marathons, and while her new job and Westminster’s wider political intensity have curtailed bi-weekly runs, she is determined to get back into the parks of London.
“It’s absolutely right that women feel that activity is as important a part of their life as anything else,” she said. 
“Find something you love and stick at it. Sport is a great stress reliever. You will meet friends. It helps your broader sense of well-being and that inspires other women and girls to get involved. 
“Research shows if you are more fit and healthy as a woman, you are more likely to get your smear test and have mammograms done.
“The wider challenge is great, but the opportunity is fantastic. I am not in politics to make something unachievable. We are in this to turn behaviour, change the dial and allow our children to get a sporting experience that will set them for life.”

The U.S. women's national soccer team got a helping hand in its pursuit to close the pay gap with the men's program thanks to a donation of nearly three-quarters of a million dollars from LUNA Bar.
The company publicly announced its donation Tuesday in conjunction with Equal Pay Day -- but Clif Bar & Company owners and co-CEOs Gary Erickson and Kit Crawford, and Ritu Mathur, senior director of marketing for LUNA Bar, flew to Tampa to present the gift to the team at a Players Association meeting on Feb. 19. U.S. Soccer was informed of the donation Monday night.
"Gary started speaking and we were all like, 'What's the catch?'" USWNT forward Alex Morgan told espnW last week during a media day in Los Angeles organized by LUNA Bar. "But there isn't one. They want to close the gap. They want to be on the forefront of this movement."
The idea for the donation began with a conversation between LUNA Bar representatives and Becca Roux, executive director of the USWNT Players Association. "Just before the New Year, I got an email asking how LUNA Bar could support the women in their quest for equal pay," Roux said. "After that, it all went extremely fast."
Roux and her staff identified several wage gaps between the men's and women's national team programs, including the World Cup qualifying and roster bonuses, before settling on the World Cup the roster bonuses as "a clean, clear way to show a disparity," Roux said. U.S. Soccer pays members of the women's World Cup a roster bonus that is $31,250 per player less than it pays members of the men's team. To close that gap, LUNA Bar made a $718,750 donation to the Players Association with the stipulation that the money would be used to pay each of the 23 members of the 2019 World Cup team $31,250 to make up the difference. The women are also eligible for Olympic qualifying and roster bonuses (the men's tournament is restricted to players under 23), which also narrows the bonus gap if the team qualifies and competes in the three-week quadrennial tournament.
The team, which was asked to keep the donation a secret until the public announcement, joined in a federal class-action lawsuit filed March 11 against U.S. Soccer alleging institutionalized gender discrimination and seeking equitable pay and treatment.
"They did this for the whole Players Association, which is a huge statement," USWNT midfielder Megan Rapinoe said. "It forces other brands to look in the mirror, whether they want to or not. It forces our federation and other companies to ask, 'What is our responsibility and what can we do in this fight?'"
"What's cool about this donation is that so much of the fight for equal pay is exactly that -- a fight," USWNT striker Christen Press said. "We've taken a lot of pride and put a lot of energy toward that fight, and it's something that we want to be part of our legacy. It was handed to us and we will pass it to the future generation.
​"In a moment like this, when LUNA comes from the outside and steps up, it shows that this fight is so much bigger than us. It celebrates how we can uplift each other. That's a slightly different message that goes beyond sport and this team and says, 'Let's all help each other. Let's swim in the same direction and we'll get so much further.'"

All three players said the reason they took the time to fly to Los Angeles for a day of media one week before kicking off a busy slate of friendlies was because they were uplifted by the opportunity to discuss pay disparity in a positive manner.
"We're so often in this position of fighting, so our voice gets boxed in," Rapinoe said. "It seems like every time we speak to the media, it's something negative, but it doesn't have to be that way. Contrary to what the federation thinks, we actually prefer to give shine and be positive. We don't see this as a zero-sum game."
Press, who was one of the chief architects of team's current collective bargaining agreement (ratified in April 2017), said she would also like to see the narrative around the USWNT's fight for equal pay shift to place less focus on comparing the women with the men's team. "I would like to see our team celebrated for who we are and not fight over who's been more successful and who deserves to be paid more," she said. "The idea of equal pay is to give both teams equal opportunity to be their most successful selves."

In addition to making the donation, LUNA Bar enlisted Press and former USWNT captain and ESPN broadcaster Julie Foudy to provide advice for women on negotiation tactics in the workplace, which will be available starting Tuesday on lunabar.com. "We negotiated this collective bargaining agreement and it was a huge process, but the same principles apply for any negotiation," Press said. "Every woman should feel empowered to ask for her worth and when you do, here are steps to take to put yourself in the best position. The only way to achieve equality is to hit it from all angles."
On March 9, Adidas said it would pay its sponsored athletes on the Women's World Cup-winning team the same performance bonus granted to their male counterparts. But Roux said LUNA's donation is the first of its kind that the USWNT Players Association has received. She hopes it's not the last.
"There are so many brands doing campaigns around equality. It's very trendy," Roux said. "The Nike commercial that aired during the Grammys was beautiful and tugged at your heartstrings. But this is way cooler. I would love if this starts a new trend in how brands activate around women athletes. I would love to see other brands in other countries step up for their national teams and support them in the same way. That would be a dream."

NEW YORK – Beyond giving a brand an image boost, achieving greater gender parity among employees and leadership can have an impact on a company’s bottom line.
At Haven Hill’s Symposium on Equality on Oct. 31, speakers conferred about the data behind the need for more gender parity, as well as the ways in which companies can take equality initiatives beyond hollow campaigns. While many organizations recognize the business benefits of gaining more gender diversity in their workforce, truly achieving change revolves around tackling tough topics and shifting culture.
"Millennials want companies that have values, and values are also about diversity," said Yann Borgstedt, founder and president of The Womanity Foundation. "If you want to keep your employees motivated or in your companies, you need to find ways to have more equality and diversity.
"You want to do what is right, but also we want to do what is good for the economy, and if it’s good for the economy, it’s good for kids and it’s good for everyone," he said. "So I just don’t understand why in so many places men feel threatened by giving the same rights and opportunities to women."

Diversity data
Mr. Borgstedt pointed out that while women represent about half of the population, they only hold 21 percent of senior roles and only 3 percent of CEOs are women. Women at the head of startups are also far less apt to get funding than men, despite the fact that female-led ventures tend to see better returns.
The data also shows that having more gender diversity at a company will help employers attract value-based millennials, while also boosting retention.
According to media organization Politico’s CEO Patrick Steel, his biggest challenge is recruitment, particularly because most Washington residents are already employed. Increasing the number of women in leadership positions at the publication has allowed the company to attract more female staff on both the editorial and sales sides.
Women who work for a female manager are 30 percent more apt to feel as though there is someone who is helping them advance. Politico also offers three months of maternity and paternity leave, opening the door to women to feel comfortable and secure about starting families.

There is a discrepancy between genders on beliefs regarding equality in the fashion workplace, with 100 percent of women thinking this to be an issue, while less than half of men do.
Attributed to the fact that there are many women designers in the fashion and accessories world, many men believe that there is no issue with inequality in fashion. According to a report from McKinsey, Glamour and the CFDA, women start careers in fashion with higher expectations than men (see story).
While there is a lack of gender diversity in everything from politics to corporations, one business that has seen little progress in parity is financial services. Today about 3 percent of women work in wealth management.
Alli McCartney, managing director with UBS Private Wealth Management, said that part of the reason her field is still male-dominated is because it is commission-based, making the potential for losing out while on maternity leave a challenge.
Despite this lack of women in the workforce in financial services, it is becoming increasingly more important for banks and institutions to cater to female clientele. About two-thirds of women say they lead their household, and one-third earn more than their spouse.
Additionally, women are set to inherit money through wealth transfer, and many who have been in the workforce are establishing their own assets. Divorces and deaths of spouses are also requiring women to be more independent about their finances.
Yet with this growing need for advice, women often do not seek out financial services. Three-quarters of women under the age of 40 have no wealth advisor.

Part of this lack of financial assistance may be tied to women’s dissatisfaction with services offered by banks. Whereas men desire results such as power, opportunity and returns from their wealth management, women report wanting aspects such as community and creating an impact and legacy.
Therefore, Ms. McCartney says soft skills will be imperative for wealth advisors of both genders. Managers can also win female clients’ business by offering flexible hours and building trust.

Making moves
While recognizing the need for more gender equality is one thing, putting it into practice is another.
Progress in gender diversity has stalled in the last few years, according to Jeanne Zaino, senior advisor at AppliedTechonomics. Additionally, 20 percent of employees say that their company’s efforts around gender diversity are merely lip service to the issue.
Citing examples throughout history, Ms. Zaino said that those at the top need to make a commitment to change, but diversity initiatives need buy-ins from stakeholders to have a lasting effect.
Getting executive leadership on-board often boils down to speaking their language and showing the risks and rewards of making a change.
In addressing gender diversity, companies also have to look at issues on the local level, as challenges often differ depending on location.
Angela Lee, chief innovation officer and associate dean at Columbia Business School, spoke about overcoming biases and being unafraid to tackle tough conversations.
One thing companies can do is try to remove triggers for bias from their hiring process. For instance, orchestras began doing blind auditions, which resulted in more female musicians being hired.
In the corporate world, third-party services will take demographic indicators out of resumes to do merit-based matching for a position.
Companies may also want to think about how they are wording their job postings, removing language that appeals to certain types of individuals.
Ms. Lee also suggested opening up the door for healthy conflict by having meeting attendees fill out anonymous ideas of pros and cons to a particular plan. Companies can also spur innovation by pushing employees from different areas of the organization together, allowing them to gain new perspective and connections.
For women looking to move up the corporate ladder, Robert Reiss, founder and CEO of The CEO Forum Group, suggests taking on C-level language. Addressing plans as they relate to the organization’s mission and values can help an employee get on the top brass’ radar.
Owning a P&L is another path to leadership, as is identifying a personal brand and strengths and finding a way to show them off.
Lastly, establishing and training a successor opens the door for women to take on new opportunities, ensuring there is someone to take their place.
With only 24 female CEOs in the Fortune 500, Mr. Reiss sees reaching 50 as a goal. At this point, women will reach a critical mass where they can mentor each other and help others rise to the top position.
For women in luxury, the world can sometimes be a hostile place, which is why it is important for them to learn to work together and support each other, according to two entrepreneurs who have done so for 20 years.
At the Women in Luxury 2018 conference, Carrie Ellen Phillips and Vanessa Weiner von Bismarck, two women who have been working together for decades, spoke at length about their experiences as women and entrepreneurs as well as how to build a lasting partnership. One of the things they said elevated them to their current position was their joint work ethic (see story).
“You’ve got to make the investment if you’re going to make these changes,” Ms. Zaino said. “You cannot make a one-time change and then walk away from it.
“You have to continue to assess and reassess what has been the outcome of that reform,” she said. “Because reforms have unintended consequences, no matter if they’re positive or negative.”