WIREDGOV

Following a phenomenal response to the launch of our This Girl Can campaign, we’ve now introduced new ways for women to join in and get active.

Driven by popular demand from women themselves, yesterday announced a partnership with Marks & Spencer to sell a limited edition This Girl Can t-shirt.

The t-shirts, which will be available in sizes 8 – 24, can be purchased from selected Marks & Spencer stores or online at marksandspencer.com, priced at £12.50. £1 from every t-shirt sold will be used by Sport England to fund projects to help women get more active.

Demand from women 

Since the campaign launched, the appetite among women to join in, share and celebrate their real experiences of being active has been huge, and with over 250,000 social media interactions, the campaign is directly engaging with thousands of women and girls across the country.

The social media community has now grown to 293,000, and every day demand for more opportunities to get involved increases.

In response, Sport England has also announced the creation of a This Girl Can web app, which will help women to create and share their own personalised version of the advert. 

Women will be able to upload their own This Girl Can style picture – whether that’s them finishing their first 5K run or returning to rounders – choose a campaign mantra such as “Hot and Not Bothered” and add the This Girl Can logo. Anyone who uses the app may even end up featuring in the campaign, as from the end of June the best pictures will feature on digital sites in shopping centres around the country.

These new developments are unveiled as another burst of the ground-breaking campaign goes live, with new versions of the billboard posters featuring new ‘girls that can’ as they proudly jiggle and sweat as they enjoy a new range of summer activities. These include ravercise and rounders and again, feature women of all shapes, sizes and sporting abilities.

Sport England research shows that women want to be inspired by women like them, so the new ads will feature a host of new, everyday, women. 

Return of the ad (yes it is)

Accompanying the new billboards is the return of the incredibly popular TV advert, which will kick off with the 90-second advert today in the prime TV spot during Coronation Street. 

“The response to This Girl Can has been truly incredible," says Jennie Price, Sport England Chief Executive. 

"Since we launched the campaign, over a quarter of a million women have shared their personal stories of getting active."

When we developed the campaign, we focussed on the fear of judgement and this has resonated with women across the world.  I have been overwhelmed by how many women have wanted to be part of the campaign, to share it, celebrate it, and own it for themselves.

We now have a new web app which means women can create their own This Girl Can ads and our partnership with Marks and Spencer means that women can literally wear the campaign with pride.”

Paula Bonham-Carter, Head of Womenswear Buying at Marks and Spencer, said: “We’re delighted to be an official partner of Sport England’s This Girl Can campaign, which celebrates and inspires women through an empowering message.

The t-shirts we have designed, exclusive to M&S, are a great way to bring to life our support for this fantastic initiative and show just how proud we are to be partnering on it. We hope this helps to encourage women to get on board with the campaign and wear their This Girl Can t-shirts with pride too.”

Two new ‘girls that can’ who feature in the ground breaking campaign commented:

Jo

Jo, 43, is a development director and mum from Burnley who enjoys playing Rounders.

Jo said: “It can be tricky trying to fit rounders into my busy work schedule, but I make it my priority to go along and play every Wednesday evening. Once I’m there, I get such a buzz being part of a team and being active. I don’t worry about what people might think, whether I’m good at it, or what I look like, because it doesn’t matter what shape or size you are, it’s all about embracing what you have and having fun with it.

Rounders is an all-inclusive activity, it’s not ageist, size-ist, ability biased or exclusive in any way. Literally anyone can get involved and play.”

Cassie

Cassie, 23 (pictured above), is a student from Bromley, Kent. She’s currently studying medicine at King's College London and is a keen runner.

Cassie said: “You can’t worry about what people might be thinking of you when you exercise because it doesn’t matter how you look or whether you’re any good at it. I don’t let that bother me as an amputee, and nor should anyone else.

For me, having my foot amputated actually gave me my life back, and I’d say to any woman worried about being judged, just get out there and give something a try, whatever your ability level. It’s the best thing I ever did.” 

To find out more, visit thisgirlcan.co.uk, join the conversation by following @ThisGirlCan and using the hashtag #ThisGirlCan.

Sport England’s subsidiary company, The English Sports Development Trust Limited, is tasked with delivering elements of the This Girl Can campaign and has entered into a licence arrangement with Marks and Spencer to produce limited edition t-shirts. Sport England is exploring with Marks and Spencer how else it can continue to support the campaign.