Sport and physical activity can offer people connection, purpose and opportunities to belong, yet for many people, access is limited and inequalities remain apparent.
In some communities, pathways into sport and physical activity aren’t readily available or designed to meet people’s needs. Many groups, including women and girls, can experience this inequity of opportunity.
Maddy, Programme Manager at the Football Foundation, is passionate about addressing these barriers and constraints. We’re proud to present her leadership story, so far, and the advice and experiences she can impart to help others on the same mission.
Maddy's story
Maddy grew up in South London, with sport playing a central role in her life from a young age. She’s witnessed first-hand the positive role sport can play, particularly for underserved communities.
However, after finishing school, Maddy started to recognise that participating in sport and physical activity as a young girl can be challenging. With a strong desire to remain active, despite these challenges, Maddy’s mother enrolled her to a local youth club. Maddy recounts her youth club involvement as a pivotal point in her development and subsequent career – a space that allowed her to continue being active and overcome the barriers to sport that became more obvious as she grew up.
Dave, a youth worker at the club, was helping another young woman at the time, Mahnoor, to create a girl’s football team. Dave encouraged Maddy to get involved. Although not having many people to begin with, more girls joined and Maddy’s involvement meant many who might not have had the opportunity to play football otherwise were welcomed and supported. Maddy found a passion for helping others the same way the youth club, and Dave, had helped her.
“I experienced firsthand how sport can change lives when a group of girls were given their first chance to play football. I had never even considered how privileged we were to receive that opportunity and how important it is to pay it forward, to ensure that sport and physical activity are inclusive and accessible for all.”
Dave continued supporting Maddy in applying for small grants to run female only FA Level 1 and 2 coaching courses. Maddy began her work to develop the next generation of female leaders in sport using these grants to provide greater progression opportunities. Maddy worked hard but continued to encounter challenges, realising that some coaching courses didn't include any specific training on leading disability inclusive activities.
“I noticed, and experienced myself, that the lack of training and fear of ‘getting it wrong’ meant that many sports coaches didn’t feel confident or knowledgeable enough to lead disability inclusive activities.”
With Dave’s continued mentorship, Maddy secured her first role at The Change Foundation to lead on ‘Girls Win’, a project that engaged young women with multiple disabilities across London in inclusive, female-only sport and physical activity.
She quickly saw the positive impact of these experiences and projects, allowing her to build skills, confidence and an understanding of how sport can intentionally address inequalities, particularly for girls and women who may not see themselves represented in sporting environments.
Now, at The Football Foundation, Maddy brings these experiences into her leadership every day. For Maddy, each step of her journey has been a reminder that when barriers are tackled at a local level, sport and physical activity can open doors, build confidence and be used to address inequalities.
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Leader wellbeing
For Maddy, leading with impact and challenging societal barriers also means taking care of her own wellbeing and recognising her limits. If her own wellbeing is dismissed, the quality of her work and its impact becomes affected.
When Maddy works with communities she sometimes feels like the weight of the world is her shoulders, fuelled with the desire to do good and make a big change. Maddy’s had to balance this expectation, passion and motivation with realistic reminders that she cannot solve everyone’s problems or be the sole force for change in community working.
“Communication has really helped me. If it’s something beyond your capacity, signpost people on to people who can support them."
By taking care of herself, Maddy can support others.
Facing challenges
Working to create change can be complex and demanding. Maddy’s journey has come with its fair share of challenges. Some of these have included:
- Periods of motivational struggle.
- Navigating personalities and communication challenges.
- Funding restrictions.
Despite these, Maddy remains committed to her work and continues to lead with purpose. She’s learnt to be open minded when recognising these barriers and instead of shying away from them and letting them affect her motivation, she seeks ways to bolster her confidence and draw strength from the communities she serves.
Top tips
Reflecting on her leadership journey so far, the challenges she’s overcome and motivations for the future, Maddy offers the following tips:
Be open-minded
Maddy encourages others to make the most of any opportunities that present themselves. If you’re unsure of where they’ll lead, even better! Forge those paths yourself.
Pay it forward
Maddy speaks highly of those that have given her opportunities and mentorship during her career. Finding ways to support and provide opportunities to others along their journey, without ulterior motive, just common understanding and purpose is a powerful way to advance your mission.
Keep pushing
Leadership can be challenging, especially when facing multiple barriers and seeking to rewrite systemic and societal issues. Maddy focusses on a proactive mindset and remains committed to the work, especially if the work you’re doing ‘has never been done before’.
Stay connected
In challenging times, building a strong community to support one another can be critical. Maddy’s advice is to stay connected with the people who’ve helped you on your journey and other allies within the sector. The work is possible when done together.
“The best way to ‘tackle inequalities’ in sport and physical activity, is to create opportunities for people with lived experience to develop their knowledge, and skills, to become leaders within their own communities.”
In this segment, we asked the last leader we spoke to to leave a question for the next, they said: What three things in your work have been the most successful?
1. The Girls Win Project was definitely a huge success for me. Seeing young women with disabilities get involved in physical activity and making new friends was something I was really proud of.
2. Remembering to help myself along the way.
3. Remaining committed to my original motivations within the sports sector and being 13 years into a career focused on them.
What's next?
Looking ahead, Maddy’s primary drivers remain steadfast. She’ll continue to seek opportunities to tackle inequalities through her work.
The focus on women, girls and those with long-term health conditions and disabilities in sport and physical activity is at the forefront of her onward plans. The lived experiences she's had or witnessed in the early years of her sporting engagement and career will continue to mould her work. Maddy wants to concentrate on the skills and experiences of small groups, communities or individuals who are striving to make a positive impact.
Do you have a leadership story you'd like to share? We'd love to hear from you, email us at leadingthemovement@sportengland.org and we'll be in touch!
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