New figures illustrate the impact of investing in physical activity in Sussex

Sport England has released new figures revealing the combined social and economic value of community sport and physical activity in Sussex.

Research found that in Sussex, the primary value (well-being) and secondary value (health) were more than £3 billion.

Meanwhile, the combined social and economic value of community sport and physical activity in England in 2022/23 was £148 billion.

And the combined financial and non-financial investment in community sport and physical activity for the same period was £35 billion.

This means that every £1 spent on community sport and physical activity generates £4.20 for the English economy and society – emphasising the significant benefits of investing in community sport and physical activity.

The research was commissioned by Sport England and conducted by the Sport Industry Research Centre at Sheffield Hallam University and Manchester Metropolitan University.

Sport England’s Chief Executive Tim Hollingsworth said: “These latest figures are a positive and compelling reminder of why we must continue to invest in getting and keeping our nation more active.

“Community sport and physical activity has a crucial role to play in growing our economy, building stronger communities and making us all healthier and happier.

“This report, along with the social value research we published last year, can help local authorities, businesses and the voluntary sector to understand the value of promoting activity.”

The economic and social value figure of £148 billion incorporates findings on economic productivity (gross value added) from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport’s (DCMS) Sport Satellite Account.

Investment in physical activity can improve people’s well-being, reduce preventable illness and provide the opportunity to cut health inequalities – one of the government’s five missions.

This research is part of a three-year project Sport England commissioned in 2023 to create an updated model of the social value of sport and physical activity in England.

In October 2024, Sport England published the findings from the first year of this work, when they announced that sport and physical activity generates over £100bn in social value annually.

The next two years of the overall project will provide further analysis that builds on the understanding of how the social value of sport and physical activity is generated and distributed between different people, places, activities and stakeholders.

You can find out more and read the full report here: https://www.sportengland.org/news-and-inspiration/new-figures-illustrate-impact-investing-physical-activity and see how it is broken down in Sussex here: https://www.sportengland.org/research-and-data/research/social-value-and-return-investment-sport-and-physical-activity