The Coronavirus pandemic and more recently, the cost-of-living crisis, have impacted strongly on young people’s lives, the communities they live in and their ability to be active. That’s why StreetGames, in partnership with Platypus Research, have undertaken a major research study to capture the views and opinions of 1,000 young people from lower-income households.
This research project amplifies the voices of these 1,000 young people, shedding light on their concerns, priorities, role models, and sources of inspiration. It also looks at how they spend their leisure time, their hobbies, sporting preferences, motivations, obstacles they face, and the emotions associated with their experiences.
Young People’s feedback has also been used to create seven youth segments, which help to better understand the motivators, barriers, and associated emotions that young people experience in relation to sport – from those who play sport to release stress to those who would love to do more, but anxiety and self-confidence holds them back.
What we heard
worry about their mental health, with many others mentioning feeling lonely/isolated
have felt discriminated against when doing sport in the past
said the cost of living had negatively affected how much they take part in sport/physical activities
The Seven Youth Segments
Click on each of the seven segments below to learn more.
1. I’d love to, but can’t (a lack of confidence stops me)
This group want to be active, but anxiety, feeling self-conscious and not feeling good enough stops them from taking part, but they do appreciate the broad range of benefits sport and exercise.
2. Like what sport does for me
This group REALLY enjoy sport/getting active: for them, sport is sociable, fun, good for them and it gets their endorphins going! Sport makes them feel great and they get a lot out of doing it.
3. It’s not for me… sport is boring, I prefer other things
This group aren’t convinced sport/exercise is for them. They see sport as boring and get their enjoyment from other things. The only reason they can see for taking part is to be sociable and have fun/have a laugh.
4. Sport is a laugh, let's not get serious
For this group sport provides a chance to have a laugh with friends, release stress and relieve boredom. They don’t take life too seriously. Sometimes this group can’t be bothered or don’t have the time, energy or company which means they can be less active than other sporty groups.
5. It’s for me… results matter
This group are confident when it comes to sport but sport is about more than just enjoyment for them. They put pressure on themselves to achieve goals and improve performance so they can get frustrated. This group may have experienced discrimination which can affect how they feel about sport.
6. Keep calm and let off steam
This group need that sense of release that sport brings to bring them calm and peace of mind. They associate getting active with letting off steam/releasing stress and escaping worries. Sometimes it can be difficult for this group to keep up with a sport as their mental health, lack of time and cost can get in the way.
7. I’m all about looking/feeling good but things get in the way
This group do sport and exercise to look good and feel good about themselves. It gives them energy but they need to prioritise other things like their education right now, which means they struggle to have the time to do sport/exercise and can also struggle with being able to afford it.
7 Youth Segments – Activation Offers
Based on feedback from young people and the Youth Segments insight, we have collated a range of sport/physical activity ‘offers’ which provide illustrative examples of the types of ‘offers’ that might appeal to each of the seven segments.
These activity offers include examples from StreetGames initiatives and wider organisations in the sports sector. The list is by no means exhaustive, but is designed to provide a selection of examples which might be useful when exploring activation ideas with young people.
It is also important to remember that it is not just about ‘what’ activity is provided, but also the ‘style’ in which it is delivered; for some of the segments, particularly those which are ‘reluctant’ (Segment 1 & Segment 3), this will require a supportive approach and investment in time and resource ‘pre-engagement’ to help build relationships and confidence before they will contemplate taking part in sport/physical activity.
Youth Voice Quiz
One of the ways that StreetGames is helping community organisations and partners to activate the findings locally is via the use of our Youth Segmentation Quiz. The quiz, which was created by Platypus Research, has taken three ‘golden questions’ from the 1,000 Young Voices research survey. Through pre-calculated algorithms, the quiz determines which of the seven segments a young person or groups of young people are most likely to align with.
The ‘golden questions’ capture information about the young person’s main motivations/reasons for taking part in sport and physical activity, barriers to taking part, and emotions felt when taking part.
The quiz is quick and easy to use and can be used via a QR code, survey link or Excel sheet. If you are interested in using the quiz, please contact ceris.anderson@streetgames.org
Youth Voice Quiz results
Community partners around the country have been using the Youth Segmentation Quiz in 2025 to explore how young people feel about sport and physical activity.
This infographic provides a national snapshot of what has been captured so far.