The Sweaty Betty Foundation tackles changing room confidence

The Sweaty Betty Foundation has launched a campaign rooted in new research revealing that one in three secondary school girls skip PE due to changing room concerns.

The Sweaty Betty Foundation has turned an everyday moment into a rallying cry for change with its “Change Starts in the Changing Room” initiative.

It began with a statistic: 32% of secondary school girls have missed at least one PE lesson because of changing room discomfort, with 24% skipping multiple sessions, according to a nationwide study of 1,000 girls conducted by The Sweaty Betty Foundation.

The research paints a vivid picture. 43% cite privacy concerns, 30% feel judged on their appearance, and 69% avoid PE during their periods due to inadequate facilities. For one in ten girls, this discomfort leads to no physical activity at all, with issues starting as early as age 11.

For the organisation, these aren’t just numbers; they’re stories of girls like Afsana Lachaux, who dreams of a changing room where she feels safe, seen, and strong.

“This isn’t just about tiles and lockers—it’s about confidence, mental health, and keeping girls active during a pivotal time,” said Lachaux, director of the Sweaty Betty Foundation. “We’re handing the pen to the girls themselves to rewrite what these spaces mean.” The campaign’s creative moment lies in this shift: empowering girls to be the designers of their own solutions, turning a place of anxiety into one of possibility.

Redesigning the future

The “Change Starts in the Changing Room” saw the foundation launch a public consultation, calling on students, educators, architects, and sports experts to share ideas on how changing rooms can boost physical activity.

These insights will shape recommendations to the UK government, aiming for systemic change in school facility design. But the heart of the campaign beats in five UK schools: William Edwards School in Essex, Shawlands School in Glasgow, Harris Academy in Bermondsey, City Academy in Bristol, and Ark Victoria Academy in Birmingham. In these institutions, girls are co-creating new changing room designs.

Karen Smith, Girls PE development lead at William Edwards School, said: “The changing room is their first step into PE. If it’s a negative experience, we lose them before they even start. This initiative listens to girls’ voices, letting them shape spaces that make them feel unstoppable.” The winning school design, judged by a panel of experts, will receive £10,000 from the Foundation, with £2,500 awarded to the other participating schools to spark immediate improvements.

Girls shared coping strategies like changing in toilet cubicles (19%) or arriving partially dressed (28%). The Foundation’s website, changestartsinthechangingroom.com, invites the public to join the movement, amplifying these voices with a call to action that feels like a shared mission.

Our Take

Unlike previous Sweaty Betty Foundation campaigns, such as the 2023 “Move Without Barriers” focus on providing free sports kits to underprivileged girls, “Change Starts in the Changing Room” dives deeper into systemic and psychological hurdles.

Its earlier efforts emphasised tangible solutions like kit donations or puberty education packs, delivered with vibrant, action-oriented ads. This campaign, however, is quieter, using research-driven storytelling to expose an overlooked issue.

The campaign also contrasts with the brand’s typically upbeat visuals by embracing vulnerability. By presenting girls as co-creators rather than recipients, the foundation flips the script, moving from charity-driven aid to empowerment.