Reducing digital barriers to being active

There are many ways in which people use digital on the journey to being active, but this can be challenging for those lacking access, skills or confidence to use online platforms.

Our new research explores these barriers and recommends actions for making sport and physical activity more digitally accessible.

But think about the last time you decided to try a new sport or activity.

The role of ‘digital’ in being active

Chances are you used the internet in one or more ways: to look for opportunities, to book and pay for a session, to plan travel to the venue, to participate in an online exercise session or to communicate with others about the activity.

‘Digital’ is now so entwined with the way we access and participate in physical activity that it’s hard to imagine being active without it.

In fact, in a recent Sport England Activity Check-in survey (Wave 19), 67% of respondents said they use digital tools to find out information about sport and physical activity.

At Good Things Foundation, we are committed to ensuring everyone can participate in our digital society, but there are still many people who face barriers to being online.

According to Lloyds' Essential Digital Skills 2025 report, around eight million people lack foundational-level digital skills in the UK, while data provided by Ofcom, the communications regulator in the UK, reveals that over a quarter of households struggled to afford mobile data and/or broadband in 2025.

Our 2025 desk research with Sport England showed that groups facing digital barriers also face inequalities in being active, so understanding how digital shapes participation is crucial to ensuring opportunities are inclusive and accessible for all.

Understanding digital barriers

We recently partnered again with Sport England to extend our research to better understand the experiences of people trying to be active when struggling with digital access and/or digital skills.

We also identified examples of good practice for reducing digital barriers from organisations supporting people with digital and physical activity.

Our research highlights four types of digital barriers that can make it difficult for people to be active:

• Access: not being able to afford mobile data, wifi connections and/or not having access to a suitable digital device.
• Skills and confidence: lacking skills to search for/or access information online and/or finding it hard to use different apps and platforms.
• Trust and safety: worrying about booking and paying online, and/or lacking trust in the reliability of information online.
• User experience: language and/or accessibility needs, which for many makes it harder to use online platforms, and/or poor user experience including a lack of relevant information on digital platforms.

Take Ewa, for example, who told us that she loves to be active but who, due to confidence and English language barriers, struggles to go online to find out information about suitable local opportunities.

She relies on support from a local community organisation and from her young son to help her access information and book sessions, such as at the local swimming pool because, as she shared: “If it is online, I have to ask someone to help me. I don’t feel confident doing this myself.”

Recommended steps

Our research also highlighted great examples of how organisations are taking steps to support digital inclusion in order to help people participate in sport and physical activity, with recommend actions such as:

• build understanding of digital barriers: embed simple questions on digital barriers, like the Indicators of Digital Inclusion, into customer or population surveys to understand needs and design sport and physical activity services accordingly
• provide or signpost to local, trusted support for digital help, like organisations in the National Digital Inclusion Network building digital access and skills among local communities
• make it easier for people to use online platforms: sport and physical activity platforms should be designed with the needs of people with low digital skills in mind. Besides, non-digital pathways for information (such as printed leaflets) and booking options should also be provided
• build partnerships for place-based support: as digital barriers are not limited to the sport and physical activity sector, collaboration across local systems like the health and social prescribing services or the voluntary, community and social enterprise sector can help build digital capability.

A call for a digitally inclusive sector

Digital should be an enabler – not a barrier – to being active, so by understanding and addressing digital barriers we can ensure that everyone has the same opportunities for participating in sport and physical activity.

While many people still struggle with digital access and skills, our new research shows that organisations across the sport and physical activity sector can take action to make their services more digitally accessible.

Sport England has a critical role in this space too and by continuing to raise awareness of digital exclusion across the sector, championing best practices and raising expectations for commissioning inclusive services, they can ensure digital inclusion is baked into all sport and physical activity from the beginning and not just as an afterthought.