Sport is vital for physical fitness, yet its impact extends far beyond individual health. It plays a significant role in society, improving mental wellbeing, strengthening communities, fuelling economic growth and supporting social cohesion.
Data published in October 2024 confirms what the sector has long understood: investment in sport delivers substantial economic and social value, often several times greater than the money initially spent.
The concept of Economic and Social Value has become an important factor when evaluating the true return on investment in sport and physical activity. It goes beyond traditional measures of participation or revenue to include the full spectrum of benefits, from healthcare savings to community development and personal wellbeing.
Sport England's October 2024 research revealed that the Social Value of community sport and physical activity in England was £107.2 billion annually. This consists of £96.7 billion from the direct benefit and value to individuals from improved wellbeing, including participation and volunteering and £105 billion Secondary Value to society covering reduced GP visits, prevention of disease and chronic health conditions and the cost of sports injuries. In terms of Economic Value, England generates circa £87 billion with gross value added of circa £46.5 billion. This is driven from job creation, reducing health care costs from a healthier population and from the reduction in crime.
FMG Consulting's newly developed Economic and Social Value Model builds on this national framework, providing local authorities, Active Partnerships and operators with a practical tool to quantify the measurable impact of sport and physical activity within their specific communities. The model combines demographic data, health metrics and participation trends to deliver evidence-based insights that support business strategy, investment appraisals and business cases.
The analysis of benefits from sport and physical activity on individuals and society have been classified into Primary and Social Values. From a Primary perspective, adults that are active have a benefit valued at £2,500 per adult, being fairly active provides a value of £1,200 and for younger people (aged 11-16) these compare as £4,100 and £3,100 respectively. It may be noted that different genders, age groups and people with long-term health conditions have an allocated “value” per person.
Again, volunteering can generate a Social Value for an individual. If volunteering weekly, this value is estimated at £2,100 and monthly £1,000 per adult.
Secondary Values are the wider value to society and covers a range of health focussed outcomes including risk of diabetes, cancers, dementia, depression and back pain, reduced GP visits, reduced mental health support required and reduced sports injuries. These translate into a value per adult of an active or fairly active adult between £315 and £230. Again, these differ for age with gender being negligible.
As well as improving individual lives, sport helps build stronger societies. Community sport fosters relationships, encourages volunteering and enhances social capital by creating spaces where people of all ages and backgrounds can connect.
It also supports local economies. The sport sector contributes £46.7 billion in gross value added to the English economy, sustaining employment across coaching, facility management, events and related services.
In deprived or isolated areas, sport can be a catalyst for regeneration, increasing footfall, improving perceptions of safety and creating new pathways for youth engagement. The social benefits of sports infrastructure (including facilitating social interactions and providing green spaces) deliver substantial additional value to communities.
A key focus across the UK is reducing inequality in participation. The social cost of inequalities in physical activity levels is calculated at £15.6 billion annually with £14.2 billion from Primary Value and £1.4 billion from Secondary Value.
Addressing these disparities is central to Sport England's Place Needs Classification framework, which guides investment to areas of greatest need by combining physical activity data from Active Lives Surveys with wider social data including the index of multiple deprivation, community need and health inequalities indicators.
FMG's Economic and Social Value Model is designed to complement these national frameworks, helping partners target resources where they will generate the highest return in health outcomes, social inclusion and local prosperity. By quantifying impact at community level, through site selection, facility mix and programmes, the model enables evidence-based decision-making and demonstrates accountability to stakeholders and funders.
As the sector continues to evolve, the ability to measure and communicate impact has become essential to securing investment, both internally and externally, and shaping sustainable strategies.
Sport and physical activity are integral components of national infrastructure, promoting a healthy population both now and in the future. The Chief Medical Officer, Professor Chris Whitty, emphasises that "the greatest health gains are from helping people who do little activity to do a bit more", highlighting that strategic investment in the least active populations delivers the most significant returns.
Quantifying the true value of sport's impact ensures that future decisions are evidence-led, equitable and designed for long-term benefit. With £107.2 billion in annual social value at stake, and £15.6 billion in potential gains from addressing inequality, the case for investment in sport and physical activity has never been stronger. This is in addition to the Economic Value created from these investment opportunities at a national and local level.
FMG Consulting's Economic and Social Value Model (ESV) helps local authorities and operators quantify the impact of sport and physical activity investments, supporting evidence-based strategy development and robust business cases. Speak to our team to discover how we can help you demonstrate and maximise the social and economic value of your existing and new sports provision.
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