Accelerating Action on Facilities
A longer version of this article appeared in the Western Mail and WalesOnline for International Women’s Day on 8 March 2025.
On a CWS Board call a while back, in a discussion on the upcoming international women’s day theme: accelerating action, we started discussing the simple things that act as a major barrier to participation in sport and physical activity for women and girls.
The discussion moved quickly to the poor state of facilities at the venues for a lot of grassroots sport. For women and girls, poor facilities at sports grounds are more than just an inconvenience—they’re a barrier to participation. This is a clear area where accelerated action is needed, now.
From cramped or non-existent changing rooms to a lack of sanitary bins, these issues make enjoying sport harder than it should be.
Let’s talk toilets first. At many grounds, women’s facilities are an afterthought, if they exist at all. The absence of any facilities at many grounds is a major barrier. The solution for men and boys is pretty straight forward, although unhygienic, but nipping behind a bush is not a reasonable option for women and girls. Actually, it’s not a reasonable or acceptable option for men and boys either!
Then, there’s the changing room chaos. Many grassroots venues don’t have changing facilities meaning that players have to arrive ready to play or have to change without privacy. And there’s no option for a shower afterwards. And if there are facilities, these changing rooms are designed for men, leaving female athletes with nowhere private to prepare or shower. Poor lighting, broken showers, and a lack of private cubicles add to the frustration.
And as for period dignity. An absence of toilets means that for many women, taking part in sport when they have their period is virtually impossible, or they have to double up on period protection to avoid leaks. Many sports facilities also fail to provide proper sanitary disposal options. For teenage girls, this can be a dealbreaker, and we know that there is a drop off in activity levels for teenage girls – so why are we not addressing a key issue which would make a difference?
Although having a much greater impact on women and girls, men and boys are also impacted by the state of the facilities at grass roots venues. Sure, they can nip behind a bush – but why would you want to? So again, this isn’t just a “women’s problem” or a “men’s problem”—it’s a facilities problem. Everyone deserves clean, safe, and accessible spaces. We need to stop treating facilities as a luxury and start making them a standard. That means more toilets and proper changing areas with privacy as standard. And let’s not forget safety—well-lit paths, secure changing rooms, and family-friendly spaces make venues welcoming for everyone.
Women and girls deserve more than “make-do” facilities. They deserve spaces that show they belong in sport. One of our three strategic intents is ‘advocate’. We are looking for different ways to engage with those who have the power to change things, including Government, Sport Wales and National Governing Bodies.
This International Women’s Day, we want to accelerate action for women and girls in sport in Wales and we’d also love to hear from you – what are your experiences of changing facilities in Wales? Your stories will help us to make a difference and ensure future generations of women and girls no longer have to suffer changing room indignities when being physically active or playing sport.
Leigh Robinson, Chair, Cymru Women’s Sport