No Kit, No Game: How Clothing Poverty Is Excluding Children from Sport

Children in the UK are being pushed to the side lines of sport not because they lack talent or interest, but because they lack sportswear.

Insight reports from organisations working with young people reflect how, in low-income families, kit has become the dividing line between those who get to play sport and those who stay home.

Young people frequently miss PE lessons⁷, avoid joining sports clubs², or withdraw from physical activity altogether because they lack suitable kit⁶, bringing embarrassment and shame.

Clothing poverty is emerging as a critical, but often overlooked, barrier.

A key barrier to poorer children moving less

Sport England’s ‘Active Lives Children and Young People Survey (2022–23)’ shows a clear link between affluence and activity levels: only 40% of children from low-affluence families achieve the recommended 60 minutes of daily physical activity, compared with 52% from high-affluence families¹.

Sported (a community sports charity working with disadvantaged young people) found in its 2025 report that inadequate kit is a major barrier to joining or staying in community sport².

Children who cannot afford trainers, leggings, weather-appropriate clothing or PE kit often stop participating because they feel singled out or unable to meet kit expectations².

Women in Sport (2023–24) reported that girls from low-income households are particularly affected: essential items like sports bras or appropriate clothing are often unaffordable³, amplifying self-consciousness and pushing them out of activity altogether.

The cost-of-living crisis is accelerating exclusion

The cost-of-living crisis has intensified financial extremes. Sport England’s insights show that families in the lowest income groups are cutting back on “non-essential” spending such as sports kit and equipment⁴, where activity levels were already lower before the crisis.

Research by the Local Government Association and StreetGames found that only 16% of young people in low-income neighbourhoods belong to a sports club, with kit and equipment costs routinely identified as a contributing factor⁵.

Barnardo’s (2021) reports that parents struggling with household bills describe sports kit as an “unaffordable extra,” and children often avoid PE or drop out of clubs to avoid stigma⁷.

This stigma is not superficial: Barnardo’s highlights that poverty-related embarrassment can contribute to isolation, low self-esteem and poorer mental health⁶, while The Children’s Society documents that children who cannot afford correct clothing are at risk of bullying, feeling left out, or being excluded from activities⁷.

Their research includes the example of a schoolgirl who asked to skip PE — an activity she otherwise enjoyed — because she was too embarrassed to borrow socks from lost property⁷, a vivid illustration of how clothing poverty affects participation through shame and fear of judgement.

A critical evidence gap

Despite the strength of qualitative evidence, the UK has no national dataset quantifying how many children are excluded from sport specifically because of clothing poverty.

Large-scale surveys bundle kit costs into broader affordability categories, masking the true scale of the problem. The most detailed findings come from charity-led studies⁵, but a national picture is still missing.

This gap exists partly because national surveys do not ask directly about sports clothing barriers, and because the issue sits awkwardly between education, welfare and sport, meaning no single body takes responsibility for measuring it.

Clothing poverty is also often hidden: children may “forget” kit, avoid PE or quietly drop out rather than disclose poverty, so the barrier is recorded as disengagement rather than material deprivation.

Without clear national measurement, the issue remains underestimated, unrecognised in funding decisions and left to frontline organisations to identify and address.

Exclusion is not a lifestyle choice

Sport builds confidence, community, resilience, physical and mental health. But these benefits flow overwhelmingly to those who can pay the price of entry. Clothing poverty creates a structural inequality in which the children who could benefit most from sport are the ones denied access.

Evidence from Sport England¹, Women in Sport³, The Children’s Society⁷ and StreetGames⁵ shows that when children miss out on sport, they lose opportunities to build physical literacy, social connection, confidence and wider extracurricular skills.

Clothing poverty is a social justice issue, shaping both immediate participation and longer-term life chances.

What Clothing Collective can do and why it matters now

Clothing Collective is uniquely positioned to intervene where sporting inequality begins: at the level of essential clothing access.

Clothing Collective can support families to obtain basics – trainers, sports leggings, PE kit, warm layers by:

• Removing one of the most commonly reported hidden barriers to participation³

• Reducing stigma by ensuring children have appropriate kit⁷

• Easing financial pressure on families forced to prioritise essentials⁶

• Improving participation among children in low-income groups¹

• Supporting community clubs losing participants because families cannot afford kit²

Evidence from kit-bank evaluations shows that when kit is accessible, participation rises immediately⁸. Clothing Collective can be a driver of that change nationwide.

Call to action

If we believe in fair access to childhood, then access to sports clothing must be part of the solution. Clothing poverty should never decide who gets to run, dance, swim or play.

Clothing Collective can help, but only if we step up. Because unless we act, children will keep missing PE, turning down invitations, dropping out of teams and losing confidence — all because of clothing they never had a chance to afford. This isn’t an inconvenience. It’s preventable inequality. And it won’t shift unless we do.

Let’s help every child step onto the pitch with dignity – and stay there. Find out how you can support us to do this.

References:

1.     Sport England (2023). Active Lives Children & Young People Survey, Academic Year 2022–23; Cost-of-Living Insight Packs (2022–2024).

2.     Sported (2025). The Role of Kit in Community Sports: Insights Report.

3.     Women in Sport (2023–2024). The Impact of the Cost-of-Living Crisis on Girls’ and Women’s Participation.

4.     Sport England (2023). Cost-of-Living Impact on Participation: Insight Pack.

5.     Local Government Association & StreetGames (2023). Supporting Youth in Low-Income Neighbourhoods to Stay Active Through Sport.

6.     Barnardo’s (2021). It’s Hard to Be Heard: The Lived Experience of Low-Income Families.

7.     The Children’s Society (2020). The Hidden Costs of School; The Wrong Blazer: Inequalities in School Uniform Cost and Access.

8.     Wear Works / Kit for All (2024). Community Kit Bank Evaluation.