What I learnt from the Paris innovation summit

How? By showcasing existing best practices from across countries and enabling greater collaboration to scale what we are all learning across Europe.

It was an inspiring occasion, with keynote speakers presenting 15 proven innovative projects.

All were given the platform to share their knowledge with the aim of inspiring new networks and collaborations.

As part of the agenda, our chief executive - Tim Hollingsworth - was interviewed on the stage on innovation in disability sport, which felt particularly relevant for an event held during the Paralympic Games.

My top three learnings from the day

One thing we need to consider is how we move from our privileged position in Paris to meaningful action over the next four years.

Here are my top three takeaways that I hope will inspire the sport and physical activity sector in England to step closer to innovation and the role we all need to play in addressing inequalities.

1. Globally, we are off track

Dr Fiona Bull, Head of the Physical Activity Unit at the World Health Organisation, opened the Summit by explaining that the world is currently off track from meeting the global target set for 2030 to reduce physical inactivity by 15%.

Over the last decade, there has been great progress in policy-writing, with more countries recognising the importance of physical activity in preventing health conditions and reducing wider societal inequalities.

However, what we are now facing is an implementation gap - that is how to turn these policies into delivery.

Our chief executive - Tim Hollingsworth - was interviewed on the stage on innovation in disability sport, which felt particularly relevant for an event held during the Paralympic Games.

There's also a lack of dedicated support for the purpose-driven individuals and organisations who are designing to meet the particular needs of specific communities.

In fact, these social innovations are central to overcoming the policy-implementation gap.

The support they need is threefold:

• connections that are peer-based, but also public and private as the evidence of their impact grows
• investment to allow them to stay focused on the barriers they are solving rather than chasing the cash
• coaching to help them navigate the complexities of sustaining their business as it grows and to help them respond to change.

So I pose two questions: which local projects can you connect with and learn from? And who could you amplify and advocate for nationally?

2. Social innovation is more important that technology innovation

The term 'innovation' is often firstly associated with technology and new products, but what came across loud and clear in Paris was that innovation for inequalities needs to first have a social purpose, especially when we want to apply it to remove systemic barriers that exist in communities.

This aligns with how we define innovation at Sport England:

Innovation is applying a creative mindset, generating ideas and experimenting to make positive changes that improve people's experiences of physical activity. It is an approach that puts people's needs at the heart, continually learning and adapting to remove the real-life barriers they are facing.

So think first about who you are seeking to help and then what problem or barrier you are removing for them, before you decide on the solutions that might work best for those communities.

Ideally those groups are also involved in the discovery and design processes, rather than having things done to them.

3. Support to scale the innovation process is key

As Cormac Macdonnell from Sport Ireland shared: "Good ideas and initiatives deserve to be shared and scaled across Europe". But, within the sport sector, it can sometimes feel like we are competing rather than collaborating.

So how can we help many more innovators experience the sharing spirit that our 15 projects experienced at the Summit?

They were offered the opportunity to learn from like-minded people who are trying to solve the same problems, but in different cultural contexts.

We need to do more to create the space for people to trial new approaches, fail fast but learn quickly, and to share that learning so that we are building motorways together, not roundabouts.

Thanks to John Hughes, Director of Partnerships at Community Integrated Care (CIC), who talked about an Inclusive Volunteering project that we funded, who shared this fantastic analogy.

Looking at the possibilities ahead

I think it is fair to say that we all left the Summit positive about the future, as what was evident in the room was that the passion for improving inequalities through purposeful innovation is alive and well.

But creating and nurturing the conditions where innovation can thrive will take patience and collective care, so what we really need to consider is whether we're up to the challenge. I know Sport England is. Will you join us?

On behalf of Sport England, I would like to thank Sportinnovator for the opportunity, and CIC, Intelligent Health UK and Planet Earth Games for joining us and sharing what they are learning about supporting disabled people, people on lower incomes and young people with others from across Europe.

If you'd like to learn more about how to take practical steps to apply innovation in order to remove barriers for specific audiences, please look at our innovation and digital resources, our latest research or get in touch with our team.

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