Moving from barriers to collaborative action: supporting social change in community sport through action research with club leaders

There is a need to move from identifying and understanding the barriers and facilitators to participation in sport experienced by marginalised populations to collaborative action towards social change. This paper examines how action research grounded in sustained academic-practitioner collaboration can stimulate change processes designed to enhance inclusive practices in community sport. Through analysing the three-year action research programme Change Makers Melbourne's West (CMMW), the paper identifies critical success factors and challenges in the collaborative pursuit of social change, specifically focusing on the social inclusion of culturally and racially minoritised communities. A unique feature of the action research is its close collaboration with 66 leaders across 38 community sports clubs representing twelve sports. The empirical findings underscore three key features: (a) the importance of evidence gathering prior to action, which ensures informed decision-making; (b) the establishment of mutually supportive environments that enhance collaboration; and (c) the role of sensitive support from facilitators, which fosters trust and empowers participants. The results demonstrate how social change can emerge through localised, situated processes.