Daughters and Dads Active and Empowered is a multi-award-winning, community-based program, that engages fathers/father figures in positive lifestyle role modelling and effective parenting strategies to improve the physical activity behaviours, physical confidence, sport skills and social-emotional wellbeing of their daughters
During the program, dads spend quality time with their daughters, havin
g fun and working together in practical sessions involving rough and tumble play, sport skills, and health-related fitness games. Both fathers and daughters gain the knowledge and skills necessary to promote lifelong physical activity. Dads also learn evidence-based parenting strategies to enhance the physical and mental wellbeing of their daughters. Daughters are given opportunities to practise key social-emotional skills including self-control, persistence, critical thinking, resilience and self-reliance and spend quality time with their dads working together in fun practical sessions involving sport skills (eg kicking, catching, throwing), rough and tumble play and health-related fitness games. Formerly known as DADEE (Dads And Daughters Exercising and Empowered), the program name was changed to Daughters and Dads Active and Empowered in mid-2019. In addition to our Daughters & Dads Active and Empowered 'Classic' program, a four-year partnership with the NSW Office of Sport will see the University of Newcastle team work with a number of state sporting bodies to develop sport specific variants of the Daughters & Dads program (2019-2023). Daughters & Dads Cricket was piloted in early 2020 in consultation with Cricket-NSW and Cricket Australia and continues to roll out in 2021-2023. Daughters & Dads Basketball is planned for delivery in 2022 in consultation with Basketball NSW, to co-ordinate with the 2022 Women’s Basketball World Cup in Sydney, NSW. Daughters & Dads Football is planned for delivery in 2022-2023 in consultation with Football NSW and NNSW Football, to c-ordinate with the FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand in 2023.
