Our partners

The Active Partnerships Network is responsible for the 43 Active Partnerships across England (many of which are Leadership Skills Foundation centres). An Active Partnership’s core purpose is to use the power of sport and physical activity to create the conditions for an active nation. 

We developed the Activity Volunteer Programme to provide accredited learning opportunities for young people taking part in Active Partnerships programmes to develop leadership skills. The programme supports the pathway into volunteering and future employment through building transferrable skills. 

We have also supported the development of specific learning programmes, such as an accredited Walk Leader programme with Active Derbyshire. 

The Association for Physical Education (afPE) is a long-established programme, project and advisory partner with the Leadership Skills Foundation. We work with afPE to provide awarding body, assessment and accreditation expertise to support workforce development qualifications. In 2021, we launched the Professional Institute for Accredited Physical Education to provide accredited, subject-specific professional development.

AoC Sport (a branch of the Association of Colleges) is a membership organisation which leads the development of sport and physical activity in English 16+ education. The Leadership Skills Foundation works closely with the AoC and over 130 of its members to help inform their approach by providing leadership skills development expertise. 

The Association for Science Education (ASE) is a membership body that supports those involved in science education, including teachers, technicians, tutors and advisors. The Leadership Skills Foundation is an advisory partner for ASE, informing their workforce and curriculum needs by helping to integrate leadership skills development and STEM Leadership programmes into curriculums. 

The Leadership Skills Foundation supports British Blind Sport’s ‘See My Voice’ project by offering an accessible qualification to learners with visual impairments. The qualification aims to build learners’ employability skills, confidence and motivation to get involved in volunteering in sport.

The British Esports Federation is the national body for esports in the United Kingdom. Working with them, we help to provide opportunities for young people to develop essential skills through esports to support routes to employment. We provide them with assessment and accreditation expertise to support with leadership skills development.

The ChangeX platform connects communities to proven ideas and accessible funding through a partnered sponsorship approach. The Leadership Skills Foundation is recognised as a ChangeX project partner, providing proven, established and supported programme opportunities for organisations to deliver. 

The Leadership Skills Foundation is working with the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) to support the development of local skills improvement plans in nine priority areas across England (which will be delivered by CIMSPA). 

We also support and advise on the skills development needs of the volunteer and young workforce to create an ‘employability skills and behaviours’ matrix that will underpin professional standards and development in the sport and physical activity sector.

The College of Esports is the world’s first higher education institution focusing on Esports. The Leadership Skills Foundation is a programme partner, developing the Level 3 qualification in Esports Leadership and helping to provide a gateway into a higher Esports education offer.

The Department for Education (DfE) is responsible for children’s services, policy and wider skills in education across England. The Leadership Skills Foundation works with the DfE as a project partner, delivering the Your Time programme as well as supporting policy development by providing leadership skills development expertise.

The Leadership Skills Foundation works as a service partner with a number of Multi Academy Trusts (MATs) to develop school- and Trust-wide approaches to leadership skills development. Recent examples of MAT partners include United Learning and Greenwood Academies Trust. 

The Leadership Skills Foundation is the awarding body for several sport-specific leadership awards delivered through national governing bodies (NGBs) across the UK. Current NGBs include the Lawn Tennis Association, Welsh Gymnastics, Welsh Rowing, Swim Wales and Scottish Gymnastics.

Pearson is one of the world’s largest qualification providers and awarding bodies. The Leadership Skills Foundation has worked in partnership with Pearson to integrate and map experiential learning into the BTEC curriculum. Recognising and mapping where Sports Leadership complements BTEC qualifications has allowed learners to additional qualifications whilst avoiding duplicated assessment.

PiXL is a partnership of thousands of schools, colleges and alternative education providers that aims to improve life chances and outcomes for young people and equip school leaders to be agents of change. 

The Leadership Skills Foundation is recognised as a PiXL community partner, supporting PiXL members through resources and packaged leadership skills programmes to support further school improvement.

RSPB is the UK’s largest conservation charity. As one of our partners, they help us to provide opportunities for young people to develop leadership skills through social action and environmental education opportunities. We provide them with assessment and accreditation expertise to support with leadership skills development.

As a key stakeholder in sport and recreation, the Leadership Skills Foundation works with Sport England to generate insight into sports leadership in education across a range of under-represented groups and continues to support its ‘Uniting the Movement’ strategy.

Sport Ireland plans, leads and coordinates the sustainable development of competitive and recreational sport in Ireland. In partnership with the Leadership Skills Foundation, 29 Local Sports Partnerships in Ireland are supported to deliver Sports Leadership qualifications through schools via a network of trained leadership tutors. 

sportscotland and the Leadership Skills Foundation work together by collectively focusing on a number of work streams that support the education and community development of young people in Scottish sport.

The Leadership Skills Foundation and Sport Wales work together to embed effective Sports Leadership programmes across Wales, supporting the vision of a dynamic, skilled and diverse workforce leading and delivering sport throughout the country.

SSERC offers professional learning services to support STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) in the Scottish curriculum. The Leadership Skills Foundation has co-developed the qualifications that are delivered as part of the ‘Young STEM Leader’ programme in Scotland, and our partnership with SSERC extends to working on the provision of STEM Leadership qualifications in England.  

Women in Sport campaigns to empower more women and girls to be active by providing sector-leading insight and solutions to tackling gender inequality in sport. As an advisory partner to the Leadership Skills Foundation, Women in Sport has helped to support and inform the development of our Your Time programme. Women in Sport’s research also regularly guides theory application in our programmes and projects.

WWF is the world’s largest conservation charity. Working with them, we help to provide opportunities for young people to develop leadership skills through social action and environmental education opportunities. We provide them with assessment and accreditation expertise to support with leadership skills development.

The Leadership Skills Foundation has a long-established partnership with the Youth Sport Trust (YST). As programme partners, we provide assessment, accreditation and leadership skills development expertise to the YST, supporting their projects and initiatives such as the School Games. 

More recently, we have partnered with YST to develop and accredit the PE Life Skills Award and the Wimbledon Foundation’s ‘Set for Success’ programme.