We are excited to announce today a new three-year strategic partnership with Sport England, starting with immediate effect.  

From 2024 through to 2027, we will be focusing on tackling and improving understanding of the needs and barriers to sports-based volunteering for individuals underrepresented in the workforce. We will look to engage, train and support place-based local delivery partners to test and learn from our adapted programmes and engagement methods, whilst sharing best practice across the sector. 

Our Chief Executive, Richard Norman spoke of his delight this morning, saying: “We are hugely excited to be working in partnership with Sport England. Having pioneered sports leadership for over 40 years we know that sports leadership so often provides young people with the skills, experiences, and confidence to consider a paid or voluntary role in the sports workforce. 

“This partnership with Sport England will not only allow us to work with other system partners to streamline these opportunities but also to better understand and address the barriers and needs of under-represented individuals and communities by providing them with more sports leadership opportunities. 

“We have already begun work and are looking forward to progressing this over the coming months and contributing to the ambitions of Sport England’s Uniting the Movement Strategy.” 

Supporting new leaders and champions

Executive Director of Partnerships for Sport England, Phil Smith said:  

“Our ambition is for everyone in England to have the opportunity to be active, regardless of who they are or where they live. 

“Alongside that, we’re committed to finding and supporting new leaders and champions of sport and physical activity, from every walk of life and background.  

“But we can’t achieve this alone, so we’ve developed a growing network of partners who share our vision. We’re working with organisations from a range of different fields outside sport to bring about systemic change to ensure everyone can get active. 

“The Leadership Skills Foundation are delivering fantastic work already and will make a real difference on the ground.” 

Liam Hope, Director of Marketing and Engagement for the Leadership Skills Foundation added: “Our first steps in delivering this partnership will be to identify and acknowledge the systemic barriers and inequalities affecting young people’s access to sports leadership opportunities in underserved communities. We will then work to adapt our programmes and increase engagement with targeted audiences through local test and learn delivery.  

“Furthermore, we will lead and facilitate alignment with national sector partners to simplify the transition from sports leadership and volunteering into the paid and unpaid sports workforce. This is where we will make a real difference to communities across England, in particular those where access to opportunities is not always guaranteed and more often than not, transition into the workforce doesn’t happen.” 

We have already begun recruitment for a number of roles to support the partnership and will make further announcements as the work progresses over the coming months.

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