EMPLOYMENT
Upskilling the Workforce
Crispin Andrews looks at some of the different routes young people can take towards a rewarding career within the sports industry
I
n years gone by, young sporting professionals learned their trade as apprentices; just being around estab- lished sportspeople seemed to give
them insights into their game and how to be successful. It seems the sports industry is now heading back to this hands-on way of learning, by engaging with talented and enthusiastic young people not only seeking careers in top level sport but in the various other roles available within the sport and leisure sector.
Sporting apprentices
Many young people in the UK play sport, even more watch it and sports-talk is never far away from our playgrounds, streets and living rooms. The sports in- dustry is now helping them follow their dreams through the government’s voca- tional apprenticeship programme. “For some people university is the right
path, but others are more suited to voca- tional routes,” says SkillsActive’s strategic lead for national governing bodies and 2012 legacy, Steve Mitchell. “There’s an alternative to doing a sports-science degree at university and then training at your own expense to make yourself more employable; you can train for free as an apprentice.”
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The National Apprenticeship Service
was set up in April last year, armed with a government pledge that every suitably qualified young person has the right to an apprenticeship by 2013. To- day, 180 apprenticeships are available within 80 different industries. Just like the original trainee plumbers,
electricians and builders, Active Lei- sure and Learning apprentices are now learning about major industry roles in a hands-on way. From coaching, sports development and spectator safety to
activity leadership and fitness instruc- tion; training providers and employers have got together to give young people the practical knowledge they need to get the job they are looking for. Within 12 to 24 months, young people
can work towards an NVQ Level 2 in their chosen area and then progress to an Advanced Apprenticeship at Level 3 in sports development, leisure manage- ment, play work, instructing physical activity and exercise, coaching or activity. Fourteen- to 16-year-olds taking the
Young Apprenticeship in Sports Manage- ment, Leadership and Coaching spend three days a week doing GCSEs, one on vocational learning, usually the BTEC sport, and one at their work placement. Mitchell explains that placements have to be flexible. “There’s no point somebody turning up every week if there’s noth- ing for them to do,” he says, “so we ask employers to tell us when they need help. A School Sport Partnership might run a series of after school festivals to run in June that the young apprentice could be involved with, or on afternoons when his gym is quiet, a fitness manager may be available to provide some mentoring.” However, apprenticeships aren’t just for young people – Mitchell says that adults
Issue 2 2010 © cybertrek 2010
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