Project Name: Partnership in Action - UCLan

Location: Lancashire



The Challenge

The University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) offers one of the broadest ranges of sports education programmes of any university in the UK with over 1,000 students studying sport. The university must ensure that the currciulum being taught has relevance outside of the academic courses and that graduates must be truly employable.



The Approach

Effective partnership activity at both a local and regional level. In the local context there is an extremely strong link with Preston City Council which operates at a strategic and at an operational level. Examples of strategic partnership include the fact that UCLan representatives chair the Preston Vision Board, the Local Strategic Partnership and the Preston Community Sport Network (or Sport and Physical Activity Alliance as they have been called in the North West). To this end, the University has partnered the City Council in undertaking a city-wide sports facilities audit in order to produce a unified facilities strategy, so as to target investment and to avoid duplication.

An Urban Regeneration project (a Higher Educational Funding Council for England Ð HEFCE -resourced project) which has been undertaken in Preston and Tameside in partnership with Salford University, aiming to provide opportunities for individuals within hard to reach groups to become more economically productive via the medium of sport.

Embedding of Students from UCLan’s Sports Development degree in local sports clubs via the Preston Sports Forum. Part of their learning programme and its assessment is contingent upon them gaining valuable experience within a community context.

Within the Community Sports Coaching module on the final year of the Sports Coaching degree at UCLan, students are afforded the opportunities to work on live projects solicited from local organisation such as Positive Futures, Preston City Council’s Sports Development Unit, Blackburn and Darwen Borough Council’s Sports Development Unit, Worden Sports College and the Lancashire County Football Association.



The Benefits

The Urban Regeneration project has provided opportunities for individuals to undertake sports qualifications and workshops centred upon employability. Early successes meant that the project gained additional partnership funding via the worklessness agenda in Preston.

Students gain live experience and in the process of doing so they will provide the capacity to assist local clubs in working towards various governing body quality standards. Now that links have been established it is intended to embed students from the successful Sports Coaching degree in order to provide additional capacity so as to increase opportunities for participation locally.

Students are currently working on reports covering aspects of social inclusion for young people in disadvantaged areas, opportunities for older age group participation, improving standards within sports clubs, swimming participation and pathways to excellence and recruitment and retention of sports officials. The findings will be presented back to panels from the clients organisations at a mini-conference at the end of the module.



Key Recommendations

	Provide opportunities for individuals within hard to reach groups to become more economically productive via the medium of sport. Opportunities have been provided for individuals to undertake sports qualifications and workshops centred upon employability.
	Embed students from the successful Sports Coaching degree in order to provide additional capacity so as to increase opportunities for participation locally. Develop further higher education opportunities within East Lancashire

Key Quote

"The project aimed to provide opportunities for individuals within hard to reach groups to become more economically productive via the medium of sport. Opportunities have been provided for individuals to undertake sports qualifications and workshops centred upon employability."