What do you do?
I find ways to engage with hard-to-reach young people through sport and help schools deliver five hours of sports a week. I identify where there might be gaps in this delivery and then I work with schools, young people and partners to devise programmes that support schools. This can involve everything from designing website content and marketing, to getting athlete mentors to support the programme. Currently, one of the projects in my portfolio is Living for Sport, which we deliver with Sky Sports.
How did you get into this job?
I had always been interested in sport, although more as a participant than an athlete. I gained a degree in sport and recreational management and worked in leisure services and in athletics. I found that I was more interested in children's enjoyment of sport rather than how fast they were running or how far they could jump. I knew about Youth Sport Trust and I don't think there is another organisation that has the same passion to make a difference through sport. Its work and ethos are very important to me.
How can sport help?
Sport can help counter disaffection, disengagement and low self-esteem. However, I appreciate that PE is not something that every young person enjoys, so our job is to make sure that they experience as many sports as possible.
We work with sporting mentors who go into schools and deliver the same messages as teachers, but if somebody like the Olympic sprinter Darren Campbell comes into a school with a Great Britain tracksuit and a medal, it comes across differently.
What are the challenges?
Saying no can be a challenge as we always believe we can do more, but there are never enough hours in the day. You need to prioritise in this job.
Another challenge can be knowing how best we can support schools. They are busy and complicated places with a lot going on, and we have to support them to make the right decisions.
