INSIGHT & ANALYSIS
INSIGHT & ANALYSIS
What comes next? We need to be much more co-ordinated in the way we share data across the sector. It is only by doing this that we will quantify the difference we’ve made and, following the advice in the Treasury’s Green Book , put our sums into Wellby – the Treasury’s portal to measure social impact – to in turn secure funding. With this in mind, we secured funding from the UK Research and Innovation fund to create the Sport and Physical Activity Workforce Observatory – a knowledge transfer programme in collaboration with universities including Cardiff Met, as well as data insight experts across the sector and beyond. It will collate research and insight about our sector. We can ask it any question. It’s agnostic, with a body of academics committed to validating the integrity of the data and enabling consistent, reliable outputs.
service and education providers. They’re sharing examples of impact, which is helping spread the word across regions, driving forward these ways of working at a greater pace. Data is key to this, including showing ICTs (Integrated Care Trusts, formerly the PCTs) that working with us will deliver on their objectives by supporting prevention and management of chronic conditions, rehabilitation and recovery, mental health and community engagement. Tell us more… We work best with local authorities when we collaborate and address their challenges. We meet and we ask what their biggest priorities are. Potholes? We can’t help with that, what’s next on the list? They might then tell us their mental health budget is under pressure from huge demand. Great, that’s something we can help with. We’ll go into these meetings fully prepared: we’ll know they overspent on their mental health budget last year; we’ll present evidence that working with us – with occupational therapists on-site in our centres, for example – can bring a £58 return on every £1 spent; and we’ll tell them it will cost them nothing. They just have to commit to pointing patients to us at the earliest stage of their diagnosis, and in a year’s time, we’ll show how much we’ve saved them. All of a sudden, the local authority wants to know what else we can do to help, and the ICT will pitch in too, perhaps identifying a problem – not enough qualified personnel to deliver diabetes prevention programmes, for example – which we can help with by introducing new training and additional expertise to our existing workforce.
The Skills and Post-16 Education Act 2022 brought about important changes in adult skills provision. Specifically, there must now be a proven local requirement for the skills that any educational curriculum being offered will deliver. This is hugely welcomed. It’s leading to greater collaboration between education providers and employers, ensuring the latter have a stronger voice in ensuring any local learning opportunities lead to the skills they need. We secured funding from Sport England to initially set up 15 Local Skills Accountability Boards to manage the creation of Local Skills Improvement Plans. There are now 37 of these Boards across the country. We’ve helped colleges, universities and training providers to create relevant curricula and get those learning and skills development opportunities into the system, so our sector can begin to address the gaps identified – the need for people who can deliver diabetes prevention, for example.
The National Sector Partners Group played a key role in securing Treasury investment in the swimming pool support fund
We don’t have to change who we are and call ourselves ‘health’. Our role is as a partner that helps prevent so many people needing healthcare in the first place.
If we want to make a case, we can ask the Workforce Observatory for data to prove our argument and speak with one voice
A new approach to skills development will help us meet local needs – more diabetes prevention programmes, for example
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STATE OF THE UK FITNESS INDUSTRY REPORT 2024
STATE OF THE UK FITNESS INDUSTRY REPORT 2024
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