Releasing the Power of our Profession

The sport and physical activity workforce has never had such a vital role in society as it does today. The value of the contribution that we make to the physical and mental health and wellbeing of the population, to social cohesion, to the engagement of everyone in our communities, and to the economic prosperity of our country, continues to grow.

This strategy, Releasing the Power of our Profession, sets out how our workforce, which now amounts to almost 600,000* roles, can be supported and professionally recognised.

Our profession is consistently striving for greater recognition.

• Recognition of their status as qualified, experienced professionals who have an immense impact on health and wellbeing through high-quality practice and continuous professional development.
• Recognition of how the value of their work extends beyond narrow perceptions and positively impacts lives and communities.
• Recognition of how their experience and commitment to ethical, safe practice and engagement makes them distinct.

With this strategy is a commitment to six system interventions which will deliver the individual and collective recognition that our sector workforce needs and deserves. And it illustrates the phenomenal additional impact that the profession will have through that recognition.

System interventions

Our strategy will deliver professional recognition through six system interventions.

1. Local skills plans / local skills delivery: Brokering supply and demand – the right training, delivered in the right place, at the right time, to the right people.
2. National Training Academy / education ecosystem: Harnessing skills legislation to increase the positive impact of our quality-assured education delivery ecosystem.
3. Careers support: Continually improve the recruitment, training, retention and support of a diverse and inclusive workforce.
4. Business support hub: Enhancing business resilience and success for sector enterprises, with a focus on smaller employers and those in a startup phase.
5. Workforce governance: Ensuring a professional, well-governed sport and activity workforce delivering safe and high-quality participation opportunities for all.
6. UK sport and physical activity workforce skills observatory: Leading an exciting new sector capability. Research-informed decision-making: moving from insight to foresight.