CIMSPA ReTrain programme allocates over £330,000 of funding in first 12 weeks
ReTrain, part of a £2m CIMSPA initiative designed to retool the sport and physical activity workforce (funded by The National Lottery through Sport England), has already allocated over £330,000 of funding to more than 250 employers across England.
Since launching in September, the ReTrain programme has been extremely popular with employers across the sector, with over 600 training requests covering nearly 300 sites being made through the online application portal.
Over two thirds of training requests in the first 12 weeks were for aquatic roles and those that support swimming pool operations, such as assistant swimming teachers, swimming teachers, lifeguards and pool plant operators. The remaining requests covered a variety of exercise and fitness roles, including gym, group exercise, strength and conditioning instructors, personal trainers, health navigators and duty managers.
Employers will be notified over the coming weeks if their initial applications have received funding, and CIMSPA is now undertaking a process to match successful applications with training providers. Training requests already submitted will be continually reviewed and assessed as the initiative moves forward. All training will be delivered by accredited CIMSPA Training Provider Partners, 26 of which have so far registered interest in being part of the ReTrain programme.
Tara Dillon, CEO, CIMSPA said:“Being able to inject £2m directly into the sector during this pandemic has been so important. The money goes right to the heart of our mission in keeping brilliant employees skilled in their roles and supporting operators to showcase their greatest assets - their teams. This remains a people focused sector and it has meant so much to our partners to be able to do something positive during this very difficult period.”Colin Huffen, Head of Regulation and Standards , CIMSPA, commented:“We are delighted with the response to ReTrain from employers and training providers across the sector in England. There is clearly a large appetite among employers to train existing and new staff, enabling them to continue providing vital services to the public and we are proud to be facilitating this, with the help of Sport England.”
Funding through ReTrain will continue over the coming months and into the new year, with employer partners of CIMSPA, CLUK and ukactive, based in England, are invited to continue identifying their skills gaps and apply to CIMSPA.
Apply here
Employers can also contact CIMSPA directly for further information:
North West/West Midlands/South West/London (Central, North, West): ben.hulson@cimspa.co.ukNorth East/Yorkshire and Humber/East Midlands/East of England/South East/London (East, South): danny.ross@cimspa.co.uk
Training providers interested in becoming a CIMSPA Training Provider Partner are welcome to
apply here.
CIMSPA also has
ReActivate - a free online Covid Awareness Training platform for anyone working or volunteering in the sport, fitness, leisure and physical activity sector in England.
The Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity
CIMSPA’s work enhances the career opportunities and professional development of the workforce operating in sport, fitness, exercise, leisure, gyms, coaching, outdoor exercise, health and wellbeing. We achieve this through sector-wide engagement, membership, networking, events, directories and professional standards.