Volunteer opportunities

R9 FC Soccer School is offering volunteering opportunities for students to work as Level 1 or 2 football coaches.

Essential requirements are FA Level 1 minimum, at least one year coaching experience, enhanced DBS within the year and available on Saturday and/or Sunday mornings.

Volunteers will become a valued member of the R9 FC family, as they strongly believe in professional coach development.

You will have the opportunity to work with a group of talented football players willing to learn and develop, with the possibility to take on a paid position in the future.

If anyone is interested please email your CV.

Graduate uses sport to change lives

UCLan Sports Coaching graduate Richard Steele is helping people improve their lives through his work in an educational role at a professional football club.

Richard is employed by Leyton Orient Trust as a Tutor for BTEC Sport Level 2 & 3, and also coaches football to students from the BTEC programme along with community coaching in the London area.

Students taught by Richard are provided with a pathway through the coaching programme to join Leyton Orient Academy. One recent example of this is winger Sandro Semedo, who was recommended to the Academy and has now signed a two-year professional contract with the club.

The Trust aims to positively impact on the lives of disadvantaged Londoners through sports, educational and leisure projects.

Since its creation in 1989, over £30 million has been invested in local communities and touched the lives of over 100,000 young people during that time.

For more information about the Trust please click here.

Students continue to make a difference in Africa

UCLan Sport students joined colleagues from across the campus to visit Zambia to support the delivery of key health messages to young people about the dangers of drug abuse and HIV through the power of sport.

More than 40 undergraduates from a range of sports, media, law, physiotherapy and sexual health courses spent a total of eight weeks across three cohort visits in the African country as part of the UCLan Sport for Development Project.

The scheme involves students working with peer leader volunteers from Sport in Action, a Zambian based Sport for Development NGO, to deliver key health messages and life skills through sport and physical activity.

Sports Therapy student Sam Heap took part in the trip and said it was an eye-opening experience: "HIV, AIDs and drug abuse is a massive issue in Africa. We had to teach and educate the children about these problems through the use of sport. It was challenging at first because of the language barrier, but with the help of other peer leaders we managed to overcome this.

"We spent the first week in a community school with three of us looking after over 200 children. The trip was a big culture shock but also very life-changing for me. In the UK you can donate to charity, but to be able to actually go there and see what the problems are was an enlightening experience."

The UCLan Sport for Development Project was established in 2008 by Senior Lecturer Cliff Olsson. It gives students the opportunity to study the global value and contribution sport can make towards supporting wider international development such as the Millennium Development Goals and gives them a better informed perspective of global challenges.

Cliff commented: "This programme continues to go from strength to strength and is essentially about coaching at a community level and the differences it can make to the lives of these young people in improving life quality. It takes learning beyond the classroom and provides an experience that we believe underpins real learning for the real world.

"The project is led by final year undergraduates who develop leadership, management and problem solving skills over a three week period in Zambia. It's a unique opportunity that reinforces UCLan's commitment to providing real life experiences for our students."

In the past few years UCLan students have raised nearly £20,000 towards buying basic sports equipment and supported the building of basketball courts in local rural schools in Zambia.

The project has also provided the opportunity for local voluntary sports leaders from Zambia to come to Preston and share their skills and knowledge with community volunteers and children from local schools.

To view pictures from the trip please click here.

Career opportunity

ESPZEN Soccer School in Singapore is looking to recruit a Senior Coach to join their team of international coaches.

Their soccer school sees over 600 young players per week and is still growing, with the intention to expand throughout South East Asia.

Applicants need a degree in sport coaching, sport science or related subject, UEFA B License Certificate and Youth Coaching Certificate. Experience of working with players from 4 - 16 years and a First Aid qualification is also necessary.

Please email James Gow for further information.

Graduate enjoys double celebration

UCLan Sports Coaching graduate Sarah Nickless is celebrating after securing her dream job and winning a prestigious prize for academic excellence.

Sarah has been appointed as Football Development Officer for Somerset Football Association, where she will support the delivery of the National Game Strategy in partnership with key stakeholders.

She has also been rewarded for her efforts as a student after winning the S08 Sportswear Award for Academic Excellence 2015 on a programme within the Division of Sports Coaching and Development.

During her time at the university Sarah gained a wealth of additional experience, including being chosen to attend the BUCS Deloitte Leadership Academy, travelling to Rwanda as part of the FA's Changing Lives Programme and working as a Football Activator to help increase provision of the sport at UCLan.

Division Leader Leona Trimble said Sarah had reaped the rewards for going the extra mile during the course of her studies: "We are absolutely delighted for Sarah in graduating top of her divisional year group and then landing her dream job.

"She epitomised all that we advocate at UCLan - working hard academically, gaining additional qualifications and voluntary work to enhance her employability skills, and gaining relevant international experiences to enrich her learning.

"All the divisional staff are proud to have guided and supported Sarah along the way and wish her every success in the future."

Hard work pays double reward

We advise our undergraduates to gain as much practical experience as possible during the course of their studies.

Lee Marshall embraced this ethos to such an extent he's now secured two jobs after completing his Sports Coaching degree. Before joining UCLan Lee was unsure of which career to pursue, but having previously done some sports volunteering he decided to see where this could take him.

He commented: "If I'm being honest I coasted through my first year and it wasn't until signing up for the UCLan Sport 4U project in year two that things started to fall into place.

"It gave me the opportunity to gain additional coaching qualifications and I began to see my grades improve as I bought into what the degree was offering to me. I also won a Preston Volunteer of Year award which was a great honour."

In addition to working with Sport 4U, Lee gained more experience with Salford Community Leisure and has now progressed into a full-time coaching role there. His commitment to establishing a reputation for himself has reaped its rewards as he has also secured a position in professional rugby league.

"I support Swinton Lions and they invited me down for a chat after hearing about some of my work," said Lee. "I ended up being appointed Community Development Officer which is a brilliant bonus on top of my other role.

"It shows that if you put something into volunteering it can lead somewhere. People might think university is all about socialising, but focusing on what you're really there for is crucial. Don't be content with just doing the minimum – go the extra mile and people do take notice.

"The course and the lecturers were fantastic, and the advice they gave me to get out there and volunteer and gain experience has got me to where I am. Being shown by others how they manage projects, and allowed to help out on them, has allowed me to take that knowledge and secure these roles.

"A degree on its own won't get you a job, but couple it with experience and you give yourself a much better chance."

Coaching student wins UCLan volunteer award

UCLan Sports Coaching student Sophie Morrison's dedication to volunteering was rewarded as she scooped a prestigious university prize.

After completing over 1,000 hours work during her time at UCLan, Sophie was crowned Student Volunteer of the Year 2015 at the recent Centre for Volunteering & Community Leadership Awards.

Sophie has worked with three different organisations, UCLan Taekwondo, The King's School at Pontefract and Ultimate Taekwondo, regularly going the extra mile to boost her future career prospects.

She has gained a wealth of coaching and teaching experience at junior and senior level, and has worked both nationally and internationally over the past three years.

Sophie, who plans to undertake a Master's degree after graduating this summer, said she was delighted to receive the award.

"To be recognised for my work over the last three years is a great feeling," said Sophie. "I've been able to put what I've learnt into practice outside of the university, whilst having the opportunity to travel all over Great Britain and into Europe."

Division Leader Leona Trimble added: "Sophie's award is extremely well deserved. We encourage all our students to gain as much practical experience as possible to help them achieve their career goals, and Sophie has definitely embraced this ethos. She has a bright future ahead of her to look forward to."

The highlight of Sophie's extensive volunteering was her recent trip to the Netherlands with the Ultimate Taekwondo team, where she worked as their Performance Analyst at the Dutch Open. Sophie filmed each performance, giving one-to-one feedback to the athletes to help them during the competition.

Team Coach Kathy Hook commented: "Sophie's work has been extremely beneficial and the analysis has been very professional and well delivered. Her feedback to the students has been very useful, always making it clear to them what she was highlighting.

"I hope Sophie continues to work with Team Ultimate, as she has been a great asset to the team and her input would be sorely missed."