Our services

Prospects4Sport works on a variety of projects at national level - we have recently completed work for organisations such as Sport England, the Youth Sport Trust, the Child Protection in Sport Unit, Podium (the HE/FE unit for 2012), the Association of Colleges, and many others.Our services for these and other organisations include:

• Developing policy and strategy: developing major new policy frameworks and reviews, from initial workshops to review vision statements and headlines to helping to produce a whole new strategy and direction
• Internal business planning, team development and work programming:  our work helps organisations reflect on their current systems, build new methods of internal planning, and develop internal relationships and understanding amongst teams
• Delivering training courses and workshops: we help national organisations train and develop their workforce, either through skills training or knowledge based and information sharing workshops. Clare Howard is also an accredited ISPAL tutor and a member of the national Youth Sport Trust ENaCT leadership development training team.
• Developing funding applications: we can support a range of funding applications to support specific programmes or initiatives
• Undertaking research and consultation: We have worked for national organisations such as the National Council for School Sports to research the needs of their members and consult on specific initiatives. 
• Evaluation of programmes: such as the recent evaluation of the pilot FESCo project for the Youth Sport Trust. 

"Building relationships should come before meeting targets" {County NGB development officer, commenting on the importance of local implementation of plans through CSPs}

The increased focus on National Governing Bodies, arising from the new Sport England strategy, means that NGBs are now central to many programmes and development initiatives.  The challenge now is implementation - ensuring that national funding filters through the NGB to regional, sub regional and local level.

Prospects4Sport have recently completed a major study in the East Midlands looking at how NGBs can best engage and work effectively with the full range of organisations at regional, sub regional and local level.

We can assist NGBs with a range of projects and programmes including:

• Planning the regional and local implementation of whole sport plans and developing the right relationships with county sports partnerships, local authorities, school sport partnerships and other partners at a county and local level
• Helping NGBs maximise the opportunities within national programmes such as Sport Unlimited, School Sport Coaching Programme and Recruit to Coaching
• Coach development and support
• Training and Continuous Professional Development for NGB staff and volunteers
• Links to FE and the 16 to 19 agenda
• Working with women and girls
• Safeguarding policies and practices.
• Club and Coach Development programmes and the creation of effective club and coach databases.
• Sports specific local plans - involving all partners within the sport
• Introduction of accreditation schemes
• Establishing and maintaining club forums and support services to clubs

Our services cover the three main areas of:

Consultancy: - our consultancy services include helping organisations at all levels with:

• policy, strategy and action planning
• project management and delivery
• legacy planning
• performance management
• monitoring and evaluation
• organisational change and improvement
• securing external funding
• research and consultation Image

Facilitation:

Increasingly, managers in the sport and leisure sector are asked to co-ordinate and facilitate large numbers of people and organisations to reach a common consensus and plan for joint delivery of programmes. We provide the external facilitation of meetings and events so that the managers can concentrate on the tasks rather than the process. Our facilitation work with School Sports Partnerships, Local Authorities, Community Sports Networks and County Sports Partnerships has demonstrated again and again the value of an external, objective, skilled facilitator using a variety of participative approaches.

Training:

We offer training, both public and in-house, to organisations at national, regional and local level across the sport, leisure and physical activity sector. We have also been approved by ISPAL and the Youth Sports Trust to deliver a range of professional development courses across the UK. Our training courses are designed to be practical, addressing real and current issues in a lively, interactive environment.

Prospects4Sport works with SSPs across the country, supporting them with planning their work and creating and sustaining positive relationships with the wider sporting networks. 

More recently we have been working with SSPs to help them develop a future structure for school sport following Government announcements to reduce national funding.

Some of our consultancy work includes:

• The 5 hour offer: clarifying who does what - The Youth Sports Trust, Sport England and UK Sport have discussed and agreed their respective roles in supporting and delivering PE and sport in schools, the community and for elite sport. But how clear is the local picture?  At local level, how can SSPs and Local Authority Sports Development Officers work together to ensure that the 5 hour offer can become a reality? Which programmes should be led by which agencies? We have worked with SSPs and their partners to help answer these questions and support projects and programmes by developing clear action plans.  From a 3 hour planning session to a 3 month action planning process, our approach will help your SSP to make it clear who does what in your local area
• Working with the Further Education sector and getting the best out of FESCos -  We have worked with FE for over 10 years and are aware of the culture and tradition of the sector, and the long struggle for resources.  One of the most important lessons from our evaluation of the pilot projects on behalf of the YST is that a strong relationship between the PDM and the FE College is crucial.  We can help support PDMs to ensure clear roles, co-ordination of effort and resources, particularly where there is more than one FE College in a small geographical area.  

Prospects4Sport supports Local Authorities to produce strategies and action plans, helping to clarify objectives, resources, priorities, and timescales.

Throughout the process, we involve all the key partners in practical ways. We make sure strategies and plans relate to realistic and achievable work, but are also visionary, flexible and dynamic.

Our work includes:

• Leisure and Cultural Strategies
• Sports Development Strategies and Action Plans
• Physical Activity and Nutrition Strategies and Action Plans
• specific policies such as Child Protection, Workforce Development or Equity

Prospects4Sport recognise the important role of the CSP in the planning, co-ordination and delivery of opportunities at sub-regional level. 

We can provide help and support for CSPs with many of their most important work areas and projects:

• 2012 legacy planning: an exciting opportunity to generate interest in and increase participation in sport and physical activity, art and cultural activities, volunteering and sporting excellence.
• Sport Unlimited: We know and understand the work required to support local planning groups and help local delivery organisations put ideas into practice.  We have been involved in the Sport Unlimited programme since its inception, and have assisted CSPs deliver the programme through running planning days and developing projects
• Developing CSP Policy and Strategy: With CSPs now having to respond to the changes resulting from the new Sport England Strategy, effective planning is essential.  There is now a need to address questions such as how to align programmes and work effectively with National Governing Bodies, how to take advantage of potential new funding through Active England, and how to ensure the full range of partners are still engaged with the aims and plans of the CSP.

We can help with options appraisals, change management programmes, and alignment to new funding partners.  We can help you ensure that new structures and funding options are maximised when producing plans such as:

• County Sports Strategies
• Annual CSP Business Plans
• Specific policies such as Child Protection, Workforce Development or Equity
• Performance Planning Frameworks and TAES assessments
• Performance Frameworks for CSNs and CSN plans.

Prospects4Sport have worked with Universities and Colleges throughout the country as well as umbrella organisations such as the Association of Colleges (AOC), British Colleges Sport (BCS), British Universities and Colleges Sport (BUCS), and Podium (the HE and FE Unit for 2012).

Our support includes:

• Research projects into participation and volunteering
• Helping HE and FE institutions improve their links and partnership working with schools, school sports partnership, national governing bodies of sport, county sport partnerships and local authorities - bringing HE and FE to the centre of the sports development networks
• Raising the profile of sport and physical activity within an institution, and helping University Vice Chancellors and College Principals to understand the impact that sport can have on the whole institution.
• Helping you to assess the current provision, identify gaps and create a plan for improvementSupport in creating a plan for the impact that the 2012 Games will have on students and the institution as a whole - producing a legacy plan for your institution
• Helping other organisations understand the sector: we know and understand the differences between HE and FE, and the differences between FE and schools.  Many organisations working in sports development will want to work with you but may not understand the culture and pressures in the sector.  We offer joint planning workshops which create a shared understanding of the different roles and responsibilities of each partner.
• Specific support to FESCos: this includes training workshops, sports development planning, understanding the sporting networks and internal advocacy within College