East of England Regional Manager
10 May 2018
Dear Applicant,
Thank you for expressing an interest in the role of East of England Regional Manager for sported. The charity was set up by Sir Keith Mills, who was inspired by the commitment made in Britain’s Olympic bid to use the 2012 Olympic Games to change the lives of young people. sported. has a clear and ambitious vision to expand community sport significantly as a means of transforming the lives of disadvantaged young people. sported. is a free membership organisation that offers organisational development and funding support to groups and organisations in the community and voluntary sports sector. We recognise that many of the organisations that are great at delivering sport to young people would benefit from support on the business side of their activity, and we want to provide that, to ensure they are operating to the maximum of their potential.
We are also working to demonstrate the value of “sport for development” and its ability to change young people’s lives – our work moving forward will focus on demonstrating impact as well as on continuing to deliver our services. sported. has 12 regional offices around the UK and is currently looking for a Regional Manager for its East of England office. Our work in the East is well established – we have a large number of Member organisations, a number of skilled volunteers delivering our work, some excellent partnership working that has been taking place over the last 2 years with some exciting opportunities being developed for 2013.
We are looking for a motivated individual who can be the face of sported. in the East of England. Continued growth of our Membership and delivery of services will be key for 2013, but the main focus will be on establishing sported as a key player in the region, and ensuring that we are in a place to create and react to opportunities to develop our offer.
If you think you have the experience and skills to run and develop sported. services in the East of England, we would be very interested to hear from you.
Yours faithfully
Jo Stocks Director
Background Information sported. was established by Sir Keith Mills with the principal aim of supporting projects and programmes designed to use sport to improve the lives of disadvantaged young people in the UK. sported. is specifically interested in supporting community and voluntary sector organisations that use sport as a vehicle for personal and community development, rather than those which promote particular sports or look for elite players. These projects do not form part of the school or club structure and range from third sector organisations to community based groups and inspirational individuals.
Whilst these organisations are often very successful at engaging disadvantaged young people and in delivering sport, many do not have the funding, resources and business expertise they need to operate at their full potential, and may not belong to a wider support network. sported. provides operational and financial resources to community sports organisations, building their business expertise and sustainability, to enable them to operate at the maximum of their potential and to reach and improve the lives of more young people than ever before. sported. is a registered charity and is governed by a Board of 6 Trustees.
Services To achieve its aims, sported. operates the following initiatives:
Membership sported. is a free membership organisation, aiming to bring as many providers as possible together as members of a sport for development umbrella organisation. sported. is giving sport for development organisations the opportunity to be part of something national, recognisable and credible. Members access a number of services which are developed both nationally and regionally to meet the needs of our growing membership.
Capacity Building sported. provides a number of capacity building services for its members: • Mentoring Programme. A Regional/Country Manager and a network of volunteer mentors work directly with providers of sport for development, on a one to one basis, to help them to build the business skills they need to run a professional project. This will include advice on governance, policies and procedures, financial management, press and PR, business planning, monitoring and evaluation.
• Project Funding. Funding is available from sported. Un-solicited applications are not accepted but organisations with whom we have been working with on a general capacity building level are eligible to apply. Applications for funding are submitted through the Regional/Country Manager who also works with our Members to secure other funding. We work in partnership with other key national and local funders.
Other Services We continually work to expand our Membership offer and have a number of services that have been developed through identified Member’s needs, such as the Experts Team, Small Grants Programme and an insurance offer for our Members Member Case Study (taken from another sported region)
Gosport BMX Club
Gosport BMX club has been running since 2007, promoting and delivering the sport of BMX racing to the local community as a way of supporting the youth from the Rowner Estate, Hampshire. The project targets young people at risk of anti-social behaviour, low income youth, those with low educational attainment, those not in education employment and training as well as the wider community. Gosport BMX regularly hosts local and regional races at the track to generate income and support the community project. Many of their members have progressed from not having access to a bike and safety equipment to represent the club at National events and even Team GB at International level. This highlights the possibility that can be achieved by young people from disadvantaged backgrounds if given the opportunity. The project is focused on supporting the local youth community first and foremost. The Rowner area is in the top 13% in the country for a lack of access to services and educational attainment thus highlighting the importance of the project. The recorded crime statistics also show that 50% of the recorded crime in Gosport is anti-social behaviour. The club currently operates from the Alver Meadows BMX Track. The track is open for public use at all times except during club events and due to location is ideally located to work with and support disadvantaged young people from Rowner in particular. Due to the growing popularity of the sport and the recent inclusion in the Olympic Games the club has seen a strong demand for newcomers to the sport from both the deprived surrounding area and the wider region.
Challenges
The club had reached operational capacity and has an urgent need to improve access to the services in order to enable greater accessibility. The facility had no toilet on site and had a significant lack of storage The project had some challenges working with local partner projects and needed support with advocacy The committee while highly committed were short on skills to help drive forward the project
Key areas for Mentor Support
To develop a business plan for the next 3 years and create a sustainable revenue budget for delivery linked to that plan.
To continue to include disadvantaged young people and build this aspect of the project
To create a fundraising strategy for the capital projects at the club
To support funding applications and link to other partner organisations that can offer support.
A Young Persons story
Connor – Age 17 Rowner Estate, Gosport Hampshire
My name is Connor and I have been a member of Gosport BMX club since 2008, in that 4 years I have learn many different skills as well as BMXING. Also making many great friends along the way who have helped me out on becoming a good BMXER, they also helped me out giving me vital skills for future life. I have lived in Rowner for 14 year now, the area now is so much more peaceful but there are always problems with the young people in the community. Before the club and track was there, there wasn’t anything for us to do or anywhere to go have fun; except make trouble, starting fires, graffiti, staying out late on the street making noise and just being a nuisance.
BMXING has had a big influence in my life, giving me a hobby and also giving me confidence to do things that I would not have done if I did not have bmxing. BMXING has given me the confidence to coach small groups up the track, which then has given me the confidence to speak to the kids on the Rowner estate to see what they want and where I can help them giving them advice when needed as well. BMXING has made a difference in my life because I have meet so great people who have become my friends.
I first started helping out in the club after about 6 months when I was committed enough and knew I wanted to ride my BMX for life. One of the first things I wanted to do is help the community, so what better way was to get involved with coaching and helping the youth become better BMXERS with the added bonus of some great riders teaching me a few things along the way.
I wanted to do more for the club so I decided I want to become a member of the youth committee, my job was to voice the opinions of the youth in the club to the main committee. Also I am been involved in some small funding applications for bikes, helmets and timing system. As well as that I also help out with track work and track maintenance.
If you asked most of the young people that live in Rowner who I am and what I do, they would tell you my name was Connor and I ride down the BMX track. That is because I try to work with the kids on the estate not only to become good bmxers, but also being kind and polite young people.
I have learned many skills along the way from leadership to being a team player, all that I have achieved could not have been possible if Gosport BMX Club was not their helping me. I have grown into a responsible and striving teenager who only wants to make things better for the community, so someone else can achieve even more than what I have if they have a sport
Mentor Statement
Gosport BMX Club is a very community focused club serving both the needs of local young people for but also building closer community ties and developing young people’s skills beyond BMX. As a local resident I am aware of the lack of access to services and educational attainment challenges local young people face. I am also personally very aware of the role of sport played in my own personal development and future success.
They now have a strong community heritage and sustainability for the future through a committee made up of local community leaders and parents of club members. This forms a clear base on which to address current challenges and the sustainability of the club and the young people they are developing through sport. Every week the club is well attended with great enthusiasm and wider community involvement. I have also witnessed the empowerment the club has given the well established club members to lead by example.
As a sported mentor it has been a pleasure to support such an important local initiative and apply my business planning experience to the shorter term development goals and driving out a longer term plan. With guidance the club have crystallised their host of ideas into a vision of what they want to achieve into the future and they just need to achieve their important club welfare and development goals to reach the next stage of their club evolution Main outcomes of the project following support
Increase accessibility for up to 700 x young people to BMX sports through building the club’s capacity to be sustainable, viable, responsive and accessible to all disadvantaged young people in the local community. Provide sustainable structured opportunities for development of volunteers and club members through offering 5 x specific coaching pathways to young people. Encouraging better communication and integration within the community by bringing youngsters from various backgrounds together through sport and encouraging them to support each other in a safe environment Job Description East or England Regional Manager
Reports to: England Manager
Management Responsibility: Volunteer Mentors
Main Relationships: External:
Community sports providers
Volunteers
Regional partner organisations
Local government
Voluntary Sector
Funders
Internal:
England Manager
Member Services Manager
Member Services Co-ordinator
Membership Service Assistant
Regional Colleagues
Marketing Team
Senior Management Team
Salary: circa £30,000 p/a depending on experience
Benefits: 25 days holiday p/a in addition to statutory bank holidays.
Location: Office location as appropriate for post holder, with significant regional and regular UK travel
Hours: 37.5 hours per week. There will be an expectation to work evenings and some weekends. Time off in lieu will be offered for anti-social hours.
Duration: Permanent Scope of the Job / Principal Duties
Member Recruitment;
Develop and implement a recruitment plan for Member organisations delivering Sport for Development across the East of England
Act as a point of contact for potential Members delivering Sport for Development in the Region
Regional Networking
• Local networking and relationship building – foster and manage relationships with regional stakeholders. Attend external meetings and networking events and build the profile of Sported. in the region.
• Identify and build relationships with regional organisations and agencies, with the aim of increasing awareness of the Sport for Development sector and optimising Sported activity through partnership working.
Volunteer Management:
• Recruit volunteer Mentors across the region in conjunction with sported. Volunteer Service Manager
• Training, management, co-ordination and on-going support of a team of Volunteer Mentors.
Capacity Building Services:
• To manage the sported. Member services according to the needs of each Member group. This support may include advice on governance, business planning, financial management, policies and procedures, HR, monitoring and evaluation. In some instances this work will be done directly by the Regional Manager, in the majority of cases it will be done by the Mentor with the support of the Regional Manager.
The Sported programme will include:
o Making initial contact and carry out assessment of each project.
o Prepare brief on project requirements and either work directly with that project or allocate a mentor with specific skills.
o Assist with preparing documents, i.e. policy documents, financial statements, funding applications.
o Use sported. ’s web-based services as support.
o Signpost to expert agencies link up organisations with other relevant networks. • Deliver, facilitate and support regional training and workshops for Members.
Funding:
• Manage the regional grant making processes.
o Submission of bids on behalf of Members prior to a quarterly grant panel.
o Reviewing and critiquing of grant’s form’s from Regional Members
o To sit on a quarterly grant panel and review grants from other Regions
o On-going monitoring of grants and progress against stated aims.
Audit and on-going monitoring of available local funding.
Foster relationships with potential local funders and develop joint bids where appropriate.
Organisational Development:
• Work as a proactive member of the sported. team through supporting others in areas of expertise and sharing best practice with other Regional Managers.
• Work with the England Manager to develop and lead a regional strategy to further aims in the East of England in line with the national strategy for Sported
Communication
• Provide regular updates to the Regional Website pages, write a quarterly regional newsletter and ensure continual promotion through key partner communications.
• With the support of the sported. team develop media events and write related press releases.
• Utilising Social Media to grown our profile both nationally and in the region
• Support the delivery of national campaign messages throughout the region and by contributing South East projects to celebration events and activities for the charity
General administration and other responsibilities
• Develop and maintain regional database
• Oversee a regional budget.
• General involvement with other Sported. events as required. Person Specification:
Part 1: Knowledge and Experience
Essential
• 3 years experience in either the voluntary, community or sport sectors.
• Significant experience of organisational or departmental management and development.
• Recruitment and management of paid staff or volunteers.
• An understanding of all of the elements of organisational management in the third sector, including governance, business planning, financial management, policies and procedures, monitoring and evaluation.
• Experience of the funding environment, either as a fundraiser or a grant maker.
• Experience of initiating and managing multiple relationships and partnerships.
• Understanding of issues facing small community groups.
• Experience in understanding the role sport can play in a social context.
• Experience of monitoring and evaluation processes
• Experience in public speaking Desirable
• Delivering training in a range of areas.
• Experience in having worked on regional or large sub-regional programmes
• Knowledge and understanding of working in the East of England
Part 2: Skills and Attributes
• As a remote worker, the ability to manage and prioritise own workload.
• Strong organisational and business management skills.
• Personal authority to establish credibility with key stakeholders, and diplomatic and sensitive when dealing with a range of people.
• The flexibility to get involved with development of a growing organisation and adapt to a changing environment.
• IT skills.
• Commitment to the aims of the sported.
• Strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Efficient Administrative skills
Part 3: Personal Circumstances:
• Able and willing to work outside office hours, as required.
• Willing to travel to regional and national meetings.
• Full driving license and access to a car.
Stage Timescale
Closing date for applications Thursday 25th July - midday
Short-Listing meeting Monday 29th July First interviews Thursday 8th August
Sported Head Office - St James Street, London
Role commences September 2013
To apply for this role, please send your CV with a 2 page covering letter, to Donna Loney [email protected]
If you have any questions about the role please contact Paul Napthine [email protected] 0r 07900 925808