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Sport and Leisure
“I was told over and over again that I would never be successful, ……. the technique was simply not going to work”. (Dick Fosbury, Olympic gold medallist, Mexico City 1968, after he invented a new high-jump technique, the Fosbury Flop)
 It is too early to assess the effect of the recession on the sport and leisure career area. However, sport was a growth area for some time even before Glasgow won the bid to host the 2014 Commonwealth Games. The Scottish Government's National Strategy for Sport 'Reaching Higher' aims to:
- make sport more widely enjoyed and available
- recognise and nurture talent
- achieve and sustain world class standing.
There are about 58,200 people employed in the various aspects of sport and leisure. Even if you are not a professional sportsman or woman you can still work in this career area.
The jobs have been split into 5 sectors, only one of which deals with jobs where you actually play sport for a living.
The 5 sectors are:
- Sports and recreation – coaching, teaching outdoor activities or health and fitness
- Sports or leisure management – running sports and leisure centres
- Sports performance – being a paid professional sportsperson
- Sports science – improving performance and preventing injuries
- Leisure – jobs in recreational centres such as bingo halls or fairgrounds.
Employment growth continues to be strong in this sector, a trend which is likely to continue.- 58,200 people are employed in various aspects of sport and leisure, and this is forecast to increase to 63,000 by 2014.
- Sport and recreation employs 63% of the above total.
- 74% of workers in the industry work in organisations of 10 or less employees.
- 44% of employees work full time, 45% part time and 11% are self employed.
- 15% of jobs are seasonal and not permanent, like skiing or work in holiday centres.
- 51% of the workforce is female (Scottish average 47%).
- 25% of workers are under 24, 34% are over 45.
- There are about 146,000 volunteers in Scottish sport. About 70% of the 64,000 coaching workforce in Scotland are voluntary.
Factors contributing to the growth in employment include:- increasing awareness of the importance of an active lifestyle
- increasing numbers of over 55s with time, and cash, to spend in leisure pursuits
- increasing medical referrals to health and fitness providers due to underlying health issues in the Scottish population - like obesity, heart conditions and diabetes.
The only current area of downturn in demand is the bingo industry, where the smoking ban and the growth of online bingo has led to a drop in employment levels.
There is likely to be an increased demand for sports therapists to treat injuries and growing opportunities for sports development officers, sports psychologists and sports scientists.
Footballers continue to outnumber other professional sportsmen and women. The thing to remember about professional sport is that it can be a short career. After about 30-35 most sportsmen and women do other jobs - sometimes they go into coaching or managing the sport they played.
To be a professional sportsperson you must be dedicated, determined and willing to persevere.
For many jobs in this career area you do not need academic qualifications. But you do need outstanding ability in sport. Getting a sports performance job can depend on being in the right place to be ‘spotted ’ by scouts or other influential people.
There are also jobs in the other 4 sectors for which you do not need qualifications. In some jobs you can take Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQs) while you are working. Sometimes it helps if you have a Higher National Certificate (HNC) or Higher National Diploma (HND) in a sports subject. There are more courses in sport at all levels now, from National Certificate (NC), through HNC and HND to degrees.
Sources
sportscotland website (http://www.sportscotland.org.uk/)
Active Leisure, Learning and Well Being Scotland - a Sector Skills Assessment prepared by SkillsActive February 2010
Sport and Leisure: Overview (AGCAS)
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