S&PA Professional Magazine - Autumn 2021

ACTIVE TAMESIDE

CYBERSECURITY

SPORT AMBASSADOR

Inclusive activity for all

Keeping the gym cyber safe

Later-life game-changer

p28

p32

p42

ISSUE 43

AUTUMN 2021

S&PA sector puts heat on response to climate change

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Images: https://billybolton.com

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CONTENTS

5

10

Upfront 5

Editor’s leader

6 7 7 8 9 9

News CIMSPA AGM: Sector’s buoyant year Message from CIMSPA CEO Opportunity to get workforce moving Searching for skateboarding champs Best parks for outdoor sports People’s No1 goal? Get into better shape

In depth

20

10-18 CIMSPA update 10 Addressing the digital skills gap 12 The power of inclusion 15 ReTrain to ReTain guide 18 Right Directions: Recover from the pandemic with Quest Prime 20 Agenda Government funding gets leisure centres carbon fit for the future 28 Community Everybody Can be inclusive 32 Cybersecurity Keeping the gym cyber safe

36

“This is a service that puts people first.

Active Tameside really embraces each and every resident like a friend, like a family member.

They put the community at the heart of their service” (p29)

Product round-up Reassuring return

Management 38

40

32

Tech toolkit 36

38

10

Workplace focus Personal development post-Covid

Last word 40

42

Sporting life Bombette Martin, Tokyo 2020, Summer Olympics, Team GB skateboarder Sport ambassador Beryl Edwards, volunteer and assistant at Vista Wellbeing

28

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S&PAProfessional / Autumn 2021

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UPFRONT EDITORIAL ]DeeDee Doke

Reconnecting people Exercise is a major part in the UK’s recovery

t my gym, the great UK sport and physical activity ‘reopening’ is in full swing.

More classes fill the classes timetable each week, along with more people to fill them.

And it’s not only new people who are showing up – just this week, a woman I met the last day the gym was open before the first lockdown appeared in the changing room.

It was her first time back during those 18 months. During that year-and-a-half, she streamed fitness classes online and exercised in her kitchen. “But it’s not the same, is it?”

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EDITORIAL Editor DeeDee Doke Assistant editor Patrick Appleton Designer Will Williams Production editor Vanessa Townsend Contributors Dean Gurden, Caroline Roberts, Sue Weekes, Roisin Woolnough Picture editor Akin Falope Publishing director Aaron Nicholls ADVERTISING Sales 020 7880 6230 sandpaprof@redactive.co.uk

she said to me. The pleasure of reconnecting is a real joy.

Also at my gym, in part to lead all those additional classes, new instructors are appearing, joining the current crop – another sign of reopening on the front line. Demand is high.

As CIMSPA CEO Tara Dillon put it at the recent Annual General Meeting, the sport and physical activity sector isn’t “out of the woods yet” (see News, p6). But along with the physical and mental benefits, exercise is helping people reconnect.

Reconnecting, exercise and getting

PRODUCTION Production director Jane Easterman Senior production executive Rachel Young SUBSCRIPTIONS S&PA Professional is available to selected members of the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (and is available on subscription to nonmembers). All member enquiries should be directed to CIMSPA. For enquiries from non-CIMSPA members, call 01580 883844.

© Redactive Publishing Ltd. S&PA Professional is published on behalf of the Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) by Redactive Publishing Ltd. All rights reserved.

fit are all part of our recovery from the pandemic, giving the sector and its customers the edge ‘building back better’.

Contact us by Twitter @SAPA_Pro and email at sandpa@redactive.co.uk

without the prior written permission of the publisher.

Redactive Publishing Ltd accepts no liability for the accuracy of the contents or any opinions expressed herein.

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This publication (and any part thereof) may not be reproduced, transmitted or stored in any print or electronic format (including but not limited to any online service, any database or any part of the internet) or in any other format in any media whatsoever,

CIMSPA ENQUIRIES Chartered Institute for the Management of Sport and Physical Activity SportPark, Loughborough University, 3 Oakwood Drive, Loughborough, LE11 3QF

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S&PANews A round-up of the latest developments in the industry Local skills, local needs: “We will coalesce with partners in a local authority who can say, ‘These are the local economic, social and health goals for [example area]’,” Dillon said. “And we will then, as a facilitator, develop the local skills board and identify where our sector can have the greatest impact – we’re not trying to solve every single problem that local authorities have, but where we can have the greatest impact and we’ll facilitate that influence, then we’ll identify the skills needed to have that impact. Then we will work with local policies and local training providers…to fulfil those skills gaps and to ensure that the occupations and skills required for those local priorities are met.

“That, in essence,” Dillon said, “is the premise of our strategy to go forward.”

She went on to say that the Department of Education (DfE) had suggested that this approach might be “the future of local skills education”.

And, “the DfE are currently funding, or looking to fund a pilot with the physical activity sector”, she said.

Dillon expressed optimism about the initiative, saying: “We all know place-based initiatives will work.”

Closing out her formal remarks, Dillon told attendees that CIMSPA had successfully pivoted the business to ensure its support for members during “this incredible year” as the sector and the rest of the UK economy struggle to recover from the global pandemic’s impact.

“The sector is still in recovery, and it isn’t out of the woods yet,” Dillon said.

“But I can tell you categorically, the sector’s profile in terms of its impact on the health and wellbeing of the nation has finally been noticed in all corners of government. So to continue the work we do is absolutely central, and there is work to do.”

CIMSPA AGM: DILLON DETAILS ‘BUOYANT YEAR’

By DeeDee Doke “We’ve had a buoyant year,” CIMSPA CEO Tara Dillon told the organisation’s Annual General Meeting on 15 September.

The description suited the year’s achievements for CIMSPA activity, finances, and membership and partnership growth, as well as for the forward outlook, as Dillon outlined during her review at the AGM. From collaborating with numerous organisations to contributing to the UK’s future employment opportunities through mapping local skills to local employers’ needs, CIMSPA is

positioning resources to operate “where the sector can have the greatest impact”, Dillon said.

The AGM was streamed to a virtual audience.

In brief ● Financial results: in 2021, CIMSPA’s turnover reached £4.9m with operating surplus at £15,421. Cash level was £1.1m, and reserves at £534k. ● Diversity, equality, inclusion: CIMSPA is placing “relentless emphasis” on inclusion, which is the “lifeblood of our strategy”, she said, “and a central tenet of everything we do. We’re very keen to act as opposed to just making statements”.

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UPFRONT S&PA NEWS

MESSAGE FROM CIMSPA CEO TARA DILLON ON SUPPORT AND COLLABORATION

NEW OPPORTUNITIES TO GET THE WORKFORCE MOVING A major consultation is underway to uncover existing and new opportunities to get workforces moving more. The deadline to participate is 29 October 2021.

Organisations ukactive and Sport England have joined forces to understand what the physical activity sector is doing to support employees to be more active, in addition to exploring how to work more closely to improve the health of working adults.

A report on the research will provide employers, the physical activity sector and the government with clear recommendations for supporting

businesses to encourage activity among employees in order to improve workplace wellbeing.

In announcing the consultation, the two bodies said they wanted “voices and perspectives from businesses of all sizes to be well represented, as well as insights from ukactive members across the UK”.

“Often overlooked, the consultation will make sure that it understands the needs and support that SMEs, microbusinesses and businesses whose workforce are not office-based, require to support their employees to be a physically active workforce.”

As well as a survey, which is live until 29 October, the consultation will involve a series of focus groups with representatives from across the business landscape, as well as the physical activity sector.

To find out more, including to enquire about joining the focus groups, contact Alex Lucas at research@ukactive.org.uk.

To take part in the survey, visit https:// bit.ly/3kNXsFY

The sports and physical activity sector continues to feel the legacy of the pandemic, and our workforce still needs as much support as we can provide.

One of the issues we are acutely aware of is staff shortages. From lifeguards and swimming instructors to fitness coaches and management, shortages are being felt across the sector and in all four nations. To help allay the problem, we have launched ReTrain to ReTain, an ambitious £5m package for S&PA in conjunction with UK Coaching and EMD UK (see p15).

Funded by Sport England through the National Lottery, ReTrain to ReTain has been designed to support up to 50,000 sports coaches, volunteers, fitness professionals and group instructors who have had to find work outside the sector during the pandemic. By upskilling people and connecting them with employers, we can help retain the brilliant talent in our sector.

In a further move to support the workforce, we have also launched the Digital Marketing Hub (see p10). And we will continue to work with the home nations to support the sector as we rebuild and recover. We recently joined Public Health Scotland, sportscotland, the Scottish Leisure Network Group, Community Leisure UK and ukactive at active-net Scotland to discuss how to bridge the gap between leisure and health. There was clear recognition of both the importance of physical activity in addressing public health challenges and the need for continued collaboration to make a tangible difference to our communities.

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UPFRONT S&PA NEWS

By DeeDee Doke Skateboard GB is launching an initiative to support talented and skilled skateboarders aiming to compete for Great Britain in future international competitions.

Skateboard GB was awarded funding via UK Sport’s Progression investment stream to test, trial and build a pathway that identifies and supports good skateboarders to become even better and achieve competitive success on the world stage.

A statement from Skateboard GB said it is one of seven sports to have received

Progression investment and will play an important role in a wider shift to take a 12-year view of success and kickstart the search for the next generation of Olympic and Paralympic champions.

This past summer, Sky Brown won a bronze medal for Team GB, when skateboarding made its debut at the Olympic Games in Tokyo. (See Sporting Life on pp40-41, featuring Brown’s teammate Bombette Martin.)

The Pipeline Pilot Project will focus on working with four trial skateparks, or hubs, to create and deliver activity, including how to identify talented and skilled skaters, and gaining knowledge

and understanding of what they need to help support them progress.

Hubs in the initial scheme include BaySixty6 in London, Graystone Action Sports in Manchester, Flo Skatepark in Nottingham and Mount Hawke in Truro.

The project will be led by professional skateboarder Lucy Adams, an advocate for GB skateboarding.

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KICKSTARTING SEARCH FOR FUTURE SKATEBOARDING CHAMPS

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UPFRONT S&PA NEWS

PEOPLE’S NO1 GOAL? GET INTO BETTER SHAPE

BEST PARKS FOR OUTDOOR SPORTS Parks with capacity for outdoor sports and boasting well-appointed outdoor sports facilities are growing in popularity across the UK, especially with more people having turned to outdoor activity during of the global pandemic.

Index-based research by GolfSupport. com has determined the best UK parks for open field sports, water sports, and track and trail. (See Methodology box, below.)

The research examined and measured how parks compared for green spaces available, waterlines, sunshine hours and other features.

Findings include: ● Best parks in the UK for outdoor sports were, from 1 to 10: Hampton Court Park, Moors Valley Country Park and Forest, Bushy Park, Richmond Park, Lea Valley Country Park, Farnham Park, Horton Country Park, Leybourne Lakes Country Park and Black Park Country Park.

METHODOLOGY 1. The study considered 170 green spaces. Glebe Farm Recreation Ground and RSPB Lodmoor greenspaces were omitted as they are forestry reserves and therefore not accessible for outdoor sports.

2. To support this, an Index was established encompassing the

greenspace areas provided by the Open Zoomstack shapefile, detailing the following variables: Area of green spaces (m2) Perimeter of green space (m) Counts of waterlines Sunshine hours Waterline lengths (m) Total area of surface water (m2) 3. Open Zoomstack shapefile provided data for

● Best UK parks for open-field sports (also

from 1 to 10): Richmond Park, Moors Valley Country Park and Forest, Bushy Park, Hampton Court Park, Surrey Hills Park, Leybourne Lakes Country Park, Lea Valley Country Park, Tolcross Park, Shorne Woods Country Park, Horton Country Park. ● Best UK parks for water sports (from 1 to 10): Farnham Park, Hampton Court Park, Lea Valley Country Park, Country Park, Peterborough Sculpture Park, Wisley Common, Bushy Park, River Lee Country Park, Moors Valley Country Park and Forest, and Southampton Common. ● Best UK parks for track and trail sports (from 1 to 5): Moors Valley Country Park and Forest, Richmond Park, Bushy Park, Lea Valley Country Park and Hampton Court.

For the full data, visit https://golfsupport.com/blog/about

water lines and area/ perimeter.

4. The Met Office was utilised to obtain climate data for sunshine hours from CEDA archives (Centre for Environmental Data Analysis); the dataset HadUK-Grid Gridded Climate Observations dating from 2009-2019.

Open field sports: area of green spaces (m2) + sunshine hours

A new global survey shows that to ‘get into better shape’ is the number one goal people around the world feel inspired to fulfil.

Entitled ‘Inspire InFocus’, the report by global communications network Wunderman Thompson surveyed 16,000 adults aged 18+, split evenly by gender and market across the UK, US, China and Brazil, during May 2021.

In the report, inspiration is defined as a human experience that always feels good and always evokes change.

Asked the top five things they were inspired to do globally, 31% of respondents said, ‘get into better shape’, followed by ‘set a goal for myself’ (27%), ‘change my habits’ (26%) and ‘live a simpler life’ (25%).

When asked what they found most inspirational, more than half of respondents (54%) put ‘being outdoors in nature’ top of the list.

The research was conducted by Wunderman Thompson’s futures division, WT Intelligence and its proprietary market research consultancy, SONAR. Behavioural models related to inspiration were used to assess how mindsets impact engagement with different sources of inspiration. Respondents’ inspiration preferences were mapped against their underlying motivation and value systems.

Water sports: counts of waterlines + sunshine hours + waterline lengths (m) +total area of surface water (m2) Track or trail: perimeter of green space (m) + sunshine hours 5. The greenspaces were ranked and weighted by their overall average score across the three assessed variables.

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IN DEPTH CIMSPA UPDATE

ADDRESSING THE DIGITAL SKILLS GAP

The new Digital Marketing Hub is designed to improve the digital skills of both individuals and organisations to help the sector recover and rebuild from the pandemic eptember saw the launch of a fantastic free facility to plug the sector’s digital skills gap. The new Digital Marketing Hub has been created to help people and organisations improve how they apply digital marketing tools and techniques, to encourage more people to play sport and be active.

Jake Humphrey, TV presenter and host of The High Performance Podcast, along with a panel of marketing experts kickstarted the launch of the Hub with a session explaining the importance of digital marketing and the aims of the Hub. This was followed by a webinar with the irrepressible Joe Wicks. The bestselling author and fitness coach has taken over the world of fitness and nutrition. He has hosted his own Channel 4 series, broken a Guinness World Record for the most viewers for a fitness workout live stream on YouTube in 2020, earned another Guinness World Record for the largest high intensity interval training class in 2017

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and was awarded an MBE in October 2020 for his work during the pandemic.

In the webinar, Joe shared how social media has played a huge role in developing his business and shaping his entire career, including over the last 18 months.

APPETITE FOR DIGITAL TRAINING The Hub was launched in response to research conducted by the Digital Marketing Institute (DMI) on behalf of Sport England of more than 1,000 people involved in sport and physical activity marketing and communications. The research showed a clear appetite for digital training and resources. According to the findings, 81% of respondents said that attracting new participants was very or extremely important, but 63% said they don’t have a clear plan to deliver that through digital channels.

This research also found that the Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated the digital skills gap and made engagement more important than ever before.

The launch of the Hub addresses two of the issues outlined in Sport England’s Uniting the Movement strategy – the need for the sector to recover and reinvent following the pandemic, as well as the need for innovation and digital skills to tackle inequalities and ensure everyone has the opportunity to be active.

GOOGLE TRAINERS AND MENTORS The Hub is tailored to small businesses, self-employed professionals and volunteers at frontline organisations and clubs, as well as marketing and communication professionals at larger organisations.

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Funded by Sport England through the National Lottery, with content curated by lead partner, the DMI, the Hub is free to anyone involved in delivering sport and physical activity in England, from coaches and volunteers to grassroots organisations.

It contains a wealth of resources to give individuals and organisations the skills to communicate digitally so they can re-connect and re-engage with members, partners and communities.

These include expert led video lessons, toolkits, templates, webinars, walkthroughs and mentorship. All DMI content is on-demand so participants can curate their own training,

scheduling and focus on the areas most valuable to them. Also included are a host of benefits, including discounted access to web platforms.

CIMSPA has entered into a strategic partnership with tech giant Google, which enables anyone in sport and physical activity in England to access free advice and resources from Google experts to help enhance their digital marketing skills. Benefits include tailored one-to-one mentoring from digital experts at Google, a series of 12 Google Digital Garage live webinars designed to get businesses discovered online and find new customers, as well as signposting to specific and

relevant courses available in the Google Digital Garage.

Google Digital Garage is one of Google’s flagship investment programmes in the UK, providing free digital skills training to individuals and businesses. Since its launch in 2015, Google has visited more than 500 villages, towns and cities across the UK and trained over 600,000 people face-to-face and online. The Google Digital Garage webinar series allows participants to access free live training designed to help them grow their business, jump-start their career or develop new skills – all from their own home. The live webinars are free to attend and open to everyone – delivered by expert Google Digital Garage trainers ready to help and support the learning of individuals, whatever their goals.

“We are very proud to deliver this fantastic new resource for the sector and are extremely grateful to Sport England and the National Lottery for both the funding and the vision that has allowed the Digital Marketing Hub to become a reality,” said Tara Dillon, CEO of CIMSPA. “We know that the successful delivery of sport and physical activity is dependent on the quality of the professionals engaging with the public.

With more people online than ever, digital marketing has an increasingly important role to play in engaging audiences and encouraging people to be active, especially for self-employed and freelance professionals, who rely on it to reach their customers.

“By improving the digital skills of the sector, we have the opportunity to engage more people in sport and physical activity than ever before helping businesses and individuals to build back stronger as we emerge from the pandemic.”

Register for the Digital Marketing Hub at https://digital.cimspa.co.uk/

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IN DEPTH CIMSPA UPDATE

THE POWER OF INCLUSION Following National Inclusion Week 2021, CIMSPA’s CEO Tara Dillon and director of operations Kay Simnett explain how the chartered institute is prioritising workforce inclusion HOW INCLUSIVE IS THE SPORT AND PHYSICAL ACTIVITY SECTOR? We recognise that more needs to be done to ensure that the sector as well as CIMSPA fully represent the wider communities we serve. The recent Tackling Racism and Racial Inequality in Sport Review, by the four UK Sports Councils along with UK Sport, made for grim reading. The accompanying research reporting the experiences of more than 300 people and their involvement in sport was particularly disturbing.

Together, the two reports clearly demonstrate that racism and racial inequalities still exist in sport in the UK. But there’s more to inclusion and diversity than race. It’s about ensuring everyone regardless of their race, gender, age, sexual orientation, physical ability etc. is included, listened to and respected.

Inclusion and tackling inequality is a central theme in our strategy. The CIMSPA board feels strongly that we do not just pay lip service to inclusion, but that we take action to make a real difference for generations. And we can do that by focusing on workforce inclusion, both in the sector and within our own organisation.

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WHAT ARE YOU DOING TO IMPROVE INCLUSION IN THE WORKFORCE? We want to be facilitators of great practice. We know that some great work is taking place in the sector and

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we want to share this across the industry so we can continue to build and grow a more inclusive workforce.

But first, we need to understand what and where the challenges are and where we can have greatest impact. We need to lead by listening and develop tangible solutions that move the dial on inclusion and diversity.

It’s simply not good enough to think that stating on an application form or in

a job description that we ‘welcome applications from underrepresented groups’ will make a difference to moving the dial on inclusion. We all have to act. We will now establish a working group of members and partners including training providers, employers, universities, sports organisations etc, to address the issues of diversity, equality and inclusion. The group will meet regularly to understand the challenges experienced by the sector, to hear where great practice takes place and how this can be replicated across the sport and physical activity workforce.

We are also going out to CIMSPA members and asking them to share their lived experiences, so we can understand where inclusion is working well and where it’s not and what improvements can be made. By talking to individuals and asking for their contribution, we can support the sector to make real change.

When people use our facilities, it’s essential that the workforce is relatable and can in turn relate and reflect the participants engaging in sport and physical activity. We want to work with training providers and colleges to recruit against the needs of the community to drive inclusion and diversity. It starts at the source.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING INTERNALLY TO IMPROVE INCLUSION? We acknowledge that we have some work to do in this area, but we are committed to making CIMSPA a truly inclusive workplace and have a range of measures in place to help us on that journey.

Eighteen members of staff are currently taking part in Sport England’s year-long training inclusive training programme. These colleagues have established an internal working group to set out our vision and develop an

action plan that we can deliver to improve inclusion, attract people from all sections of the community and ensure we continue to improve. A lot of our team come from the sports sector; we want to attract a wider diversity of talent to harness the different views, experiences and perspectives that people from outside the sector can bring to benefit our organisation as well as the wider sector.

Training in diversity and unconscious bias is mandatory for CIMSPA staff and all our policies are reviewed to ensure they are inclusive and do not negatively impact our people.

We are looking to complete the Equality Standard for Sport – the framework owned by the five UK Sports Councils, which is currently under review. We are also recruiting for an Inclusion Lead, who will champion inclusion within CIMSPA but will also work with our partners to develop policies, processes, training etc. to drive inclusion in the sport and physical activity workforce.

CAN OUR WORKFORCE EVER BE TRULY INCLUSIVE? Yes it can, but we still have some way to go and everyone has a role to play. That’s why the work we are doing with our members and partners is so important.

It’s only by understanding the challenges around inclusion that we can develop the right policies and practices to overcome them and share these across the sector to improve inclusion and diversity in our workforce.

It feels that there’s a real swell of action around inclusion, rather than just words, which is really encouraging.

The levelling up agenda is a priority for government and we have a massive role to play in that. With a relentless commitment to inclusion we can genuinely make a difference to the sector and to people’s lives.

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IN DEPTH CIMSPA UPDATE

RETRAIN TO RETAIN Your guide to the new skills, funding and support programme, which will support up to 50,000 professionals and volunteers working in sport and physical activity WHAT IS IT? ReTrain to ReTain is a new job retention scheme designed to support up to 50,000 sport and physical activity professionals and volunteers in England who have had to find work outside the sector during the coronavirus pandemic. The programme will provide training, resources and tools to help the industry’s professionals return to work and remain in the sector.

WHY IS IT NEEDED?

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The sport and physical activity workforce has a critical role to play in supporting the physical and mental health of the nation post-Covid, but it needs help to do so. Currently, thousands of skilled professionals and volunteers are in danger of being lost from the sector – either they’re not

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IN DEPTH CIMSPA UPDATE

engaged with sport in the way they were, are unemployed, are working reduced hours or have been forced to find employment elsewhere. Without support, employers may not be able to return to full capacity if there are significant skills deficits, community sport may not have the volunteers needed to return to play and the sector could struggle to tackle inequalities to help those who benefit most from sport and physical activity.

WHO IS IT FOR? ReTrain to ReTain will provide targeted support for up to 25,000 of the most vulnerable professionals in the sector. It prioritises those who live or work in areas of economic deprivation and individuals who are currently unemployed and are at risk of falling into relative poverty.

The programme will also support 25,000 volunteers to return to volunteering, and will provide training, skills and funding for up to 5,000 self-employed professionals and micro-businesses. In addition, it will work with up to 500 sector employers to address skills shortages and fund essential training to fill these gaps.

WHO IS DELIVERING IT? The £5m scheme is funded Sport England through the National Lottery and is being delivered by CIMSPA alongside a consortium of partners including UK Coaching and EMD UK. By bringing together our joint expertise, products, services and brands, we can better support those most affected by the pandemic.

WHAT DOES THE PROGRAMME OFFER? The project aims to greatly reduce or eradicate the operating costs associated with restarting work and help people to get back on their feet after an extremely challenging 18 months. It will also

“ReTrain to ReTain will be a major boost to the sport and physical activity workforce, enabling many thousands of professionals to stay in, or return to, the sector. From sports coaches to personal trainers, swimming teachers and group exercise instructors, this workforce has a vital role in keeping the nation physically and mentally healthy as we emerge from Covid-19, and I am delighted that we are able to provide this service with support from Sport England.”

Tara Dillon, CEO of CIMSPA

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“While it’s been fantastic to see people embrace the return and reopening of sport and physical activity, we must ensure that the sports and fitness professionals who make so much of that happen are supported in every way possible.

It has been an extremely tough year for this part of our workforce, and I am delighted we’re able to confirm this investment and this programme as part of our ongoing Covid-19 recovery work.”

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Tim Hollingsworth, CEO of Sport England

support individuals who have been rendered unemployed with opportunities to access training and job skills that make them attractive to employers as the sector begins to recover and rebuild. As such, the main ReTrain to Retain programme will provide access to a wide range of resources and benefits, including: ● Learning opportunities, products and services supplied by CIMSPA, EMD UK, UK Coaching and our suppliers and supporters ● Access to member benefits supplied

by CIMSPA

The CIMSPA Digital Marketing Hub, to improve digital marketing skills ● A series of live webinars, delivered by experts in their field ● A job matching service to support participants with gaining employment with CIMSPA employer partners. ● Access to training and qualifications based on individual needs, through ReTrain funding ● Free training and resources from UK Coaching for sports coaches ● Free membership and associated benefits of EMD UK for group exercise instructors ●

Some 5,000 participants will also receive additional support to help cover the costs of getting back into work, such as insurance costs, music licencing, equipment, clothing and venue access.

This support will be targeted at those working in areas of economic deprivation, providing services to tackle inequalities or facing unemployment.

HOW AND WHEN CAN I ACCESS THE SCHEME? Please visit https://retrain.cimspa.co.uk for more information and how to apply to the scheme.

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IN DEPTH RIGHT DIRECTIONS

RECOVER WITH QUEST PRIME

facilities must achieve to gain accredited status.

1. CLEANLINESS AND HYGIENE Hygiene is paramount to controlling the risk of virus transmission. Customers are hyper-sensitive to this and will still expect facilities to have very high standards of hygiene throughout.

Cleaning procedures should be documented and made visible, hand sanitiser stations should be installed, and spray and cloths provided for gym users to wipe down equipment.

Start the road to recovery with these essential preopening checks Recognising the challenge ahead as facilities battle to win back customer confidence and restore lost revenue, Right Directions is encouraging operators to follow the free guidance provided by Quest Prime (Recovery) for evaluating facilities’ readiness to re-open.

Quest Prime (Recovery) is Sport England’s new Quest assessment, designed to help leisure facility operators map their route to recovery. Core modules (see later in the article) provide practical support to centres, focusing on the key issues affecting customer service.

Quest Prime is also part of Sport England’s new Moving Communities platform, which has been launched post-lockdown to track participation at public leisure facilities. The platform will provide a bespoke view of financial performance, participation

2. OPERATIONAL MANAGEMENT

levels, facility quality scores delivered by Quest Prime, social value reports and customer experience survey results, which can be compared to the national picture and filtered to enable local analysis and learning.

Caroline Constantine, MD of Right Directions, which manages Quest on behalf of Sport England, says: “Now leisure centres have re-opened, they will face a long road to recovery and the Quest Prime framework gives them a way to start the journey positively. It’s a rigorous process, designed to ensure sites are operating safely, and anyone can follow the guidance, even if they don’t go through the accreditation process.”

Facilities must demonstrate they have effective systems in place to ensure maintenance, housekeeping and environmental standards are upheld. Customers expect centres to be well managed and will not be tolerant of poor standards.

3. MANAGING THE TEAM Enough staff should be on hand at all times to ensure customer service is second to none. They must have the knowledge, skills and competency needed to meet the demands of nervously returning customers.

4. CUSTOMER JOURNEY A customer-focused culture is key. Facilities must show commitment to putting the customer first, understanding their needs, consulting them and measuring success against defined customer service goals.

7-STEPS TO BE READY FOR BUSINESS There are seven Quest Prime core modules, each with a range of expected outcomes

5. PROGRAMMING As communities bounce back, facilities should strategise to re-engage people of all ages and backgrounds, especially groups where participation rates have been low. Consider also how to maximise the use of space for both sporting and nonsporting activities.

6. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Facilities must establish a plan for improving community relations, building connections with under-represented groups and inactive people, and increasing participation in physical activity.

7. COMPLIANCE DECLARATION The laws that affect leisure facilities haven’t changed due to the pandemic. Facilities must ensure paperwork is in order, and the centre is compliant with health, safety, welfare and fire regulations.

SAFE HANDS TO STEER YOU Constantine continues: “After 18 months of worry, uncertainty and exercising (or not) at home, facilities need to get back up and running without a hitch, and for customer trust to be restored quickly.”

The guidance can be found here: https://questnbs.org/ module-guidance, and to achieve accreditation for your covid-safe efforts, contact Right Directions at info@rightdirections.co.uk or 01582 840098.

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ADVERTORIAL

HOW DIGITAL LESSONS LEARNED IN LOCKDOWN WILL DRIVE RECOVERY Emma Excell, COO, Fisikal, shares her thoughts on how digital solutions will help leisure centre operators survive and even thrive through the next few months As we head into winter, leisure centres across the country face some tough market conditions. Covid-19 is still very much a part of daily life and with experts warning of a potential flu epidemic, the challenges facing operators remain.

However, just as digital solutions provided leisure centres with a vital means of maintaining a connection to their community during extended periods of lockdown, digital solutions can still play a valuable role now centres are up and running.

Emma Excell, COO, Fisikal, explains: “According to research by the Moving Communities campaign, since ‘Freedom Day’ in July, leisure centres have collectively reported around a 70% return to pre-pandemic engagement levels. Whilst this is encouraging, it still leaves a deficit of 30%. When actually, to start to recover some of the financial losses of the last two years, the target

needs to be a significant overachievement of pre-pandemic levels.”

SO, HOW CAN DIGITAL SOLUTIONS AID THE RECOVERY EFFORT? Emma continues: “Covid-19 catapulted the fitness industry into the digital age.

Thanks to the plethora of apps and websites offering access to high quality fitness content, the consumer now expects to be able to work out effectively anytime, anywhere. Geography and physicality no longer represent boundaries to engagement, creating huge community growth opportunities for fitness facility owners.”

Digital solutions are fast becoming a key market differentiator. Analogue fitness facilities will struggle to compete in a digital world where consumers expect services to fit in with their schedule, rather than the other way around.

The introduction of digital functionalities such as on-demand classes, live streaming, virtual PT sessions, virtual marketplaces, personalised messaging via a dedicated in-app channel, all ensure members stay connected, engaged and largely able to self-manage their fitness and health journey.

As the sector digitally matures, brands built around a software solution will be the ones most likely to flourish. Developing a softwaredriven ecosystem answers a developing base-need of the consumer and future-proofs the business. Building a value proposition around a scenario where members are unable or unwilling to visit the physical facility means operators can still draw an income from remote services.

Digitalisation also creates opportunities for more efficient and effective business practice. Access to real-time business analytics, displayed in easy-to-read dashboards enable operators to identify risk factors, spot emerging trends and react to customer usage and spending behaviours much more swiftly, positively impacting the bottom line.

Fisikal has developed a bespoke business management solution for leisure centre operators and fitness facility owners that benefits from more than a decade of learnings. Equipped to offer off-the-shelf solutions as well as highly complex, bespoke digital ecosystems, Fisikal is one of the leading software solution providers to the fitness industry.

If you would like to chat through your digital options, or find out how to maximise your digital opportunity, please get in touch with us directly. www.fisikal.com

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AGENDA CLIMATE CHANGE

FUNDING

BY ROISIN WOOLNOUGH

As part of the government’s drive to achieve net zero emissions in 30 years, leisure facilities have access to a rather generous decarbonisation scheme

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S&PAProfessional / Autumn 2021

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AGENDA CLIMATE CHANGE

hen Steven Lister applied for funding under the government’s Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme (PSDS) in early January 2021, he hoped to receive a few thousand pounds at best. What happened next far exceeded his expectations. “We went into this thinking we might get a little bit – a few thousand maybe,” says Lister, director of leisure and communities, including four leisure centres, at Hambleton District Council. “But by the end of January, the government had come back to us and announced it was giving us £4.72m in funding. We were shocked, stunned and delighted – chuffed to bits really.”

The PSDS is part of the government’s drive to achieve net zero emissions by 2050. It was set up specifically to help local authorities meet locally agreed carbon reduction targets. Hambleton Council is using its funding to decarbonise its four leisure centres by installing air source heat pumps, solar panels, LED lighting and by changing the electrical infrastructure in the systems, including new battery management systems, battery storage and smart metering.

The council’s carbon reduction calculations, which it submitted as part of its bid, project a reduction of more than 700 tonnes a year in carbon emissions. That translates as a 57% reduction in CO2 for the leisure centres, starting as soon as the work is

“Two rounds of PSDS funding have been available to local authorities so far since 2020 – £1bn in phase 1 and £75m in phase 2”

completed (by March 2022) and the new energy technologies are activated.

Plus, the leisure centres will save around £40,000 a year in reduced energy costs. But financial rewards are not the driving force behind the project, says Lister. “The financial pay back isn’t the important thing – it’s the reduction in emissions.”

Two rounds of PSDS funding have been available to local authorities so far since 2020 – £1bn in phase 1 and £75m in phase 2. The third round of founding – Phase 3 – has just been released, although the amount of funding available had not been announced when S&PA Professional went to press.

Several other funding pots have been made available to local authorities recently to improve sustainability, such as the £3.8m Towns Fund and the £15m for Phase 2 Low Carbon Skills Fund.

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PSDS Phase 3 funding – dates PSDS Phase 3 opens for applications on Wednesday, 6 October 2021, closing four weeks later on Wednesday, 3 November.

Projects can start to run on 1 April 2022, closing on 31 March 2023 for single-year projects, 31 March 2024 for two-year projects and 31 March 2025 for threeyear projects

And in late 2020, the government released its Construction Playbook, setting out key policies and guidance on public works projects and programmes with sustainability and a green recovery

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AGENDA CLIMATE CHANGE

from Covid-19 being central themes.

The message is clear: the public sector needs to decarbonise and money is available from central government to help achieve it. James Foley, commercial director at Alliance Leisure, an organisation that develops facilities on behalf of leisure operators, says the leisure industry needs to take advantage of these great offers. “It’s a real opportunity for the sector to decarbonise its assets while also regenerating its assets, using free funding. It’s a massive opportunity.”

And it’s an opportunity that a lot of public sector leisure operators are making the most of. Alliance Leisure, for example, is currently involved with phase 1 PSDS decarbonisation plans for 14 leisure sites, with a combined value of more than £12m.

Money is a scarce resource in the public sector, and as many public sector leisure centres are in desperate need of an update, the opportunity to revitalise and decarbonise and reduce operational costs without eating into already squeezed budgets is attractive. Consider these findings, taken from a report conducted on behalf of Association for Public Service Excellence, the Local Government Association and the Chief Cultural and Leisure Officers Association, called ‘Securing the future of public sport and leisure services’

“One of the wider challenges for sites – and this is not just related to leisure – is switching from gas technology to cleaner, greener technology” James Foley, commercial director, Alliance Leisure

(https://bit.ly/3ENBV8m): ● nearly two-thirds of the leisure estate is ageing and past its replacement date, with a number of facilities having to be closed for urgent structural repair ● a significant number of councils said that the state of repair of their facilities had reached such a point where it was no longer possible to keep them open safely, with swimming pools being in a particularly bad state ● as many as one in four councils are considering closing some leisure facilities in the next financial year ● the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic

has resulted in a projected revenue loss of £411m for district councils, rising to around £600m when unitary councils and metropolitan boroughs are included.

Foley wants the leisure industry to take the lead on decarbonisation in the public sector, for two reasons. Firstly, because it aligns with the whole purpose and ethos of leisure centres.

“Our passion is creating health and wellbeing facilities that contribute to wellbeing of the community,” says Foley. “A green site is central to that. We

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Steven Lister, director of leisure and communities, Hambleton District Council

have an obligation to give communities the best green and clean sites we can.

“Leisure centres are places that are for the greater good so let’s make them sustainable. We need to make them carbon neutral. It’s actually our responsibility to do that.”

Secondly, leisure centres are typically very carbon-hungry sites – heating swimming pools as well as heating and cooling big open spaces, for example, uses up a lot of energy. This means there’s the scope for decarbonisation to have a big impact. According to figures quoted in the ‘Securing the future of

public sport and leisure services’ report, leisure facilities are responsible for between 10-40% of district and unitary councils’ direct carbon emissions.

When Alliance Leisure works with a leisure provider, the focus is on what Foley calls ‘the return on carbon’ – what will generate the best results in terms of neutralising the carbon output. The organisation spends a month scoping out the potential work, assessing the site/sites and conducting surveys to understand the current situation, what the carbon priorities are and what should be addressed. It then makes carbon reduction calculations and draws up a series of recommendations to share with the leisure operator.

It’s important that leisure operators look at the bigger picture before they invest in any new technologies, says Lister. Then they have the perspective to spend their money in the best possible way. “Unfortunately, it’s typically done in isolation, in a piecemeal way, when what you actually want is a really measured and tangible decarbonisation route. It needs to be a prioritized investment process,” he says.

When Lister heard about the PSDS at the end of 2020, he knew he had to put in a comprehensive and well thoughtout bid so that Hambleton could achieve the funding, so he enlisted

Categories The PSDS has been designed to improve the energy efficiency of buildings and install low carbon heating measures, such as heat pumps, heating controls, insulation and glazing. All PSDS projects must fit into one or more of four categories.

Eligible technologies (according to Salix) https://bit.ly/3kovvnU Category One: Technologies that directly contribute to the heat decarbonisation of a building by installation of a low carbon heating. For example, heat pumps and connections to low carbon heat networks Category Two: Technologies that do not directly contribute to the heat decarbonisation of a building but reduce overall energy demand and so will support future heat decarbonisation. For example, insulation, glazing, ventilation Category Three: Technologies that do not reduce carbon emissions but enable future heat decarbonisation projects to take place – these technologies are exempt from the requirement to meet the £500/ tCO2 lifetime critera. For example, metering, electrical infrastructure, battery storage Category Four: Technologies that are only permitted if: they are used to replace coal-fuelled heating systems or oil-fuelled heating systems, and if, in Salix’s reasonable opinion, it has been demonstrated that it is not viable for a low-carbon heating system to be installed within the building as a replacement for the coalfuelled heating or oil-fuelled heating system. For example, gas-fired CHP and gas boiler replacement projects would fit into this category provided they meet the above conditions

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“The government announced it was giving us £4.72m in funding. We were shocked, stunned and delighted – chuffed to bits really”

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Step up your digital marketing A free hub of on-demand training, webinars, mentorship and benefits to provide support for those in Sports and Physical Activity in England.

Designed to help organisations and individuals grow participation and keep the Nation active.

Lets build your hub together www.digital.cimspa.co.uk

Provided by

Funded by

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the help of Alliance Leisure. Since being awarded the funding, the council has spent several months doing due diligence and finalising the details of the plans. Alliance Leisure and Salix, the delivery partner of Phase 3 PSDS, have been very helpful throughout the process, Lister says, particularly when they encountered any problems.

For instance, Lister discovered that the existing electricity supply going into the leisure centres needed to be scaled up to meet the demands of the new technologies. “We found that we would need three new substations for the sites because we need more electricity coming in, which we will then save,” he explained.

Decarbonisation often involves bolstering the external energy supply, which requires the input of local electricity providers. “One of the wider challenges for sites – and this is not just related to leisure – is switching from gas technology to cleaner, greener technology,” says Foley. “Most sites have a supply of electricity that is already predetermined. We work with electricity suppliers and with distribution network operators to look at how to tackle this in a positive manner because new power infrastructure is required for around 80% of projects – they may need a new substation, for example.”

Lister hopes that the UK and the leisure industry have reached a tipping point in the sustainability arena. It’s noticeable to him, for instance, how much the community now cares about what providers are doing to be more sustainable. “People keep asking us where we are with this. They are interested and it’s important to them and it’s important to their children.”

Useful sources The Construction Playbook https://bit.ly/3lQcVES Public Sector Decarbonisation Scheme https://bit.ly/3lJeX9y Phases 1,2 and 3 of the PSDS are managed by the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy’s delivery body Salix Finance https://www.salixfinance.co.uk/

Low Carbon Skills Fund https://bit.ly/2XFso2u

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Towns Fund https://bit.ly/2XyuWz1

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IN DEPTH COMMUNIT Y

EVERYBODY Active Tameside puts the community at the heart of their health and wellbeing service.

Roisin Woolnough investigates

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ctive Tameside’s approach to diversity & inclusion (D&I) has been under the spotlight recently – for all the right reasons. The charitable trust, which operates community leisure centres and a range of health and social care services, has won ukactive’s Diversity and Inclusion Award for the second year running, based on its Everybody Can service.

According to councillor Eleanor Wills, executive member of health, social care and population health at Tameside Council, east of Manchester, CIMSPA partner Active Tameside’s approach to D&I is really paying off.

“This is a service that puts people first.

Active Tameside really embraces each and every resident like a friend, like a family member. They put the community at the heart of their service, really understanding people’s individual needs and challenging themselves to learn new ways of working.”

Everybody Can provides accessible and inclusive health, wellbeing and social development support to residents throughout the Greater Manchester borough, whatever their needs or level of ability. This includes over 15,000 community-based sessions each year, covering adult social care, outreach support, respite services for parents and carers, and a range of activities from sport to cooking and horticulture.

Shaun Higgins, director of health and social outcomes at Active Tameside, says D&I is part of the charity’s DNA. “It’s at the centre of all our delivery programmes, from gym and swim through to adult social care. We have a population in Tameside that we want to get more active ... and it includes some large areas of deprivation.”

Tameside has a total estimated population of 226,493, with 13.4% of residents living in income-deprived households. There are 141 areas within

CAN BE

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IN DEPTH COMMUNIT Y

Tameside, 11 of which are in the most deprived 5% nationally.

FUELLING FUN

“When every child or young person, regardless of their ability, can access a wide range of fantastic abilities in their local community… that’s success” Elaine Healey, a trustee at OKE (Our Kids Eyes), a Tameside charity working with children and families with special needs

Facts & figures

THE RIGHT MIX While Active Tameside is the driving force behind Everybody Can, Higgins says partnership is key to its success.

Active Tameside works closely with heads of service within the Council’s children and adult services, and with customers, clients and local community groups. “These are the groups that hold us accountable in every aspect of inclusion and diversity,” says Higgins.

It’s this mix of working with the relevant parties across the council and other associated bodies, including

of children and young people in Tameside do less than 60 minutes of physical activity a day. That means four in 10 are not doing enough activity to stay healthy of children in Tameside are overweight or obese when they finish primary school of Tameside children live in poverty, compared to an average of 17% across England

63.8% 37% 20%

Source: Greater Manchester Moving https://www.gmmoving.co.uk/ media/4383/gmmia-strategy-web.pdff

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One of Active Tameside’s recent big success stories has been its Fuel 4 Fun initiative. Aimed at tackling food poverty and social inequalities for young people and their families, it was launched in the Easter holidays in 2021, in partnership with Tameside Council and the Department of Education. With a 65% take-up rate, it has been hugely successful, Higgins says: “Over the Easter and summer holidays, we delivered about 3,500 food boxes with food for four people for five nights, designed with a nutrition team. They were delivered in Gousto boxes, so that there was no stigma attached.”

Fuel 4 Fun also provided free holiday camp places to young people aged five to 13 in receipt of free school means and to the under 18 SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) population.

There are 5,482 SEND pupils in Tameside – 14.2% of the overall pupil population.

During the Easter holidays, 1,735 holiday camp places were made available through Fuel 4 Fun, with children taking part in sport, dance, nature trails, cooking, cycling, arts and crafts, and swimming. There was a heavy emphasis on healthy food and nutrition; children were encouraged to work on community allotments and to cook their own lunch, with help from the community cafes.

Plus, 730 activity bags containing sports equipment and activity ideas were given to children for them to take home, encouraging them to continue being active in their leisure time.

Active Tameside also created a series of social media sites, enabling children and their families to access cooking videos from home and upload photos of meals they made. Fuel 4 Fun was repeated in the summer holidays and again enjoyed high levels of participation.

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Winning ways

schools and nurseries, and with the local community that Higgins says really drives the diversity and inclusion agenda. “Co-production is important to get the buy-in and that includes partners, stakeholders and service users.

And now, more than ever, it’s listening to local communities and working with them to maximise impact.”

There are several joint post holders, where people straddle both Active Tameside and council positions. Two of them are early intervention workers, one in the early help team and the other in SEND, for example.

Wills agrees with Higgins that co-production and a whole systems approach is critical to the success of Everybody Can. However, she says the ethos and commitment demonstrated by Active Tameside are also absolutely key.

“From a local councillor perspective, having an embedded socially-minded leisure provider so involved in community cohesion has been integral to what we do and what we can achieve as a local authority. Without such resource, due to heavy cuts within the council’s budget, we would be unable to meet the individual needs of so many, with the resource that we have.”

Being a charity, Active Tameside is flexible and can launch new pilots and projects much more quickly than the council would be able to. This has been important, particularly when Covid-19 hit and community needs changed.

Its work, through initiatives such as Fuel 4 Fun, has helped reduce social isolation and malnutrition and has been a lifeline for vulnerable members of the community. “It has allowed some consistency of service for our more

complex LD adults who would have really struggled with the restrictions and changes to their day to day routines.”

Active Tameside is measured against the council’s Strategic Outcomes Framework. All the health and social care indicators, which have inclusion and diversity at their core, are monitored quarterly. Higgins says this helps Active Tameside ensure it’s on track and flags up if there are any specific areas that need to be addressed.

Right now, the charity is focusing on a tier-two weight management programme for adults and children that will tackle eating and nutrition habits, as well as some physical activity interventions. Wills says Active Tameside is always striving to achieve more and better outcomes. “They continue to upskill and understand the complexity of need for individuals. As a partner, they are present in the room for all our conversations... They want to understand the needs of the community.”

Some feedback from the ukactive judges on why Active Tameside won the Diversity and Inclusion Award: ● Strong commitment to diversity and inclusion ● Co-production of accessible services ● Whole systems approach in the local area ● Great partnership working ● Put people they are trying to serve at the centre of what they are doing ● Emphasis on ensuring the right people are upskilled ● Upskilling a large number of young disabled people in the area, which was unique and innovative ● Partnership with children’s and adult services is key to driving change in the area ● Excellent understanding of existing local inequalities ● Holistic approach to provision ● Clear rationale to the programme and local stakeholder engagement ● Much broader than just sport ● Strategic Outcomes Framework underpinning the work ● Clear explanations about the impact of Covid and how they were overcoming them

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IN DEPTH CYBERSECURIT Y

KEEPING THE GYM

SAFE

By Sue Weekes

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As gym and sports organisations rely more on apps and online technology, operators from the sector in Scotland have been turning to the Scottish Business Resilience Centre for help and advice he Covid-19 pandemic has accelerated digital transformation for many gym operators and sports organisations. And as many in the sector find themselves making the shift to a hybrid on-site/online offering for sessions, the business case for implementing a robust, secure digital infrastructure is a compelling one.

Moreover, the expectation from members is growing: they expect apps for everything from online booking to personalised and automated messaging, and even for workout plans and goals.

Meanwhile, technologies that reassure them that a gym is doing everything it can to keep them safe, such as contactless entry, are all adding to the momentum. What used to be digital nice-to-haves are now essentials for day-to-day operation.

But there’s another business imperative that must not be overlooked: cybersecurity. The more connected gyms and clubs become and the more data they hold, the more vulnerable they become to cyberattack. “Whether

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it’s a small gym or a large sporting organisation, they are just as likely to get hit as any organisation,” says John Callagy, head of community and membership at the Scottish Business Resilience Centre (SBRC). “If technology is not the centrepiece of your business, it can be forgotten but you must ensure it grows together with the demands of the business.”

SBRC’s mission is to make Scotland one of the safest and most resilient places to live, work and do business,

“Whether it’s a small gym or a large sporting organisation, they are just as likely to get hit as any organisation” John Callagy, head of community and membership at the SBRC

“both online and offline”, by helping every Scottish organisation – large and small –gain the skills and knowledge to protect themselves.

It launched as the Scottish Business Crime Centre in 1996 and has evolved to reflect the changing needs of business and members in an increasingly technology-driven world. Its “prevent and protect” mantra underlines all its work, and its activities are aligned with that of the Scottish Government and the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre. It also works closely with Police Scotland and Scottish Fire & Rescue Service.

Seconded police and fire officers, along with ethical hacking students from Abertay University, are among those experts it can call upon.

In short, it offers a set of services, education and a community for organisations across Scotland to reach out to and ensure they have the necessary practices and processes in place to keep themselves and their

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IN DEPTH CYBERSECURIT Y

The sport & physical activity sector had a sharp reminder how things can go wrong in the early days of the first UK lockdown last April.

Scottish Swimming invited members of the aquatic community to work out alongside its performance athletes on the Zoom online meeting platform. It had shared information about the workout across its social media platforms, asking those interested in participating to log into a link that was shared publicly.

Unfortunately, the link was ‘Zoombombed’, with disturbing content shared with around 300 people that had signed into the event.

The video was immediately shut down and the incident referred to the police and their cybercrime unit. Scottish Swimming issued a statement apologising to everyone involved and carried out a review to prevent it happening again.

The organisation shouldn’t be too hard on itself, though, since it was the early days of Zoom, and little was known about the concept of Zoom-bombing. At a time when many gyms are trying to discover new ways to engage with people whether they are working out at home or in the gym, however, it highlights the unforeseen dangers that can lurk in the online world.

customers safe and secure. As pandemic restrictions have lifted and gyms have embraced technology in new ways, Callagy has noted a rise in those in the sector seeking their services and advice.

“With smaller gyms and clubs, it’s about ensuring they have the basics right, such as GDPR,” he says. “The larger sporting organisations are also interested in services such as our Exercise in a Box workshop sessions.

Overall, we are seeing a higher level of engagement from the sector.”

In addition, Callagy points out that the sector is a good example of one whose requirements sit in both sides of the centre’s activities with a need to build physical resilience as well as online security. “These organisations have a lot of data passing through their systems, but they also have a lot of footfall into their stadiums or sites and want to make sure everything is as secure on the ground as it can be,” he says. “We’ve had organisations approach us to talk to the police but it means we can also ask them about their online security, so everything joins up.”

One of SBRC’s most welcome services if an organisation does fall foul to a cyberattack is its free incident response helpline, funded by the Scottish Government. In such a case, the SBRC Leisure centres and gyms rely on technology for membership

“One of the most bizarre examples is of a casino in the US that was hacked through an internet-connected fishtank thermometer and information stolen from its systems” team works with the company to confirm there has been an attack and how its systems have been impacted. It provides basic triage, and links the company to a network of incident response services companies if required.

Depending on the scale of the attack, it may need to be escalated to Police Scotland and the Scottish Government informed. As Callagy explains, a severe hack can become the subject of a police investigation and the company needs to know what it can and can’t do. Over the past 10 months, the helpline has fielded around 100 calls.

Preventative services include Exercise in a Box workshops that recreate real-world business scenarios that test cyber resilience in different scenarios.

The tool was developed by NCSC with SBRC tasked with facilitating it to Scottish companies. Gyms or sports organisations answer questions on a particular scenario that could affect them, and the exercise is designed to find out how well or ill-prepared they are for an attack. As well as guiding people as to what to do in an attack, such exercises are effective at finding out how well understood cybersecurity is across the organisation.

To organisations across all sectors, Callagy is always at pains to point out how getting the basics right can make a big difference. “We educate businesses

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CASE STUDY

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on the importance of having really strong passwords and different passwords for different things. These factors are huge and can strengthen you so much.”

It is also important to ensure the cybersecurity message reaches everyone in the organisation and they all

recognise it as part of their responsibility.

This is especially important for gym operators whose teams can involve self-employed personal trainers who will also be running their own systems and applications.

Indeed, there is no shortage of instances of major organisations that

Personal trainers also need to be made aware of the operator’s cybersecurity message

have fallen foul to, for example, phishing attacks after an employee has unwittingly clicked a link in an email, exposing sensitive information or releasing malware.

As well as business systems and apps, gym operators are also likely to be using more connected/Internet of Things (IoT) devices in the future and they need to be aware that these widen the attack platform for cybercriminals. One of the most bizarre examples that serves as a lesson to all is of a casino in the US that was hacked through an Internetconnected fishtank thermometer and information stolen from its systems.

The need to digitally transform has come suddenly for some in the sector but Callagy is encouraged by the number reaching out, and the close-knit nature of the sports community is helping to spread the word and attract others to the centre. “If we get one organisation involved, others follow,” he says. “There’s certainly an element of looking after each other. Nobody wants to see another organisation in their sector hit as it makes them feel worried so if we can help to raise the knowledge and skills bar together it is good for everyone.”

" UNP/ISTOCK

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TECH TOOLKIT PRODUCT RO UND-UP

WORKING OUT TOGETHER

New tech for hybrid fitness

BY SUE WEEKES

Venueserve’s white label fitness platform has launched a live, two-way interactive audio and visual streaming service for one-to-one or one-to-many classes.

It is designed to align with the shift to blended/hybrid gym memberships and online group workouts and enables trainers and clubs to build and engage with an online community. Venueserve’s aim is to help clubs and their members work out together “no matter where or how they choose to train in the post-Covid world”. The platform can be personalised and branded by clubs and trainers.

Built-in reporting dashboards allow clients to book sessions on the platform and enable operators to gather insight and data about membership. Venueserve Fitness is already being used by health clubs across the UK, including London’s Roehampton Club and the Marlow Club.

FUNCTIONAL FLOORING CUSHIONS IMPACT Pavigym’s new Functional floor has been designed to offer the comfort and stability needed for functional training or for physiotherapy and rehabilitation clinics. This flooring is described as being “point-elastic”, which means that it only deforms at the point of jumping or impact. The makers say that other traditional flooring, such as wood, can deform and potentially cause injury. It claims that with Functional, impacts are cushioned, and users can jump on the flooring without unnecessary impact on their joints. It also claims to eradicate the need for mats. The flooring is antibacterial and antifungal, and easy to clean as it is waterproof and does not absorb liquids such as sweat. It also maintains a constant temperature throughout the year. Pavigym explains that the flooring is installed with interlocking and no adhesive is required, so gym operators can move the tiles or replace them without having to uninstall the entire flooring.

www.pavigym.com

https://fitness.venueserve.com/

" ISTOCK

Live streaming keeps clubs and members working out together

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POWER TO THE PEOPLE – WHEREVER THEY TRAIN

KEEP MEMBERS ON TRAKK Pulse Fitness has launched the connected fitness app, TRAKK, which aims to transform the way operators and members track their journeys, as well as heighten engagement. The app includes 92 different exercises and allows trainers and members to set workout goals, devise plans and track their progress. It integrates with existing membership platforms including Exerp, Gladstone and Legend and also works seamlessly with Pulse Fitness equipment (it can integrate with non-Pulse kit using QR codes).

A colour-coded system identifies at-risk members on the gym floor and provides a summary of previous contact. Personal or automated messages can be sent through the app. It is available in three versions: TRAKK Essentials (the app only); TRAKK Professional Lite for operators; and TRAKK Professional Plus for operators.

Vibration fitness specialist Power Plate is teaming up with Myzone and its MZ-Remote online platform to provide its community with new class experiences and the opportunity to offer rewards based on effort.

The collaboration will enable gyms and fitness studios to incorporate Power Plate into their training sessions and group exercise classes, connecting with members from any location and building loyalty and trust. Transition Zone in London is the first fitness studio to implement the combination. “I am really excited to further strengthen our sense of community,” said owner Claire Finlay. “Myzone facilitates this by tracking and rewarding all forms of activity, be it walking the dog, playing football with the kids or a 25-minute Power Plate class.

Technology and community sit side-by-side, and for me, it’s the future.”

https://powerplate.co.uk/

www.pulsefitness.com/trakk

THE NEW FACE OF SLAT-BELT TREADMILLS? Matrix Fitness wants to change the way the fitness industry thinks about slat-belt treadmills with Performance Plus. It claims to set a new standard with a shock-absorbing slat-belt and a high-efficiency drive, designed to make the most intense runs “feel comfortable, solid and smooth”. Kevin Mast, global product manager, cardio, Matrix Fitness, said slat-belt treadmills have advantages for both owners and users but only tend to be found in athletic training facilities. Matrix hopes to bring this level of performance to the cardio floor. The treadmill has a 61x157cm running surface and a top speed of 25 km/h to the quick adjustable incline up to 20%. It claims to log up to 100,000 miles with minimum maintenance, all while operating with far less power requirements than traditional belt-and-deck treadmills. The Treadmill is compatible with Matrix’s new collection of consoles (including Touch XL, Touch, Premium LED, Group Training LED and standard LED).

https://matrixfitness.com/

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WORKPLACE PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT

GETTING BACK INTO ACTION AS WE MOVE OUT OF COVID Take a minute for Meee

By Sid Madge For anyone involved in the sports and fitness industry, the experience of Covid has been all encompassing. As we ease out of this period how can you come back with energy and focus?

I’m a great believer in ‘micromoments’, the ability to change our life in any moment and to use these tiny, manageable interventions to gain positive momentum – even when things are challenging.

Try these ideas with a handy five-letter acronym, C.O.V.I.D. Let’s make the rest of this year the best ever.

C O REATE A BETTER SITUATION FOR YOURSELF AND OTHERS

During the pandemic many of us have come to appreciate, perhaps for the first time in ages, what’s really important. C invites you to create something new or better, at work and elsewhere.

Take a minute to consider your current situation. Imagine the pandemic is a distant memory – what is your ideal life like now? Forget about grand gestures, focus on the little things, the insights you’ve learned in this stillness about what makes you happy – go after more of that.

PTIMISM IS OPPORTUNITY

Given your area of work there’s a good chance that you’re a glass half-full rather than a glass half-empty person.

However, optimism may have waned during several on/off lockdowns. Science has proven that we operate across a range that is affected mainly by environment and mindset. The uberpessimist tends to see things as personal, pervasive and permanent ie. when things go wrong it’s their fault. You may well have seen this with clients if you are a personal trainer, for example.

Optimism feels better – nothing is permanent, not even Covid. When we shift towards to the optimistic end of our range, we’ll see more opportunity and feel better. Encourage yourself and others around you in this direction.

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V I D Our actions and behaviour are usually a living expression of our values.

Take a minute to visit the Meee website (www.meee.global) and take part in the values exercise. This will help to identify what your values are. What’s most important to you? Can you see evidence of these values in your life? Use your values to keep you focused on what’s really important.

NVOLVE THOSE THAT NEED YOUR SUPPORT AND LEADERSHIP

Humans are social creatures, and we need to be involved and connected with others.

Can you leap into action to help a colleague who needs a little extra support? How about The Samaritans’ brilliant idea, Brew Monday? Make a brew and call someone for a natter.

We might not be able to do all the things we used to do yet, but we can still talk and stay connected.

IAL DOWN THE STRESS

To dial down stress, it’s important to focus on self-care, offering kindness and hope to yourself and others. Even those working in sport/fitness may have slipped during lockdown so, if necessary, return to eating properly, getting out into nature and your normal exercise regime. We can all come back stronger and with renewed energy and focus. ● Sid Madge is founder of Meee (My Education Employment Enterprise), which draws on the best creativity and thinking from the worlds of branding, psychology, neuroscience, education and sociology to help people achieve extraordinary lives. He is also author of Meee in Minute, a series of books, each offering 60 ways to change your life.

" ISTOCK

ALUES WILL KEEP YOU FOCUSED ON WHAT’S IMPORTANT

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LAST WORD SPORTING LIFE

Bombette Martin represented Team GB at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo and spoke to S&PA Professional about her skateboarding passion

OLYMPIC SKATEBOARDER WHOSE HEART IS IN THE PARK F

15-year-old Bombette became a skateboarding Olympian last summer

or many of us, this summer’s been about trying to get back to something approaching normality after a winter of lockdowns and restrictions.

Not so for 15-year-old Bombette Martin who found herself in the wonderful position of representing Team GB in skateboarding at this year’s Summer Olympics in Tokyo.

“It was amazing being surrounded

by Olympians,” she enthuses, almost seeming to forget that she’s now one too.

“You could be in the cafeteria, on a bus on the way to the skate park or walking around the Olympic village and you’ll see a Bulgarian wrestler here and a Finnish boxer there. It’s just so cool seeing all these different athletes and getting to meet them,” she adds.

Bombette, named after her retired British boxing Dad, Bomber, got the skateboarding bug early. “I was nine years old when I started,” she says. “I’d had a board since I was three years old, but never used it.” With a skateboard park down the road from the family apartment in Manhattan, New York, she and her brother would go and watch the skaters through the fence. One day they decided to go in and give it a go and she hasn’t looked back since.

Does she feel intimated by what is still a male-dominated sport? “I know the whole skateboarding culture can seem quite gritty and a bit mean to

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" SKATEBOARD GB

“I really like the exhiliration of going fast,” Bombette says

outsiders,” she says, “but it’s really not like that at all. The people are really welcoming, and they genuinely want to help and advise you. I think that’s what persuaded my parents to let me go to the skatepark, knowing that there were people there who wanted to help me.”

This is the first time that skateboarding has been featured as an Olympic event, and Bombette can only see that as a good thing for encouraging more people of both sexes to take it up.

“I think it’s brilliant that girls are getting into the sport more,” she says.

“And seeing the amazing things that both women and men were doing at the Olympics can only inspire more of them to get out there and try it.”

But why as a young resident of New York did she come to represent Team

GB? “I like to joke that I’m half a New Yorker and three-quarters a Brummie,” she says. “I spent so much of my childhood in Birmingham because my dad is British, so I guess it didn’t really cross my mind, or my family’s mind, to even try and compete for the USA. We just decided to try and go for Great Britain, and it worked out well. I also get brilliant support over there.”

As for preparing for the event, training was obviously intense, with near-constant practice in the months leading up to Tokyo. “I was at the skateboard park every day, especially when I knew I had qualified,” she says.

“I’m home-schooled to allow me time to train, so I’d get as much schoolwork done as possible on rainy days.”

For those not in the know,

skateboarding has two disciplines: Park, which happens in a hollowed-out bowl with steep sides, and Street, where the course simulates a real urban landscape. Bombette’s heart is very much in Park. “I really like the exhilaration of going fast and being able to do big aerials. Street is cool too though and I do need to start skating more of it.”

As for advice to anyone wannabe skateboarders out there, young or old, it’s to buy pads and a helmet. “If you take a tumble without protection, you’re going to get hurt and you’re not going to want to do it again,” she warns. “It’s great that all the really little kids are wearing helmets, but unfortunately a lot of the older teenagers don’t – and they’re always the ones getting hurt! But with protection and taking as much advice as you can, it’s a super-fun sport.”

It’s also one where you’re always learning, as Bombette acknowledges: “In the last event before I’d found out I’d qualified for the Olympics, one of my big tricks that scored well was a Kickflip Rock, where you flip your board up onto the deck and then come back with the opposite leg in front.

“But in Tokyo, it didn’t really work out like that for me. They just didn’t judge it very high. I think the main lesson learned would probably be not to count on one trick to be the banger every time. What scores high in one competition may hurt you in another.”

Wise words from a young woman with a very bright future. She may not have picked up a medal this time around in Tokyo, but on 24 October she’ll compete in the UK Vert Series in her second hometown of Birmingham, England. She’ll also visit family but, either way, she’s guaranteed a very warm reception indeed.

Bombette Martin spoke with Dean Gurden.

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LAST WORD SPORT AMBASSADOR

Beryl Edwards is a volunteer and qualified assistant at Vista Wellbeing

LIFE-CHANGING SESSIONS had a heart-attack nearly six years ago and started doing rehabilitation exercises at the local hospital here in Barnstaple where I live.

You get 12 sessions and, after they finished, I was referred to Vista Wellbeing, which provides physical activity opportunities for adults with long-term health conditions. I’m 85 years old and must admit it was all a bit daunting. But quite simply it's the best thing I've ever done.

I’m afraid I’ve never been a very active person, which probably led to my heart attack. I did a bit of yoga and some gentle exercises. But having tried the more energetic ones, I felt they weren’t really for me. So, when Anita Griggs, the director of Vista Wellbeing, asked me if I wanted to become a volunteer helper, I must confess I thought it was going to involve moving tables and making tea. But she suggested I try and achieve the Active IQ Level 1 Award in Assisting Health-Related Activity Sessions.

It’s been a big learning curve, and it took me a bit longer than normal

I

because of the pandemic, as I had to do some of it via Zoom. That was a real eye-opener, as I’m not brilliant with technology. But I passed and have learnt all about which exercises are appropriate for certain conditions, as well as which exercise works which part of the body and why it’s good for you. I had to present to the rest of the class to make sure I’d taken everything on board and that they understood what I was saying. There was also written coursework and I had to plan an exercise session.

Now I have my qualification, I can lead the warm-ups or cool-downs and may even teach a few exercises too. Aside from helping others, I also now know how to manage my own aches and pains, how to ease out muscle tension and get stiff joints moving.

The sessions are brilliant. They are all about improving balance, general mobility and developing a wider range of movement. People that have been ill are often afraid of taking part in different activities and tend to sit at home and think it’s not for them. But when you go to these sessions

you find out you can go dancing and join walking groups. Everything opens up for you. I tell anyone who’ll listen to me how good it is and that they really should come along.

My advice to the elderly or those recovering from an illness would simply be to get in touch with somebody offering physical activity classes like Vista Wellbeing and have a chat. That’s when they’ll realise it’s not an ordinary class. Everything is done at your own speed. Some people may be doing one exercise, but if you can’t do it, you’ll be given something else.

You’re never left out or made to feel like you’re not up to scratch.

One of the exercises that we do regularly are the squats. I admit I absolutely hate them, but it is such a good exercise because it increases your balance and makes you stronger on your legs. It improves everything really, which gives you the independence to stay at home for longer as you get older.

My confidence has grown through doing all this too, and I’ve joined groups and tried new things that I’m really enjoying. I now have a lovely group of Vista Buddies and have made many new friends too. The whole experience has really opened my world up and totally changed my life.

Beryl Edwards spoke with Dean Gurden.

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Funded support, resources and training built for you

A wealth of training, resources and tools to support fitness professionals, group exercise instructors, sports coaches and volunteers.

Designed to support anyone who’s work has been affected by covid 19 working or volunteering in sport and physical activity in England.

Fit the criteria? Don’t miss out www.retrain.cimspa.co.uk

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