Coach Education and Volunteering

The coach education and volunteering programme offers opportunities for students interested in sport to pursue these interests further. It will develop skills and provide practical sports experience which can enhance employability. Students who have successfully completed coaching qualifications or who wish to gain volunteering experience are provided with an opportunity to assist with coaching classes offered by the Sports Development Service and the University of Stirling. Students with relevant qualifications and experience support a number of sport and fitness classes.

Coach Education Qualifications

A number of coach education courses will run at the University of Stirling this year. These courses aim to keep coaches up-to-date with current good practice and recent legislation. The aim is to provide an introduction to coaching as well as support coaches currently working in the field. They also offer excellent opportunities to communicate and collaborate with coaches from different sports.

Active Stirling organise and administer a series of courses. Members of the sports union are affiliated members of Stirling Sports Council and this may apply for grant aid to support their coach education as part of the Council’s education and training programme. For further details please contact Active Stirling (018760 432323). Clackmannanshire Council also offer opportunities for students to undertake coaching qualifications and teach on a wide range of programmes. Please contact Sports Development, Clackmannanshire Council (01259 222350).

If you require further information regarding current times and dates of courses please click on the following link for the coach education brochure.

Fitness Leader Awards

The Department of Sports Studies received Scottish Qualification centre and award approval to offer a customised Fitness Leader award in both Exercise to Music and Gym Instruction, is September 2006. Both courses are offered at level 1 and provide an ideal instruction to working in the fitness industry. The courses are also recognised by Fitness Scotland and provide a clear pathway to their level 2 and 3 awards.

The Fitness Leader Gym Instructor and Exercise to Music awards are supported by ILA Scotland. This is a Scottish government scheme which helps to pay for learning. These people who earn less than £18,000 a year may be entitled to some of the cost of these courses covered for you. Make sure that you have applied for your learner account through the ILA and that you have received your account card and account number before booking on to a course as you cannot use your funds to pay for a course you have already booked. Visit www.ilascotland.org.uk for further details.

If you require further information regarding current times and dates of courses please click on the following link for the coach education brochure.

Volunteering Opportunities at the University of Stirling

Volunteers play an integral role in sports development in Scotland and without the significant contribution that volunteers make, sport would struggle to survive. The volunteering opportunities that are offered at the University of Stirling have been designed to establish a simple frame work of co-ordinated opportunities at a local, national and international level to enable students to gain experience in this area and sustain an involvement in leadership and volunteering in sport.

The volunteering opportunities provide a stepping stone structure and facilitate the development of student’s personal skills such as leadership, confidence, management, sports coaching experience, rewards, recognition, enjoyment and cross cultural development. For those who wish to pursue a future career or further involvement in sport, it is important to develop the necessary personal skills and experience and volunteering is one of the most effective ways of doing this.

Please click on the link to view the diagram for details of how to become involved in a structured volunteering programme.

To access a Toplink 09/10 application form, please click here.

The National Sports First Aid Course

The Gannochy Sports Centre are offering a National Sports First Aid Course:- 5th & 6th May 2010, running each day between 9am & 5pm.

The National Sports First Aid course seeks to make sport safer through improving the first aid knowledge and skills of people involved in sport and exercise. The Course, which was originally devised by the National Sports Medicine Institute, has recently been completely updated and expanded and has been endorsed by a number of National Governing Bodies. The course is 16-hours long (typically over two days) and is fully assessed - including CPR skills, practical scenario examination and written MCQ. The course covers basic first aid with an emphasis on sports related injuries.

To access an application form for this course, please click here . Completed application forms should be returned to Reception at the Gannochy Sports Centre, University of Stirling, Stirling FK9 4LA.