Coleg Gwent’s Crosskeys Campus has been awarded Leadership academy status for its work in promoting sport in the community.
The Sports Leadership Approved Assessment Centre at Crosskeys has been heralded for the outstanding work it is doing to get young people involved with sport in the local community.
Sports Leaders UK, the organisation that provides nationally recognised leadership awards and qualifications to help people develop skills such as organisation, motivation and communication, approved academy status for Coleg Gwent, highlighting the College as an example of best practice for promoting sport in the community.
Students can do the year-long, Level 1 and Level 2 qualifications and are taught how to plan and organise sports sessions and events, before going into the local community to help coordinate sporting activities. Coleg Gwent is one of 40 organisations across the UK to achieve academy status.
Scott Jarvis, aged 18, from Risca said: “I achieved the Level 1 Award in Sports Leadership last year and thought it was good and this year will achieve my Level 2 Award in Community Sports Leadership. This has been brilliant because I have been able to do lots of voluntary work including leading sports sessions at my old Comprehensive school, refereeing year five and six football matches and helping at a disability rugby festival. I would love to do this as a career.”
Currently in its sixth year of operation, the Sports Leadership Centre at Coleg Gwent has more than 50 students studying towards qualifications in sports leadership. It is now recognised as a beacon of good practice that not only benefits the learners involved but also has a positive impact on the local community.
Mererid Dark, the Sports Leadership Centre course manager at Coleg Gwent said: “I am really proud of all our students, it is an incredibly rewarding experience to see young people take control of their lives. Many students arrive with a lack of confidence and have never taken charge of a group of youngsters, but within a year they are running their own sport sessions and looking to start a career in the industry.
“We continually aim to raise standards and develop individuals, but the academy status is down to the hard work that students put in. While completing the Level 2 qualification, students must carry out a minimum of 10 hours voluntary work with 8 to 13 year-old children in the local community, across a diverse range of sports. Our students regularly exceed that minimum and some have completed as many as 60 hours as they find it such an enjoyable and rewarding experience.”
Students currently work with Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent and Newport local authorities as well as schools on projects including Sports Caerphilly Disability swimming galas, rugby tournaments and multi sport activity sessions.
Rob Guy, Foundation Manager for Wales Sports Leaders UK, said: “The staff at Coleg Gwent have really embedded the ethos of leadership into their work and have gone the extra mile in terms of delivery and excellence. Academy status is something that all centres should strive for, and Coleg Gwent will be showcased as a model of best practice to follow.”
Rob Guy presented the Campus with a plaque to acknowledge the academy status at an event on Wednesday 2 May, whilst Sports Leaders students demonstrated their skills, leading ILS (Independent Living Skills) students in a session on disability sports including boccia, new age kurling, seated volleyball and dodgeball.
