On 17 September 2021, the partners in the CHANGE project gathered online to finalise the date and arrangements for the project final conference, sign off the new CHANGE Occupational Standards for Sport for Development, make progress with the Training Handbook, and plan for sustainability of the CHANGE project outputs. The project is well on course to complete in December as planned and publish a range of indispensable products to support skills development and education in sport for development.

INTERNATIONAL EVENT ON SKILLS AND EDUCATION IN SPORT FOR DEVELOPMENT

Save the Date!

The partners agreed the date and title for the CHANGE Final Conference, the International Event on Skills and Education in Sport for Development will take place as an online Webinar on Wednesday 24 November 2021 at 10.00 CET.

A range of speakers will present current issues in skills development and education in the field, with sessions dedicated to presentation of the CHANGE products to support people development in sport for development, including the Occupational Standards and Training Handbook.

Save the date and look out for event registration which will open early in October.

OCCUPATIONAL STANDARDS

A global consultation process took place over the summer on the draft Occupational Standards which produced a wide range of valuable feedback and suggestions from sport for development practitioners in 23 countries. There was a high level of agreement from consultees with the draft standards, and during the September meeting, the partners debated some of the key feedback points and suggestions for improvement.

The Occupational Standards will now be finalised and published at the end of the project as a valuable resource and guide to good practice for all those working in coordinator and activator roles in sport for development.

TRAINING PROGRAMME HANDBOOK

Partners involved in the pilot seminars organised in Italy and UK updated the rest of the group on two successful events which gathered positive feedback from sport for development practitioners.

An innovative Knowledge and Skills document has been developed which identifies knowledge and skills relevant to each key role and occupational standard in a way that will be helpful to education and training providers. The group discussed these new transversal and work-based knowledge and skills and agreed it will form a valuable resource for those developing training programmes.

A suite of Module Outlines with sample learning outcomes have also been produced by project partner, Leeds Beckett University, the group also agreed these will be a valuable part of the Handbook.

The potential for a self-evaluation tool linked to the standards, proposed by Women Win, was discussed, and agreed to be an excellent addition to the Handbook.

SUSTAINABILITY

As the project draws to a close, a key focus will be on sustainability once the final products have been published – the group discussed a range of ideas towards sustainability – watch this space!

Find out more at www.change-sport.eu

Project partners: European Observatoire of Sport and Employment (EOSE); International Sport and Culture Association (ISCA); University of Cassino and Southern Lazio; Leeds Beckett University; General Secretariat for Sports; Greece, Italian Sport for All Association (USIP); Sport Union of Slovenia; StreetGames; Women Win.

By Ben Gittus, EOSE Director of Standards