Course overview

This full-time course runs two days a week in both first and second years. This gives students the opportunity to earn as they learn. The course is delivered through seminars, lectures and practical sessions, following a theory into practice model. The opportunity to apply these new skills in the sports industry will take place through work experience.

The HND provides a unique insight into the sports industry with several high-profile guest lecturers from professional athletes and coaches to professional sports club CEO’s. Visits to the London 2012 site, Cardiff’s Sports Village, national stadia and outdoor activity centres are just a few of the trips that we organise to help enhance your learning experience. Thus, enabling you to recognise the skills you have and where you can apply them within sports coaching and leadership management.

Entry requirements

You will require 48 UCAS points or an equivalent Level 3 sport qualification and five 4-9 GCSEs including Maths and English. Mature applicants with other qualifications or non-formal qualifications are welcome to apply and will be assessed on an individual basis.

Course Modules

Year 1

- Coaching Practice & Skill Development
The aim of this unit is to provide students with the knowledge and understanding of coaching practice and the skill development associated with athlete performance. Students will engage in researching the impact of different coaching practices, working in various environments, utilising resources, developing skills and planning effective sessions. They will gain an understanding of the importance of developing sessions dependent on the group’s demographics. The knowledge, understanding and skill sets gained in this unit will help students to appreciate the varied coaching environments in which they might work. They will have learned how to be specific to the individuals they are coaching and ensure they apply the relevant skill development.

- Physical Activity, Lifestyle & Health
This unit provides students with the knowledge and understanding of appropriate tools to assess the lifestyle of a range of individuals and design, implement and review lifestyle enhancement programmes. Students will be able to reassess the lifestyle of a selected individual following completion of the programme and review the effectiveness of the programme in facilitating behaviour change. Throughout the unit, students will develop skills such as communication, interpretation and analysis which are crucial for gaining employment within the sport and fitness industry and developing academic competence.

- The Sports landscape
This unit explores the growing influence that governments have on sport, starting with the key policy stages and changing political priorities that have shaped the way the sport landscape is today. The unit naturally progresses to identifying current aims and priorities in sport, and how governments use sport as a tool for achieving a number of political, cultural and social objectives. This unit will develop students’ knowledge of the current politico-sporting climate, and how key sporting organisations influence and organise sport. With numerous organisations involved in, and influencing, the sporting landscape, funding within sport is a complex process and something that those wishing to work in sports development need to understand.

- Project Management
The aim of this unit is to offer students an opportunity to demonstrate the skills required for managing and implementing a project. They will undertake independent research and investigation for carrying out and executing a sport-related project which meets appropriate aims and objectives. On successful completion of this unit, students will have the confidence to engage in decision-making, problem-solving and research activities using project management skills. They will have the fundamental knowledge and skills to enable them to investigate and examine relevant concepts within a sports-related context, determine appropriate outcomes, decisions or solutions and present evidence to various stakeholders in an acceptable and understandable format.

- Anatomy & Physiology
An understanding of anatomy and physiology forms the basis for a number of other areas relating to training, fitness, fitness testing, physical activity and various therapeutic techniques. In this unit learners will study the structure and function of the human body systems (cardiovascular, respiratory and musculo-skeletal). This unit is designed for students wanting to gain knowledge of the anatomy of the musculoskeletal system and understanding how movement is produced. Students interested in careers such as personal training, physical education teaching, occupational therapy, coaching, exercise prescription and performance analysis would find this a key unit in informing their practice.

- Technology in Sport
The aim of this unit is to provide students with the knowledge and understanding of the impact technology has on sport and the ways in which it supports the athletes’ performance developments. Students will engage in researching the impact of technological equipment, facility development, performance-enhancing tools and testing equipment used within sports. They will gain an understanding in the importance of sport’s National Governing Bodies (NGB) to set their rules stipulating limitations to allow fair competition, the ethics of implementing technology and the influence it can have on an athlete.

- Inclusive Sport
Within this unit students will discover groups which may be more vulnerable within physical activity and sport and who may need more support when taking part. They will also learn methods to adapt activities to include and support all participants, including gifted and talented students. As a result, students will be able to evaluate their own sessions and wider programmes to increase sports participation. Upon completion, students will have the skills to plan and deliver effective sessions as well as understand how a wide variety of different groups may require support when participating. This will allow students to begin to plan a series of sessions or develop programmes for specific groups to increase participation in physical activity or a selected sport.

- Sports Marketing
The aim of this unit is to give students opportunities to develop an understanding of the key concepts and terminology used in marketing, as well as to provide the practical skills required in order to create a marketing campaign for a sports organisation. It will provide knowledge and understanding of the role and function of marketing within sports organisations, exploring the core concepts surrounding the marketing mix, along with developing an understanding of how to apply these within the context of a sports organisation. This unit will also provide an introduction to the world of digital marketing and the key communication tools sports organisations should utilise in order to engage with their target audiences. The unit also provides students with the opportunity to develop and create a marketing communication campaign within the context of a sports organisation.

Year 2

- Research Project
The unit develops learners’ skills of independent enquiry and critical analysis by undertaking a sustained research investigation of direct relevance to their Higher Education programme and professional development

- Advanced Coaching
This unit will challenge the learner to analyse the environment of performance coaching from pedagogic and multi-disciplinary support service perspective, utilising theory and technology to improve performance in their chosen sports.

- Performance Analysis
This unit gives learners the skills required to analyse sports performance, and to offer feedback to performers to bring about improvements. Learners will select a specific sport, depending upon their own areas of interest. They will learn about the performance demands of selected sport including the skills, techniques, physical fitness requirements, skill related requirements and psychological requirements.

- Entrepreneurism in Sport
The aim of this unit is to provide students with the opportunity to understand what it takes to be an entrepreneur. They will develop their understanding of the skills and characteristics of today’s successful entrepreneurs while reflecting upon their own skills and qualities in this area. They will be given the opportunity to develop an enterprise, creating a business plan that will be relevant to starting up a business within the relevant context. Students will be expected to gain skills in preparing a business start-up.

- Sport, Health & Society
This unit will analyse the complex relationship between sport, health and society, exploring the contrasting ideological views of sport. Students will focus on the positives and negatives of sport at grassroots and elite level, and its impact on individual health and wider society. They will investigate the importance and the impact of commercialisation and globalisation on sport. Students will also examine the role of sport participation in addressing social issues and, in doing so, review a number of current strategies before producing their own sport strategy. Students will produce an evidence-based sport strategy to combat local social issues. They will research these issues using various research methods before planning the resources, partnerships and logistics required to underpin an effective sport strategy.

- Work Experience
This unit allows students to gain experience in their chosen field of sport. Students will investigate employment opportunities within the sports industry, identifying the different organisations and roles within it. In doing so, they may be able to identify a specific area of interest for work experience and possible future employment. Securing the placement may include initial communication with the employer, meetings about roles and responsibilities and agreeing the aims of the placement.

- Event Management
The aim of this unit is to give students opportunities to develop knowledge and understanding of the context, development, range, scale and types of sports events through an introduction to events and the events industry. This unit also introduces students to a range of techniques used to manage crowds at sports events, which will help to develop transferable skills for the purpose of event management. The unit seeks to develop students’ understanding of the initial key stages in the planning of a sports event, while also enhancing their experience of the concept of event management through the evaluation of an implemented sports event.

How will I be assessed?

You will be assessed through written assignments, individual projects, individual and group presentations and time constrained assessments. You will also meet up regularly with your tutor to discuss personal progress and plan your studies.

What can I do next

Sport is one of the most dynamic industries and is worth over £450 billion to the world’s economy. As a HND Sports Coaching and Leadership Management graduate you will be prepared to progress to a wide range of roles within the sports industry.

Predominantly roles within Sports coaching and analysis, sports marketing, sports/ health fitness facility management or sports event management. However, careers in sports teaching/lecturing, sports development, outdoor leadership including the broader business management professions are all options with further study. Graduates have the potential to diversify the skills they have developed across many other industries including hospitality and retail sectors.