Sport and Physical Activity Manager

**Job details**

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**Responsible to**

Director of Campus Life and Student Living

**Location**

Kedleston Road, Derby Campus

**Closing date**

Sunday 15 March 2026

**Salary**

£38,285 to £45,738 per annum (for exceptional performers, there is scope for further progression up to £52,605 per annum)

**Job grade**

MPS 1

**Reference**

0001-26

**Contract type**

Permanent

**Post type**

Full-time

**Adaptive working type**

Onsite

This role will be based on site, primarily in the named location.

**About the University**

We have one simple promise – to make a positive impact. Through our ground-breaking research, teaching excellence and commitment to sustainable living, we are changing lives for the better.

The University of Derby is a modern university with a modern outlook. Everything we do is driven by delivering excellence and opportunities for our students, our staff and our region.

We have some of the best university facilities in the UK and achieve outstanding results for our teaching and research and have been awarded Gold in the prestigious Teaching Excellence Framework (TEF) 2023 – making it one of the top universities in the country recognised for its outstanding student experience and student outcomes.

Financially strong and seriously ambitious we offer our employees an inclusive culture that centres itself around staff wellbeing, where you can be confident you will receive all the help and encouragement you need to build a rewarding career with lots of opportunities to enhance your skills.

**About the College/Department**

Our Campus Life and Student Living department is responsible for essential services that significantly impact the student experience.

Campus Life is all about the various services that enhance the overall student experience, including sports, recreational facilities and community engagement.

Whereas our Student Living teams ensure the safety, comfort and compliance of the University's residential estates.

Whichever team you become a part of; student experience is our focus!

Within Campus Life, the Sport and Physical Activity team is responsible for delivering a wide-ranging sport, performance sport and physical activity offer that enhances wellbeing, builds community and strengthens the University’s reputation for being *Serious about Sport*. Through the Team Derby brand, the team works closely with students, colleagues and external partners to deliver inclusive participation opportunities alongside high-quality competitive sport and events.

**About the role**

The Sport & Physical Activity Manager provides operational leadership for the University’s sport and physical activity provision and plays a key role in championing the sport agenda across the institution.

The role leads a diverse team of staff, consultants, contractors and suppliers, and is responsible for the planning, delivery and evaluation of sport programmes, performance sport activity and sporting events. This includes oversight of operational planning, compliance and the successful delivery of projects aligned to departmental and University priorities.

A critical aspect of the role is building effective partnerships and influencing outcomes in a complex environment where delivery often depends on collaboration rather than direct authority. You will work closely with colleagues across academic and professional services, student groups, national governing bodies and commercial partners to align activity, secure resources and ensure a coherent, high-quality offer.

The role also involves managing existing sports-related commercial contracts, identifying opportunities to generate and leverage resources, and promoting the University as a destination of choice for students with an interest in sport and physical activity.

From time to time, you will support University-wide events such as Open Days, Graduation and Clearing, some of which take place outside normal working hours.

**Anticipated interview date:** 26th March 2026

**About You**

The ideal candidate will have significant experience delivering sport or physical activity programmes within a complex, customer‑focused environment and will be confident working across organisational boundaries. You will bring a proven ability to advocate for service priorities, influence decision‑making and build productive partnerships without direct line management authority, alongside the confidence to engage a wide range of stakeholders, balance differing perspectives and achieve shared outcomes through collaboration. You will also have experience managing teams and resources and demonstrate strong organisational and communication skills, supported by a relevant degree or equivalent professional qualification and a sound understanding of operational planning and service delivery within sport, leisure or student services. Above all, you will show a strong commitment to inclusive practice and to delivering high‑quality sport and physical activity experiences that enhance student engagement, wellbeing and institutional reputation.

**Principal accountabilities**

Operational management of the University sports staff, contractors and suppliers in line with University policies and procedures.

Manage the existing network of internal and external relationships, and seek to identify and build additional relationships with key stakeholders to ensure the effective and efficient delivery of an engaging, high quality student experience whilst furthering the reputation of the University as one which is ‘Serious about Sport’.

Lead the development of comprehensive growth plans for the Sports function, in particular in relation to enhancing athletic performance across all sports at both individual and club level.

Take a lead role in delivering departmental plans and targets, ensuring all objectives align with the University’s Institutional Success Measures and policies.

Coordinate projects and initiatives to enhance student sport and physical activity, taking responsibility for their successful delivery.

Manage and controlthe Sports Budget, ensuring effective financial planning and resource allocation.

Drive the successfulplanning and delivery of all sporting events, ensuring a high-quality, safe, and engaging experience for all participants. Responsibilities cover the entire event lifecycle, from initial concept and budgeting through to on-site execution and post-event feedback analysis.

Ensure comprehensive compliancewith all University policies and relevant regulations in all aspects of event planning and execution

Create and promote new sportsprogrammes to increase participation, leveraging resources and expertise from University departments and external community/commercial partners to ensure the programmes are scalable, relevant, and impactful.

Maintain active and sustainedcollaborationwith essential, core student service functions across the institution to ensure seamless delivery of student support.

Any other duties commensurate with the post and as requested by the Director of Campus Life and Student Living.

**Person specification**

### **Essential Criteria**

#### **Qualifications**

• A relevant degree or equivalent professional qualification/experience

#### **Experience**

• Significant, proven experience in the end-to-end planning, execution, and evaluation of sport programmes, ranging from large-scale tournaments to ongoing recreational leagues.
• Established experience in identifying, developing, and launching new sports programmes or initiatives with the express purpose of increasing participation and engagement.
• A history of successfully securing and leveraging resources (financial, personnel, or in-kind) from both internal departments and external commercial/community partners.
• Prior experience in operationally leading and managing a team (staff, contractors, and suppliers) within a complex, customer-facing environment
• Demonstrated ability to build, maintain, and utilise a network of strategic relationships with both internal stakeholders (e.g., student services, finance) and external partners.
• Specific experience inworking collaboratively across different departments or organisational boundaries to +achieve a unified goal (e.g., cross-functional delivery)

#### **Skills, knowledge & abilities**

• Thorough knowledge of operational planning, resource scheduling, and workforce management in a sports, leisure, or student services environment.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, capable of influencing senior University leaders, engaging staff, and negotiating with external commercial partners.
• Proven ability to apply a commercial mindset to decision-making, focusing on resource generation and cost-effectiveness to underpin growth.
• Proven ability to manage complex, multi-faceted projects using recognised methodologies. This includes collecting, analysing, and interpreting participation data and event feedback to ensure programmes are data-driven, successful, and demonstrate clear impact (ROI).
• Ability to think creatively about student engagement and service gaps, translating research and trends into innovative, deliverable sports programmes.

#### **Business requirements**

• Willingness to provide support at University events from time to time e.g., Graduation, Clearing and Open Days, (some of these events occur outside of normal working hours, such as evenings and weekends).
• Willingness and flexibility to travel and work between University and external sites in a cost effective and timely manner.

### **Desirable Criteria**

#### **Qualifications**

• A relevant Postgraduate qualification (e.g., in Sports Management, Business Administration, or Leisure Management).
• Membership of a professional sports or leisure body (e.g CIMSPA)

#### **Experience**

• Direct experience with risk management and compliance within a sports setting, including knowledge of athletic governing bodies' rules (e.g., BUCS, NGBs) and statutory health and safety regulations.
• Proven ability to develop and manage content across digital channels and social media for programme promotion.
• Experience inwriting successful funding bids or sponsorship proposals for sports initiatives.

**Benefits**

• Generous annual leave entitlement of 38 days inclusive of bank holidays and concessionary days (pro rata)
• Local Government Pension Scheme
• Suite of holistic wellbeing benefits and support including family-friendly policies, generous sick pay provision and comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme
• Access to a variety of staff discounts at high street retailers
• Discounted onsite gym
• Holiday purchase
• Cycle to Work scheme
• A flexible working environment
• A commitment to personal and professional development

**Key contact**

For further information and informal enquiries regarding the role, please contact Ollie Shearer, Director of Campus Life via O.Shearer@derby.ac.uk

For enquiries regarding your application and for sponsorship eligibility, please contact the recruitment team via recruitment@derby.ac.uk.

**Important information**

#### **Visa Sponsorship Eligibility**

The University is unable to sponsor the employment of international workers under the Skilled Worker route for this role; however, applications are welcome from candidates who are able to demonstrate an alternative right to work in the UK.

#### **DBS check**

If you are successful, you will be required to undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

Any information you provide will be treated in confidence and only used when considering your suitability for the post.

To enable us to process your DBS check please ensure you are able to supply the documentation listed on the DBS website at interview stage.

#### **Equity, diversity and inclusion**

The University of Derby is committed to promoting equity, diversity and inclusion, regardless of age, disability, trans status, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief (or none), sex and sexual orientation.

We are Disability Confident Employers, demonstrating our commitment to disability inclusion, and invite applicants to highlight adjustments they may require to ensure equitable participation in our recruitment processes.

Further, we are committed to ensuring an environment which is trans and non-binary-inclusive for all our staff, students, partners, and visitors, and continuously review our policies, guidance and training.

When applying to join the University, you can choose your preferred title, including the gender-neutral title 'Mx'. We also ask our candidates if they would like to share their preferred pronouns. This is voluntary but demonstrates our commitment to inclusivity for trans and non-binary candidates. Once employed, you can add pronouns and preferred names onto our system.

The University of Derby undertakes anonymised shortlisting during the staff recruitment process. This means that, when shortlisting, panel members will not be able to see an applicant’s name and will see an applicant number instead. This demonstrates the practical steps we are taking to remove barriers to recruitment by minimising the possible impact of our unconscious bias.

However you identify, we actively celebrate the knowledge, experience and talents each person brings. Our students come from a wide range of backgrounds; therefore we are particularly interested to hear from applicants who will help our leaders and teams be more reflective of our student population.

Read more about equity, diversity and inclusion at the University of Derby.

#### **Environmental Sustainability**

At the University of Derby, we are passionate about embedding sustainability into everything that we do. We aim to bring environmental sustainability into all aspects of the University, including teaching, research and operational activities. In line with the University's strategic framework, we expect all our staff to embed sustainability into their working practices and support the University's objective to reach net zero carbon by 2050.

**Start your journey to success by applying today.**

**How to apply**

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You can apply by submitting an online application. Once you have signed in or registered with us you will be able to begin your application. If you are creating an account for the first time, please ensure you provide an email address that you access regularly as this will be our main means of contacting you regarding your application.

**The University reserves the right to close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications. We encourage you to submit your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.**

If you require any assistance, including the provision of any documentation in an alternative format, please contact the Recruitment team at recruitment@derby.ac.uk.

Please note all applications must be submitted online by Midnight GMT on the closing date of the vacancy.