Perspectives of employers in the physical activity sector

Title
Perspectives of employers in the physical activity sector

Research Area
Workforce     

Author
Future Fit Training

Summary of Findings
Researchers sought to understand perspectives of sector employers via a survey of UK Active members, complemented by more in depth interviews with a selection of major employers. The survey responses were anonymous to encourage respondents to be as honest as possible. The report found that recruiting high quality staff was an issues for the majority of respondents. 78% said that candidates lacked the necessary skills to be successful, 83% said candidates had unrealistic expectations of earning potential and 78% said candidates had an unrealistic expectation of the tasks involved in the job.

They found that there were also issues in relation to people with disabilities, both with the candidates but also the employers themselves. When asked what percentage of their members were disabled, 61% of those asked said they either did not know or did not collect this information. Additionally 86% said they felt most exercise professionals were not adequately trained to work with people with disabilities and 41% said their organisation either runs or plans to run inclusive sessions. Similarly for working with young people, 86% of respondents felt most exercise professionals were not adequately trained to work with children. The report touches on possible solutions to these issues mainly around changes in training but also recognition of the issues so change within organisations can also be made.

Implications
This identifies skills gaps within the sector and areas for improvement.