Sport is becoming increasingly recognised as a sector having a potential to positively impact on the realities and challenges faced by our society and the expectations from national governments are growing.In order to meet its huge potential and bring positive change in society (health, social inclusion, employability), the sport sector needs a workforce of people involved in sport organisations (e.g. sport federations, clubs) with the right skills and competences, supported by a fit-for-purpose programme of education, training and professional development.The S2A Sport project took place during 30 months and focussed on the skills needed by sport administrators working in paid and volunteer roles in the delivery of sport. Based on the cultural and terminological differences, a common definition of sport administration was agreed by the partnership:“Sport administration embraces the processes and/or activities of running an organisation operating within the sport sector at all levels; it includes a variety of tasks across a wide range of functions in accordance with the purpose and direction of the organisation. More specifically, Sport Administration functions are implemented by all those individuals, both paid and unpaid (volunteers) who work to ensure the effective running of a sports organisation.”These persons acting is the area of sport administration have a key role in the processes and activities of running a sport organisation and so in the development of the whole sport sector at local, regional, national, European and international levels. Main activities and responsibilities of these individuals are different depending of the country and type of organisation, and the main reason of this project can be explained by the fact that there was a recognised gap between the competences of sport administrators and those expected and required to fulfil their mission and respond to the need from the sector. What are the main tasks and activities of sport administrators on a daily basis? What are the competencies and skills that they need to perform efficiently in their position? Is there a fit-for-purpose education and training offer responding to the expectations from the sector? These were the main questions that the S2A Sport project, bringing a partnership composed of 8 national partners and 4 European networks, have been trying to bring a response. The work program implemented an innovative methodology developed by EOSE in response to the main education and employment challenges in the sector and aligns with the main EU policies and tools in the fields of sport and vocational education and training.This methodology, known as the « 7 Step Model » (http://eose.org/approach/7-step-model/), provided the opportunity to implement seven specific working steps and various consultation activities (internal/external) to conduct an analysis of the characteristics of the labour market in sport administration, to define main activities and tasks carried out by these persons within sport organisations (e.g. responsibilities, level of performance, career pathways), to develop detailed occupational standards to describe skills and knowledge required for competent performance at work in sport administration, and to provide information and advice to produce fit-for-purpose courses that meet the needs of the labour market.A pilot training programme week was organised during the final part of the project to test and assess some of the learning outcomes and approaches proposed by the project together with a sample of 40 sport administrators coming from different countries and cultures. This testing gave the possibility to collate feedbacks from participants and enhance the proposed content of the project’s outputs and ensure a response to their expectations and needs. Several transnational projects focussed on the position of coaches or players but the S2A Sport project is the first one to centre the attention on those individuals having central positions in the running of sport organisations across Europe. This initiative has been perceived positively in a sector that is recognised to be dynamic and growing, and as mentioned earlier having a potential to positively impact on the economy, health and social inclusion dimension of a country.

Sport has the power to change lives, create jobs, develop people, improve health, and support community development and cohesion. Given this potential, it is vital that the sector has a competent workforce of paid staff and volunteers with the right skills, as well as a clear career structure and pathways with job opportunities.ESSA provided a unique opportunity to bring the sport and physical activity sector together for the first time to analyse and understand the labour market which was unknown and underestimated in order for the sector to move forward and to build a new relationship with education and training providers, based on this new understanding of the skills needed in employment by paid staff and the huge army of volunteers.A consortium of 18 national and 5 European level partners tackled the skills challenges of the sector collaborating with the entire sport and physical activity sector through the implementation of the European Sector Skills Alliance for Sport and Physical Activity during the innovative 3-year project.ESSA Main Activities:>Analysis of national sport labour markets through collaboration with Eurostat and National Statistics Offices>Desk research to present characteristics, evolution and future perspectives of national sport and education sectors>European Online Employers Survey on Skills Needs in the sport sector, with 3812 responses from across Europe>EU Expert Advisory Group bringing together 14 EU sport networks and umbrella bodies>Wide communication and dissemination to stakeholders at all levels>Effective project management and quality assuranceESSA Main Results:>National Reports from desk research activities and analysis of the Employer Skills Survey in sport – 28 reports produced to impact the sector in each EU nation>EU Report on Skills needs identification: Situation, trends, perspectives and priorities for the sport sector>EU and National Fact Sheets: Labour market and workforce development priorities for the sport and physical activity sector – 28 summary fact sheets produced, plus EU factsheet>European Sport Skills Seminar – successful event for 82 participants from 24 countries in Oct. 2019>Sustainable work plan for sport. In terms of new knowledge and data, the ESSA project highlighted the following realities and challenges for the sport and physical activity labour market: >A growing EU Sport Labour Market >Main characteristics:-More male than female as paid staff-Growing proportion of youth and 50 year+-High percentage of part-time contracts -High percentage of self-employed people -More workers with higher education qualifications than the EU average and less with low level of qualification.And some findings from the European Employer Skills Survey:>91.5% agreed it is important that their staff have access to on-going training to keep their skills up-to-date>79.9% agreed universities/training providers should work more closely with sport employers>Skills development priorities for eight identified occupations The ESSA-Sport activities have proven to be valuable exercises with new knowledge and important messages for stakeholders at all levels. National and European level conclusions and recommendations, including concrete action plans, have been generated and will inform future action in the sector. European level recommendations were formulated under the following headings: >Improving our knowledge and understanding of the sport and physical activity labour market>Promoting the value of the sport and physical activity sector>Promoting a more inclusive workforce for the sector>Upskilling and professionalising the workforceThrough dissemination activities carried out throughout the project, and planning for sustainability, the consortium is pleased to report that fully funded ongoing activities to continue and repeat the actions of the ESSA project are already planned for 2020 and beyond.