In my subject specialism of Sports, most of my work is based around gaining funding from Sport England to support the delivery of sports from a grassroots to elite level. This ranges from increasing participation to developing a trained workforce of volunteers and coaches who can deliver sports and work in the community. Most of the courses I deliver are funded though Sports coach UK and UK Sport. The courses are aimed at 16 plus learners not in mainstream education and seen as a vocational form of study. According to the Bradford observatory (2011) “27% of Bradford district households have an annual household income of less than £15,000”. It is therefore crucial when creating courses outside of FE / HE education that the courses at a price learners can afford. The issues I have when advertising these courses are the fixed pricing structure to cover the cost for resources and registering participants to receive the certificate on completion of the course. Due to the high price learners are unable to access the course. This is also an increasing problem with student funding in general. An article by the Huffington post (2013) around the increase in student fees stated more school leavers are were opting to get the work they can at eighteen than face a huge debt after 3 years of University. Offering community courses is an alternative for students who are put of higher education debt worries. As an organisation we have held meetings with the awarding bodies and debated that our courses need to be formally recognised and at a price which leaners can afford, we need to be able to offer the option of repaying fees and not asking for payment upfront which many people may not be able to afford. If we are unable to this we need to look at other options such as bursary schemes or working in partnership with Colleges and offer our courses as introduction courses where learners then have the option of developing and gaining a formal qualification though Colleges. Having this pathway is essential and will be more of an attractive offer for them to sign up to the course.
After several meetings and carrying out both qualitative and quantitative research the awarding body now offers course bursaries for individuals who meet the criteria. Having the bursary scheme has been a huge success as many individuals have now signed up to the Skills Active Sports Coach UK bursary scheme. As a result of this we have increased the amount of courses we put on per year and we now allocate work experience which is embedded in the course content. As well as holding a nationally recognised coaching qualification by National Governing Bodies of sport, the Community Sports Leaders award is now recognised in most Colleges and Universities and seen as a step for learners to progress on to a foundation or degree course in Sports Coaching.
Funding issues is not focused primarily on the individuals learning however I believe, this particular issue of funding I have mentioned can be seen as a way of reflection on the course scheme which was addressed by the awarding body. Dewey reflective model best fits into the reflection on the funding issue
“To reflect is to look back over what has been done so as to extract the net meanings which are the capital stock for intelligent dealings with further experiences. It is the heart of intellectual organization and of the disciplined mind.” Dewey 1938:110
Dewey believed to reflect we first have to find ourselves experiencing some difficulties or dilemmas, in this case it was lack of learners due to funding. We then set out reflecting and asked yourself why. We did this with the awarding body and through qualitative and quantitative research. In this instance it was due to cost of course and no formal accreditation. We then analysed the problem and came up with potential solutions and what we might do. We offered bursary schemes and partnership working with Colleges. As we experiment with the new structure we will consider whether the solution was effective and can it be further adapted.
Reference
Bradford observaroty ( 2011) Bradford Joint Strategic Needs Assessment [Online] http://www.observatory.bradford.nhs.uk/SiteCollectionDocuments/3%201%203%20%20Poverty%20in%20Bradford%20district%20FINAL.pdf [07/05/2014]
Dewey, J (1938). Logic: The Theory of Inquiry. New York, Henry Holt andCompany.
SkillActive (2013). Funding Opportunities for Coaching [Online] http://www.sportscoachuk.org/sites/default/files/CSSN%20Funding%20Guide%20Jan%202013.pdf [05.05.2014]
Thomson, P (2013). Tuition Fees Are Still a Problem, Here Is Why [Online] http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/patrick-thompson/tuition-fees_b_3952603.html [07/05/2014]
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