LJMU supports Help for Heroes Sport Coaching Academy
LJMU was delighted to welcome back onto campus the military veterans’ charity Help for Heroes for a weekend of coach development workshops facilitated by coach educators from the Activity Alliance and UK Coaching.
Under its Armed Forces Covenant pledge, the university has been working closely with the charity to support its inclusive Sport Coaching Academy, offering up its state-of-the-art facilities from the Sport and Physical Activity Department and staff and student expertise from the School of Sport And Exercise Sciences.
As part of the ongoing support package, facilitated by Dr Gus Ryrie, Senior Lecturer in Sport Coaching and University Armed Forces Champion, participants on the programme will have the opportunity to be supported and mentored as they progress through the 6 to 12 month programme.
Our continued collaboration with Help for Heroes supports a wide range of university and school objectives in relation to promoting the Armed Forces Covenant, but also the commitment to supporting community activities and to enhancing the provision of inclusive training opportunities for people with disabilities.
In addition, it gives our students the chance to practice their coach development skills learnt in specific disability sport coaching modules on our degree programme.
Dr Gus Ryrie
Find out more about study with the School of Sport and Exercise Sciences.
LJMU’s Disability Sport and Physical Activity (DisSPA) Network
The DisSPA network aims to provide a transdisciplinary space to connect members and allies who advocate for, and collaborate to, enhance the provision of more inclusive and empowering sport and physical activity opportunities for people with disability.
The network is based in LJMU’s School of Sport and Exercise Sciences.
LJMU’s support for the Armed Forces community
LJMU signed the Armed Forces Covenant in 2021. Since then, it has appointed its first Armed Forces Champion and formed a cross-university Armed Forces Steering Group, which brings together colleagues across all factions of the university to drive forwards everything from research to HR policy development, all with the aim of better supporting students and staff from the Armed Forces community and creating positive change for the community across the UK.
In August 2024, LJMU was awarded gold status under the Ministry of Defence Employer Recognition Scheme in acknowledgement of the work being undertaken in support of the Armed Forces Covenant.
Find out more about LJMU’s pledge to the Armed Forces community.
About Help for Heroes
Help for Heroes supports members of the Armed Forces community to live well after service.
There are many ways the charity helps veterans, their relatives, serving personnel, and people who worked alongside the UK military. From helping people with their physical and mental health, to giving people the support, skills, confidence, and knowledge to make a success of life in the civilian world.
