Health Activators – a new student volunteering opportunity

UCLan is looking to recruit 20 students to become 'Health Activators'. Students are welcome from all courses and we're looking for people who:

• Are interested in helping students with their health and wellbeing while at university
• Will be confident in talking to a wide range of students
• Would like to learn something new to support their personal and career development
• Are interested in gaining a valuable Level 2 QCA accredited qualification

You will be:

• Organising high profile, fun and interactive events on a range of health topics
• Creating resources and marketing for events
• Giving students resources and information
• Working during the day on Preston UCLan campus, e.g. foyers, SU, outdoors

 You will get:

• Support in planning events
• New skills and practical experience
• Free training and a certificate in Understanding Health Improvement

Your commitment:

• To attend weekly sessions this semester to complete your training
• Plan activities for students for the end of this semester and for next semester
• To volunteer for at least 10hrs* during this academic year

(*The time/dates for events will be flexible depending on your availability)

Are you free on Wednesdays? There will be weekly volunteer meetings each Wednesday, 1-3pm, from 16 Oct - 4 Dec, with the first introductory meeting on  9 Oct at 1.00 pm. Anyone interested please email Sharon Doherty, Healthy University Coordinator, for venue details.

If you're interested but can’t make the Wednesday sessions please contact Sharon to put your name down for future courses.

Football 150 Conference attracts world's finest

Academics from across the world celebrated the Football Association's 150th anniversary with a special event organised by UCLan.

The Football 150 Conference, offered lectures and seminars covering all aspects of the nation's favourite sport.

Over three days the conference explored the historical, sociological, artistic and all other aspects of men and women's football in all its varieties, and aimed to reflect on the history of the FA whilst developing a blueprint for the future of the game and its study.

Professor John Hughson, Director of the International Football Institute at UCLan, said: "It was fantastic to have academics from Australia, America, Brazil, Italy, Germany and a whole host of other countries attend as it's been the first comprehensive football conference to have taken place. The variety of areas covered means it has attracted major researchers within the football and sports world."

The conference, held in partnership with the International Centre for Sports History and Culture at De Montfort University and the National Football Museum in Manchester, was organised by Dr Jane Clayton from SSTO's International Football Institute. Dr Clayton and six fellow UCLan academics also presented their work, while the FREE Project was another notable contributor to the event.

The opening address was given by Sir Trevor Brooking, the FA's Director of Football Development. Keynote speeches were given by Karen Espelund of UEFA's executive committee and former general secretary of the Norwegian FA, David Goldblatt, author of 'The Ball is Round: A Global History of Football', along with Tony Mason, author of the ground-breaking 'Association Football and English Society'. The conference also hosted the Arab Football Forum 2013.

Professor Hughson added: "I’m delighted how well it went and the feedback has been fantastic. An historian from New York told me its the best conference he's ever been to. That's praise indeed."

UCLan welcomes Rugby's elite

Some of rugby's top names gathered at UCLan for the UK's first Rugby League Research Symposium.

Jon Wilkin from St Helens RLFC and the ‎Director of Performance and Coaching at the Rugby Football League, Jon Roberts, joined over 100 sport scientists, coaches, medical staff, educators and players from both codes of rugby in Preston for the event designed to see how far they can push performance levels.

Sports science experts shared research on talent identification in rugby league, how Global Positioning System (GPS) can identify the physical demands placed on a player, the recovery processes needed in the game and the nutrition essential for optimum performance.

England international Wilkin opened the conference and said: "There are so many complex components in rugby and we’re at a stage now where every aspect of play is analysed. For me it’s about tailoring sports science analysis to the individual to help them set specific goals and also educate players so they understand where they need to improve."

Fellow speaker Jon Roberts commented: "We're only weeks away from the Rugby League Word Cup with England taking on Australia in the first game. Sports science plays a massive part in the national set up from youth to the senior squad and aligning academic research with the profession is crucial if we are going to push boundaries, inform sports development and enhance performance."

The symposium, which attracted attendees from across the country, is part of a collaborative project between UCLan, the University of Chester, Liverpool John Moores University and Leeds Metropolitan University.

Dr Steve Atkins, an exercise science expert at UCLan and sport science advisor to Wigan Warriors RLFC, said: "This is the first time we’ve brought academic research and professional clubs together to use cutting edge sports science to optimise the performance of elite rugby players.

"It's allowed us to not only showcase what science can do for representatives from several Super League clubs, but we've also attracted people from Premiership rugby union clubs and professional football clubs to the event."

UCLan has a long and successful relationship with Rugby League and has an ongoing sponsorship deal with the Warriors. The deal sees the club benefit from fitness tests, video analysis support from UCLan and a number of University degree places for its squad players and staff.

The University's UCLan Sports Arena will host the Irish squad ahead of the RLWC2013 which will be held in England and Wales during October.

Student Ambassadors

The SSTO is looking to recruit a number of new Student Ambassadors to support recruitment and development activities within the School.

Student Ambassadors play an essential role in providing prospective students within an insight into UCLan student life, their course and route to Higher Education. We are looking to recruit students who are enthusiastic, friendly and passionate about university life.

As we aim to have a Student Ambassador team that reflects our student population, ambassadors can be from any year group and enrolled on either an undergraduate or postgraduate degree course.

For further information about the role, including details of how to apply, please email Student Recruitment.

Staff will also be available at the SU Jobs Fair on Thursday 19th September 10am – 4pm to answer any questions. Closing date for applications is 1st October 2013.

Erin celebrates life without limits

SSTO lecturer Erin Morehead recently teamed up with top Paralympic athlete Richard Whitehead MBE as part of an extreme charity challenge.

The double leg amputee and Paralympic Gold Medallist is running a marathon a day this summer from John O'Groats to Land's End, in order to raise money for Sarcoma UK and Scope.

Erin ran 5k with Richard as he travelled from Galgate to Abbey Village on the event which celebrates a 'life without limits'.

The run started on 23 August and is scheduled to finish on 23 September, with Richard covering almost 1,000 miles.

For more information please take a look here.

IRiSS Research Seminars 2013-2014

UCLan's International Research Institute for Sport Studies (IRiSS) have announced a series of Research Seminars for 2013/14.

The free-of-charge seminars will be held in Greenbank Building, Preston, commencing at 3pm. The seminar listing is as follows:

Semester 1

Wednesday 23 October 2013 3-5 pm GR273
Professor Chris Gratton (Sheffield Hallam University)
Sport as Global Entertainment

Wednesday 13 November 2013 3-5 pm GR348
Dr Daniel Burdsey (University of Brighton)
The "crisis" (?) of racism in English men’s professional football: Suárez, Terry and beyond

Semester 2

Wednesday 29 January 2014 3-5 pm GR348
Speaker & Title – TBC

Wednesday 19 February 2014 3-5 pm GR348
Professor Garry Crawford (University of Salford)
Is it still in the Game? (Re) considering sport-themed video games and the rise of mobile gaming

Tuesday 11 March 2014 3-5 pm GR348
Professor Wolfram Manzenreiter (University of Vienna)
Title – TBC

For further details please email Professor John Horne or call 01772 894235.

Peer Mentoring

Peer Mentoring at the Main Campus is UCLan's core mentoring programme. The M and M Team co-ordinate trained volunteer Peer Mentors to act as a source of support for new and existing students.

Peer Mentors (the person providing the support) support Mentees (the person receiving the support) through face to face meetings and emails to discuss any personal or academic issues. Peer Mentors offer practical support and signposting to other services.

The Peer Mentoring programme is hugely beneficial to both Peer Mentors and Mentees, so check out our Peer Mentor and Mentee information webpages and get involved!

If you have any difficulties with the online forms, please email us or telephone 01772 895012. We can also show you how to register in person, all you need to do is visit Foster Building 058 between 9.30am and 5pm Monday, Tuesday and Thursday, or between 9.30am and 4pm on Wednesdays and Fridays.

BASES Conference 2013

UCLan is privileged to host the annual conference for the British Association of Sport and Exercise Sciences (BASES) from the 3rd to 5th September.

The conference has over 170 original presentations, taking the form of short oral presentation, poster defence, twelve invited symposia and six keynote speeches.

Colleagues in SSTO are very welcome to attend, on a drop in basis, any sessions they feel are of interest. For the full programme please click here.

We also are hosting two original workshops on the afternoon of Thursday 5th September - one on science and rugby and the second focusing on the role of public engagement for sport and exercise sciences. Again, colleagues are very welcome to attend.

If you require further information, please contact Dr Steve Atkins.