Institute People and Services Lead (Maternity Cover)

DEPARTMENT AND SALARY

Department – Sport System Institute Services

Salary – £49,734.98 - £53,277.34 (Grade 9)

Working Hours – 37 hours (consideration will be given to job sharing / reduced hours in line with our flexible working policy)

Location – Sport Wales National Centre, Sophia Gardens, Cardiff

Type of contract – Fixed Term Contract (12 months) 

WHO WE ARE

The Sport System Institute Services team’s purpose is to ‘Create the most science-informed sporting system in the world, enabling all athletes in Wales to thrive and making 'winning well' more likely.’

Sport Wales is the national organisation responsible for developing and promoting sport and physical activity in Wales.  We are the main adviser on sporting matters to the Welsh Government and are responsible for distributing National Lottery funds. We aim to not only improve the level of sports participation at grassroots level but also provide our aspiring athletes with the support required to compete successfully on the world stage.

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion is at the heart of everything we do at Sport Wales. Further information on this can be found in our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Statement here. 

We are a progressive employer that offers excellent employee benefits and promotes a healthy work life balance, offering a range of flexible approaches to support you. 

Language skills (bilingualism & multilingualism) are desirable characteristics across all roles within Sport Wales. We are passionate about promoting the use of Welsh language and, as part of our development programme, give everyone the opportunity to learn Welsh if they wish to do so, offering learning programmes from beginner right through to fluent. 

Sport Wales embraces a blended approach to work, where you will be able to split your time between the office and home.  

Sport Wales careers are funded by Welsh Government and the National Lottery. Find out more about Sport Wales’ relationship with the National Lottery.

HOW YOU’LL CONTRIBUTE

Are you passionate about shaping team culture, enhancing performance, and driving excellence in sports science & medicine delivery? Join our team and lead the way in transforming services that support athletes, coaches, and practitioners across Wales.

This is an exciting opportunity for someone who thrives in a collaborative environment and is committed to developing people and delivering impactful programmes, resources, and learning experiences for our team and sport in Wales.

You’ll be leading on team development & culture, insight-led learning programmes as well as partnerships with key stakeholders in communication to ensure our work is globally recognised.

You will also lead the scoping, planning, and potential implementation of two key projects that will create new opportunities for the Institute to expand its impact and reach.

If you're ready to make a meaningful impact and drive positive change in Welsh sport, we want to hear from you!

WHO YOU'LL WORK WITH

You will need to develop strong relationships with National Governing Body Performance & Pathway leads and other staff in sports, members of the sport system institute services team, and wider Sport Wales colleagues to support our practitioner team to identify, co-create and deliver impactful projects across Wales. You will need to collaborate with other key stakeholders including staff across the UK performance sport system, Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme (TASS), Universities and professional membership bodies. 

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

A proven leader with experience in team development and fostering a positive culture.

Strong understanding of performance and pathway support in the sport industry.

Excellent communication and relationship-building skills, with experience in managing partnerships.

Strong strategic thinking and insight-driven decision-making with experience in digital strategy, branding and content development. 

A collaborative mindset with the ability to work effectively across departments and external partners.

Ability to manage budgets, monitor compliance, and oversee HR-related matters.

A passion for ensuring high standards of practice across all areas of the Institute’s work.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT

You should read the full job description (please note we do not accept CV's). 

You can apply for this role now.

If you need any support to apply for this role, then please email [javascript protected email address]

CLOSING DATE

12/03/2025 9AM

PROVISIONAL INTERVIEW DATE

20/03/2025

RESPONSIBLE TO

Head of Institute Services & Data

RESPONSIBLE FOR

Institute Theme Leads: Athlete Health & Wellbeing Lead, Athlete Environments Lead & Athletic Development Lead

SPORT SYSTEM INSTITUE SERVICES

Sport System Institute Services exists to build a science-informed sporting system that helps all athletes in Wales thrive and makes 'winning well' more likely. We are a team of sport science and medicine practitioners, supported by research assistants from the Welsh Institute of Performance Science (WIPS). Our best work happens when we collaborate on performance challenges identified by sports. By addressing system-wide challenges, we improve training environments across Wales, creating lasting impact for more athletes and sports. We bridge the gap between best practice and real-world application, equipping athletes and coaches with the knowledge, resources, and support to perform at their best. We learn, deliver, and celebrate together—because we’re strongest when we work as one team with sports. 

JOB PURPOSE

This role is responsible for attracting, recruiting, and developing the best people for the Sport Wales Institute Team. 

Working alongside the Institute Delivery Lead, you will help create a multi-disciplinary, integrated team that delivers high-impact sport science and medicine services to athletes, coaches, sports, and system partners. 

As a key leader in the Institute Team, you will manage, develop, and motivate the Institute Theme Leads, ensuring they empower practitioners to drive a science-informed sporting system that enables all athletes in Wales to thrive and makes 'winning well' more likely. 

You will also play a proactive role in people development across Sport Wales, ensuring that staff and partner development programmes align with and contribute to the Institute’s people development strategy.

In addition to the main duties, you will lead the scoping, planning, and potential implementation of two key projects that will create new opportunities for the Institute to expand its impact and reach.

MAIN DUTIES

Drive cultural change by bringing the institute’s purpose and identity to life. Support theme leads in ensuring services align with this ambition and deliver meaningful project impact. 

Coordinate team development activities such as monthly meetings, the ‘In Conversation With…’ initiative, and department-wide away days to strengthen team culture. 

Develop resources and lead initiatives to enhance team cohesion, understanding and performance, including a fortnightly practitioner e-newsletter and Community of Practice guidance. 

Lead insight-driven learning programmes, such as assessing adherence to the Institute project lifecycle to identify project management support needs. 

Provide strategic direction for projects linked to sport science and medicine career pathways, student placements, and professional development opportunities in Welsh sport. 

Lead key partnerships with organisations like TASS, Leaders, BASES, and higher education institutions to ensure our work is globally recognised, informed by the latest trends, and aligned with partner needs. 

Manage and report on the staff support budget, ensuring resources are allocated effectively. 

Contribute to internal staff working groups, including the Inclusive Organisational Culture business plan and People Development group.  

Oversee Institute staff induction and transition, ensuring new team members have access to essential tools, CPD processes, safeguarding practices, anti-doping policies, and lottery recognition requirements.  

Act as the primary HR liaison for Institute services; covering training requests, compliance, appraisals, private working policies, and exit interview feedback. Provide an introductory overview of Institute services for all new Sport Wales staff.  

Ensure compliance with statutory duties, including the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act, Equality, Information Security, Risk Management, Safeguarding, Financial Regulation, and Health & Safety. 

Work flexibly, undertaking additional duties as required, relevant to the post and grade. 

KEY PROJECTS

Scaling Influence and Impact: Consult key partners and stakeholders to identify the best ways for the Institute to expand its reach and establish itself as an independent, trusted source of quality information.

Increase Sport Science & Medicine Practitioner Capacity: expand university sport science and medicine student involvement ensuring students in Wales can actively support National Governing Bodies of Sport in collaboration with university partners.

OUR VALUES

Our approach to enabling sport in Wales to thrive is evolving. We are committed to continually challenging ourselves to: 

Learn Together - Constantly exploring, testing and reviewing

Deliver Together - Sharing outcomes, nurturing open and honest relationships, providing robust feedback, constantly improving performance

Celebrate Together - Recognising our shared successes through effective partners

By:

Acting with Integrity - Understanding and Respecting each other’s culture and values. Promoting equality and diversity

Adding Value - Ensuring the optimum mix of support, challenge, investment, skills, and expertise to achieve our shared outcomes.

Encouraging Innovation - Welcoming new ideas and approaches and supporting ambition and fresh thinking.  Not being afraid to feel uncomfortable.

PERSON SPECIFICATION