Tees talent pipeline

Tees Active has developed diverse pathways for people to enter the sector and fill the organisation’s skills gaps

The North East is booming. With enormous growth across many sectors – especially technology – the area has a lot of jobs to offer and a lot of investment pouring in to develop local people. Sport and physical activity isn’t missing out on this, either.

Sector businesses with at least one location in Tees Valley have seen annual turnover increasing by £720.8mn (43%) since 2017.

But what happens when growth happens fast? Although the success is welcome, it has put significant pressure on frontline and entry-level roles. Essential to the delivery of sport and physical activity services, recreation assistants, lifeguards, swim instructors (level 2), group exercise instructors and sports coaches (level 2) are seeing the highest levels of demand. These roles form the backbone of leisure centres, swimming facilities and community sport provision, so staffing shortages directly impact service capacity, safety and accessibility.

So, with so many roles available, it’s hard to believe that a quarter of working-age people in the Tees Valley are economically inactive. This mismatch of supply and demand points to an urgent need for clear entry routes, improved careers guidance and accessible training pathways. By creating these, recruitment into the sector will become a slick process with a sustainable pipeline of future workforce talent.

Fortunately, local Active Partnership Tees Active are already taking proactive steps to ensure the workforce is able to keep up with the sector’s growth.

Tees Active

A key delivery partner across Tees Valley, Tees Active provides large-scale leisure, swimming, fitness and health-focused services that support local communities and prevention priorities.

In 2024/25, Tees Active sites recorded over 2.4 million visits, demonstrating sustained demand for physical activity opportunities across the region. Their work includes early-years swimming, inclusive access for looked-after children, targeted health programmes and partnerships supporting people with disabilities and long-term conditions.

The Tees Active Social Impact Report 2024/25 highlights over 2,000 referrals into weight management and health schemes and an estimated £19.37 million in social value, reinforcing the role of leisure and physical activity services as part of the wider health and wellbeing system.

This scale of delivery relies on a skilled, confident and professionally recognised workforce, strengthening the case for clear recruitment pathways, aligned training, inclusive employment practices and health-aligned workforce development across Tees Valley.

Future Workforce Academy

Following extensive engagement with local stakeholders, colleges and young people, Tees Active identified key barriers to employment within the leisure sector, particularly financial limitations and access to essential industry qualifications. In response, the charitable trust launched the Future Workforce Academy in 2023.

This award-winning initiative was designed to dismantle these barriers and create structured, inclusive pathways into employment.

Programme pathways

The academy provides a suite of tailored entry routes into the leisure workforce:

Kickstart Programme – Enables individuals to begin their career in leisure with part-funded, industry-recognised qualifications, leading to potential employment within Tees Active.
Restart Programme – Designed for those re-entering the workforce or seeking a career change. Successful candidates receive fully funded training and qualifications following a job offer.
Apprenticeship Programme – Combines hands-on experience with formal qualifications in leisure operations, fitness instruction, and customer service. Apprentices contribute to venues while building sector-ready skills.
Sector-based work academy programme (SWAP) – Delivered with Jobcentre Plus, this six-week programme targets unemployed adults (19+). It blends bespoke training, work experience, essential skills, and a guaranteed interview.
Work placements – Offers college and university students valuable experience, bridging academic learning with real-world application.

Since its launch, the Academy has become the cornerstone of Tees Active’s workforce development strategy. The Academy has received over 400 enquiries, with 84 participants progressing to interview stage and 50 successfully graduating.

As a result, this cohort has achieved nationally recognised qualifications and secured sustainable careers in leisure and fitness across Tees Active venues.

Darren Humphrey, Director of Operations at Tees Active, explains how the Academy’s impact includes both supporting individual careers and meeting community needs:

“From young people starting out to adults changing their careers, the future workforce academy is about giving people a real chance to succeed while ensuring we have the skilled workforce our services depend on. We know that cost, confidence and access to qualifications can be real barriers, so we have created clear, inclusive pathways into careers in the sector that work for individuals and for the communities we serve.

“By building a strong local talent pipeline, were supporting employment and meeting the growing demand for high quality leisure, health and wellbeing services across Tees Valley.”

Spotlight: SWAP Programme

In partnership with Jobcentre Plus and Health and Fitness Education (HFE), Tees Active offered two six-week SWAPs for health and fitness and leisure operations.

Participants balanced a three-day bespoke workshop with gaining work experience in a live gym environment. By the end of the programme, they achieved a level 2 qualification and received a guaranteed job interview for Tees Active health and fitness adviser or leisure operations roles.

In total, six jobseekers completed the programmes, developed sector-ready skills, and entered interviews with improved confidence and employability. The SWAP has helped Tees Active meet immediate staffing needs while building a pathway for local people looking to start a career in the sector.

Collaboration across the region

To enable further development of local skills initiatives, Tees Active forms part of the region’s sport and physical activity sector local skills accountability board. A collaboration between employers, education providers and other skills and sector partners, the board has explored joint challenges and how they can be tackled through joint efforts and accountability. The result has been a local skills plan for the sector. Tailored to the unique needs of the Tees Valley, the plan is centred around four clear recommendations:

Create entry routes

Create clear, supported entry routes into the sport and physical activity sector to meet employer demand and improve workforce recruitment and retention across Tees Valley.

Support education, training and progression

Align education provision with local workforce needs to support progression, upskilling and long-term careers in the sector.

Develop a representative, diverse and inclusive workforce

Develop a workforce that reflects Tees Valley’s communities by providing opportunities to underrepresented groups and supporting access to careers in the sector.

Align with the healthcare sector

Strengthen the impact of Tees Valley’s workforce on local health and wellbeing priorities by collaborating with healthcare sector partners as well as embedding professional status and targeted training into workforce development planning.

These are then broken down into measurable and achievable actions for board member organisations to implement.

Cherelle Mitchell, CIMSPA’s workforce development manager for the region, sees Tees Active’s work as a shining example of how the skills plan can bring lasting and impactful change:

“The Tees Valley Local Skills Plan is about creating a workforce that can meet the needs of local communities now and in the future. Tees Active’s work shows exactly why these recommendations matter in practice, from creating clear entry routes into the sector through the Future Workforce Academy, to supporting progression, widening access to careers and strengthening the connection between sport, physical activity and health.

“Their work is a strong example of the local skills plan in action across Tees Valley. And with Tees Active playing such a significant role in prevention, weight management, disability support and long-term conditions, it also highlights why stronger collaborations with the healthcare sector are such an important priority for Tees Valley.”

With the plan newly launched, the region’s key sector stakeholders will be pursuing initiatives like this over the coming years.

Similar plans are either already in action or currently in development across England and Scotland, so solid examples of what good looks like such as this are useful for shaping effective local skills plans with room to be adapted to the unique needs of each region.

Get involved

Want to collaborate on developing the workforce in your area? Get in touch with your local workforce development manager to find out how you can join the project in your region.