England Netball Relocates to the SportPark at Loughborough University

Posted: Wed, 27 Jun 2018 14:00

England Netball Relocates to the SportPark at Loughborough University

Key Highlights

  • 24th December 2017 the Central Office for England Netball was fully relocated to SportPark at Loughborough University
  • 25-30 of the 134 team are based at the SportPark. An additional 15-20 full time staff 'touch down' in Loughborough 1-3 days per week and generally stay in Burleigh Court Lodge
  • The Development team and the Elite team are now based in the same place which has supported closer working all round

What have been the key benefits for the move?

  • Solidified relationships with partners and developed closer links with national partners who work in the same building – Youth Sport Trust and Sport England.
  • Sharing a compliance manager with British Triathlon – creating a role which is a 50:50 split between the 2 NGBs.
  • Previously England Netball previous rented an office space but there were no additional sporting connections from this. The costs were higher and they were responsible for cleaning and other support services; whereas now at the SportPark, they no longer have to consider these responsibilities.

What prompted the decision to move in the first place?

Similar to other organisations at this time England Netball needed to restructure to meet the changing funding environment. The restructure and relocation happened simultaneously which took the workforce from a team of 170 nationally to 134.

How long did the process take? The process started in the summer of 2016 and concluded at the end of 2017

Were you able to recruit people with the skills and experience you required?

Yes. We were confident in the talent pool and there were salary savings for England Netball as well since the relocation from just outside London to Leicestershire. We benefitted from the alumni population of Loughborough University with a number of the newly recruited staff having studies at the university.

What are Added Economic benefits of English Netball relocating to the area?

400 school children were brought into Loughborough to watch a netball match and also enjoyed a Tour of Loughborough University – inspiring the next generation.

Key Highlights:

  • The building and the support services which are already in place
  • The ability to recruit the skills and talent from the area
  • The development team are now better connected with the elite squad who were previously based in Loughborough

Key Challenges:

  • Accessing information about services and products which can be bought locally
  • Opportunity for the LLEP or the Business Gateway to support businesses moving into the area

Tags: News, economy, netball