Certificate in Sports Governance Bursary

The SGA offers a bursary scheme to allow individuals who are successful in the application process to access The Chartered Governance Institute’s Level 4 Certificate in Sports Governance free of charge. The certificate focuses on equipping those who work in the sports sector with the knowledge and key skills necessary to develop good governance practices within their organisation.

Those who complete the course will receive a recognised certificate from the leading professional body for governance as well the opportunity to become part of a global governance community.

We will also organise networking events for the SGA bursary students to further your connections and help facilitate peer-to-peer learning.

The application process

Applications are invited from individuals working in governance roles in the UK sport and physical activity sector.

Decisions on requests for the bursary are made on the basis of responses to the questions contained in the online application form. Applications are scored according to the following criteria which has been agreed with our partner Sports Councils:

Application criteria

	Application question	How scored?	Scoring criteria to be applied to applicant responses
Applicant’s role	Briefly describe your current/intended role and governance responsibilities.	0-10	Priority will be given to applicants whose role involves clear governance responsibilities, either as part of an organisation’s governance/compliance team, a member of the board or with responsibility for the board or committee(s). 10 – The applicant’s role contains/will contain clear, direct and sustained governance responsibilities. 5 – The applicant’s role contains some governance responsibilities, but these do not comprise the majority of the functions of the role. 0 – The applicant’s role contains little or no governance responsibilities.
Individual benefit to applicant	In what ways will completion of the Certificate benefit your governance development as an individual? Please refer both to your current role and future career development.	0-10	10 – The applicant provides a clear case for how completion of the course will benefit them in the short and longer term, having regard to their skills development and career progression. They provide examples of how the Certificate will improve their ability to carry out their current and future roles. 5 – The applicant has demonstrated some benefits to them of completing the course, but has not provided specific examples or has focused on either the short term advantages or longer term progression without linking the two. 0 – The applicant has provided insufficient or no examples of how completion of the Certificate will benefit them in either the short or longer term.
Benefit to the applicant’s organisation	Briefly outline the skills and knowledge you hope to develop by completing the Certificate and how you will use these to benefit your organisation’s governance.	0-10	10 – The applicant provides clear and detailed examples of how completion of the Certificate will equip them to improve the governance of their organisation and its decision making and oversight. 5 – The applicant provides some indication of how completion of the Certificate will improve the governance of their organisation or its decision making and oversight, but the submission lacks detail or the impact is limited in scope. 0 – Little or no attempt has been made to link completion of the Certificate to development of skills and knowledge that will benefit the applicant’s organisation.
Other professional development activity	How would the Certificate complement or fit into the professional development programme which your organisation has identified for you?	0-10	10 – Completion of the certificate forms a clear part of a plan for the personal professional development of the applicant. The applicant’s development complements the organisation’s wider workforce planning. 5 – Completion of the Certificate occupies an identifiable role in the development of the applicant and the wider workforce, but the planning is less cohesive. 0 – There is little or no identifiable development plan for the applicant or the wider workforce and/or it is not clear where completion of the training will fit in.
Sector benefit	Outline your plans for career progression within the sport and physical activity sector and explain how completion of the Certificate will help you add value within your sport or the wider sector.	0-10	10 – The applicant demonstrates a commitment to working in the sport and physical activity sector, and has identified a viable career progression alongside a clear explanation of how completion of the Certificate will benefit their chosen sport and/or the wider sector. 5 – The applicant indicates that they will remain in the sector, but has not identified a clear career progression or has not linked completion of the Certificate to this. Some examples are provided as to how their sport and/or the wider sector will benefit. 0 – Little or no evidence is provided as to how completion of the Certificate will benefit the applicant’s career development, their sport and/or the wider sector. Or, the applicant has not indicated an expectation of continuing to work in the sector.
Financial need/limited funding	Are other sources of funding available to either you or your organisation that will allow you complete this Certificate? If so, please provide brief details.	Yes/no Evidence/explanation given in application	Access to the bursary is prioritised for those applications who would otherwise be unable to undertake the Certificate due to lack of financial resources. No – the applicant and/or their organisation could not fund a place on the Certificate if unsuccessful in this application. Yes – the applicant and/or their organisation could access other forms of funding for this a place on the Certificate.

Scoring against these criteria will be made on a sliding scale. Key points on this scale are identified in the table above.

Conditions

Decisions on applications are final.

Successful applicants will be contacted by the SGA Team to make arrangements for registration on the course.

In return for bursary support, successful applicants are expected to:

acknowledge the support through their organisation’s website, social media channels or other communications.
agree to contribute to SGA output in consultation with the SGA Team. This may include but is not limited to blog posts, testimonials and/or case studies, acting as an ambassador for the bursary scheme, the Certificate in Sports Governance or its component modules and the SGA more generally.

While we understand that career trajectories change, applicants are reminded that the bursary scheme applies public money for the benefit of the sport and physical activity sector. The SGA is keen to retain for the sector the knowledge and learning that completion of the Certificate will provide. Those whose long-term aspirations lie outside the sector are invited to consider the limited availability of funded places.

Terms and conditions apply.

Timetable

Date	Milestone
6 February 2024	Application window opens
4 March 2024 (4.30pm)	Application window closes
15 March 2024	Successful applicants notified
22 March 2024	Deadline for acceptance of places
w/c 15 April 2024	Course begins

How to apply

The application window has now closed. The window for our next cohort will reopen in Summer 2024. If you would like to stay up to date with our future events, please click 'Register' below in order to sign up to our mailing list