Professionals within the West of England were given the opportunity to equip themselves efficiently to address today’s challenges and ultimately increase participation by attending The West of England Professional Network Conference on the 22nd January.

The event was supported by Sport England, Team West of England, The Learning Partnership and Skills Active.

Coordinated by Wesport, this conference is the first of its kind and was aimed at building a successful professional network. The schedule covered a wide range of workshops providing the opportunity to disseminate information during the Information Sharing workshops and to develop personal skills during workshops such as Speed Reading and Mind Mapping, Facilitation Skills and Influencing without Authority.

The day also provided the opportunity to assemble and build contacts during the facilitated Networking session.

Wesport received over 70 delegates from Unitary Authorities, Schools Sport Partnerships, National Governing Bodies, Higher/ Further Education, Health Authorities and Leisure Providers.

90% of delegates indicated that the format of the day was suitable and 82% indicated that the workshop options were applicable to them, while 78% of delegates indicated that the networking session was a positive and beneficial experience.

Sport England Regional Director Jim Clarke attend the event and said that he was impressed with the number of delegates attending and that it more accurately reflected the number you would expect at a national conference.

One delegate said that “I really enjoyed the way the day was set up, there were lots of workshops, lots of opportunities to meet new people and I learnt a lot”
Delegates were also asked to indicate what key points and benefits they would take away with them after the day, feedback included “More knowledge and clarity and also a good opportunity to network” and “Good to hear other ideas and share good practice”

Below you will find the majority of the PowerPoint presentations that were used on the day, along with a summary of the feedback from the day.

If you require any further information about this event or about any of the workshops that were held during this day please contact Wesport on info@wesport.org.uk