6B036E - Transforming Sport Leadership 01 Sep 2026 - 31 Aug 2032 | Version 0

Associated Module Information

Module Code: 6B036E
Module Title: Transforming Sport Leadership
Faculty: Faculty of Life Sciences and Education
Faculty Group: Sport
Faculty Sub Group: Sports Coaching
Module Leader: Tony Wallis
Module Team: Chris Emsley, Robyn Pinder, Melanie Tuckwell
First Intended Intake: SEP 2026 Final Year of Intake:
Date Closed:
Credit Value: 30 Credit Level: 6
Language: English
Percentage of Module Taught in Welsh: 0
Equivalent Module:
HECOS codes: 100097 - sports management
HECOS Code Weighting: 100

Document Version Information

Version 0
Valid From 01 Sep 2026
Valid To 31 Aug 2032

Module Aims

  • Develop students’ understanding of contemporary sport policy, strategies and plans and enable them to consider how these impact decision making and practice in the sports sector 

  • Foster critical analysis of the principles underlying strategic leadership and planning in sports organisations and provide students with an opportunity to identify and evaluate strategic options to improve practice 

  • Develop students’ ability to critically analyse a professional development issue/practice, demonstrate linkages between theory and practice, utilising identified sources of appropriate industry and theoretical underpinning literature and/or research. 

Content Summary

This module introduces you to the key principles of strategic leadership and planning in the sport sector. You’ll explore how sport policies, strategies, and plans shape decisions and impact delivery. Through interactive sessions and challenge-based tasks, you’ll learn how to build strong stakeholder relationships, lead multi-agency teams, and create high-performing environments in contexts such as school sport and talent pathways. 

You’ll also develop skills in networking, social entrepreneurship, and innovation, while using research methods to evaluate leadership impact and present evidence for change. By the end of the module, you’ll understand what effective strategic leadership looks like and how to apply it to drive improvement in sport organisations. 

Learning and Teaching Methods

Activity Type Hours
Seminar 14
Guided Study 150
Problem/challenge based learning 16
Practical classes and workshops 40
Summative assessment 60
Formative Assessment 20
Total Hours Selected 300

Learning Outcomes

# Learning Outcome
LO1 Critically analyse the principles underlying strategic leadership and planning in sports organisations
LO2 Review and analyse a professional development issue/practice, demonstrate linkages between theory and practice and appraise recommendations for improvement

Module Requisites

N/A

Assessment Criteria

Assessment Category Assessment Type Description Duration Word Count Weight (%) Best of? Pass Mark
Asynchronous Assessment Student Choice 1 SC 0 5000 100 No 40

Assessment Matrix

Assessment Type Learning Outcomes
LO1 LO2
Student Choice 1

Reading List

Week 1 (3 items) 

Topic: Introduction to module Understanding industry stakeholders (NGBs, charities, clubs)? / Stakeholder Relationships & Communication Strategies 

 

Organizational behaviour in sport, by Skinner, James; Stewart, Bob, 2017 

 

 | Recommended 

 

Routledge handbook of sport governance, by Shilbury, David; Ferkins, Lesley, 2021 

 

 | Recommended 

 

Stakeholder Communication in 140 Characters or Less: A Study of Community Sport Foundations - in Voluntas (Manchester, England), by Anagnostopoulos, Christos; Gillooly, Leah; Cook, David; Parganas, Petros; Chadwick, Simon, 2017-10-01 

 

 | Background 

 

Weeks 2 (3 items) 

Topic: Leading Teams in Multi-Agency Environments? / Leading Teams for Impact & Accountability 

 

Essentials of Sport Leadership : Theory and Application, by Megheirkouni, Majd; Norrington, Peter, 2025 

 

 | Essential 

 

Leadership in sport, by Ian O'Boyle, 2015 

 

 | Recommended 

 

Sport leadership in the 21st century, by Laura J. Burton; Gregory M. Kane; John F. Borland, 2020 

 

 | Recommended 

 

Week 3 (3 items) 

Topic: Networking and Building Sector Relationships? / Social Entrepreneurship & Innovation in Sport 

 

Sport entrepreneurship and innovation, edited by Vanessa Ratten; Joa~o J. M. Ferreira, 2017 

 

 | Essential 

 

Social innovation, entrepreneurship, and sport for development and peace, by Curtis, A, 2023-10-01 

 

 | Background 

 

Torkildsen's sport and leisure management, by George Torkildsen, 2023 

 

 | Recommended 

 

Week 4 (3 items) 

Topic: Creating High Performing Environments? / Leading High Performing Environments 

 

Managing high performance sport, by Sotiriadou, Popi.; Bosscher, Veerle de., 2013 

 

 | Recommended 

 

Creating an environment for thriving: An ethnographic exploration of a British decentralised Olympic and Paralympic Sport Organisation - in Psychology of sport and exercise, by Passaportis, Michael J.R.; Brown, Daniel J.; Wagstaff, Christopher R.D.; Arnold, Rachel; Hays, Kate, 2022-09 

 

 | Background 

 

High-performance training for sports, edited by David Joyce; Daniel Lewindon, 2022 

 

 | Background 

 

Week 5 (1 items) 

Topic: Research Methods – Evaluating Leadership Impact?/ Research Methods – Sector Case Study Analysis 

 

Research methods for sport management, by Skinner, James; Smith, Aaron; Read, Daniel; Burch, Lauren M.; Mueller, Jacqueline, 2025 

 

 | Essential 

 

Week 6 (2 items) 

Topic: Research Methods – Presenting Evidence for Change 

 

Research methods for sport management, by Skinner, James; Smith, Aaron; Read, Daniel; Burch, Lauren M.; Mueller, Jacqueline, 2025 

 

 | Essential 

 

International Sport Coaching Journal: Digest, January 2025 - in International sport coaching journal, 2025-01-01 

 

 | Background