Senior Performance Sport Manager

The Role and the Department

The Student Experience Directorate is striving to play a pivotal role in developing, delivering and transforming a Wider Student Experience that is as impactful as anything in the world. We remain steadfast in our core commitment to accelerating the growth of far-reaching and market leading programmes across performance, participation, community outreach and engagement, whilst fostering a culture that safeguards academic excellence. We are guided by the belief that an investment in the Wider Student Experience is ultimately an investment in the quality of graduates that the University produces and are motivated by the opportunity to engage and inspire the next generation of talent. In doing so, we feel confident that we are making a positive contribution to the development of rounded, global citizens.

Sport

Durham University is one of Europe’s leading sport universities and has been ranked in the top three for BUCS performance since 2013. In 2019 the University completed the construction of a £32m Sports & Wellbeing Park, adding to a prior investment, on the same site, of £8m in 2012 making it the sporting facility in the north of England. As a result of the significant work that has been carried out across our performance, participation and community networks the University was awarded the Times and Sunday Times Sports University of the Year for 2023.

Our performance sport programme supports 12 sport clubs and over 50 students who are on professional or international playing pathways each year. Additionally, the programme has won 134 BUCS National Championships since 2009 and supports National League programmes in Football, Hockey and Rugby.

Typical Role Requirements

The Senior Performance Sport Manager will be the strategic lead and oversee delivery of our Performance Sport Programme. Working directly with the Head of Sport, the Senior Performance Sport Manager will seek to develop partnerships which strengthens our performance programme with national and regional national governing bodies, professional sport clubs as well as local community relationships.

Team Durham is seeking a professional who can bring innovation to a changing landscape in Higher Education sport, strong leadership to a dedicated team and strategic thinking which values collaboration and partnerships.

The role itself has key delivery strands in which it will strategically oversee:

• Performance Sport services management
• Scholar recruitment at undergraduate and postgraduate level
• Develop new and maintain existing partnerships with external stakeholders
• Line management for Head coaches and other delivery staff including Strength & Conditioning lead and Recruitment team

This role is ideal for an experienced professional wanting to lead one of the UK’s top university performance sport programmes.

The Senior Performance Sport Manager will form part of a Management Team for Sport and will be expected to contribute to the leadership of all areas of the Team Durham programme.

Further information about the role and the responsibilities is at the bottom of the job description which can be found by clicking on the apply button above.

What you need to submit

• A CV: and
• A supporting statement which outlines how you meet all of the essential criteria within the Person Specification.

Contact details

For a chat about the role or any further information please contact Dave Coldwell, Head of Sport & Physical Activity, [david.j.coldwell@durham.ac.uk].

Closing Date: 01-Nov-2026, 11:59:00 PM

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