Each year, London Sport recruit a group of undergraduate students to develop their skills, kick start their careers, and support our vision of making London the most physically active city in the world. Alice Liddle, this year’s Project Support Intern, shares her experience:
On the 15 July last year, I moved to London for my internship at London Sport. This was a big move for me as I moved from my cosy little village up north to a big city I’d only visited a couple of times. However, within the first hour of being at work I felt very comfortable and welcomed by all my colleagues.
In my first week at London Sport I had a meeting with my Manager to discuss the skills that I wanted to develop:
Public Speaking
I wanted to develop my Public Speaking skills and my first opportunity to do this was during the “Big Ideas” competition I took part in. I was tasked with a group of colleagues to create a new idea on how to get more Londoners active in the city. Our idea was about empowering residents in local areas to use open spaces for physical activity. I had to pitch this idea to a panel, which was a great opportunity for me to practice presenting and answering audience questions. I’ve also delivered training to House of Sport residents on facilitation and led a session on being creative and analytical. This was another great experience in delivering a session and as a result has improved my public speaking.
Working in Health
I also requested to gain experience working in the health sector. I’ve been lucky to work for the Physical Activity for Health Network this year. I’ve attended steering group meetings which has involved supporting the group in planning the agendas of the network meetings, it’s been a great opportunity for me to develop an understanding of the latest health research and projects in London.
Learning to Excel
When I first started my internship at London Sport I wasn’t great at using Microsoft Excel but luckily, this has improved throughout the year thanks to working on projects that have needed me to create trackers and process maps. Gareth Smith, Grants and Governance Officer at London Sport, also led a tutorial on Microsoft Excel in the House of Sport which has given me lots of tips and tricks on how to improve my IT skills.
My final personal development point was that I wanted to attend a board meeting. This was a useful opportunity to understand how board and senior management teams work in an organisation.
More than a job…
My intern year hasn’t just been a job. On Monday nights I’ve played tag rugby for the House of Sport team. This has been a great way of socialising with my colleagues and the pizza after every match was a bonus! I’ve also run the London Marathon, which was an unbelievable experience. I raised over £800 for London Sport’s disability team and really enjoyed the training. It’s made me addicted to challenges and I’m now looking at what my next challenge should be.
Overall, I’ve had a really positive experience at London Sport over the last year. I’ve enjoyed many great experiences and developed as a person.
Thank you to everyone at London Sport for all the great opportunities you’ve given me.
