Giving it a go with social sports at university

At Leeds Beckett there are many opportunities to get involved in clubs, societies, and sports teams. We have taster sessions and events where you can trial clubs or speak directly to the members to find out more about them, there’s something for everyone. I run all the social media and marketing for the Social Sports that the university offers.

So what exactly is Social Sports?

One of the opportunities the university offers is the Social Sports programme. The programme contains a mixture of leagues, weekly sport sessions, events, and tournaments. The idea behind Social Sports is to provide regular activities and events that don’t require the commitment that other sports teams do.

Compared to the sport teams and gym memberships, the Social Sports are very low cost. Most sessions are no more then £3 and the Turn Up and Play sessions are free with a sports membership. All the sessions run at Headingley campus using our amazing facilities and new sports building.  

Support is available

For every session and event run by the Leeds Beckett Social Sports there are sport activators like me, who are there to support the sessions and make sure that everything runs smoothly. My role is the Social Media and Marketing ambassador. This means I’m in charge of all the content we post on our socials and I’m the first point of contact if you have any questions about the Social Sports or need to know any more information. You’ll also see me at many of the sessions and events helping to keep them organised and fun.

Social Leagues

We have a social football and netball league that run weekly and allow students to play in teams with their friends and compete against other student teams at Beckett. I think that they’re great fun and a great way to stay active too. You don’t need worry about not knowing anyone or not knowing enough people to make a team as we host events before the leagues start so that you can meet other students and form teams together. The social leagues run for an average of eight weeks per semester and work out at only £2.20 per game per person.

Tournaments and events for those who want a bit of competition

Although Social Sports are known for being all about having a go with no pressure and no long-term commitment, another great thing about them is that if you are feeling up to a bit of a competition there is a variety of sporting events and tournaments throughout the year to get involved with. One of the uni’s biggest events is the Neon Nights which is a week packed with different neon events such as Neon Volleyball and Neon Zumba. Recently we’ve also had the return of our Halls Varsity in which students from different accommodations create teams to compete against each other in a mini tournament to see which accommodation will win! Pretty much all these events sold out and I can tell you from my own experience they’re great fun and not to be missed.