Sport England in hunt for head of marketing

Sport England, the agency responsible for the development of sport across the country, is searching for its first head of marketing.

The position has been created following the departure of Colin Douglas, who was the body’s director of communications, responsible for marketing activities.

The new recruit will head a marketing department of ten people and will report to the director of communications, a position which is also vacant.

A spokesman for Sport England says: “The holder of this post will generate original ideas, manage corporate identity, and play a strong role in promoting the healthy progress of sport in England.”

Sport England has an estimated budget of &£350m a year. It uses public money to maintain sport venue infrastructure, and co-ordinates lottery funding into initiatives from the grass roots to a professional level.

Derek Casey, who was chief executive of the body, resigned last week following discussions with the new sports minister, Richard Caborn.

Caborn criticised the “sloppy” structure of English sport and pledged to revamp it by devolving some of the organisation’s responsibilities to the regions.

One high-profile disaster has been the long drawn-out revamp of Wembley, which was first mooted and part-funded by Sport England.

The body changed its name from the English Sports Council over two years ago to give itself a more dynamic and high-profile image.