Scottish Student Sport has set off on a refreshed strategic journey as we gear up for the 2025/26 academic year.

Entitled Inspiring, Active, Learning, our new strategy came into effect on 1st August 2025 and will guide our direction over the next two years, through to summer 2027.

At its core, our mission remains unchanged: to empower colleges and universities to enhance their sport and active wellbeing opportunities for students.

This strategy launches at time when SSS have undergone significant organisational change, against a backdrop of public funding cuts and the ongoing cost of living pressures. This has required a rethinking of how particular areas of work can be delivered over the coming years. However, the strategy also sets out a path to look at 2027 and beyond, where we can continue to elevate the student experience for those participating in sport on campus.

We’ve also worked to align our goals with the Scottish Government’s new Physical Activity for Health Framework, launched in October 2024. Together, the network is committed to playing an active role in delivering national outcomes across sport, health, and education. By placing ourselves at the junctions between tertiary education and partners across the Scottish sporting system, we will continue to support, connect and advocate for our members.

Sport and active wellbeing are fundamental parts of the student experience—and just as higher education helps shape the future of sport in Scotland, sport enriches life on campus. SSS is committed to leading visibly and collaboratively, helping to bring these worlds even closer together.

View the full strategy below:

Strategy 25-27

The Scottish Student Sport network came together for our Annual General Meeting, which took place virtually on Wednesday 20th August.

Alongside business and financial updates from the organisation, voting took place for vacant positions on our three committees: Executive, Competitions and Development.

In addition, three constitutional amendments were agreed upon, including a restructure of the Development Committee which is reflected in the breakdown of positions below.

On our Executive Council, Ian Lowe (RGU) steps up into the vacant staff member role. Taking up the one year student positions are sabbatical officers Anna Edvaldsson (Strathclyde), Freya Rennie (UWS), and Liv Stevens (Edinburgh).

Moving to our Competitions Committee, and Ben Graham (Heriot-Watt) was elected as Chair. Aonghus Sellar (SS Football) was reelected as the Sports Chair Representative, while Laura Shaw (Stirling) and Rory la Trobe (Dundee) were named Student Representatives.

Finally, our Development Committee will be led again by Katherine Duncan (Edinburgh). Xsara Murray (Edinburgh College) and Callum Ball (Stirling) were both elected for the first time to the new-look committee.

A couple of positions on our Development Committee remain open. Interest in any of these roles should be registered with Julia Stenhouse.

Thank you to all those who attended our AGM and best of luck to our new elected representatives over the coming year!

Committees in Full

Executive Council, 2025/26:

Please note that representative(s) from sportscotland, and BUCS may also be present at Executive Council meetings.

Competitions Committee, 2025/26:

Please note that the Fixtures Forum Chair may also be present at Competitions Committee meetings.

Development Committee, 2025/26:

Updated 30/07/25

With season 25/26 approaching, we can confirm more details about our new phase of work, and the changes this brings to Scottish Student Sport.

The changes are the result of a challenging financial climate, created by rising core costs and the removal of £100k of annual external funding. Previously, we have confirmed that the SSS staff team will from August 1st drop from ten to six with the following roles discontinued:

• Competitions Assistant
• Sport & Active Health Coordinator
• Inclusion & Culture Coordinator
• Learning & People Coordinator

Looking Forward

A slimmed down staff team means that changes to our ways of working are required. As an overview, we can now provide a streamlined ‘roles and responsibilities’ graphic which outlines the areas of of work, partners, and Sports Groups each staff member will look after.

In Competitions, we’re aiming to deliver around 100 events alongside the usual league activity, and what we expect to be a slimmed down National Squad programme. The full run of events for 25/26 will be confirmed by September.

Our SSS Leagues, Knockouts, and BUCS Centralised Leagues will all return in 25/26 with information on entries communicated to the relevant institution staff. We will be leaning more on volunteers to help support the delivery of these events throughout the year.

Any SSS/BUCS Centralised League, or National Squad queries should now be directed to Head of Competitions Chris Purdie.

We will be evolving our Development approach to provide broader, more flexible support across the sector focusing on our membership, our partners and key areas of work. By prioritising breadth, impact, and added value, we aim to engage more members and partners through networking opportunities and collaborative project work.

We will be looking to continue our workforce development efforts including a revised Reffin’ Brilliant programme and flexible staff education to fill knowledge gaps. Our focus on a wider exploration of how physical activity for wellbeing can be embedded further across tertiary education will allow us to continue our work with SAMH and integrate movement into the everyday student life.

Similarly, our Equality Action Plan will aim to enhance belonging across a diverse community to ensure no student is left behind in their desire to play sport or be active. We’ll be enabled in all of this by harvesting research, insights and data analysis from a range of areas to better inform the membership, our partners and the broader network about the important role of sport/physical activity.

Our Advocacy work will continue apace, with SSS staff responsibilities being supplanted by members representing SSS in a variety of networks connected to sport and education. Collectively we will continue to position sport and physical activity within tertiary education and vice-versa, ensuring that joined up thinking and collaboration is made as easy as possible on a national level.

We will prioritise our partnerships with sportscotland and BUCS, aim to stay connected to SFC to identify future possibilities for refreshed support, and aim to contribute to strategic decision making about sport at a local, regional and national level. We will also be working hard to influence sustainable longer term to the Active Campus network in partnership with College senior management and Colleges Scotland.

Sports Groups

As part of the rethinking of our areas of work, a review of our 35 sports was also undertaken with the decision made to reduce the number we operate in. This decision was made based on member/SGB engagement, available volunteer support, and our current involvement in each sport.

The groups we will no longer be continuing are:

• Boxing
• Cheer
• Climbing
• Karate
• Lacrosse
• Ultimate

In addition, Cross Country will move to sit within Athletics, reflecting the SGB structure and make-up of the majority of student clubs.

Each Sport Group is overseen by a SSS staff member who acts as the Sport Lead. Following a reallocation, sports will now sit with the following staff:

• Stew Fowlie: Basketball, Curling, Rowing, Shinty
• Chris Purdie: Golf, Football, Futsal, Judo, Volleyball
• Jordan Dawson: Cricket, Fencing, Hockey, Netball, Swimming
• Julia Stenhouse: Archery, Badminton, Rifle, Sailing, Table Tennis
• Sophie Charlton: Athletics/XC, Handball, Polo, Tennis, Trampoline
• Ruairidh Campbell: Cycling, Rugby, Squash, Triathlon

Recruitment continues for most of our sports. With the operational changes in play, we are more reliant than ever on volunteers to step up and support our sports this season. View the vacancies available here.

Further Updates

Once our new committees are in place following our AGM, we will be able to confirm the SSS Operational Plan for 25/26. This will fill in any final gaps relating to project delivery moving forward.

Should you wish to discuss any aspect in the meantime, please contact COO Stew Fowlie on stew@scottishstudentsport.com or call 07903 891 497.

Staff, students and supporters of Scottish Student Sport came together on Wednesday evening for the annual SSS Awards, supported by Technogym.

Held in the University of Aberdeen’s magnificent Elphinstone Hall, the awards up for grabs celebrated everyone from our top performing athletes and clubs, through to our hard working volunteers and the coaches delivering success on the student stage.

Thank you to everyone who attended – in particular our winners and shortlisted nominees for being part of an incredible night.

Looking for photos from the night? They can be downloaded here. All credit to Murdo Macgillivray/SSS.

The winners were as follows:

Coach of the Year: Bradley Hay (University of Stirling, Swimming)

Also shortlisted: Neil Allan (University of Edinburgh, Hockey) & Ian Muir (University of St Andrews, Golf)

As High Performance Swim Coach at the University of Stirling, Bradley is tasked with supporting some of the country’s top swimmers. 2024/25 has been another brilliant year for the programme.

From having eight students selected for the 2024 Paris Olympics – returning with three medals – athletes have also appeared at World Championships, with Bradley set to be part of the GB coaching staff in Singapore this summer.

Domestically, Stirling athletes won 22 medals at this year’s British Championships and the women’s squad (nominated for Team of the Year) topped the medal table at BUCS Long Course, beating Loughbourgh to the title for the first time.

Playwaze Club of the Year: Glasgow University Trampoline Club

Also shortlisted: University of Strathclyde Netball & University of St Andrews Football

It’s been a year of incredible growth at the club with 43% of members new in 24/25. Notably, their new Outreach Programme has built strong links with Govan High School, giving the club a prominent position in the community.

After losing the support of external coaching staff, the club have become self-sufficient by training six coaches at Level 1-3, including additional courses to support students with additional needs.

In competitive action, the club were Scotland’s most successful at BUCS level (2 gold, 1 silver, 1 bronze) while 55 medals were won at Scottish-based competitions.

Team of the Year: St Andrews Women’s Football 1’s

Also shortlisted: University of Stirling Women’s Swimming & University of Edinburgh Men’s Hockey 1’s

It’s been a history making year for this side who became BUCS National Champions for the first time ever, beating Nottingham 2-1 in the final. This came off the back of a resounding semi-final win over reigning champions Loughborough – their first defeat in 15 months.

Another strong season in BUCS Premier North saw them finish 3rd – just 4 points from the title.

Back on Scottish soil, the team became the first ever to win our #SheCanSheWill Cup for the fourth consecutive year.

Male Athlete of the Year: Archie Goodburn (University of Edinburgh, Swimming)

Also shortlisted: Ben Sandilands (SRUC, Athletics) & Ben Muncaster (Heriot-Watt University, Rugby)

After missing out on selection for Paris 2024 by just 0.56s, Archie went to investigate the seizures he’d began experiencing in training. It turned out he had an inoperable and incurable form of progressive brain cancer.

Determined not to be held back, Archie returned to the pool and in February successfully defended his BUCS Long Course 50m breaststroke title. Two months later he made national headlines after winning silver in the same event at the British Championships.

Alongside his success in the pool, Archie qualified for the National Finals of the IchemE Young Engineers Award. He continues to represent the very best of sport; a true inspiration in the community.

Female Athlete of the Year: Angharad Evans (University of Stirling, Swimming)

Also shortlisted: Faye Rogers (University of Aberdeen, Swimming) & Aleksandra Kalucka (University of Edinburgh, Climbing)

University of Stirling swimmer Angharad has had an exceptional year, starting at Paris 2024 where she reached the 100m Breaststroke final, finishing 6th.

Over the course of the year she has broken both the British short and long course records in that event, the latter at the National Championships where she took home two gold medals.

Angharad has shone for Stirling at BUCS level, winning five gold and two silver medals across both events and has secured her place at the World Championships later this year.

Volunteer of the Year: Ruby McDonald (Fife College)

Also shortlisted: Grace Stirling (University of Stirling) & Campbell Scott (University of Aberdeen)

18 year old Ruby has made waves since starting at Fife College last August, becoming an integral part of the college community.

Ruby uses her lived experience of having a learning disability and being a carer to be a powerful advocate for sport and active health. While staying active herself, she volunteers as a coach in primary schools, and with football and para-football clubs to help a diverse range of young people access and enjoy sport.

Ruby’s passion and determination has seen her recognised by a wide number of awards, most notably when she was named Scotland’s Unsung Hero as part of the 2024 BBC Sports Personality of the Year Awards.

Dr Rob Macpherson Award: Sandy Bond (Scottish Student Cycling)

Also shortlisted: Dave Lee (SSS Media Team) & Marissa Jacobs (Scottish Student Volleyball

Sandy has had another standout year as the SSS Cycling Chair. Leading a largely new group of volunteers to deliver a full calendar of cycling events across the country, supporting 134 student cyclists to compete this year a 30% increase from 23/24 with one event still remaining.

Sandy is also always on the front foot in exploring ways to get more students into cycling with work specifically on growing women & girls participation opportunities.

He has done all this whilst on his semester abroad studying Russian in Kazakhstan, going over and above to ensure the continued success of the SSS Cycling offer.

Sandy embodies all of the SSS values and has been a standout volunteer and the driving force behind SSS Cycling.

Honorary President’s Medal: Ross Campbell (Heriot-Watt University) & Cathy Gallagher (University of Stirling)

Ross Campbell has over 20 years of dedicated service to student sport at Heriot-Watt University, beginning as Sports Union President (2005/6) and he has held the role of Executive Director of Oriam since 2017.

In 2010 he led a transformative review of the Sports Union, introducing a club structure and governance model that remains in place today. He was later instrumental in the creation and continued development of Oriam – one of Scotland’s top sporting facilities.

Ross has been a tireless advocate of student sport and is renowned across the sector for his inspirational attitude, strategic thinking, and lifelong dedication to enhancing opportunities in student sport.

Cathy Gallagher is not only an exceptional Director of Sport, she is a remarkable person who has dealt with adversity in the past 12 months in the way that is uniquely characteristic of her positive and resilient nature.

With over 25 years of experience, Cathy has consistently demonstrated a passion for sport as a vehicle for positive change – supporting student athletes, enhancing community engagement, and championing inclusion across all levels of participation.

As a close friend to so many, the news that Cathy had been diagnosed with breast cancer in March 2024 came as a great shock. Despite the adversity and uncertainty that Cathy faced at the time, she remained resolute, determined, and a pillar of strength. Having now returned to full duties, she continues to make an impact and set standards for others to follow.

Scottish Student Sport are delighted to reveal the clubs, athletes, coaches and volunteers shortlisted for the 2024/25 SSS Awards.

Our 21 shortlisted names have been whittled down from a bumper list of nominations and reflect an incredible array of efforts and achievements across the student sports world.

From Olympians and Paralympians through to volunteers who have worked tirelessly to support their sport, the nominated stars show the strength and depth of student sport across Scotland.

Nine institutions are represented across the shortlists with the Universities of Edinburgh and Stirling picking up four nominations each. The college sector is represented by nominations in the Volunteer and Male Athlete categories.

The winners will be revealed at our annual Awards Dinner, taking place on Wednesday 11th June at the University of Aberdeen. We are delighted that the event will be supported by Technogym, whilst Playwaze are sponsoring our Club of the Year award.

Over the next two weeks we’ll be talking more about each of our shortlisted nominees on our social media so be sure to follow us on LinkedIn and Instagram to hear about everything they’ve achieved this year.

Coach of the Year
Neil Allan – University of Edinburgh
Bradley Hay, University of Stirling
Ian Muir, University of St. Andrews

Playwaze Club of the Year
Glasgow University Trampoline Club
University of St. Andrews Football Club
University of Strathclyde Netball Club

Volunteer of the Year
Ruby McDonald – Fife College
Campbell Scott – University of Aberdeen
Grace Stirling – University of Stirling

Male Athlete of the Year
Archie Goodburn – University of Edinburgh
Ben Muncaster – Heriot-Watt University
Ben Sandilands – Scotland’s Rural College

Female Athlete of the Year
Angharad Evans – University of Stirling
Aleksandra Kalucka – University of Edinburgh
Faye Rogers – University of Aberdeen

Team of the Year
University of Edinburgh Men’s Hockey 1’s
University of St. Andrews Women’s Football 1’s
University of Stirling Women’s Swimming

Dr Rob Macpherson Award (SSS Volunteer of the Year)
Sandy Bond – SS Cycling
Marissa Jacobs – SS Volleyball
Dave Lee – SS Media Team

Honorary President’s Medal
Find out on the night!