1. A Passion to Teach

With a degree in Coaching & PE, then moving into teaching, it didn’t take long for Alistair to realise that he missed the focus on sports. After 3 years teaching, he left the profession to do what he loves best and joined Premier Education as a coach. “Despite being PE co-ordinator within my school, I still wasn’t fulfilling my deep-seated desire to really get more children involved in sports” comments Alistair. “I found that I just getting more and more frustrated with minimal time to spend on sport, plus the paperwork, stress and long-hours were unrewarding. I’d already had contact with Premier Education through my school so working with them felt like a natural progression; I could still work in schools but concentrate all my time on championing sport.”

2. Moving to Premier Education

However, after a year of quick progression – becoming a team leader and then a tutor – Alistair felt he wanted more involvement in the business side of Premier Education, so, when an opportunity came to buy the franchise for his area, him and two friends jumped at the chance. “Just being an employee has never really appealed to me, and this was certainly the case when I joined Premier Education. I knew quite early on that I wanted to be involved in management, even though this wasn’t a familiar area for me. Premier Education made the process really straightforward, and they were supportive from day one.”

Alistair admits, getting to grips with the business elements has taken a bit of time, but the support from Premier Education has been invaluable. “It’s obviously a very different way of working, but I relish being my own boss, and making decisions about what we do. Thankfully Premier Education is on hand every step of the way, and provide access to marketing support, invoicing, finance as well as the centralised customer service team.”

3. Looking Forward, not Back

Alistair hasn’t looked back. “It’s been the best decision I ever made. I can decide when I work, and this flexibility is a huge benefit, especially when you have a family. Don’t get me wrong – I still work a very full week! But, any stress is positive and I find my job extremely rewarding. When I was teaching I was working with a few hundred children, but as a franchisee I’m getting over 10,000 children involved in sport every week. This huge reach – and the fact we had a 100 percent renewal rate last year – makes every second of my job worthwhile.”

“I would absolutely encourage anyone with a teaching background to consider a move into franchising with Premier Education, especially if they have a passion for sport. You definitely have to be self-motivated, but the rewards are never-ending!”