The Annual Conference is always a special time for the UKSCA membership, and this year was no different. From a knowledge dissemination perspective, we saw some outstanding presentations and research, showcasing the high-quality inter-section of practice and science across the membership and in people’s day-to-day work. A wide variety of posters were also received this year, showcasing how work is being done across a wide variety of sectors e.g., high-performance sport, youth sport, in addition to projects which focused on broader health and wellbeing indicators. This was especially pleasing to see, because it reinforced the 7 sectors which the journal’s editorial board are aligned to.
Moving forward, let me remind the membership that we are actively seeking contributions for PSCJ, whether it be empirical research, narrative review articles, case studies or columns. Our guidelines for authors information can be found here: https://uksca.org.uk/blog/78 and if anyone has specific questions that are not addressed in this document, please feel free to email me directly at C.Bishop@mdx.ac.uk.
The UKSCA Annual Conference is always a highlight of the year and Nottingham 2026 certainly didn't disappoint. It was fantastic to see so many members coming together across three days to share knowledge, challenge thinking, celebrate achievements and perhaps most importantly, reconnect with colleagues and friends from across the profession.
The quality and diversity of the programme once again demonstrated the strength of our community, bringing together practitioners, researchers and educators from across the many sectors in which our members operate. For me, it is this unique combination of scientific knowledge, practical experience and a shared commitment to professional development that makes the Annual Conference such a valuable and distinctive event.
Another highlight is giving recognition and celebrating the achievements of our members through the UKSCA Awards. Congratulations to this year’s award winners, with a special mention to Debby Sargent on receiving her Honorary Fellowship. These awards are an important opportunity to recognise not only individual achievements but also the wider contributions our members make to the profession.
The conference also provided an opportunity to reflect on the leadership and future direction of the association through our AGM. I would like to extend a warm welcome to Mark Helme and Rob Anderson, who join the Board, while also expressing my sincere thanks to Kevin Paxton, Joel Brannigan and Steve Barrett, who have now stepped down. Their time, commitment and contributions to the UKSCA have been greatly appreciated.
On a personal note, I am delighted to have been re-elected as Partnerships Director and to continue as Chair of the Board. I am equally pleased to welcome Julie Gooderick as our new Vice Chair. I genuinely believe this is an exciting time for the association, with plenty of opportunities ahead to strengthen our professional community, develop partnerships and importantly, continue creating meaningful opportunities and value for our members.
With that in mind, we are already looking ahead to the 2027 Annual Conference, which will return to the fantastic East Midlands Conference Centre in Nottingham from Friday 10 to Sunday 12 September 2027. Please save the date. In the meantime, I hope you enjoy this conference edition of the journal. I'm sure you'll agree that it features some excellent content, which was so well received at the conference. It's fantastic that we can now share this more widely with our membership.
It feels only fitting that my final thanks go to Chris and the wider editorial team for their outstanding work in relaunching the journal. It's great to see it continuing to provide such a valuable platform for members to engage with and I'm excited to support the journal's roadmap over the next 12 months, creating even more opportunities for members to connect, contribute and learn from one another.
Chris is the current Head of Department at the London Sport Institute, Middlesex University and has published over 300 peer-reviewed journal articles, edited / co-edited 3 textbooks and serves as the Editor-in-Chief of the UKSCA’s Professional Strength and Conditioning Journal, as well as a Senior Editor/Associate Editor for NSCA’s 2 flagship journals. From an industry perspective, Chris has a keen interest in all things training and testing for athlete and clinical populations. More recently much of his time is dedicated to the world of Performance Science in Golf, where he is the Principle Investigator for Sports Academy – the health, medicine and performance arm of the PGA of America and also on the Science and Medical Advisory Board for The R&A, DP World Tour and Ladies European Tour.
Google Scholar: https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=jep0KcEAAAAJ&hl=en
Andy is currently responsible for overseeing S&C and nutrition for the SRU performance pathways. He has previously held positions of lead and S&C Coach for the SRU and Edinburgh Rugby. Within the UKSCA, Andy works closely with related professional bodies, education providers, the Armed Forces, schools and affiliate training providers to maintain and develop useful and interesting partnerships.
