How would you use your summer before starting university? It’s a question Edge Hill sports coaching graduate Kate James tackled head on, jumping on a plane to take up a volunteering role with charity United Through Sport in South Africa.
“I wanted to travel, but also integrate meaningful impact and learning,” explains Kate. “Using savings from part-time work as a lifeguard, I was one of the youngest volunteers in my group, just turned 18. I went out to South Africa solo, but was soon surrounded by 20 other like-minded volunteers with whom I spent six weeks coaching a variety of sports in local township schools.”
It opened her eyes to whole new worlds and experiences, but crucially, was also ideal preparation for the new world this basketball fanatic was about to enter back home:
“I was in awe of the charity and the work they do, but also how much the experience had helped me grow as a person. I was ready to start at Edge Hill.”
Taking the baton from her volunteering work in Africa, her coaching degree introduced her to concepts, theories and practical activities that she drew on when she returned to South Africa with United Through Sport, this time as programme coordinator, helping to run the volunteer scheme. She impressed again, so much so she was offered a full-time position managing volunteer-related initiatives.
And after three years in South Africa, she’s now travelled 3,000 miles or so north to take on a new challenge with United Through Sport in Ghana:
“I’m Volunteer Programme and International Liaison Officer, responsible for the strategic running of our sports programmes, volunteer placements and stakeholders and funder communications.”
With the open mind of the experienced traveller, Kate actively embraces the new and the different, and Ghana offers an opportunity to try more new things and taste the world afresh:
“There’s a huge, vibrant culture in Ghana, with food markets, street parties, and busy beaches. But Ghana is very different to the UK and South Africa. Living, travel and road conditions are very different, so moving there has been challenging, with a lot to adapt to. After exposing myself to travel at a young age, though, I manage well. It has a developing economy, while the UK’s is highly developed and industrialised. Given the poverty, there’s a lot of unemployment, many schools don’t have enough teachers and resources for learning, and participation in sport and physical activity is very low. However, Ghana has the most friendly, happy and kind people.”
It sounds like Kate has her work cut out. But everywhere she goes, Kate takes Edge Hill along with her:
“I use the things I learned at university every day in my job. Throughout my degree I learned a lot about community engagement, the importance of physical activity and coaching techniques, and I utilise these skills through training volunteer coaches, engaging with local communities, and developing the number of young people who have access to physical activity and sporting opportunities.”
And she’s passing on her love of basketball, too, taking on a development role in a new academy, Rising Stars of Africa.
She plans to return to the UK at some point, perhaps working in the UK charity sector, perhaps training to be a teacher. Whatever she chooses to do, though, she has the drive and determination to see it through.
From having posters of goal scorers on her wall to becoming a poster-girl for setting and, most importantly, achieving life and career goals. You could do worse than follow in Kate’s footsteps.
February 3, 2026
