APATHLETE PATHWAYSPartnership brief

Careers in construction & infrastructure

From the game.
Into your future.

Athlete Pathways turns the discipline, resilience and leadership developed through elite sport into qualifications, opportunities and lasting careers.

I’m an athlete I’m an employer or club

No placement fees for athletes. Training funding is always subject to individual eligibility.

01ELITE SPORT
05CAREER
17years in professional rugby league
30–100%potential RFL training support
Playing career + 2 yearspotential funding window
5 career routesfrom site delivery to leadership
One supported journeysource, train, place and progress
THE OPPORTUNITY

What made you an athlete can make you exceptional at work.

Construction needs dependable people who communicate, prepare, learn quickly and perform safely under pressure. Athletes already practise those behaviours every day.

The missing link is a credible introduction to the industry, recognised training and an employer willing to provide the first opportunity. Athlete Pathways builds that link.

THE PATHWAY

Five steps. One clear route forward.

Support begins before retirement and continues into the workplace.

01

Discover

Translate sporting strengths into realistic construction and infrastructure career routes.

02

Fund

Identify eligible RFL, industry and public funding before training begins.

03

Prepare

Complete the right safety, technical and employability training for a genuine role.

04

Place

Move into work experience, an apprenticeship, a paid placement or direct employment.

05

Progress

Receive mentoring, workplace feedback and a clear route toward greater responsibility.

CAREER ROUTES

There is more than one way into infrastructure.

Candidates are matched on aptitude, experience, ambition and location—not pushed into a single type of role.

01Site delivery

Operative · pipe layer · plant · ganger

02Supervision

Supervisor · site manager · works manager

03Technical

Engineering support · surveying · quality

04Commercial

Planning · buying · estimating · project support

05Customer & community

Liaison · stakeholder support · social value

06Leadership

Team leadership · coaching · operational management

FOUNDER PROOF

17years in professional rugby league
CASTLEFORD TIGERS
  • 2014 Challenge Cup Final
  • 2017 League Leaders’ Shield
  • 2017 Super League Grand Final
  • 2021 Challenge Cup Final

BUILT FROM LIVED EXPERIENCE

The pathway has already been proven.

After a 17-year professional career, our founder entered construction through Barhale—then a Castleford Tigers sponsor—and progressed from major civil-engineering projects to ganger and now works as a Site Manager for United Infrastructure on a clean-water mains renewal framework.

“Sport gave me the discipline, teamwork and resilience. Construction gave those qualities a new purpose.”

A testimonial recognised his commitment to Castleford Tigers, community work and rugby league. Those trusted relationships now create a powerful route between clubs, athletes and employers.

FUNDING THE TRANSITION

Use every eligible pound before asking an employer to spend.

Eligible players may receive RFL support for 30%–100% of approved training costs, with the percentage linked to player income, during their playing career and for two years afterwards. Apprenticeship funding, CITB grants, Skills Bootcamps, Adult Skills funding and DWP recruitment programmes may support other parts of the journey.

Indicative only: funding cannot be duplicated and remains subject to current scheme rules, course approval and individual eligibility.
PRE-ENTRYRFL support

Tickets, qualifications and career preparation

RECRUITMENTPublic skills funding

Eligible training, work experience and interviews

EMPLOYMENTLevy + CITB

Apprenticeship training, attendance and completion

A SUSTAINABLE MODEL

Employers and partners pay for outcomes. Athletes do not.

Athlete Pathways can grow as a commercially disciplined social enterprise—reinvesting in candidate support while paying fairly for programme leadership, delivery and intellectual property.

01Programme fee

Founding cohort

An employer funds a targeted intake with agreed vacancies, training and measurable retention outcomes.

02Success fee

Talent placement

Approved employers pay on successful appointment once the candidate and role have been properly matched.

03Sponsorship

Sponsored pathway

Clubs, clients and supply-chain partners sponsor a named regional cohort and its social-impact reporting.

04Advisory fee

Founder-led delivery

Transition workshops, employer training, speaking and programme design turn lived experience into practical action.

Commercial principle

Charge organisations for recruitment, delivery, sponsorship, advice and measurable outcomes—never for an athlete’s promise of a job.

CHOOSE YOUR ROLE

One pathway. Three ways to take part.

ATHLETES

Prepare for what comes next.

Explore construction careers, identify funding and begin training before your playing career ends.

See the pathway →
EMPLOYERS

Recruit disciplined potential.

Build a supported cohort around genuine vacancies and measure retention, progression and social value.

Download the proposal →
CLUBS & PARTNERS

Support life beyond the game.

Refer players, host career events or sponsor a pathway that creates visible local opportunity.

View partnership routes →

FOUNDING PARTNERSHIPS

Build the first cohort.

Start with a focused pilot. Prove sustained employment. Scale what works.

Download partnership brief

START A CONVERSATION

Ready to build a pathway?

For player referrals, club partnerships, employer opportunities or programme enquiries, contact Nathan directly.

nathan@athletepathways.co.uk Nathan Massey · Founder, Athlete Pathways