Managing Director, Wayne Glover, explains how their business is thriving now more than ever after developing an app with Computer Scientist graduate.
Company Overview
Time4Sport is an award-winning school service, specialising in providing a variety of bespoke services and products across Staffordshire for over a decade. The company focuses on tackling social challenges across the region, particularly childhood obesity, through high-quality activities and events to enrich the health and wellbeing of all children. Time4Sport aspired to launch a new mobile app called ‘Time 4 Wellbeing’ to move their services digitally as a response to the pandemic.
Funded Business Support
Time4Sport accessed the 'Staffordshire Digital Innovation Partnerships' (SDIPs) programme.
The digital transformation since the COVID pandemic has changed the way Time4Sport engages with children’s health and wellbeing. Managing Director, Wayne Glover, explains that the funding from the SDIPs programme has enabled them to hire two full-time staff and a project intern from Staffordshire University to develop a digital product to support the development of young people outside of school.
Thomas Gilbert, a Staffordshire University graduate, joined the team for 6 months as a project intern, developing the Time 4 Wellbeing app. The app uses gamification to promote healthy eating and bespoke physical activities for all children and their families.
Time4Sport also had the resources to hire software developers to improve the user experience of the iOS and Android app
Project Outcomes
The funded support provided by Staffordshire University has enabled Time4Sport to develop a new weight management tool that uses gamification to encourage children and their families to be more physically active and eat healthier and is now set to be rolled out across Staffordshire. Due to the success of the project, it is expected that their turnover within the next four years will increase to an estimate of £500K.
After impressing the team during the six-month internship, Thomas Gilbert was offered a full-time IT Manager role.
Staffordshire Digital Innovation Partnerships (SDIPs) is a collaborative project between Staffordshire University and Staffordshire County Council; funded by Staffordshire University, Staffordshire County Council and the European Regional Development Fund 2014-2020.
The support from Staffordshire University was having a student onboard that would solely work on the project for a 6-month period which wouldn’t cost us a penny… We’re now able to support more families with the funding than we ever have done. So, if you’re not 100% sure but you have an idea and you need that additional support, I’d 100% go for the SDIPs scheme.