Laura Harris

I have a very varied work  history – it has given me a wide range of skills and experience that made me a great fit at North Yorkshire Sport. I have experience in education, equalities, health care, social care and charities.  I love making complex things simple, for example taking a complicated Council system and making it accessible for small charities.  The role I have at North Yorkshire Sport benefits from those skills and experiences – Safeguarding is a hugely important and complex topic.  The sports and physical activity sector is outside of statutory safeguarding processes and systems but can and should play a big part in them – I am well equipped to help clubs and providers to develop their develop their culture to be safe, inclusive and the kind of environment where people thrive.

I have had an equally varied relationship with sport and activity, suffering from anxiety and depression since I was a teenager I found that being physically active was a key tool in managing my mental health.  Combining that with undiagnosed (at the time) ADHD I have tried most sports! As a young person – Swimming, Athletics, Hockey, Netball, Rugby, Judo and anything my school would let me try! I now play badminton, I hike, paddleboard, wild swim and am trying to be a runner (more accurately probably a shuffler) with the aim of completing the Great North Run in 2025 raising money for our Mental Health fund.

I care deeply about making a difference to those around me and I’m lucky to be part of an organisation that has values that mean something to me. Being passionate about physical activities benefits for all, in my spare time I volunteer at Open Country helping people with disabilities to access and enjoy the countryside.

I have ADHD and promote inclusive solutions to working with ADHD that benefit everyone.

My favourite quote:

In a world where you can be anything, be kind.

Why contact me?

I support clubs, organisations and physical activity providers to develop their Safeguarding and Welfare practice and create safer, more inclusive cultures – this can be directly offering 1-2-1 consultancy, training directly for your club/organisation, open training sessions.