Sports Therapy & Coaching

Matt Lavallin - Head of Sport and Uniformed Public Services

Matt is the Sports Academy Manager and has been teaching at NESCOT for over 12 years. He has a vast experience of teaching BTEC and working with teenagers and young adults, helping them to solve problems and achieve. He has high expectations for all of his students and supports them to meet their goals. Matt has a Degree in Education Studies (BSc) and previously studied sport at NESCOT. During this time, he worked in the gym and volunteered for over 10 years as coach of a local girls’ football team. He gained significant experience as a football coach/manager and also as a sports leader and fitness instructor. He enjoys being active and regularly plays football, cycles and is an avid gym user.

Oliver Peachey - Sports Tutor & Lecturer

Coming from a fitness industry background, Oliver brings a wealth of hands on experience in a number of roles. His varied career has ranged from lifeguarding at sports centres to progressing to personal training, and sports management. Having a keen interest in sport and the development of the human body, he completed a Sports Science BSc in 2012. Since gaining his qualifications, Oliver has focused on his passion for helping young people realise their potential and achieving their goals. This provided his inspiration to become a sports lecturer, completing his teaching qualification and pursue a career in education. His background leads him to be strong at providing support and guidance for young aspiring individuals who wish to have a career within the sport and fitness industry.

Selina Kuczewski - Sports and Sports Therapy Lecturer

Selina has recently joined the teaching staff at NESCOT, having previously taught BTEC Sport at Merrist Wood College and Sports and Body Massage at St Mary’s University. Selina has a BSc (hons) in Sports Therapy and also an MSc in Sports Rehabilitation. In addition to teaching Selina has also worked in clinical settings as a soft tissue therapist and as an intern with Crystal Palace FC Men’s first team. Selina has a passion for sports massage and rehabilitation and hopes this is reflected towards the students.

Eddie Rives - Sports Lecturer

Eddie is a qualified teacher of Physical Education, holding an Upper Second Class Honours Degree in Sports Science with Physical Education in Youth Sport from Brunel University. Eddie has 17 years of varied experience working as a Health and Fitness professional. He as conducted over 14,000 hours’ worth of 1 to 1 fitness training sessions, musculoskeletal assessments and health related consultations during his time as a fitness professional. Eddie's specialism is in post injury exercise rehabilitation. He is industry qualified through the CHEK institute, the Gray Institute and London Central YMCA. Eddie currently competes in ITF professional senior tournaments internationally. He has played football up to Semi Professional level as a trainee and been part of County Schools winning Football teams playing in National Championships. He has also held a district schools 100 meter sprint title.

You will be using the latest technology and working practices. Our facilities include a dedicated, student-run, sports injury teaching clinic with couches, equipment and teaching and observation areas, where you will treat students and members of the public suffering sporting injuries.We are also fortunate enough to be able to collaborate with our colleagues in the Osteopathy department, sharing our expertise and the latest diagnostic software.

We believe it is important to prepare you as fully as possible for professional practice so we constantly find ways to test your skills. You could find yourself working with elite and club athletes, dancers and performers and in private practice for treating everyone from the elderly to ante and post natal clients.

An additional option enables you to choose to study for the National Academy of Sports Medicine Personal Training Award in the course so you will be fully qualified to work as a personal trainer before you have even finished studying.

You could find yourself giving pre and post marathon massages to charity fundraisers, treating dancers and performers before and after shows and working pitch-side at big sporting events.

We keep you up-to-date with the latest thinking in the sector and use innovative methods to heighten your awareness of the subject, like taking students to St George’s Hospital Medical School to study practical anatomy.

We also have a dedicated student-run Sports Injury Clinic, which is fully equipped with treatment couches and a teaching and observation area. Our passion for our industry is one part of our effectiveness as a department, but we believe that what really sets us apart is our student-centred approach.We understand the demands of family and working life and different learning styles and we see your success as a collaboration between our efforts and yours.

We keep our class sizes small to give you maximum support from your tutors, who also have an open door policy during college hours and are available on email at any time. This approach works well at Nescot - borne out by the fact that an incredible 98% of our students go on to take their education even further and are working at the highest levels throughout the sporting world.

As the world of sports therapy gears up for its imminent acceptance by the Health Professionals Council as a recognised medical profession, the exacting yet supportive training available at Nescot will prepare you to take your place at the forefront of this exciting industry.