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- Work with individuals and communities to help them improve their health through lifestyle changes
- Rewarding work where you'll see the impact on the health and wellbeing of your clients
- Opportunities to progress into management, or into specialist fields like exercise, nutrition or parenting.
As a health trainer, you'll use your knowledge of health issues in your local community, to help people improve their general health and wellbeing. Your work within the community may focus on improving the amount of exercise people take, the importance of practising safe sex, helping people stop smoking, the positive effects of lowering alcohol intake, the benefits of breastfeeding, and improving access to healthy lifestyles.
DAY-TO-DAY DUTIES
- Introducing people to relevant local services
- Helping people understand how their behaviour affects their health
- Supporting and motivating individuals to change harmful habits
- Explaining the benefits of healthier food and lifestyle choices
- Recording activity levels and results
- Using these to motivate clients
DAY-TO-DAY ENVIRONMENT
You'll provide information and support on a one-to-one basis, and in groups. You could work in an office or in the community.
You'll need
To be a health trainer, you'll need knowledge of teaching and English language, and the ability to design courses, excellent verbal communication and customer service skills, initiative, sensitivity and understanding, and administration skills.
You can apply directly for this job if you've got a good understanding of the health issues facing the community, some GCSEs, including English, good communication skills in English and, for some jobs, a second community language. Qualifications or experience as a personal trainer, fitness instructor or dietician can also be helpful.
You could do a college course such as Improving the Public's Health, and Nutrition for Health.
Another entry route might be a community sport and health officer advanced apprenticeship.
You can also become a health trainer through voluntary experience with local community groups.
CAREER PROSPECTS
With experience, you could progress to team supervisor, or senior health improvement specialist. You could also move into related careers in health promotion or community development.