Student sport

Sport centre access

Sport centre access for UHI students.

High Life Highland and the University of the Highlands and Islands have agreed a corporate partnership to provide discounted individual leisure membership for students and staff of the University.

High Life Highland leisure centres, community centres, and community schools offer a range of sports facilities. To find out where your nearest leisure centre is, and what facilities are on offer, see High Life Highland website.

High Life Highland leisure facilities are available at :

Alness Swimming Pool; Averon Leisure Centre; Aviemore Community Centre; The Badenoch Centre (Kingussie); Black Isle Leisure Centre (Fortrose); Craig MacLean Leisure Centre (Grantown on Spey); Culloden Academy Leisure Centre; Dingwall Leisure Centre; Evanton Sports Centre; The Fingal Centre (Portree); Gairloch Leisure Centre; Golspie / Sutherland Swimming Pool; Invergordon Leisure Centre; Lochaber Leisure Centre (Fort William); Lochbroom Leisure Centre (Ullapool); Nairn Leisure Centre; Thurso Swimming Pool; Tain Royal Academy Community Complex (TRACC); Wick Swimming Pool

The discounted membership is also available at Inverness Leisure.

The corporate partnership allows students and staff of the university (including academic partners) to gain a discount off High Life memberships. The discount applies to both Direct Debit and Annual payments. Students receive a 30% discount, staff and family memberships, 10%.

Students based at Perth College UHI have access to excellent facilities at the Academy of Sport and Wellbeing, which offers discounts on membership, fitness classes and personal training for all students registered with Perth College UHI. Find full details here.

Students based at Inverness College UHI and Moray College UHI can also get a discount to the gym facilities at their campuses. Contact your local HISA team here for more details.

Students cycling in gym

Get involved – HISA Clubs and Sporting Opportunities content

Get involved – HISA Clubs and Sporting Opportunities

The students' association, HISA, has a range of clubs and societies for you to join. Some of the sports clubs available include:

HISA has a number of clubs covering activities from Sailing to Snowsports. Find a full list of current clubs, and how to set up your own here.

Want to find out how to get more active or to volunteer with sports opportunities? There are opportunities out there no matter where you’re based or what your interests are! Find out more here.

Newsletter content

sport newsletter for students

HISA now produce a Sport and Wellbeing newsletter each month. This contains information about events, activities, clubs and societies and all things sport and wellbeing. You can see all the issues of the newsletter here.

Do you have a story or event you’d like to promote in the HISA newsletter? Email HISA’s Sports Development Coordinator, Laurie Symon, here.

Sporting Blues content

Sporting Blues

Sporting Blues have been used in universities to recognise sporting excellence since the 1800s. The university Sporting Blues awards scheme was launched in March 2017 and recognises the sporting achievements of our students.

The awards scheme, which is a joint initiative between the university and the Highlands and Islands Students’ Association was proven to be very successful in gaining candidates in its first year with the blues being awarded at graduations to seven winners.

We would like to urge students and staff to nominate outstanding students as well as influencing students to either nominate themselves or fellow athletes.

Please take a moment to read Sporting Blues Criteria. Please note that all nominations must be for current students of UHI.

What are the Sporting Blues?

Full Blues

A Full Blue is awarded to athletes of outstanding ability judged by standards applicable to students’ different sports.

Half Blues

Half Blues are awarded to athletes for playing well above the average standard for a University 1st team (where applicable) or represent the University as an individual in national level competition.

Colours

To receive a Colour, athletes, where applicable, need to serve and play for their club and to be regular 1st team members, representing the team in at least 65% of the eligible matches, recording at least one victory.

Sports Person of the Year

This is an award for truly exceptional athletes, the panel will decide annually whether to award it, with the decision following the same criteria as that for a Full Blue.

Honorary Blue

Awarded to athletes that have won medals at World Championships, World Cups, Commonwealth Games, Olympic Games or equivalent relevant to their sport. The award may also be made to a person connected with UHI with an outstanding contribution to University, Scottish, British or world sport.

Who are the Sporting Blues open to?

Individual athletes, who compete on their own
Individual athletes, who compete as part of a team

Key dates

29th April 2024 - nominations open
24th May 2024 - nominations close

To submit a nomination please use this form for sporting blues, and this alternative form for honorary blues nominations.

Previous winners

Sporting Blues Winners from previous years are listed here.

Competition content

Competition

Information for students playing sport competitively

Scottish Student Sport(SSS) and British Universities and Colleges Sport(BUCS) have regular competitions which are open to all UHI students. You can find full details of their competitions at the following pages:

Scottish Student Sport

British Universities and Colleges Sport

If you would like to represent UHI in competition, HISA may be able to provide some funding for you. You can find full details of the funding available here.

Sport and Physical Activity Strategy 2020-2023 content

Sport and Physical Activity Strategy 2020-2023

The university, in conjunction with the colleges and HISA, has an ambitious plan to increase the reach of service provision to help more students and staff be active more regularly and reach their potential through sport and physical activity.

This builds upon the excellent progress already made in encouraging and providing activities and opportunities that aim to inspire all students, staff and local communities.

The strategy encompasses four aims:

to increase physical activity through a diverse, innovative and inclusive programme of sport and physical activity;
to strengthen communities and skills development through meaningful opportunities that positively impact on reducing loneliness, student employability prospects, lifelong learning and internal and external engagement;
to support health and wellbeing through promoting health behaviour and positive mental health in co-curricular activities;
to ensure sport and physical activity is supported and encouraged through effective organisation.

The Sport and Physical Activity steering group will be responsible for overseeing the implementation of the strategy, as well as periodically evaluating and reporting on progress. It will focus on providing leadership, advice and support to relevant people across the university to enable the advancement of the strategy and of sport and physical activity at the University of the Highlands and Islands.

Please see our student Sport Strategy , or our short version of the Sports strategy 2020 - 2023.