Dr David Hindley is based at Nottingham Trent University, where he is the Academic Team Leader for Maths, Science and Sport in the School of Education. He lectures on the BA (Hons) Business, Leisure and Sports Education degree programme, providing students with a sociological introduction to sport, as well as focusing on aspects such as leisure theory, sports development, government and state involvement in sport, and forecasting sport and leisure trends.
David joined NTU in September 2002, fresh from having completed a PhD just down the road at Loughborough University. The doctoral dissertation – under the supervision of Professor Barrie Houlihan - examined the utility of the concept of governance in relation to sport, focusing on three sports: football, cricket and swimming.
David’s research interests include sports governance and regulation, sports policy, stakeholder analysis, fan democracy and supporter trusts. He has written a number of journal articles, book chapters and conference papers on the subject of sports governance, and in particular the growing Supporter Trust movement which is highlighting interesting questions about accountability, democracy and decision-making processes within the game's governing bodies.
Dr Hindley has also applied this knowledge through playing an active role within Notts County Supporters Trust, which is widely acclaimed to have played a significant role in saving the world's oldest professional Football League club from extinction. The Trust was announced as runners-up (out of 123 Trusts) in the Supporters Direct Trust of the Year award 2004, a period when David was the Trust Chair. As part of his work on the Trust Board, David has helped to organise a number of community-focused events at the Football Club.
David is currently working on a project examining the notion of football clubs as 'community assets'.