Mark McGregor started his career with Burnley (2001-04) before moving onto near neighbours Blackpool (2004-06) and had a spell with Port Vale (2006-08).
Currently Mark plays centre half for Altrincham FC, but recently received a grant from the PFA towards a BSM Driving Instructor course.
Givemefootball caught up with him to see how he is doing in his new career…
Q: You received a grant towards a driving course. Was it an easy thing to do?
A: It was fairly simple. I was in touch with Oshor Williams and he sent me the grant form. You have to pass the course first and then send in all the details when you have completed the course in order to get the grant. All in all it took about a month to get the grant from the time I finished the course.
Q: What did the driving course entail?
A: Firstly it is an extended driving test and the second part is about teaching and how to instruct people to drive correctly. It took me about six months to pass the course.
Q: How important was the help from the PFA?
A: It was massive. I had to pay out the full amount so it was a big incentive to pass as quickly as I could to get the grant. I am 32 and it was the first time I had ever applied for a grant.
Q: What made you go into this line of work?
A: I was coming to the end of my career in football and I knew I would have to have something to fall back on.
All I have ever done is play football and drive to training and back so I thought I would become a driving instructor. I would tell any player to prepare for something so you have something to fall back on and the sooner the better because you have it for the rest of your life.
Q: Has it worked out since you passed?
A: It’s worked out ok. It has been six months so far and it has been really good and I am earning a living no problem. You have to put the hours in but you can earn a living.
The next two years are very important. At the moment I play for Altrincham but in a couple of years time I will probably finish and go full time so this period is important to build the business up.
BSM is the UK’s leading driving school. For more information on how to become a driving instructor, log on to www.bsm.co.uk or call 0845 851 9688.
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