England Athletics- Funding opportunity opening soon to get more young people volunteering

Wednesday 17th January 2018

Would you like to increase the number of younger people supporting you through volunteering at your club and would like some help to make that happen? Following a successful pilot stage of the Game Changers Young Volunteer Programme which launched in April 2017, applications will be opening on the 15th January 2018 to support more clubs and groups to involve young people.

Funded by our partners Spirt of 2012, the Game Changers Young Volunteer Programme offers clubs the opportunity to apply for a package of support, to involve more young people aged between 14-25 in volunteering opportunities at the club. This can be in a number of roles, dependent on what they are interested in and your needs, including officiating, coaching, event marshalling and more.

The Game Changers Young Volunteer Programme provides clubs with a fantastic opportunity to not only increase the number of volunteers supporting you at the club, but also to improve the experience of young people who do volunteer, rewarding and celebrating their achievements and providing them with the chance to develop skills and experience in the roles they take on.

Bracknell Athletics Club who got involved last year have been supporting 10 young people through their Coaching Assistants’ Course. The young people have had the chance to learn and develop new skills and gain experience through a wide range of opportunities, including weekly coaching sessions, officiating at events, leading groups of young athletes at the Quad Kids tournament and planning their own sessions.

The impact the project has had on the club is huge, as it has enabled Bracknell to clear their Year 5 waiting list as an additional 2 coaching groups can run mid-week. Caroline Bennett, who coordinates the Game Changers Programme at Bracknell says, “Not only has the club benefited hugely but so have the Game Changers. I can see they have grown in confidence, they are proud to be coaches and give back to their club. Their communication has improved, their organisation and their self-esteem.”

If you think that your club could really benefit from engaging young people in volunteering opportunities, keep your eye on our e-Bulletin* throughout week commencing 15th January for more information on the requirements of the funding, and how to apply!

You can also contact us at volunteering@englandathletics.org with any questions you might have.


*If you are aged over 16, don’t get our weekly eBulletin and would like to, you can update your Athlete/Coach/Official/Volunteer Profile on the UK Athletics database via www.englandathletics.org/myprofile – go into Subscription Preferences and tick the box “News and information about the world of athletics”.