Afternoon all.
I wanted to share news of some activity that the Committee have been undertaking over the last couple of months, that you will hear and see more details about following this email.
While as a club we are responsible for our own governance and duty of care for members, our governing body – England Athletics – sets out a number of Club Standards that it encourages clubs to adopt to comply with legal legislation and Sport England’s code of sport governance.
As part of annual affiliation, clubs are prompted to review their current compliance with the standards and act to implement any areas that are insufficient or missing.
Having the standards in place ensures clubs amongst other things are legally compliant, providing safe environments for club activities, fully insured and minimising potential issues and conflicts.
They’re also a lot of common sense and help clarify the responsibilities of the club to its members and the members to each other.
There are 7 Club Standards and to summarise our current position, we have just 4 fully in place.
We have a Club Constitution and Club Rules, policies for Inclusion & Diversity, Data Protection and Grievance & Disciplinary, as well as a Club Committee and qualified coaches.
I wanted to share news of some activity that the Committee have been undertaking over the last couple of months, that you will hear and see more details about following this email.
While as a club we are responsible for our own governance and duty of care for members, our governing body – England Athletics – sets out a number of Club Standards that it encourages clubs to adopt to comply with legal legislation and Sport England’s code of sport governance.
As part of annual affiliation, clubs are prompted to review their current compliance with the standards and act to implement any areas that are insufficient or missing.
Having the standards in place ensures clubs amongst other things are legally compliant, providing safe environments for club activities, fully insured and minimising potential issues and conflicts.
They’re also a lot of common sense and help clarify the responsibilities of the club to its members and the members to each other.
There are 7 Club Standards and to summarise our current position, we have just 4 fully in place.
We have a Club Constitution and Club Rules, policies for Inclusion & Diversity, Data Protection and Grievance & Disciplinary, as well as a Club Committee and qualified coaches.
The areas we are not compliant and have been working on, are as follows:-
– having a Health & Safety Policy, guidelines and associated risk assessments
– having a Lead Welfare Officer
– having fully licensed coaches (all our coaches have the necessary coaching qualifications, but are also required to now have training in safeguarding and first aid)
Having had conversations with the relevant people at England Athletics, it has been made clear to us that as a long established club, with a large and growing adult membership, these are areas that we need to have in place.
We plan to have taken the necessary steps to have all 7 club standards in place by the end of this year, so we are fully compliant heading into affiliation in March 2024.
– having a Health & Safety Policy, guidelines and associated risk assessments
– having a Lead Welfare Officer
– having fully licensed coaches (all our coaches have the necessary coaching qualifications, but are also required to now have training in safeguarding and first aid)
Having had conversations with the relevant people at England Athletics, it has been made clear to us that as a long established club, with a large and growing adult membership, these are areas that we need to have in place.
We plan to have taken the necessary steps to have all 7 club standards in place by the end of this year, so we are fully compliant heading into affiliation in March 2024.
As I said, you’ll see more details in the coming weeks on the individual elements, which I hope everyone will regard as positive steps in ensuring we continue to offer a vibrant, welcoming and secure club environment for new and existing members alike.
If you have any questions, please ask me or any other committee member.
George Harris.
Club Chair