Issue link: http://digitaleditions.uberflip.com/i/1473445
20 | SUMMER 2022 | www.ladiesgaelic.ie Dear Club, We are writing on behalf of current and future volunteer women coaches in the club with our proposed changes, under the umbrella of retention and recruitment, support structures, and club culture and norms. We highlight some key considerations under each heading that we believe will help all women coaches in this club. Retention and Recruitment • Approach females in your club such as the bystanders, G4M&O, and current adult players. • Use your current coaches as recruitment personnel to ask people they know in a more targeted manner • Conduct a taster and/or induction session for all club positions to show what the role entails • Devise a starter pack to include: • A typical session relevant to specific age groups with coaching resources • Clearly defined role descriptions • Requirements of new volunteers regarding coaching qualifications, safeguarding, etc. Support structures within the club • Appoint a volunteer officer as the connection between the volunteers and the committee who can organise training, support, and collaboration between all club coaches. • Know your volunteer's biography – What is their background? What are their skills and competencies and match these to the roles required in the club? Use the training needs to create a pathway for all coaches to develop and progress. • Have regular check-ins with volunteers throughout the season both formally and informally. Club culture and norms. • Introduce a club philosophy, informed by all stakeholders i.e. committee, parents, coaches, and players, and communicate it to all members. The coaching philosophy should include what is important to the club e.g. playing experience, coaching qualification, coach-athlete relationships, and characteristics of good coaching. • Recognise and reduce the club's barriers to participation • Champion parity of esteem • between the men's and ladies club in the community, and organise bias awareness training in relation to gender, age, blow-in status, playing experience and parental status • that coaches and helpers at all levels are valued equally in the club • Challenge those that are not conforming with the club philosophy While we appreciate the above will take time to implement, we are confident that they are achievable in the short-term, leading to positive long-term benefits for all involved. Yours Sincerely, Current and future women coaches Female Coaches RESEARCH Take home messages for EVERYONE involved in LGFA i.e. coaches (male and female), mentors, players, referees, committee members, supporters etc. Clubs should approach all players, parents and guardians, and not just the men, when recruiting new coaches. • Most women coach at the underage level, so more is needed to ensure they stay and progress as coaches. • The Female Liaison Officer (FLO) role was the most frequent area of bias for the coaches as it has almost given members a right to expect that is the only role for a woman in a club. Coaches referred to their role as the 'mammy' with the team where their roles rarely extended beyond organising games, tying shoelaces and supervis- ing toilet breaks. Awareness training, for all club members, should enable them to identify biases when they arise and choose the correct thoughts, words and actions to not display the bias. • Coaches were often left to their own devices without direction and support. To best service the development needs of club members, it is important to first know their background and biographies and match skill sets of volunteers with appropriate roles in the club. • Coach education was received positively by the coaches, but they would prefer to have more club- based context-specific support i.e. suited to the ages they are working with along with collabora- tion among all club coaches. If you have any questions relating to this research, please contact Irene Hogan, irene.hogan@mic.ul.ie. Further articles on this research can be viewed at https://doi.org/10.1080/21640629.2021.1933847 and https://doi.org/10.3389/fspor.2022.809092 CALL TO ACTION BY WHOM WHEN HOW IMPLICATIONS Targeted recruitment • Volunteer officer • Other club officers • Existing coaches • Development committee • Pre-season • During the season Approach • Women and men equally • Current players including G4M&O group • Bystander parents Provide • Taster sessions, induction pack, context specific coach education Match • Coach/volunteer skill sets to roles required • Increased number of volunteers/coaches • Coaches feel valued and wanted • More diversity in volunteer group • More confident/competent coaches • Coaches feel understood and valued • Volunteers are doing a role they are comfortable doing Appropriate retention strategies • Club officers/committee • Existing club members • NGB led education programme or initiative • On an ongoing basis • Sharing the workload and tasks • Change perceptions on women's roles in clubs -Educate members that the FLO role is not the only one for women • Challenge biases - Educate and make members aware of their own biases and seek change • Prevent coach burnout/dropout • Will help women coaches more due to time pressures with increased caring responsibilities in the home • Enables women to be considered for coaching roles • Improved environment for all in the club if all biases are identified and challenged Coach development and support • Club officers • On an ongoing basis • Know your coaches' biographies and background • Initiate coach discussions and collaborations • Working to their strengths so they are comfortable with the role and will have greater commitment to the club • Coaches appreciate sharing knowledge and having discussions with their fellow coaches and learn and develop together