Recruiting Volunteers at Marple Athletic JFC
Marple Athletic JFC is a community-based Development Club that has been run by Volunteers for 40 years. Recruiting volunteers is an important part of ensuring our Club continues to offer football to children in our community so that players learn, have fun and develop. These volunteers are normally parents of children in the club or parents of children that have played at the club, or former players. Most of our volunteers are coaches and at about this time of year March/April we start to recruit new managers /coaches for our U7s and U9 girls’ teams. This season we will also need to recruit for some of our other age groups with parents stepping down due to work commitments or family responsibilities.

Why do we have volunteer coaches?
We rely on volunteers as we are a not-for-profit organisation and cannot afford to provide paid coaches for the 35+ teams in our Club as well as covering paying for facilities, league and affiliation fees, insurance and other associated costs involved in running a grassroots club.

What does a volunteer coach do?
Our coaches will plan and attend training once a week and manage their team league or cup matches most weekends from September to June every season. You will need to adhere to the FAs Equal Playing Time and Respect and the Codes of Conduct and focus on player development.
Do I need experience?

No, a love of football, basic knowledge of the structure of the game, enthusiasm, and a genuine interest in child development as well as good communication and interpersonal skill and a wee bit of patience.

Will I need a DBS check?
Even if you have completed a DBS as part of your job, we will need to carry out the FA DBS check that we process through First Advantage. This lasts for 3 years and is an enhanced check to ensure that you are given the correct clearance to work with children. All our volunteers are asked to complete this as part of the recruitment process.
Do I need qualifications?

Yes. All our Coach/Managers need to complete the Introduction to Coaching Course, Safeguarding Children Course and Intro to First Aid in Football Course. The cost of these courses combined is £160.00 but the club will pay for these if we have a minimum of a 2-season commitment from you. All Team Assistants need to have the Safeguarding and First Aid Courses as a minimum, but we would encourage all coaches and assistants to complete all courses, so you are fully conversant with the development ethos of the Club.
How long will it take to get these qualifications?

All qualifications are now accessed online so can be done at home. The safeguarding and first aid course typically take 2 hours each to complete. The intro to Coaching Course has set dates and includes 3 x1 hour weekly webinars with online modules to complete each week. On completion of the course, we will run a CPD practical evening session led by the FA which is free to attend and will put into practice what you have learned. In addition to this we have mentors in place and our Coaching Coordinator and Club Secretary are there to fully support you.

Will I get a Coaching kit?
Yes. All our managers and coaches will receive a Club Coaching Kit which must be worn for Training and Match days. This will include equipment for each team
How much of my time will it take to be a team coach/manager?
This depends on how organised you are. You will need to plan your weekly training sessions, devise a game plan for matchday share this with parents and players and keep a record of training attendance and playing time on matchdays. You will need to share information about fixtures, submit results to the league and submit a summary of the game and photos for our social media feed every week. We normally ask for 2 coaches per team so you can share responsibilities. Between 4-6 hours is the norm for most coaches as this includes talking to parents, feeding back to players and chatting to coaches.

What if I have an issue or problem?
It happens and this could be with a parent, a player, a coach or a ref. Depending on the issue you would contact either the Safeguarding Officer or the Discipline Officer. Don’t worry there will be plenty of support to ease you into the role.

What are the next steps?
Go to the website and download the Volunteer Application Form. Fill it in and return it to Sharon the Club Secretary. Her email address is secretary@marpleathletic.co.uk. If you have any questions, please feel free to give her a call on 07854732289.
Once she has received your applications and carried out a face to face interview with you she will check your references and arrange an induction evening for new managers and assistants to ensure that you understand how things work who to contact for what and where to find relevant information including how to use the FA Club Portal, the Fulltime App and the Website effectively.

There is no doubt that taking on the role of a Volunteer Coach is hard work but the joy of watching children have fun playing a sport they love and developing as players and knowing that you are playing a vital role in their development is a highly rewarding experience. Yes, there will be some tough times we won’t sugar coat things we need coaches that are committed to being the best they can be for the players. We want a minimum of a 2-year commitment, but most coaches stay for much longer as do the players. If you are a good communicator, willing to learn and develop as a coach we would love for you to join us and help us to continue to serve our community.