Join Our Club? Increasing Participation in Football
Dr Stella Creasy, Head of Research Involve
What does a politician know about sport’s clubs?
• Both require locally based bureaucracy and democracy to succeed • Both use industrial age structures in an information age • Both are very time intensive • Both have a culture of opposition rather than engagement • Both can represent unpopular teams….. • Both need activists to survive and thrive
The National Game?
• 7 million participants, plus 5 million in schools • 500,000 volunteers • 37,500 clubs, including 9,000 youth clubs • 2,000 competitions • 45,000 pitches (21,000 facilities)
The Sporty Types?
• Six in ten adults play sports regularly • Keeping fit is the main reason for participation • One in five men play football regularly – and its increasing • Half of all those who play sports say they are committed to their teams • 96 million hours were given to football volunteering in 2002
The Do- Gooders?
• Nearly 30% of Britons participate in voluntary activities once a month giving nearly 12 hours of their time • 18 million Britons took part in voluntary activities in the last year • 35% of those people were members of a committee or leaders of a group • Organising or helping run clubs most common amongst 16 – 24 year olds • Women more likely than men to serve on committees and organise groups
So Why Don’t They?
• 60% of people say working hours • 31% say they do “other things with their time” • 29% say childcare commitments • 15% say they don’t know of any opportunities to participate • 11% say they don’t know of any groups needing help
How Do People Get Involved?
• Half of people who volunteer do so because a friend got them involved • One in five volunteers become involved as service users • 40% of people who don’t volunteer say they would like to • 42% say if someone approached them to get involved they would do so • 20% said they would participate if they felt they would gain a new skill
Ask Yourself…
• What made you join your club? • What do you enjoy about being a member? • What other activities do you have to fit in with your club activities? • What’s in it for other people to take part?
Increasing Participation
• Understand when people want to participate e.g. weekends, evenings, once a month • Understand why people want to participate e.g. socialising, contributing to something they care about • Understand how people want to participate e.g. short term commitment, on-line
So What Works?
• Personal relationships –fun matters! • Consultation and consideration – ask members what they need and enjoy • Incremental involvement – don’t ask for too much too soon! • Flexibility – use modern technology to fit around people’s lives • Support and training – teach them the skills to be confident in their role • Acknowledgement and gratitude – a bad experience of participation more alienating than no experience at all
Involving People: Key Points
• Develop structures which increase accountability, not paperwork • Use informal activities and events to help members feel a shared sense of why what you do matters to sustain activism • Help members balance work-home commitments • Ask for help- and say thank you • Focus on the aspects of activism you all enjoy to keep everyone interested!
Join Our Club? Increasing Participation in Football
Dr Stella Creasy, Head of Research Involve