Basingstoke and Deane Canoe Club (the Club) relies on the work of volunteers to administer the Club, to lead Club activities and to provide coaching for members.  The Club will support the development of members who wish to better support the Club through their volunteering.  This includes but is not necessarily limited to:

  • Registration, training and assessment for British Canoeing coaching qualifications;
  • Registration, training and assessment for British Canoeing leadership qualifications;
  • Pre-requisites for the above;
  • Nationally recognised sports and club administration training (eg www.coachinguk.org);
  • Safeguarding training.

Support for Active Members

It is important that funding is targeted at members who actively support Club events and activities through their volunteering rather than just acquiring qualifications for their own sake.  It is not possible to enforce a future level of commitment on members who receive funding support so commitment will be judged based on previous activity.  As a guide, up to £100 of funding would be allocated for each year during which a member has been actively engaged in supporting the Club: as a benchmark a member who volunteers for more than 6 days in a year would generate credit for that year.  Volunteering days can include part days and evenings with both typically counting as half a day.  Volunteering can include but is not limited to:

  • Coaching activities (leading or assisting)
  • Leading Club activities on the water
  • Assisting at taster sessions or taster days
  • Providing safety cover at Club activities, eg lifeguarding at pool sessions, safety cover on Club paddling trips
  • Administration, eg collecting monies at the pool or canal, committee duties
  • Colt Hill Clubhouse development and maintenance.

Annual Budget

The Directors will decide how much budget to allocate to a general fund for developing volunteers each year.  Subject to the approval of the Directors, any fund balance not spent will be rolled forward to the following year.  To avoid excessive accumulation, unspent funds will not automatically be rolled forward into a second subsequent year.  In addition to the general volunteer support fund, a budget may be allocated for specific identified Club needs.

Allocation of Funding

Requests for support shall be notified to the Committee before training or assessment is undertaken.

Allocation of funding support shall follow the guidance set out in this policy but shall be at the discretion of the Committee.  The Committee’s discretion may include but shall not be limited to:

  • Choice between supporting different types of development, particularly if there is more demand for funding than budget available;
  • Allowing support requests for training or assessment after the event (subject to an absolute time limit of 28 days from the end of any course).
  • Disallowing support if there is reason to believe that a member may cease to be active.
  • Whether the proposed training supports the broader development aims of the Club.

Practical Support from the Club

The Club can run a number of courses which support volunteers including first aid and safety training.