Club Respect

This answer relates only to the question and should not be extrapolated. There is never one situation that is identical to another and sometimes even the smallest detail matters.

Question: 

Ross from Ballarat asks “We’ve been trying to get our community to get different roles for women other than at the canteen. What can we do to change the attitudes of men and women in the club to achieve this?”

Answer:

Our Panel Of Expertise panellist, Pat Clancy, has responded to the question:

Changing attitudes in a club is never easy, the leaders in your club will be key to driving this from the top down.

Women provide such valuable contributions to sporting clubs and there is literally no job they can’t do. President, Head Coach, Team Photographer, you name it.

I’m a big believer in getting your volunteers and club people to play to their strengths. Canvass the women around your club, wives, girlfriends, daughters, mums, find out what they do for a living or what they’re interested in, you may find someone who works in Marketing who could run the Club‘s social media, an Accountant could become Treasurer or a Physio could be a Sports Trainer, a Mum could be a Team Manager and so on. Whatever the role, if it’s something they know how to do, and do well, they are a lot more likely to get involved. It’s also really important to provide detail on what the role involves. Simple position descriptions are a great way to outline what’s expected.

Once they are involved, celebrate them! Put a photo of them in the club newsletter with a thank you message, give them a movie voucher or product from a club sponsor as a thank you.

Most local councils or volunteer organisations have people looking to get involved in sports clubs so they are also a great resource to get more women involved in your club (here is one in Ballarat – https://ballaratfoundation.org/community-impact/volunteer/)

Pat is passionate about building sporting clubs that are a welcome environment for everybody. The values of diversity and inclusion are always front of mind when building club culture. In his spare time, Pat is usually found watching local football and cricket with his wife Bec and children Zoe and Leo. Visit all of Pat’s responses to the Panel Of Expertise here.

While all attempts have been made to verify the accuracy of the information provided in this written response, the Panel Of Expertise panellists assumes no responsibility for any errors or omissions. Should a sports club face any difficulties as a result of acting on the advice, it is recommended that they seek out independent professional technical support to rectify the situation. The Club Respect panellists will not be held responsible for any repercussions beyond the scope of this response.