Club Conference: delegates look at how to keep young people in our sport

Tuesday 1st November 2022

Photo by Bobby Gavin

Presentations from this year’s Conference online

scottishathletics staged the 2022 National Club Conference in Glasgow earlier on the same day as an enjoyable 4J Annual Awards.

Our Development team were delighted to be joined by more than 70 club leaders, coaches and volunteers who convened to learn and discuss how can all work to re-engage young people in sport.

The day was kicked off by Kieron Achara MBE, who delivered a very candid talk on how we can all think differently to engage/re-engage young people in sport, specifically those from disadvantaged backgrounds and underrepresented groups.

Two of our clubs, Gala Harriers AC and Pitreavie AAC delivered workshops to share good practice and examples of their projects and initiatives.

It is always key that our clubs are at the forefront of our annual conference, sharing the great work that is happening at clubs across the length and breadth of Scotland.

National Club Manager, Cara Shearer, was joined by Scottish Sports Futures (SSF) CEO, Kirsty McNab, to share the changing-lives mindset and approach with our clubs and profile some of the inspiring work being delivered by SSF.

Kieron Achara was one our opening speakers and the Athletics Trust Scotland Young People’s also gathered for our National Club Conference (photos by Bobby Gavin)

The Athletics Trust Scotland Young People’s Forum, led by Erin Gillen, delivered their own workshop on the importance of young people in athletics.

Our theme here was very much about how we can formally involve them in all levels of decision-making. A few of the Forum members also shared their own stories and experiences, attributing their involvement in the ATSYPF project to some of their personal successes and achievements.

Colin Hutchison, our chief executive, shared the future vision of athletics and provided an update on our current strategy, Building a Culture of Success.

The afternoon session started with a fast-paced roundtable discussion session, where the whole delegation heard from scottishathletics staff and volunteers on a variety of key topics, including Club Together, The Inclusive Club Resource, Officials Recruitment and Development, Scotland’s Mental Health Charter for Physical Activity and Sport, The Importance of Young People in Athletics and the Regional Development Days.

David Ovens led our Q and A with Eilish McColgan (photo by Bobby Gavin)

The day culminated in a thought-provoking Q and A session, hosted by our Chair, David Ovens, with triple Olympian and European and Commonwealth double medallist, Eilish McColgan.

Eilish eloquently shared her story, reflecting on an impressive summer, before answering questions from the audience.

The delegate packs were also a big hit, mainly thanks to the generosity of Tunnock’s and Mackie’s of Scotland, who were kind enough to sponsor the event by sending plenty of free products for the delegation to enjoy!

Big thank you to all our various presenters and of course to the club delegates who attended on Saturday and will look to take that learning and good practice out to the sport at grassroots level.

Our presentations from the National Club Conference 2022 are now available to peruse elsewhere on this website – see page here