Volunteering in sport

Volunteering in sport is extremely rewarding and for anyone aged 14 or older - you do not need previous experience to take part.

Benefits of volunteering can include:

• advice and guidance from your volunteer co-ordinator
• mentor and buddy support at your placement
• gaining skills and work experience
• a continuous development pathway to accredited training
• improved prospects for further education or employment.

You do not need to be sporty to be a sports volunteer. There are plenty of volunteer roles that need filling each year, such as:

Council opportunities for sport volunteers

The Sports Development Service occasionally co-ordinates projects and events that volunteers could take part in. We shall list those opportunities here so remember to check back now and again.

Street Games

Working in partnership with the council’s Chypps team in promoting Street Games, the council's Sports Development Service organise informal, neighbourhood-based sports activities for young people. Activities include football, tennis, cricket and basketball.

To find out about volunteering at council-run sport events and projects, contact us using the details at the bottom of this page.

Health walk leaders

The Sports Development service would be pleased to hear from anybody that would like to become a volunteer health walk leader in Cambridge.  Training will be given and your local scheme co-ordinator will be on hand to provide support where needed.

The Volunteer Walk Leader course is a one-day course (4-5 hours) for anyone willing and able to lead walks in the community. It is a day of practical advice and includes practice in leading a walk and information on keeping people motivated.

The next training course will take place in Littleport on Thursday 16 February.  If you are interested in attending this training, please call Jacqui Lister on 07540 703638 or via email at Jacqueline.lister@mytimeactive.org.uk

If you wish to apply for a place on a training day, please complete the application form:

• Volunteer health walk leader - application form

Email your focompleted form to sportsdevelopment@cambridge.gov.uk or call 01223 457532 for further information.

More information about walking for health in general can be found on get active.

Non-council opportunities for sport volunteers

Step Into Sport

The Youth Sport Trust plays a major role in bringing young volunteers and sports clubs together through Step into Sport, an exciting leadership and volunteering programme run by the School Sports Partnerships and supported by Living Sport. It is available to anyone aged 14+. Young people involved with the scheme will undergo training to develop their skills in a sports environment.

The easiest way of getting onto Step Into Sport is through your School Sports Partnership's (SSP) leadership academy.

For more information about Step into Sport in Cambridge please contact Claire Thorby at Living Sport by email at claire.thorby@livingsport.co.uk.

Runningsports

Runningsports supports sport volunteers and the people who manage them. Its aim is to make sure clubs not only survive, but grow and thrive.

Do-it

Do-it is not sport-specific but it does offer a way for prospective volunteers to find out about volunteering opportunities in and around Cambridge.

Olympics

Volunteers of all ages are encouraged to get involved with the 2012 Olympics. Various volunteer schemes including Young Games Makers for ages 16-18 have been set up and you can find out about them on the Volunteering Cambridgeshire and Peterborough website.

Sport Makers

Sport Makers are, quite simply, people who make sport happen. Some might organise sport informally for themselves and their friends, colleagues or neighbours. Others won’t take part themselves, but will do all those things that make sport possible, such as organising a fundraising fun run for their village with the help of other Sport Makers, creating a multi-sport event or festival for the local community with other people or welcoming new participants at a local sports club, helping them play the game and encouraging them to keep coming back.

Sport Makers is a programme that aims to recruit, train and deploy 40,000 new sports volunteers aged 16 and over to organise and lead community sporting activities across the UK.

The programme runs until March 2013 as part of the People strand of Sport England's Mass Participation Legacy programme Places People Play. It is funded by National Lottery Funding through Sport England.

Sport Makers will organise and support new hours of adult participation in grassroots sports, creating new opportunities across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. They will help bring the Olympic and Paralympic values alive amongst local communities and will be part of the London 2012 Legacy.

In Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, we are looking to recruit 750 Sport Makers into sport. Every Sport Maker will be invited to an informal and interactive workshop where they’ll gain the skills and opportunities to get involved in sport in Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.

Sports Makers is open to everyone with workshops running from November 2011. The programme aims to be fully inclusive making a big contribution to increasing sporting opportunities for disabled people.

Sport Makers Workshop

If you wish to become a Sport Maker and join a great free event where you can:

• Hear more about being a Sport Maker
• Join in with others who also want to make a sport happen in your area
• Learn what you can do to get going as a Sport Maker
• Receive some Addidas kit as part of your commitment

There is a Sportmakers Workshop on in Cambridge:

• Sunday 22 January
• 2:30 - 4:00pm
• Cambridge Regional College
• Please contact Ryan (details below) to book your free place.

For more information or to sign up, visit sportmakers.co.uk, or contact Ryan Cullum at ryan.cullum@livingsport.co.uk or on 01487 849924.

Contact

For more information about volunteering, email the Sports Development team at sportsdevelopment@cambridge.gov.uk or telephone 01223 457532.