Our sport could not operate without the support of thousands of volunteers and hundreds of clubs. One vital link in the communication between England Athletics, clubs, volunteers and athletes is the Club Secretary.
Head of Clubs and Participation, Emma Davenport, explains why all volunteers, club secretaries included, are so important to our sport:
Volunteers are the heart of athletics and running. They truly are what makes our sport so great and their work across England is so important and appreciated. Thank you to each and everyone one of you for all that you do.
We highlight one such Club Secretary – Lisa Matthews.
Lisa is Club Secretary for the Cheshire Dragons and last week was presented with England Athletics North West region’s Club Leader of the Year Volunteer Award.
Lisa has been instrumental in getting the Cheshire Dragons set up, and on top of this leadership role in the club, she also coordinates ‘women only’ runs and leads training groups and sessions. Everyone knows that the Secretary role in any club is the most onerous and when this is coupled with the development of a new club the workload required is incredible. Cheshire Dragons was set up in February 2021 in the midst of the COVID pandemic and just as the Government’s “Roadmap out of Lockdown” was initiated.
The Club has faced numerous challenges in a short period of time and throughout the challenges she has remained calm and kept all of the committee on track and focused on the tasks in hand. She has dealt with these challenges with tact, diplomacy, confidentiality and tenacity to ensure that no-one within the club feels excluded or discriminated. Those members that Lisa Meadows has supported are extremely grateful.
Club Chair Bernie Jones told us, “Lisa has also ensured that we don’t just do something, but we believe in what we are doing and do it to the best possible standard, whether that is developing our club standards or just the format of our meetings, recording of them and managing the actions agreed, Lisa is always at the forefront leading by example.”
To find out more about the role of a club secretary, visit Club Hub.
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