In her latest blog, Professor Laura McAllister sets out the reasons why developing the coaching and volunteering workforce must be placed at the heart of sports planning in Wales. Yn ei blog diweddaraf, mae’r Athro Laura McAllister yn datgan y rhesymau dros fod angen gosod y gwaith o ddatblygu’r gweithlu hyfforddi a gwirfoddoli wrth galon y cynlluniau chwaraeon yng Nghymru.
I am always very excited at the prospect of the Sport Wales Coach of the Year Awards and hearing the fascinating, inspiring and motivating stories about people who are, quite frankly, the backbone of Welsh sport. Coaches and volunteers deserve every recognition they get.
I know they don’t seek out attention for what they do and the time they spend on sport but, there is no doubt in my mind, they more than deserve their moment of glory.
What a year it has been for Welsh and British sport! One that will go down in history as inspiring a generation.
But in the spirit of elite sport, the event is over and we move on to our next challenge. I am delighted to hear the first reports of the impact the Games have made in Wales.
But making the most of this ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity simply cannot be left to luck. Anyone hoping that that nice, warm positivity around sport that the London Games generated will automatically transfer into more people taking part is living in cloud cuckoo land.
We shouldn’t need telling that Olympic success comes from damned hard work and perseverance, and it is that which has to be replicated in our work with clubs and communities to properly capture the passion of 2012.
We don’t have long either- we can try to sustain the buzz but it will fade next year - so now is our golden moment.
There are questions for all of us - ‘Are we doing what we need to do?’ ‘Do we have enough capacity -especially coaches and volunteers?’ ‘If not, what are we doing about it?’ The wonderful London ‘Games Makers’ showed the enthusiasm and will that there is to volunteer and I understand the Glasgow Commonwealth Games volunteer programme is already over-subscribed. Let’s capture that willingness and utilise it in the less glamorous, but equally fulfilling, world of grassroots sport.
And let me be very clear, we are now in the business of talking about the rights of children to good quality PE and sport, and the duty we have to ensure this happens.
No child turned on to sport by Jade Jones or Mark Colbourne should be turned away at their local club because of a lack of volunteers and coaches.
Two years ago- working with you all- we at Sport Wales set an ambitious target to double the number of coaches and volunteers to a quarter of a million by 2016. We will be watching progress towards this target with interest.
We now have a brand new Board at Sport Wales, some exciting and different contributors to the quest to make Wales one of the world’s leading sporting nations. I have made it very clear to my colleagues that the focus for our work is to drive change and improvement. Every debate we have will be framed not by, ‘we’ve always funded them’ or ‘they’ve delivered for us in the past’.
In fact, it will be the opposite in the future. The questions we will be asking are:
‘What can we do differently?’ ‘Which organisations are driving change?’ ‘Which are reaching out to groups currently under-represented in sport?’
For the first point of entry to coaching, simplicity is the key. We need to make it as easy as possible for the public to become coaches. If the process is cumbersome and costly-let’s be honest, we simply won't get anywhere. And we all need to shout it from the tree tops that there is funding available to help with costs.
We are a small nation and we simply can’t afford not to use all of the talent there is out there. I know that a number of governing bodies are working together on new awards to bridge the gap in providing coach education in priority areas. We know only too well that we need to address the issue of getting more women and girls, and those from a disadvantaged or a BME background, into sport and that means into coaching and volunteering too.
I’d ask you all to think about what more you can do for sport. In many cases, we rely on the amazing work carried out by one or two people and don’t spend enough time on succession planning or thinking about how we make a club or activity sustainable in the long term. A boom and bust approach to sports clubs does not work. The fantastic network of clubs that we have needs to be secure and sustainable. With a strong and diverse volunteer base, all clubs can build for the future.
And talking about succession planning, could we have a better resource for future coaching and volunteering than our splendid Young Ambassadors? Plus the excellent work with Sports Leaders UK and Sports Coach UK too.
For our Governing Bodies especially, is coaching and volunteering high enough on your agendas? Is your workforce plan a ‘live’ document that you consult regularly? Are you sufficiently open to learning from best practice elsewhere? Some sports, such as football, hockey and netball, are reporting continued increases in coaches and volunteers. What can we learn about the way these sports prioritise coaching and volunteering?
I am very confident that you will respond to the challenges we are setting, as the outcome is a massively enticing and motivating one: even more Welsh athletes on the podium in Glasgow in around 600 days’ time, and then breaking more records in Rio two years later. But as importantly, the smiles on the faces of our children as they have well-organised, properly run (and most importantly, fun) sport in their schools and communities.
For the first point of entry to coaching, simplicity is the key. We need to make it as easy as possible for the public to become coaches. If the process is cumbersome and costly-let’s be honest, we simply won't get anywhere. And we all need to shout it from the tree tops that there is funding available to help with costs.
We are a small nation and we simply can’t afford not to use all of the talent there is out there. I know that a number of governing bodies are working together on new awards to bridge the gap in providing coach education in priority areas. We know only too well that we need to address the issue of getting more women and girls, and those from a disadvantaged or a BME background, into sport and that means into coaching and volunteering too.
I’d ask you all to think about what more you can do for sport. In many cases, we rely on the amazing work carried out by one or two people and don’t spend enough time on succession planning or thinking about how we make a club or activity sustainable in the long term. A boom and bust approach to sports clubs does not work. The fantastic network of clubs that we have needs to be secure and sustainable. With a strong and diverse volunteer base, all clubs can build for the future.
And talking about succession planning, could we have a better resource for future coaching and volunteering than our splendid Young Ambassadors? Plus the excellent work with Sports Leaders UK and Sports Coach UK too.
For our Governing Bodies especially, is coaching and volunteering high enough on your agendas? Is your workforce plan a ‘live’ document that you consult regularly? Are you sufficiently open to learning from best practice elsewhere? Some sports, such as football, hockey and netball, are reporting continued increases in coaches and volunteers. What can we learn about the way these sports prioritise coaching and volunteering?
I am very confident that you will respond to the challenges we are setting, as the outcome is a massively enticing and motivating one: even more Welsh athletes on the podium in Glasgow in around 600 days’ time, and then breaking more records in Rio two years later. But as importantly, the smiles on the faces of our children as they have well-organised, properly run (and most importantly, fun) sport in their schools and communities.
Rydw i bob amser yn teimlo’n gyffrous iawn pan fydd Gwobrau Hyfforddwr y Flwyddyn Chwaraeon Cymru yn cael eu cynnal, i gael clywed y straeon rhyfeddol ac ysbrydoledig am y bobl sydd, o ddweud y gwir plaen, yn asgwrn cefn chwaraeon yng Nghymru. Mae hyfforddwyr a gwirfoddolwyr yn haeddu pob cydnabyddiaeth maen nhw’n ei chael.
Rydw i’n gwybod nad ydyn nhw’n chwilio am sylw am yr hyn maen nhw’n ei wneud a’r amser maen nhw’n ei dreulio yn y byd chwaraeon, ond does gen i ddim amheuaeth eu bod nhw’n llawn haeddu’r clod sy’n cael ei roi iddyn nhw yn yr achlysur yma.
Ac mae hi wedi bod yn flwyddyn wych i chwaraeon Cymru a Phrydain! Blwyddyn a gaiff ei chofio fel un sydd wedi ysbrydoli cenhedlaeth.
Ond yng ngwir ysbryd chwaraeon elitaidd, mae’r achlysur drosodd a nawr rydyn ni’n symud ymlaen at ein her nesaf. Rydw i wrth fy modd yn cael clywed yr adroddiadau cyntaf am effaith a dylanwad y Gemau yng Nghymru.
Ond nid dim ond lwc ddylai fod yn gyfrifol am wneud y gorau o’r cyfle cwbl unigryw yma mewn oes. Mae unrhyw un sy’n gobeithio y bydd yr agwedd bositif, braf sydd wedi’i chreu tuag at chwaraeon gan Gemau Llundain yn trosglwyddo’n awtomatig i fwy o bobl yn cymryd rhan yn byw mewn rhyw freuddwyd ffôl.
Does dim rhaid i ni ailadrodd mai gwaith caled a dyfalbarhad sy’n gyfrifol am lwyddiant Olympaidd, ac mai dyna sydd raid i ni ei ailadrodd yn ein gwaith gyda chlybiau a chymunedau er mwyn ffrwyno angerdd 2012 yn llwyddiannus.
A does gennym ni ddim llawer o amser chwaith – fe allwn ni geisio cynnal y bwrlwm ond bydd yn gwanio y flwyddyn nesaf – felly dyma ein cyfle euraid ni.
Mae cwestiynau i ni i gyd - ‘Ydyn ni’n gwneud beth sydd angen i ni ei wneud?’ ‘Oes gennym ni ddigon o adnoddau – yn enwedig hyfforddwyr a gwirfoddolwyr?’ ‘Os na, beth ydym yn ei wneud am y peth?’ Fe ddangosodd ‘Games Makers’ gwych Llundain bod digon o frwdfrydedd ac ewyllys i wirfoddoli yn bodoli, ac rydw i’n deall bod rhaglen gwirfoddolwyr Gemau Cymanwlad Glasgow eisoes yn llawn. Gadewch i ni fanteisio ar y parodrwydd hwn a’i ddefnyddio ym myd llai deniadol chwaraeon ar lawr gwlad, sy’n gallu cynnig yr un ymdeimlad o foddhad yn union.
A gadewch i mi fod yn glir iawn, rydyn ni’n siarad yn awr am hawliau plant i gael Addysg Gorfforol a chwaraeon o safon uchel, a’r ddyletswydd sydd gennym ni i sicrhau bod hyn yn digwydd.
Ni ddylai unrhyw blentyn sydd wedi cael ei ddenu at chwaraeon gan Jade Jones neu Mark Colbourne gael ei wrthod yn ei glwb lleol oherwydd diffyg gwirfoddolwyr a hyfforddwyr.
Ddwy flynedd yn ôl – gan weithio gyda chi i gyd – fe wnaethom ni yn Chwaraeon Cymru osod targed uchelgeisiol iawn i ni ein hunain o ddyblu nifer yr hyfforddwyr a’r gwirfoddolwyr i chwarter miliwn erbyn 2016. Byddwn yn gwylio’r cynnydd tuag at y targed hwn gyda diddordeb mawr.
Erbyn hyn mae gennym ni Fwrdd newydd sbon yn Chwaraeon Cymru, gyda chyfranwyr cyffrous a gwahanol i roi hwb i’n hymdrech ni i sicrhau bod Cymru’n un o brif wledydd chwaraeon y byd. Rydw i wedi datgan yn glir iawn wrth fy nghydweithwyr mai ffocws ein gwaith ni yw sbarduno newid a gwelliannau. Ni fydd pob trafodaeth a gawn ni’n troi o amgylch, ‘rydyn ni wedi eu cyllido nhw erioed’ neu ‘maen nhw wedi cyflawni i ni yn y gorffennol’.
Yn wir, byddwn ni’n gweithredu’n gwbl groes yn y dyfodol. Y cwestiynau fyddwn ni’n eu holi fydd:
‘Beth gallwn ni ei wneud yn wahanol?’ ‘Pa sefydliadau sy’n sbarduno newid?’ ‘Pa rai sy’n estyn allan at y grwpiau sy’n cael eu tangynrychioli mewn chwaraeon ar hyn o bryd?’
O ran cymryd y cam cyntaf at hyfforddi, symlrwydd yw’r allwedd. Mae’n rhaid i ni ei gwneud mor hawdd â phosib i’r cyhoedd ddod yn hyfforddwyr. Os yw’r broses yn un feichus a chostus, wel, waeth i ni fod yn onest ddim, ’wnawn ni ddim cyflawni unrhyw beth. Ac mae’n rhaid i ni i gyd sefyll ar ben toeau tai a gweiddi bod cyllid ar gael i helpu gyda chostau.
Cenedl fechan yw’r Cymry a ’fedrwn ni ddim fforddio peidio â defnyddio’r holl dalent sydd gennym ni. Rydw i’n gwybod bod nifer o gyrff rheoli’n cydweithio ar ddyfarniadau newydd er mwyn pontio’r bwlch yn y ddarpariaeth o addysg i hyfforddwyr mewn meysydd blaenoriaeth. Rydyn ni’n gwybod yn iawn bod rhaid i ni roi sylw i gael mwy o ferched a genethod, a’r rhai o gefndiroedd difreintiedig a DLlE, i gymryd rhan mewn chwaraeon, ac mae hynny’n cynnwys hyfforddi a gwirfoddoli hefyd.
Fe hoffwn i ofyn i chi i gyd feddwl beth mwy gallwch chi ei wneud er lles chwaraeon. Mewn nifer o achosion, rydyn ni’n dibynnu ar y gwaith rhyfeddol sy’n cael ei wneud gan un neu ddau o bobl, heb dreulio digon o amser ar gynllunio olyniaeth neu feddwl am sut gallwn ni wneud clwb neu weithgaredd yn gynaliadwy yn y tymor hir. Nid yw clwb chwaraeon sy’n profi cyfnod llewyrchus heddiw ond cyfnod llwm yfory yn gweithio. Mae’n rhaid i’r rhwydwaith ffantastig o glybiau sydd gennym ni fod yn ddiogel ac yn gynaliadwy. Gyda sylfaen gref ac amrywiol o wirfoddolwyr, gall pob clwb adeiladu ar gyfer y dyfodol.
Ac wrth siarad am gynllunio olyniaeth, oes posib cael adnodd gwell ar gyfer hyfforddi a gwirfoddoli yn y dyfodol na’r Llysgenhadon Ifanc ardderchog? A hefyd y gwaith rhagorol gyda Sports Leaders UK a Sports Coach UK.
O ran ein Cyrff Rheoli ni’n arbennig, ydi hyfforddi a gwirfoddoli yn ddigon uchel ar eich agenda chi? Ydi eich cynllun gweithlu chi’n ddogfen ‘fyw’ yr ydych chi’n edrych arni’n rheolaidd? Ydych chi’n ddigon agored a pharod i ddysgu oddi wrth arferion mewn mannau eraill? Mae rhai chwaraeon, fel pêl droed, hoci a phêl rwyd, yn cofnodi cynnydd cyson yn nifer eu hyfforddwyr a’u gwirfoddolwyr. Beth gallwn ni ei ddysgu am y ffordd y mae’r chwaraeon hyn yn rhoi blaenoriaeth i hyfforddi a gwirfoddoli?
Rydw i’n hyderus iawn y byddwch chi’n ymateb i’r her rydyn ni’n ei gosod, gan fod y canlyniad yn un hynod ddeniadol a chyffrous: hyd yn oed mwy o athletwyr o Gymru ar y podiwm yn Glasgow mewn tua 600 diwrnod, ac yna torri mwy o recordiau yn Rio ddwy flynedd yn ddiweddarach. Ond, yn bwysicach na dim, y wên ar wynebau ein plant ni wrth iddyn nhw gael chwaraeon trefnus dan reolaeth briodol (ac yn bwysicach na dim, chwaraeon llawn hwyl) yn eu hysgolion a’u cymunedau. 
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