  15 MINUTES SPORTS COACHING DIPLOMA

Module 02: Skills and Responsibilities of

Sports Coaches

Jobs of Sports Coaches in the United Kingdom

Surveys revealed that nearly fourteen million adults had coached a sport or physical activity, at some point in
their lifetime. This represents over a quarter of the adult population (27%). There are over three million “active”
coaches, who have coached in the past twelve months; and over ten million “inactive” coaches, who have
coached at some point in the past, but not in the last twelve months.

Examining only “active” coaches in 2017, a survey found over three million active coaches in the UK, 6% of the
adult population. There are home country variations, as shown in the table below. England has the lowest
proportion of coaches, compared to Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

Exploring the reasons why coaches rst became involved in coaching in the UK, almost a quarter of active
coaches said they started coaching while still playing (23%). Most coaches started coaching as a result of already
participating in sport or physical activity in some capacity, and often within their local community.

Coaches were asked to select a job title that best described their coaching role. A wide variety of job titles were
selected, from helpers, school teachers and tness instructors. Many coaches selected more than one option.
The majority of active coaches reported that they coach within sports clubs, community groups and school
sessions (total 66%). A small proportion coach within further or higher education, or within a sports institute.

In a typical week, coaches were most often coaching for one to two hours (35%). Of those, most were coaching in
a volunteer capacity (52%). Over a quarter of coaches were coaching over 10 hours per week (27%), and half of
those were also volunteers. It is interesting to note that 20% of coaches reported no regular hours in a typical
week, suggesting that they coach on a more ad-hoc or sessional basis.

Active coaches working at least one hour per week provide around 15 million hours of coaching per week. Of
which:

57% coach in a voluntary capacity, providing around 5.2 million coaching hours per week.
24% coach in a paid capacity, providing around 5.3 million coaching hours.
18% coach in both a paid and volunteer capacity, providing around 4.5 million hours per week.

Overall, paid coaching hours account for 53% of all coaching activity and volunteer hours account for 47%. There
are some variations in the data, particularly in terms of demographic characteristics.

The UK Sports Industry worth £23.8 billion and holds millions of jobs. The coaching sta are the most important
workforce in this large industry.

Responsibilities of Sports Coaches

The United Kingdom Coaching Strategy describes the role of the sports coach as one that “enables the athlete to
achieve levels of performance to the degree that may not have been possible if left to his/her endeavours”.

Dyson speaking to the 19th session of the International Olympic Academy, Greece 1979, widened the horizon
when he said that “The wise coach develops not only the fullest physical potential in his charges but also those
capacities and habits of mind and body which will enrich and ennoble their later years”.

The role of the sports coach is to create the right conditions for learning to happen and to nd ways of
motivating the athletes. Most athletes are highly motivated, and therefore the task is to maintain that motivation
and to generate excitement and enthusiasm. The role of the coach could be quite daunting since the above
implies what could be construed as a quite awesome responsibility, especially for the part-time non-professional.
The responsibilities of sports coaches are varied and diverse. The most common responsibilities may be listed as:

Advising athletes on the training to be conducted and suitable kit and equipment.
Assessing athletes performance in training and competition.
Resolving emotional problems on the basis that sharing anxieties can be both relieving and reassuring.
Demonstrate to the athletes the skill coaches require them to perform.
Keeping personal information con dential because if a coach does not, then all respect the athlete had for
him/her as a friend and coach will be lost.
Identify suitable competitions for them to compete in to help them achieve their overall objectives for the
year.
Gathering data of national and international results and to keep abreast of current training techniques.
Being the fountain of knowledge. This may be part of the advisor role in that you will often be asked questions
on any sporting event, events that were on the television, diet, sports injuries and topics unrelated to their
sport.
Instructing athletes in the skills of their sport.
Ensuring that they are safe and secure. Coaches have to monitor their health and safety whilst training and
support them should they have any problems or sustain any injuries.
Maintain the motivation of all the athletes the whole year-round.
Preparation of training plans for each athlete and organise attendance at meetings and coaching clinics.
 Being a Role Model. A person who serves as a model in a particular behavioural or social role for another
person to emulate. The way a coach conducts himself whilst in the presence of his athletes provides an
example of how they should behave.
Being a Supporter. Competition can be a very nerve-racking experience for some athletes, and often they like
their coach to be around to help support them through the pressures. Role of a ‘Friend’ and perhaps
‘Counsellor’ come in here too.

The roles of the coach and athlete in determining training requirements will change over the time an athlete is
with a coach.

When an athlete rst starts in a sport/event, the coach’s role is to direct the athlete in all aspects of training
(telling or showing coaching style).
As the athlete develops and demonstrates a sound technical understanding of the sport/event then gradually
the coach’s role changes to one where the coach and athlete discuss and agree on appropriate training
requirements (involving coaching style).
As the athlete matures and demonstrates a sound understanding of training principals, then the athlete will
determine the training requirements. The coach’s role becomes one of a mentor providing advice and support
as and when required.

Coaches need to be aware of their legal responsibilities, especially for the advice they give their athletes and the
way they manage and supervise participation in sport. Coaches have a legal responsibility to their athletes and
should:

Give appropriate advice and guidance.

Not o er advice beyond their level of quali cation.

Some other important legal responsibilities are:

Health and Safety: Coaches are responsible for the health and safety of the athletes in their charge. Coaches
should have access to rst aid facilities and how to contact emergency services. A coach could be liable if
evidence can show that normal standards and practices have not been followed.
Protection from Abuse: Coaches also have a responsibility to protect the athletes from all forms of abuse.
Coaches should be able to recognise indicators that may signify abuse and take appropriate action. There are
four main kinds of abuse:
Neglect (providing inadequate food)
Emotional abuse (being threatened or taunted)
Sexual abuse (being shown pornographic material)
Physical abuse (hitting)
Insurance: Coaches should have appropriate insurance that covers both public liability and personal accidents.
Many governing bodies include insurance as part of their a liation fee.
Transportation: It is recommended that coaches do not use their vehicles for transporting athletes to venues.
If coaches do use their vehicles, then they should ensure they are properly licensed and insured. With young
athletes, coaches should seek the assistance of the parents/guardians.
Supplements: Coaches have an ethical and legal responsibility to:
Educate their athletes about the drug (supplement) use and abuse.
Provide general and appropriate nutritional advice.
Skills of Sports Coaches
Coaches come from a variety of backgrounds and possess a range of qualities and experiences from which they
develop their coaching skills and unique coaching styles. Coaches then adapt these qualities to the speci c
needs of the performers with whom they work. Yet, in spite of such individual approaches to coaching, it is
possible to identify certain skills and attributes that underpin e ective coaching. For example, all coaches need
to:

Communicate e ectively with performers to ascertain their needs and ambitions, relay information and
provide constructive feedback
Plan and organise sessions and programmes to meet performers’ needs and guide their development
Analyse and evaluate performance (their own and that of their performers) to gauge and direct progress
Create a safe environment in which the well-being of the performer is paramount
Be open-minded in developing their coaching skills and knowledge. This is perhaps the most important
attribute of good coaches: the ability and willingness to evaluate their own skills and knowledge, and
constantly work to develop and improve them.

These will help a coach to work with his/her students or trainees or athletes more e ectively and built good
coaching skills for this profession. Sports coaches must have the following skills:

Organising: In organising the training session, you need to plan how you will manage the athletes, equipment
and area. You should group athletes accordingly to numbers, ability and the activity and continually check the
plan is safe during the session.
Safety: In providing a safe environment for the athletes, you must assess the risk of the area, equipment and
athletes, continue to assess risk throughout the session. You need to keep athletes on the set task and follow
correct practice and progressions.
Building Rapport: In building rapport with the athletes you must learn and use their names, smile and make
eye contact, coach the athlete rather than the sport, show interest in and respect for the athletes.
Instruction and explanation: In providing Instruction and Explanation you should think about and plan what
you are going to say, gain the athlete’s attention, ensure they can all hear you, keep it simple and to the point
and check they understand by asking open questions.
Demonstration: In providing demonstration make sure you are in a position where the athletes can clearly see
and hear the coach, they need to identify 1 or 2 key points for the athletes to focus on, repeat the
demonstration in silence 2 or 3 times (side, back and front view), ask if they have any questions and check
they understand by asking open questions. There are times when it might be more appropriate to use
someone else to provide the demonstration.
Observation and Analysis: In observing and analysing, you need to break the action down into phases, focus
on one phase at a time, observe the action several times from various angles & distances, compare the action
with your technical model and if appropriate determine what corrective action is required.

Feedback: In providing feedback, you should encourage the athlete to self analyse by asking appropriate open
questions, provide speci c and simple advice, limit the advice to 1 or 2 points, check they understand what they
will do next and make the whole process a positive experience for the athlete.