How Do I Volunteer At A Club?

The benefits of volunteering at a rugby club are clear, but what kinds of roles are available and what sort of people are wanted? The RFU is keen to help and provide some guidelines to the initial questions budding volunteers may have. We want to make your introduction to rugby volunteering as smooth as a Jonny Wilkinson conversion.

What sort of skills and attributes will they be looking for?
Enthusiasm is the key. As long as that is present, any rugby club should welcome you with open arms. Whether you can feed the players, raise vital funds, improve facilities or promote the club, the club will be lucky to have your help.

What sort of volunteering opportunities are available?
There are a whole host of roles at rugby clubs, ranging from groundsman to orange-peeler to fixture secretary. While there are no absolute definitions of these roles, our role descriptions page gives a broad idea of some suggested positions and the commitments they entail.

What time commitment is involved?
Volunteering can take up as much or as little of your time as you want, but it is useful to agree some informal terms of reference with the club to ensure you are used effectively. Many clubs have a Club Volunteer Coordinator, a link between you and the club, who is a useful initial and ongoing contact. Again, the role descriptions page provides some general pointers.

What support is available?
Outside individual clubs, the RFU is here to support volunteers in community rugby positions. The Volunteering Team, based at Twickenham and out in the field, are happy to help and your nearest Rugby Development Officer can offer specialised, local support.

Volunteer workforce map
The volunteer workforce map is a helpful tool, designed to enable clubs to assess their current volunteering structure and the volunteers who are active in the various roles. It will also assist with identifying gaps in provision, opportunities for succession planning and recruitment, in conjunction with the role descriptions. New rugby volunteers can also refer to it to gain an overall perspective of the sort of opportunities that may be available at a local club.
•Download the map here (PDF 100kB)

For any general volunteering advice, please get in touch via the contact us page.