Getting parents to volunteer

[Macey78]

I'm a parent rep for the team my daughter plays football on. On match days we need parents to volunteer to act as lines person and at home matches to help set up.

On the group what's app no one ever volunteers for this or help set up. There are 1 or 2 parents who accidentally arrive early on match days and if they see there's Help needed with setting up will do this.

I need to say in a nice but firm way that as parents of your players you need to support the team by helping set up and acting as lines person. My husband has done this quite a few times. When I've spoken to other parent reps they have said they don't seem to have a problem there's always someone ready to volunteer for lines-person and help with setting up at a home game. Any advice with wording greatly appreciated.

It's not quite so simple though. I wouldn't mind helping out setting things up at a match, but I can't physically run due to an previous injury.
I wouldn't expect to help set up at a training session.

What I find strange is why aren't the kids helping set things up?

Are there other teams/age groups in the club who could be lines person? Or students from a sports course (nominal fee and glowing reference )? Or veterans from the local club?

Team manager's wife. I have to poo pick the entire pitch before kick off.

Strangely enough the other parents are falling over themselves to put up the goal nets to avoid dealing with dogshit.

I think that when parents pay for things like swimming classes/gymnastics classes/martial arts they know that they are going to turn up to an instructor/s who will lead the activity. So they will pay and turn up for football or whatever and just assume the same, I think.

There's a big difference between arriving a bit earlier and helping out (no issues there) and another have to actively take part.

You also need to make it very clear this is expected at the beginning, I don't really ever have any time away from DS (aside from school time) so it would depend how much is expected of me.

Nah. I enjoy watching my dd play but there's no way I could be a lines person because I have no clue what the rules are!

Like some PP, I'd assume that the £25 per month would include staff wages or that there were set volunteers already arranged.

On top of working full time, I do a lot of volunteering in the mental health sector so I wouldn't be keen to give up even more of my time.

Could you increase the £25 per month that you charge and use the extra money to pay a few teenagers to help out?

[quote Macey78]@Caspianberg I totally get it but when our daughter joined and was In a different team and saw one person struggling with setting up I just went up and volunteered. Do people not do this any more. Especially with grassroot clubs [/quote]
It's rubbish isn't it. I am one of the few who end up putting the nets up every Saturday morning while the usual suspects drop their kids off, head for a coffee or sit in the cars and then appear at kick off time to watch the game

I do it because it needs doing, but also because I really appreciate the volunteers who facilitate the sports club for my kids - even though I pay for them, the club couldn't run without volunteer coaches like you OP.

Unfortunately most people really are just selfish bastards!

Do you have an independent referee? The ref at my kids club always comes to ask parents to volunteer to run the line. They literally stand there with the flag held out and wait till someone volunteers to take it from them. Simple but effective

It’s a bit much to expect parents to act as a lines person IMO. I don’t sign my kids up for sporting activities which I pay for, to then be involved the sport myself. I know some will find that selfish but I don’t like football, don’t know the rules, it’s not my sporting activity, it would be my kids’

For me it’s partly because I don’t love football and don’t really understand the rules.

There is also a lot of shouting from the coaches and the parents, often dads think they know everything about football and missed their chance to play for England so now play through their children. Meaning it’s taken very seriously, far too seriously for me to help out.

My DD plays football, has a match every week and is in line to do very, very well apparently. Our life essentially revolves around football!

I wouldn't have a fucking clue how to be a linesperson. I don't know the rules to that extent, I don't think I need to either. I show up, with DD in tow, I pay subs, and I show support. Genuinely don't see why I also need to get involved in the game play in order to have the privilege on being a parent

it feels like they just want to come and watch the game and then go.

So what?

I don't love spending every Sunday freezing my tits off at 8.30am at the side of a muddy pitch making small talk with strangers. I do it because I am supporting my DD in what she enjoys. I make enough effort as a single mum to ensure she gets to every game and gives it her all. My part is done IMO

@IDontThinkSoNo

It’s a bit much to expect parents to act as a lines person IMO. I don’t sign my kids up for sporting activities which I pay for, to then be involved the sport myself. I know some will find that selfish but I don’t like football, don’t know the rules, it’s not my sporting activity, it would be my kids’

I am the same....no interest in athletics or football but dd enjoys both clubs . Spend lots of money doing both and find the constant guilt tripping a bit off putting especially when they don't tell you before you join that you will be asked. What with work and other commitments have, l have enough to do so for the hour that she is at the club, l like spending the hour catching up with friends.
Volunteered at Brownies for nearly 2 years but dd just got used to me being there rather than making friends which is why she joined in the first place. Also helped on the school pta for years so feel like l have done my bit.

@InTheLabyrinth

I'm quite happy to move/collect bibs, balls, goals, cones. But there is absolutly no way I could do any of the umpiring stuff ours are asking for help with. So I dont volunteer, because honestly, I have no idea about it, and if they are short of volunteers (ie always) it's the umpiring that you get assigned to whatever you have offered to do.

Same

Happy to set up but they may as well send a squirrel on to be linesperson for all the use I'd be

@Tickledtrout

Have had this with a couple of activities we've ended up running. Tell them that being on the helper rota is a condition of their child's membership. Families can make representation to "the committee" if they have a major problem with this. People don't understand volunteering.

How does this work in terms of DBS checks?

Is it actually a friendly set up for parents to stay? If no one wants to it would suggest not

Thinking about it, the players are expected to help set up not the parents. Part of the "there's no i in team" message

Nope I don't want to be a 'line's person' whatever that is and I don't want to do much apart from cheer for my kid, the team and pay the fee.

I would rather pay more for them to have more staff.

Our DCs football club pay the u16/u17 team to assist with the younger teams. Setting up and assisting.

And I don't want to help with the 'friends of the school' stuff either. Though I make a point to contribute generously to their fundraisers and thank them.

Just make parental contribution part of process for selection. If you need the volunteer roles filled at every game, then you select the kids whose parents will volunteer at that match. So, volunteers’ kids get picked first. Then rotate the rest. The non volunteers will argue it’s not fair, but life isn’t. And if you need volunteers , then it’s fair that their kids are playing whilst they are volunteering.

@Macey78

Yes they do - it's £25 a month - they play in league matches and friendlies and can attend training twice a week. I see what your saying our daughter also plays it feels like they just want to come and watch the game and then go.

What is the £25 for?

I would be transparent and circulate comms explaining:

• The £25 covers pitch hire/entry fees
• It does not cover any staffing, everyone involved is an unpaid volunteer
• We cannot afford paid staff, it would make the sport unaffordable for many parents/guardians and we want all the children to play
• We cannot put on the games without X number of volunteers, and we need parents to confirm in advance or game will be cancelled
• Here is where you can find the roster (Google spreadsheet, maybe?)
• You need to sign up by X day before game day or we will cancel
• Thank you to everyone who has helped in the past

Just make parental contribution part of process for selection

I'm sure that suggestion comes from a good place but it opens clubs up to a world of discrimination.

• Single mum with a newborn in a sling
• parent with a disability - be it invisible or visible
• parent who doesn't know the rules
• shift working parents who rely on others (such as other parents of players) to take their kids to practice
• children who are cared for by elderley grandparents

There are so many reasons as to why people just couldn't take part, it would be deeply unfair to a child to reject them simply because their dad has a disability

Having spent years of my life volunteering for scouts without having a child there: I did it because I thought it was a worthwhile thing to do and overall the good feeling I got about the difference I was making to young people's lives outweighed the inconvenience it caused me. But I went home with a headache every week from the noise. I did a full time job on top. I had to also do modules of training every year, and there was an expectation of giving up about 5 weekends a year for camps, and another 5 for activities on top. I never did the latter and didn't do all of the former. Obviously that was all my choice to do or not do and that's fine.

However, as a volunteer I sometimes found it pretty tiresome when parents were unable to arrange to help even one evening a term. Ultimately what you end up with is groups shutting and your children not getting to be a part of cubs/guides/football. You don't have to help every week but even an offer to the leader saying "I'm happy to come in once a term, I just need X weeks notice" would be so appreciated.

Running clubs like that is exhausting, takes enormous amounts of time and is frankly thankless. It's okay to never want to be involved or volunteer but the consequence of that may be that those clubs fold - that might be a consequence you're happy with and that's fine. But people really should be aware.

To counteract the grumpy rant, my absolute pet hate is committees or volunteer things that create an unnecessary need for extra volunteers when they weren't needed in the first place, by creating extra things to do no one really wanted. Doesn't sound like that's happening here, but maybe with stuff like getting there early it could really be minimised, or for home games you could give the home team a time 10-15 mins earlier than you would for away games so people are there in time to set up? I also liked the idea of increasing fees and then discounting them back to the old level if people volunteer and if not paying the u16s to come along and be lines people (?) with the extra cash.

I wouldn't volunteer at a paid for activity. I'd happily pay more if it meant that were enough staff to run the games properly.

I wouldn't have the first idea on how to run a line in football anyway.

Football / rugby / hockey etc
The £20-30 a month pays only for pitch hire and league fees & insurance & affiliation . The 'staff' are generally unpaid volunteers.
Write to all parents explaining this.
The £25 does not cover staff wages

@Freddiefox

For me it’s partly because I don’t love football and don’t really understand the rules.

There is also a lot of shouting from the coaches and the parents, often dads think they know everything about football and missed their chance to play for England so now play through their children. Meaning it’s taken very seriously, far too seriously for me to help out.

These idiot parents are the ones that should run the lines instead