Step into Sport Case Study
Lara Dickinson & Aidie MerrikanBottesford Town FC and Lara Dickinson
How did you get involved in Volunteering/Step Into Sport?I first started volunteering at my school by coaching the Year 7 Girls Football Team (once a week after school). I had already been playing football for Bottesford Town FC for a couple of years and I had done a bit of coaching on and off but nothing serious. Then just over a year ago I was asked if I wanted to coach a young girls side along with other people of my age. I said I would and it went on from there really. I was mentored as I went along and then I was
given the opportunity to do my Level One and the different volunteering certificates, including Step Into Sport. Also, last summer I worked at Scunthorpe United asa volunteer, which also gave me a lot of experience.
What sort of volunteering activity do you take part in?
I am a Girl's Football Coach and this is something in which I would like to specialise. I am also qualified to coach Disability Football and so would like to work more in that area.
How many hours have you spent volunteering over the past couple of years?
I would say well over a thousand as throughout the summer I volunteered Monday to Friday, 9.00 until 5.00pm!
What have you gained from your time spent volunteering?
I have gained a lot of things from volunteering but the most important things really are the people you meet and coach and also the experience I have gained. I myself have grown as a person and also grown in confidence. I have gained a lot of knowledge from various courses, but I have gained the most amount of knowledge from the kids themselves and new options have opened up to me that were not there before (i.e. coaching in America).
Aidie Merrikan
Aidie has devoted many voluntary hours to sport in the area over the last two years through the National initiative, Step into Sport. This scheme allows students to gain skills and qualifications through voluntary placements in sports clubs across the area. The top target for this scheme is 200 hours over a period of two years. Aidie has broken this target by completing over 300 hours before the two year period had ended. He completed all these hours by coaching in all of his spare time that he had left when he had finished his day to day studies at Grimsby Institute.
Aidie began his volunteering at the Trinity Youth Centre where he has helped coach many activities, mainly football.
During this placement he has coached many children and helped them to develop new skills, new knowledge and a new found confidence. He is very conscientious in all aspects of his work and he is continually looking for courses to attend to support his development as a coach. His willingness to learn is outstanding. Although football is his main sport he has recently attended level 1 courses for various sports to extend his knowledge.
Without people like Aidie many sports would struggle to provide opportunities to children and adults to play sport in the area.
Although Aidie has reached the end of the Step into Sport programme he still volunteers at present, assisting with coaching sessions with the Positive Futures project, a scheme which provides sporting activities to those children who are at risk of offending etc.
Interviewed in 2005