· 6 min read
Parent Helpers
Little Athletics at Tiger Wests is powered entirely by parents and community volunteers. Every volunteer role is important to help ensure our club can run events smoothly and efficiently.
At Tiger Wests Little Athletics Club, we rely on a strong team of active, regular volunteers. Our club is small and we are lucky to have dedicated volunteers who have put on multiple hats performing many roles within the club for many years (some even decades!). There are roles to ensure our weekly Friday Night Competitions run smoothly and there are roles on the Committee to ensure our club continues to function.
All parents in attendance each Friday are required to assist with the running of the program. It is quite impossible for the Committee (all volunteers) to fulfil the large number of roles involved, and so most of the tasks involved in supervising athletics competitions fall to parents.
We are looking for more parents to help fill roles on our Committee so we can continue to grow, which will allow us to offer our children more opportunities in the future to participate in events that we currently cannot do as a small club. By helping out, you have a great opportunity to contribute positively to every athlete’s experience at the club and their enjoyment of the sport.
Types of Roles
Friday Night Roles
Supervising Events
Little Athletics at Tiger Wests is not like other competitive sports, where parents are restricted from entering the competition area. At our club, you have a special opportunity to participate alongside your child and share the experience together. Please do not let lack of experience stop you from offering to assist! Assisting at our athletics meets requires very little knowledge, however parents who take a little time to learn about the events, their procedures and rules will have a much more enjoyable time. Please see our Parent Helper Resources to learn more.
Supervising Track Events
The following roles are required to supervise races:
- Starter: Start races when Timekeeper and Marshalls are ready. On you marks… Set… Bang!
- Timekeeper: Start the timer when the race begins, trigger timer when finishers cross the line.
- Marshalls: Hand out ‘place numbers’ to runners and assist age group parent helpers to guide athletes in order to the Recorder
- Recorder: Collect race results and prepare them for entry to ResultsHQ. [User Guide]
- Hurdles: Move hurdles into position and adjust heights / positions as necessary
Supervising Field Events
Field Events generally work best with 4 parent helpers from the age group assisting as follows:
- Parent Helper 1/Age Manager:
- Ensure Helpers in place
- Call Next Athlete
- Judge Fouls (see Parent Helper Resources on how to judge fouls)
- Read & Record Results
- Parent Helper 2:
- Pull tape measure and read aloud result (see Parent Helper Resources on how to measure)
- Parent Helper 3:
- Retrieve discus/shotput
- Rake sand pit
- Set and adjust high jump bar
- Parent Helper 4:
- Mark throws/jump landing spot
- Set and adjust high jump bar
- Other Parents in Group:
- Give lots of encouragement during events
- Supervise athletes to stay off the track, stay away from throwing areas, keep fingers out of the discus cages, stay with the age group etc
- Encourage waiting athletes at field events to socialise or play little games such as ‘duck duck goose’
Age Managers
Age Managers are relatively ‘permanent’ parent roles (meaning the same persons fill these roles each week) – responsible for leading a group of athletes through their events.
Set Up and Pack Up
- Set up track facilities including tables and timing equipment
- Distribute throwing implements and Tiny Tots equipment to their appropriate locations
- Set up High Jump mats
- Spread/rake/prepare the sand in the Long Jump pits
- Return equipment to the shed at the conclusion of the events
BBQ
- Set up tables, cut bread rolls, chop onions, set up and start cooking on the BBQ
- Manage hungry athletes and parents when they all rush to the BBQ at the conclusion of their events
- Clean the BBQ, wipe down and pack up the tables
Committee Roles
The Executive Council is the body responsible for managing the affairs of the Centre in accordance with the Club Constitution and the Associations Incorporation Act 2009. It comprises of members who are elected at the Centre’s Annual General Meeting (or subsequently appointed by the Committee to a vacant position) to fulfil the roles indicated. There are also roles on our General Committee which have not been formalised in the club constitution but are just as important in keeping our club running.
Executive Council
President
- Preside as chair at all committee and general meetings when present
- Oversee grievance and disciplinary matters
- Ensure Constitution and Centre Policies are being followed
Vice-President
- Attend committee meetings and fill-in for President when required
Secretary
- Attend committee meetings, take and distribute minutes
- Submit paperwork to LANSW as required
- Liaise with stakeholders regarding Ground Hire and maintenance
- Respond or take action to emails received
- Assist President in setting Agenda for meetings
Treasurer
- Attend committee meetings
- Ensure all money due to the centre is collected and received and all payments are made
- Keep books and accounts showing financial affairs of the centre
- Provide the committee with bank balances and profit and loss statements
Registrar
- Attend committee meetings
- Manage & configure the Centre’s membership registration system (RevSport)
- Process registrations and onboard new families
- Keep records of Working With Children checks
Records/Rankings Officer
- Manage & configure the Centre’s athletics management system (ResultsHQ)
- Compile and distribute statistics, result summaries and rankings
- Processing of point score and event championship results for end of season trophies
- Maintain Ground & Centre records.
Equipment Officer
- Ensure equipment is maintained in safe and good working order
- Recommend the purchase and/or repair of equipment when necessary
- Ensure field and line markings are accurate
- Oversee set up and pack up of equipment for competition
Social and Promotions Officer
- Manage Club Website
- Arrange flyers to be distributed to local schools/organisations prior to season start
- Post regularly on social media and manage comments and DMs (Facebook)
- Make announcements in the club WhatsApp channel to parents
Championships Officer
- Ensure effective communication of information about LANSW carnivals to parents
- Organise officials for events conducted by LANSW and other Centres, in which the Centre participates
- Ensure that all athletes are correctly nominated in their events and that the nominations are lodged by the closing date
- Complete and submit any entry forms for athletes to participate in LANSW or other Centres’ events
- Manage the Team of Athletes attending Championships
Zone Delegates
- Act as spokesperson on behalf of the Centre at Zone, Regional and State Conference meetings and vote on behalf of the Centre
- Report to the Executive Council any relevant information discussed at any meetings
General Committee
BBQ Coordinator
- Purchase and preparation of food and drink items, including free Coles bananas
- Oversee the running of the BBQ and coordinate BBQ parent helpers on Friday nights
Parent Helper Coordinator
- Recruit ‘permanent’ Age Managers
- Assist Age Managers & parent helpers in the performance of their duties
- Promote increased capability to officiate at our club athletics events by encouraging parent helpers to gain qualifications
- Organise (as necessary) parent helpers for Zone, Region and State championships
Coaching Coordinator
- Arrange and/or conduct regular coaching sessions for athletes.
- Ensure only eligible athletes are attending training and are supervised by a parent/carer
- How To Develop An Effective Centre Coaching program
Uniforms Coordinator
- Ordering, packing and inventory of uniform items
- Stock take of uniform items at season end
- Uniform sales at pick up days and competition nights
First Aid Officer
- Maintain record of first aid parent helpers
- Organise first aid training for committee, age managers and interested parents
- Purchase and maintain first aid supplies
Child Safety Officer
- Keep committee informed of LANSW policies and guidelines regarding Child Safety
General Duties
- Assisting committee members with specific tasks when required
- Assisting in the planning & running of the Centre and its activities
- Assisting in the delivery of the Athletics program at each of our Friday evening competitions