A report to the European
Commission
July 2017
Mapping and analysis of education
schemes for coaches from a gender
perspective
©MonkeyBusiness Images/Shutterstock.com
EUROPEAN COMMISSION
Directorate-General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture
Directorate C – Innovation, International Cooperation and Sport
Unit C.4 – Sport
E-mail: Eac-sport@ec.europa.eu
European Commission
B-1049 Brussels
Mapping and analysis of
education schemes for
coaches from a gender
perspective
A report to the European Commission
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1
Table of Contents
1.0 Introduction..................................................................................... 5
1.1 Introduction......................................................................................... 5
1.2 Background to the study ....................................................................... 5
1.3 Aims and methodology .......................................................................... 5
1.4 Report structure ................................................................................... 6
2.0 Sports Coaching and Gender: Context ................................................. 7
2.1 Introduction......................................................................................... 7
2.2 Gender equality and sport...................................................................... 7
2.3 The underrepresentation of women in coaching – background evidence ........ 8
2.4 Barriers to career progression in coaching ................................................ 9
2.5 Key initiatives to address gender inequality in coaching ............................. 9
3.0 Mapping Review .............................................................................. 11
3.1 Introduction....................................................................................... 11
3.2 Analytical framework .......................................................................... 11
3.3 Country reviews ................................................................................. 11
3.4 Overview of programmes ..................................................................... 12
3.5 Summary .......................................................................................... 20
4.0 Case studies ................................................................................... 21
4.1 Introduction....................................................................................... 21
4.2 Case study selection ........................................................................... 21
4.3 Coach Development for Women (Estonia) .............................................. 21
4.4 From Athletes to Coaches (Finland) ....................................................... 24
4.5 Guidelines to prevent sexist behaviours for coaches and in training schemes
for coaches (France) ........................................................................................ 27
4.6 UEFA Coach Development Project for Women (Hungary) .......................... 29
4.7 Free Level 1 Boxing Coaching Course for Women (Ireland) ....................... 32
4.8 Coaching Young Footballers Course Scholarship for Female Coaches (Malta) 35
4.9 Recognising and preventing sexual intimidation module (The Netherlands) . 38
4.10 Coaching education courses for women only (Norway) ............................. 40
4.11 Women in Coaching Programme (UK) .................................................... 42
4.12 Development of 500 Women Coaches (UK) ............................................ 45
5.0 Conclusions .................................................................................... 48
Annex One: Sources ........................................................................................ 50
Annex two: Contributions by stakeholders .......................................................... 51
List of tables
Table 3.1 Overview of programmes ...................................................................................................................................... 13
Table 3.2 Summary of programme types ............................................................................................................................ 20
2
3
Executive Summary
Ecorys, Professor Gertrud Ursula Pfister and Dr Leanne Norman were commissioned by
DG EAC of the European Commission in April 2017 to undertake a mapping and analysis
study focusing on sports coaching education schemes from a gender perspective. The
outcomes will feed into the follow-up of the recommendations of the Expert Group on
Good Governance (in sport)
1
and into the work of the Estonian presidency of the Council
in 2017.
Background
There is a wide acceptance of the notion that an increase in women coaches (as visible
role models) can provide inspiration and encouragement to girls and women to take part
in sport and sustain their participation. It is estimated that between 20%-30% of all
coaches in Europe are women
2
; however in most sports the underrepresentation of
women becomes more pronounced at the highest levels of coaching.
In the Council Conclusions on Gender Equality in Sport adopted in May 2014, the
Commission was invited to conduct research on various fields of gender equality,
including coaching. In the Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-2020 prepared by the
Group of Experts 'Gender Equality in Sport', gender equality in coaching was one of the
main discussion points and one of the suggested actions was to initiate and support
research on this field. In 2016 the Expert Group on Good Governance drafted
"Recommendations on gender equality in sport", which suggested to "initiate and
support research which identifies situations that promote and counteract equality and
equal treatment in coaching and coach education".
Aims and methodology
The broad aims of the research are as follows:
Evaluate existing (formal and non-formal) training and education schemes for
coaches in view of their accessibility for women and identify situations that promote
equality and equal treatment in coach education, including gender specific
requirements, conditions for women and men as professional and voluntary coaches.
Evaluate their training elements/educational modules on gender equality (if they
exist and indicate where they don't).
Through the mapping review, identify good practices with regards to accessibility for
women and gender equality modules.
The research was undertaken in two stages. The first stage consisted of a mapping
review to identify programmes of interest. The review was guided by a typology of
education programmes with a gender element that was developed through an initial
scoping stage (box overleaf). The typology has potential to inform debates on the
development of gender mainstreaming in coach education.
The review aimed to be as comprehensive as possible within the tight timeframe and
resources for the study, both in terms of Member State coverage and types of
programmes covered. In order to inform the mapping review, the research team
conducted consultations with relevant experts and stakeholders. The consultations
helped to narrow the focus of the search as well as signpost the research team to the
most relevant sources of interest. Through the mapping review, programmes with good
practice potential were identified for more in-depth examination.
1
An EU Expert Group on Good Governance was established on the basis of the Council Resolution
on an EU Work Plan for Sport 2011-2014.
2
European Commission (2014). Gender Equality in Sport. Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-
2020
4
Accessibility: Approaches designed to make it more appealing or easier for women
to attend education/training courses (e.g. timetables/women tutors and coach
developers)
Modules: Specific modules within coach curriculums on gender equality aimed at
developing awareness of gender-related issues in coaching amongst women and
men.
Progression: Education/training opportunities targeted at progression for women
(i.e. towards high performance coaching) including non-formal training approaches.
Mentoring: Mentoring schemes for women which are linked to/integrated with
education programmes.
Role models: Use of role models (e.g. experienced women coaches having some
involvement in the coaching education scheme either in promotion or delivery).
Marketing: Tailored promotional and marketing approaches for education
programmes (use of gender-specific imagery in advertising etc).
Scholarships: Funded scholarships and bursaries for women to take part in coaching
education.
Women-only: Programmes where only women can attend.
Quota: Programmes where a certain proportion of places are allocated to women.
Key findings
The mapping review indicates that the most common type of approach aimed at
promoting equality in coach education is women-only courses. This approach appears to
work well in increasing levels of attendance amongst women and allowing women to
overcome initial self-confidence issues. The case studies suggest that women-only
courses have worked well where the numbers of women coaches are starting from a low
base and where there is a particular perception that coaching is a male–dominated
profession. However some federations prefer a quota-based approach as it is regarded
as more beneficial for women to take part in mixed programmes as they progress (while
ensuring that a certain proportion of places are allocated to women).
The mapping review has revealed very few examples of programmes which explicitly
seek to provide more accessible education activities for women through more flexible
timetabling or childcare facilities. A more common approach in improving accessibility is
through the involvement of women tutors and coach developers.
The research suggests that the development of gender equality modules has the
potential to support female coaches in their experiences of coaching as they prepare
women to deal with issues of discrimination in the workplace. They also allow for men to
have a better understanding of what the key issues surrounding discrimination are. The
case studies indicated however that further development work is needed to embed such
approaches in mainstream coaching education.
The more detailed case study research has also highlighted a number of common lessons
in the implementation of coaching education programmes for women:
The benefits of having strong involvement and commitment of high profile coaches
(men and women) in coaching education programmes for women.
The benefits of linking coaching education actions and related empowerment and
mentoring activities.
The importance of neutral sport coaching bodies having a lead role in engaging a
wide range of sport federations in innovative and gender-related coaching education
programmes.
The possibilities for European federations to work in partnership with national
federations to develop coaching education opportunities for women (for example
5
through funding provision but also ensuring the commitment of national federations
to support women with coaching opportunities post-training).
The role of national sport agencies in the development and evaluation of gender
education modules which are relevant to education and training in all sports.
6
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Introduction
Ecorys, Dr Leanne Norman and Professor Gertrud Ursula Pfister were commissioned by
DG EAC of the European Commission in April 2017 to undertake a mapping and analysis
study of coaching education from a gender perspective. The outcomes will feed into the
follow-up of the recommendations of the Expert Group on Good Governance (in sport)
3
and into the work of the Estonian presidency of the Council in 2017.
1.2 Background to the study
In the last 20 years there has been a significant growth in women’s sport across the
EU28, both in terms of recreational opportunities and competition. Despite this growth,
available statistics show a broad pattern of low representation of women in sport
coaching roles. It is estimated that between 20%-30% of all coaches in Europe are
women
4
; however in most sports the underrepresentation of women becomes more
pronounced at the highest levels of coaching.
The integrity of sport (including gender equality) is one of the main priorities of the EU
Work Plan for Sport 2014-2017.
5
In the Council Conclusions on Gender Equality in Sport
adopted on 20 May 2014, the Commission was invited to conduct research on various
fields of gender equality, including coaching. In the Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-
2020 prepared by the Group of Experts 'Gender Equality in Sport', gender equality in
coaching was one of the main discussion points and one of the suggested actions was to
initiate and support research on this field.
In 2016 the Expert Group on Good Governance drafted "Recommendations on gender
equality in sport", which included a specific chapter on coaching.
6
These
recommendations suggest in particular to "Initiate and support research which identifies
situations that promote and counteract equality and equal treatment in coaching and
coach education" and to "Produce educational tools and evidence of knowledge on the
challenges and strengths of gender equality in sport to be included in the training of
coaches, and these at all levels".
1.3 Aims and methodology
The broad aims of the research are as follows:
Evaluate existing (formal and non-formal) training and education schemes for
coaches in view of their accessibility for women and identify situations that promote
equality and equal treatment in coach education, including gender specific
requirements, conditions for women and men as professional and voluntary coaches.
Evaluate their training elements/educational modules on gender equality (if they
exist and indicate where they don't).
3
An EU Expert Group on Good Governance was established on the basis of the Council Resolution
on an EU Work Plan for Sport 2011-2014.
4
European Commission (2014), Gender Equality in Sport. Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-
2020
5
European Commission (2014), Resolution of the Council and of the Representatives of the
Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council, of 21 May 2014 on the European
Union Work Plan for Sport (2014-2017)
6
European Commission (2016), Expert Group on Good Governance Recommendations on Gender
Equality in Sport Final document, 10 February 2016
7
Through the mapping review, identify good practices with regards to accessibility for
women and gender equality modules.
The research was undertaken in two stages. The first stage consisted of a mapping
review to identify programmes of interest. The review was guided by a typology of
gender-specific education programmes that was developed through an initial scoping
stage. The typology aims to group particular categories of programmes with regard to
those aspects which promote the participation of women in coaching education or gender
issues. The review aimed to be as comprehensive as possible within the tight timeframe
and resources for the study, both in terms of Member State coverage and types of
programmes covered. In order to inform the scoping review, the research team
conducted consultations with relevant experts and stakeholders. The consultations
helped to narrow the focus of the search as well as signpost the research team to the
most relevant sources of interest. Through the mapping review, programmes with good
practice potential were identified for more in-depth examination.
1.4 Report structure
The structure of the report is as follows:
Section two sets the scene for the review by elaborating on the policy background to
the mapping review. Through a brief literature review, it also discusses some of the
particular barriers faced by women in entering a career in coaching and progressing
to higher performance levels.
Section three provides more detail on the methodology for the mapping review of
coaching education programmes. It goes on to provide an overview of the gender-
related programmes identified in the study before presenting a brief descriptive
analysis of the findings on the gender elements of the programmes.
Section four presents the more detailed case studies of good practice programmes.
Section five brings the analysis together and highlights some key conclusions from
the analysis.
8
2.0 Sports Coaching and Gender: Context
2.1 Introduction
This chapter sets the scene for the mapping research. It begins by briefly considering the
high-level policy and strategic context for the study. It then goes on to consider the
particular barriers faced by women in entering a career in coaching and progressing to
high performance levels as well as highlighting some specific initiatives in this area that
the mapping research has sought to build upon. The section aims to provide important
background context to the research but does not attempt to cover all of the range of
policies and extensive academic research of relevance to the topic.
2.2 Gender equality and sport
Gender equality is one of the fundamental principles of the European Union, and has
been included as a key element across a wide range of treaties and policies. As stated in
Article 23 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union:
“equality between men and women must be ensured in all areas, including
employment, work and pay. The principle of equality shall not prevent the
maintenance or adoption of measures providing for specific advantages in favour
of the under-represented sex.”
7
The European Strategy for Equality between Women and Men 2010-2015
8
encouraged
gender issues to be mainstreamed across all EU policies. During this period a range of
EU initiatives in the area of sport have highlighted the need to address gender
perspectives. These include the EU Work Plan for Sport 2014-2017, where the integrity
of sport (including gender equality) is one of the key priorities.
9
The European Commission’s Gender Equality in Sport Proposal for Strategic Actions
2014-2020 encourages sport governing bodies to develop and implement national and
international strategies on gender equality for the period 2014 – 2020, supported by
concrete measures at the EU level. While there have been several recommendations and
resolutions promoting gender equality in all aspects of sport policy at all levels, women
continue to face barriers in participation as well as leadership of both amateur and
professional sport. The Gender Equality in Sport Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-
2020 summarises research which shows that complex barriers for women continue to
exist at an individual, interpersonal, organisational and socio-cultural level.
10
There is a wide acceptance of the notion that women coaches (as visible role models)
can encourage girls and women to take part in sport and sustain their participation.
Often through personal preferences, cultural traditions or religious beliefs, some women
feel more comfortable with female coaches.
11
It is also recognised that a more broadly
7
European Union (2010), Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union art. 23, 2010 O.J.
C83/02.
8
European Commission (2010), Communication from the Commission to the European Parliament,
the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the Committee of the Regions of 21
September 2010 - Strategy for equality between women and men 2010-2015 [COM(2010) 491
final – Not published in the Official Journal].
9
European Commission (2014), Resolution of the Council and of the Representatives of the
Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council, of 21 May 2014 on the European
Union Work Plan for Sport (2014-2017) 2014/C 183/03.
10
European Commission (2014), Gender Equality in Sport. Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-
2020
11
European Commission (2014), Gender Equality in Sport. Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-
2020
9
inclusive coaching workforce may help to attract women from underrepresented
backgrounds (e.g. migrants, people with a disability) to participate in sport or be
involved in a coaching role, but also in development/executive roles.
12
2.3 The underrepresentation of women in coaching – background
evidence
At the highest echelons of sports coaching it is clear that the highest profile (and highest
paid) roles are occupied largely by men. Research by Finance Football for example
showed that the top 20 highest paid coaches in European football are all men.
13
However, the representation of women is not just low at the highest levels. The Gender
Equality in Sport Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-2020 presents a range of statistics
to demonstrate the underrepresentation of women across the EU – it is estimated based
on figures in seven EU Member States that between 20%-30% of all sport coaches in
Europe are women. Country level evidence on the representation of women in coaching
roles presented in the Gender Equality in Sport Proposal are shown below:
In Finland 30% of the coaches are women and in Northern Ireland 20%.
In the Czech Republic 72% of the female athletes were coached by a man and 28%
by a woman.
In the UK 17% of qualified coaches were women.
In Northern Ireland a study found around 40% female coaches in hockey and
athletics, whereas there were no female coaches in cricket, only 2% in rugby and
less than 10% in football.
In Denmark female coaches dominated in gymnastics (73%), but were largely
underrepresented in handball (28%), tennis (20%), athletics (14%), and football
(7%).
In the Czech Republic 72% of the female athletes were coached by a man and 28%
by a woman.
While the statistics presented above show a broad pattern of low representation, they do
not generally show the differences across sports and the particular differences between
male and female sports. Generally statistics show, for example, that women coaches are
more likely to progress to higher levels in sports such as ice skating and gymnastics.
Research has also shown that the number of female coaches at the high performance
level is particularly low (for example, approximately 11% of Olympic level coaches in
2016 were women
14
). Moreover, in such cases where female coaches work with athletes
at higher performance levels they typically occupy assistant coaching positions,
supporting male head coaches.
15
As reported in Gender Equality in Sport Proposal for
Strategic Actions 2014-2020:
In Germany approximately 10% of the 500 national coaches are women and in elite
and professional sport 13% of the coaches are women, who with few exceptions,
were in charge of female elite athletes.
In Sweden 11% of the national coaches in 34 different sports were female.
12
European Commission (2014), Gender Equality in Sport. Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-
2020
13
http://financefootball.com/2016/08/02/top-20-highest-paid-coaches-in-europe-2016-2017/
14
https://femalecoachingnetwork.com/2016/08/09/rio-2016-sees-an-increase-in-competing-
female-athletes-but-what-about-female-coaches-and-leaders/
15
European Commission (2014), Gender Equality in Sport. Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-
2020
10
In Slovenia 15% of the national team coaches at junior level and higher were
women.
2.4 Barriers to career progression in coaching
Women face complex and numerous barriers in progressing to higher level coaching
positions. The Commission’s Gender Equality in Sport Proposal for Strategic Actions
2014-2020 document summarised the barriers facing women coaches as follows:
Interpersonal level: supporting systems (beyond the actual education programmes)
and wider networks for women coaches are lacking in many sports at national and
international levels.
Organisational level: gender equality in coaching and coach education at national and
international level is often neglected; issues with regards to recruitment, stereotypes
about their abilities, and gender-typing of tasks, as employees and club
administrators still recruit in a traditional and exclusionary way, especially for higher
teams and elite athletes.
Social cultural level: dominant gender ideologies and stereotypes in the world of
sport (e.g. 'women are the best coaches for young children only' 'women cannot
coach men') evidence the reality that strategies to change these stereotypes and
ideologies are very limited.
2.5 Key initiatives to address gender inequality in coaching
In recent years, there have been a number of notable initiatives that have sought to
address the barriers experienced by women in entering the coaching profession and
progressing. A particularly noteworthy EU initiative was the “Strengthening Coaching
with the Objective to Raise Equality – SCORE” project. Supported by the Erasmus+
Sports programme and led by the European Non-Governmental Sports Organisation
(ENGSO), this initiative focused on increasing the number of female coaches at all levels
of sport while simultaneously gathering and disseminating information on gender
equality in coaching. SCORE supported the education of 24 mentors to support female
coaches as well as organising national training sessions in Croatia, Cyprus, Finland,
Germany, Lithuania, Portugal, Sweden and the United Kingdom between 2015 and 2016.
The programme has since published an educational toolkit
16
aimed at supporting both
sports organisations and individual coaches. The broad focus of SCORE was on
addressing barriers to engaging and progressing women through the development of
coaching pathways; as a forum however, it has provided a productive means of
accessing and extracting information on educational programmes and schemes of
relevance to this mapping exercise.
National level initiatives addressing the issue of gender mainstreaming in sports
demonstrate the potential to introduce more gender-related content at the educational
level. The Finnish Coach Association
17
has, for example, introduced a gendered
perspective in their coach and instructor training. Another national initiative worth
mentioning is the Female Coaching Network (FCN)
18
that was developed in the UK in
2014 and consists of thousands of female coaches from a variety of backgrounds. This is
a platform for female coaches to network and share experiences and expertise. Another
16
SCORE Project/ ENSGO (2014), Gender Equality in Coaching: Interactive Toolkit (The SCORE
toolkit can be accessed via: http://www.score-coaching.eu/score-interactive-toolkit)
17
http://www.suomenvalmentajat.fi/
18
http://www.score-coaching.eu/score-interactive-toolkit
11
UK initiative is ‘Reach Into Coaching,’
19
a national campaign that is run by UK Coaching
(formerly sports coach UK) and seeks to promote coaching among women.
At present, however, there appears to be scope to develop more effective formal and
tailored approaches in the provision of gender elements in coaching education. The
European Commission’s Gender Equality in Sport Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-
2020 highlights the limited focus on gender specific topics and gender issues in coaching
education schemes. The Strategic Actions highlighted that there is no structure in Europe
which obliges providers of coach education and qualifications to include gender-specific
elements in their programmes. Stakeholder interviews undertaken as part of the scoping
stage for this research confirmed the need to develop tailored gender-specific
approaches in coaching education in order to support women in achieving qualifications
and progressing towards elite levels.
The scoping research for this study indicated that there are only a few initiatives being
taken forward by the European Federations that have a specific focus on developing
gender-focused approaches in coach education. A notable exception is UEFA’s Coach
Development Project for Women, which aims to increase the number of qualified female
coaches, as well as increasing the number of women coaching club and national teams.
The support provided for coaches includes: a scholarship scheme for UEFA A and Pro
diploma coaches; UEFA C and B diploma courses (women only); and workshops for
women coaches (led by a UEFA technical instructor).
Research undertaken in the UK by UK Coaching
20
highlights a number of suggestions for
improving the accessibility of coaching qualifications for female coaches. The most
popular suggestion was using mechanisms to increase the number of female coaches on
coaching qualification courses, not only through women-only courses but also through
ensuring a minimum number of women on mixed courses using a quota approach. The
research defined greater accessibility as overcoming practical barriers by providing
qualifications in more convenient local locations, in the evenings and at reduced costs.
Some consultees suggested that online learning could increase accessibility and
overcome barriers relating to childcare or that smaller blocks of learning could help to
improve accessibility. This mapping review provides an opportunity to examine the
extent to which such practices are being taken forward in practice across the EU-28 and
their effectiveness.
19
http://reachintocoaching.co.uk/
20
UK Coaching (2013), Women and Qualifications Research
12
3.0 Mapping Review
3.1 Introduction
This section reports on the findings from the mapping review of coaching education
programmes from a gender perspective.
3.2 Analytical framework
The specific focus of this study is the role of gender-specific education and training
approaches in helping to address the underrepresentation of women in coaching. In
order to understand the range and categories of gender-specific approaches adopted, a
typology was developed during the study. This helped to structure the collection of
evidence on specific programmes by grouping relevant schemes under certain
categories. Developing such a typology has also helped to determine the types of
gender-specific approaches that are most prevalent across Europe. It also provided a
basis for comparing the apparent success of schemes’ approaches within certain
groupings and in doing so, helped to guide the process of identifying potential good
practice programmes for further examination.
A broad distinction can be made between approaches adopted to encourage women to
take up coaching education and the gender-specific content of the courses themselves.
The broad typology of programmes and initiatives covered by the study includes:
Accessibility: Approaches that make it more appealing (or easier) to attend
education/training courses (e.g. flexible timetabling, childcare support).
Modules: Specific modules within coach curriculums on gender equality aimed at
developing awareness of gender-related issues in coaching amongst women and
men.
Progression: Education/training opportunities targeted at progression for women
(i.e. towards high performance coaching) including non-formal training approaches.
Mentoring: Mentoring schemes for women which are linked to/integrated with
education programmes.
Role models: Use of role models (e.g. experienced women coaches having some
involvement in the coaching education scheme either in promotion or delivery).
Marketing: Tailored promotional and marketing approaches for education
programmes (use of gender-specific imagery in advertising etc).
Scholarships: Funded scholarships and bursaries for women to take part in
coaching education.
Women only: Programmes where only women can attend.
Quota: Programmes where a certain proportion of places are allocated to women.
3.3 Country reviews
The scoping stage of the study sought to identify relevant programmes in all EU-28
through a rapid evidence assessment approach, stakeholder consultations and review of
relevant European level initiatives including programmes such as SCORE and initiatives
being taken forward by the European sport federations.
13
The sports listed below were generally considered in all countries; however other sports
were considered if they were popular in a specific country.
Football
Athletics (track and field)
Basketball
Handball
Rugby Union
Hockey
Gymnastics
Cycling
Boxing
Golf
Rowing
Taekwondo
Swimming
Ice skating
Judo
Tennis
Table tennis
Volleyball
The European federation websites of the above sports were reviewed to see if they are
supporting specific coaching education initiatives for women. We also examined in
particular whether and how specific European federation initiatives are benefitting
coaching education development for women in particular countries. This review revealed
a number of major initiatives of interest (e.g. UEFA Coach Development Project for
Women) as well as some smaller-scale interventions.
The review considered national sport federations’ websites in a selection of countries, to
examine whether they provide or promote gender-specific educational programmes,
courses or initiatives. The country reviews also considered dedicated sports coaching
organisations as well as those focused on the development of women in sport. Finally,
the searches also considered university or further education sports science departments.
Systematic reviews were undertaken in a broad range of EU Member States (AT, BE, DE,
EE, ES, FI, FR, HR, HU, IE, IT, MT, NL, PL. PT, UK) plus Norway (a country which has a
strong reputation regarding gender and sport). With the available resources it was not
possible to conduct systematic reviews in all countries. The desk research was
complemented by stakeholder interviews in selected countries where resources allowed.
In a number of countries the systematic searches did not reveal any relevant
programmes of a significant scale. Where relevant programmes could not be found,
typically the focus of gender equality programmes was on women as athletes or players
(rather than coaches). To a certain extent the scoping research confirmed previous
analysis supporting the conclusion in the European Commission’s Gender Equality in
Sport Proposal for Strategic Actions 2014-2020, that gender equality in coaching and
coach education at national and international level is often neglected.
In some countries where we could not find any evidence of gender-specific coaching
education programmes, documents were nevertheless identified which demonstrated a
specific awareness of the lack of women in coaching positions.
3.4 Overview of programmes
The programmes identified through the scoping stage of the mapping exercise are set
out in the table below. Within the confines of a small-scale mapping exercise, it is not
possible to provide a complete list of all gender-specific programmes across the EU28
14
but rather the aim has been to identify a representative selection of schemes to give an
impression of the types of programmes that are typically supported.
Table 3.1 Overview of programmes
Country/
Federation
Name of
scheme
Lead
Organisation
Sport
Brief description of scheme
Evidence on outputs/outcomes
Type(s)
Belgium
Call for
proposals
to promote
gender
equality in
sports
ADEPS
(Administrati
on de
l'Education
Physique et
des Sports) -
Public body
for sports
policies in
Wallonia-
Brussels
federation
Various
Out of the 4 main priorities
listed by the call, one
specifically focuses on
increasing the participation of
women in coaching. The call
has a relatively limited scale
(max. €7500/project and a
€100.000 total budget for the
call), but the objective is to
identify good practices to
upscale them where relevant.
Evidence is not yet available
on the outcomes of the call.
Other
Croatia
Education
of artistic
and short-
track
skating
coaches
Croatian
Skating
Federation
Skating
The study programme of
skating sports was created in
collaboration with the Faculty
of Kinesiology in Zagreb.
Priority was given to women in
the criteria for selecting
coaches for the programme.
The Croatian Skating
Federation provided 14,000
Euros in the first phase of
training for seven female
candidates, and 7,500 Euros in
the second phase for five
female candidates.
Quota
Estonia
Scholarship
programme
to support
women
coaches
seeking to
obtain the
UEFA A or
UEFA Pro
diplomas.
Estonia
Football
Association
Football
Bolstered by financial
assistance from UEFA's
Women's Football
Development Programme
(WFDP), a key objective was
to increase the number of
qualified female coaches at all
levels. The programme has
focused on encouraging former
and current women's national
team players to take up
coaching.
In total, 14 Estonian women
are also now the holders of
UEFA B licences – all current
or former players.
Scholarships
Estonia
Tailored
training for
women PE
teachers
at primary
schools
Estonia
Football
Association
Football
Grassroots-level courses are
given to women PE teachers at
primary schools. Education
material has been made
available to schools and
teachers to support their
continued development of
children after the coaching
Women-only
15
Country/
Federation
Name of
scheme
Lead
Organisation
Sport
Brief description of scheme
Evidence on outputs/outcomes
Type(s)
courses. National youth team
assistant coaches are also
playing a major role in school
projects as instructors within a
far-reaching girls' football
programme that aims to
attract even more Estonian
girls to play. 145 women PE
teachers have participated.
Finland
From
Athletes to
Coaches
Coaches
Association
of Finland
Various;
foundation
level
This is part of a national
project targeted at improving
the representation of women
coaches in team ball sports.
The project targets women
specifically and includes
elements of empowering,
mentoring and gender specific
coach education.
Women-only
France
Guidelines
to prevent
sexist
behaviours
for coaches
and in
training
schemes
for coaches
Sport
éducation
mixités
citoyenneté
(SEMC): a
resource
centre on
gender
equality,
education
and
citizenship.
Developed
and managed
by the
ministry of
sports
All
The guidelines seek to address
gender biases and prejudices
to promote behavioural change
at different levels, based on
their responsibilities and their
role in transmitting messages
values across sport
practitioners. They are
addressed to coaches and their
trainers (as well as managers).
In terms of practical guidance,
the guidelines provide a set of
toolkits or ‘fiches d’animation’
(around 15) to set up and
manage sessions aimed at
deconstructing gender biases.
Modules
France
Gender
equality
plan
Fédération
Française de
Judo
Judo
Training modules are the same
for men and women, but
women are given priority
access to training sessions.
Local committees may also
provide financial support in
some cases.
Quota
France
Trainers
pairing
Federations
of rugby and
volleyball
Rugby,
volleyball
A programme of paired
coaches for professional teams
(one woman and one man)
involving two federations
(rugby, and volleyball). For
both federations, this approach
was used in providing coaching
for the national woman teams.
This system was decided on an
ad hoc basis but feedback is
highly positive from both
coaches and players as it
brings in two approaches,
Progression
16
Country/
Federation
Name of
scheme
Lead
Organisation
Sport
Brief description of scheme
Evidence on outputs/outcomes
Type(s)
mixes different skills and helps
to develop coaching skills of
both genders.
France
Plan citoyen
du sport
Fédération
Française de
Taekwondo
et Disciplines
Associées
Taekwondo
Train the trainers to prevent
gender biases. Women
participation in taekwondo is
increasing rapidly. Initiatives
at coach education level
logically follow this increased
participation. The federation
works with training providers
and addresses the content of
the modules to prevent gender
biases and encourage gender
mainstreaming, based on the
resources developed by SEMC
(see above).
Accessibility
France
Gender
equality
plan
Federation
française de
triathlon
Triathlon
Two actions were undertaken:
- Dedicated module and
workshops for trainers to avoid
gender discrimination
- At least one mentor
supporting women
participation in technical staff
in all regions.
Modules
France
Ambass-
ador
scheme
Fédération
Française de
football (FFF)
Football
The main idea of this action is
to encourage the participation
of 'role models' by involving
former international players in
events, trainings and staff
positions in regional
structures.
A related action led by the FFF
is to encourage the
development of a 'women in
football' network to involve
women more easily in different
actions led by the FFF and its
partners (including training).
Role models
France
Feminine
Football
schools
Fédération
Française de
football (FFF)
Football
The FFF had originally
promoted a mixed competition
policy to promote women
participation in football
(especially for younger
categories), but realised this
did not yield sufficient results
in terms of women
participation. As a result the
federation developed a scheme
of schools for women’s football
across the national territory
(with some private
partnerships).
The scheme sets out minimal
Women only
17
Country/
Federation
Name of
scheme
Lead
Organisation
Sport
Brief description of scheme
Evidence on outputs/outcomes
Type(s)
criteria and a labelling system
(bronze to gold) to ensure
consistency and overall quality
across the country. All labels
include requirements on
training schemes for women
(proposing at least 5 certified
training schemes for women).
Germany
Mentoring
for female
coaches
German
Gymnastics
Federation
(Deutscher
Turner-bund)
Gymn-
astics
Mentoring scheme for female
coaches.
Mentoring
Germany
Training
course for
female
coaches
The
Thüringer
Cycling
Association
(Thüringer
Radsportverb
and)
Cycling
The Thüringer Cycling
Association offers a one-day
training for coaches who want
to learn about racing and track
training. There are eight
training units.
Women-only
Germany
Publication
of number
of licenses
by gender
The German
Rowing
Federation
(Deutscher
Ruderverban
d E.V.)
Rowing
The German Rowing
Federation publishes the
number of licenses (at all
levels) that have been
achieved by both men and
women.
Marketing
Hungary
UEFA Coach
developme
nt project
Hungarian
Football
Federation
(MLSZ)
Football
The Hungarian Football
Federation launched its first
women-only UEFA B course in
April 2016, with the support of
UEFA. Following a preliminary
selection process, a total of 16
candidates were offered UEFA
scholarships.
Women only
Ireland
Female-
only
strength &
conditionin
g course
Republic of
Ireland
Football
association
Football
One day woman only course
on introductory level coaching
of strength & conditioning for
female players.
Women only
Ireland
FREE LEVEL
1 Coach
Education
Programme
for Women
Irish Athletic
Boxing
Association
(IABA)
Boxing
Aims to provide female
membership with the skills and
confidence to coach in their
boxing clubs.
Women only
18
Country/
Federation
Name of
scheme
Lead
Organisation
Sport
Brief description of scheme
Evidence on outputs/outcomes
Type(s)
Norway
Women
only
courses
Norway
Football
Association
Football
The Norwegian FA has
supported a range of top level
clubs to deliver women-only
courses for aspiring coaches.
Women only
Malta
Coaching
Young
Footballers
scholarship
for women
Malta
Women's
Football
Association
(Maltese FA)
Football
The Maltese FA created
scholarships for women to
participate in the Coaching
Young Footballers (CYF)
training.
Successful participants were
informed that the Maltese FA
wanted them to be positive
role models and actively assist
and promote the development
of women’s football in Malta.
The new coaches committed to
delivering football to girls in
affiliated clubs for two years,
and to undertaking the
national C licence course
within that time.
Scholarships
Nether-
lands
Recognising
and
preventing
sexual
intimidation
(Herkennen
en
voorkomen
van
seksuele
intimidatie)
Academy in
the
framework of
Sports
(Academie
voor
Sportkader)
General
A one-day module focusing on
ways in which trainers can
prevent and deal with sexual
intimidation of all forms. It
discusses the consequences of
sexual intimidation as well as
the formal rules currently put
in place by the Dutch Olympic
Committee/Sports Federation.
Modules
Nether-
lands
Tailored
entry
require-
ments
Dutch Boxing
Federation
(Nederlands
Boksbond)
Boxing
In order to be admitted into
the Assistant trainer/coach
(KSS2) course, participants
must pass a shuttle test. Men
need to run the shuttle test
with a faster pace than
women.
Accessibility
Spain
N/A various
scholarship
s and
grants
Real
Federación
Española de
Fútbol (RFEF)
Football
Courses run at territorial and
national level to promote
inclusion of female football
coaches and referees.
Also funding for female
athletes and coaches to attend
national championships.
Accessibility
Spain
Training
academy
for female
football
coaches
Real
Federación
Española de
Fútbol (RFEF)
Football
Partnership between AFEN
coaches training school and
AR10 (an organisation for
women's football development
by player/coach Ana Rossell)
to create an training academy
Scholarships
19
Country/
Federation
Name of
scheme
Lead
Organisation
Sport
Brief description of scheme
Evidence on outputs/outcomes
Type(s)
for female coaches.
Spain
Seminario
Mujer
Entrenador
a:
Organizació
n y
Visibilidad’
(Seminar
on Women
Coaches:
Organisatio
n and
Visibility)
Asociación
Española de
Entrenadores
de
Baloncesto
(AEEB)
(Basketball
Coaches
Association)
La
Federación
Española de
Baloncesto
(Spanish
Basketball
Federation)
Basket-ball
A one off seminar in December
2015 that focused on female
coaches ‘Mujer Entrenadora:
Organización y Visibilidad’
(Woman Coaches:
Organisation and Visibility). As
part of this focus the AEEB is
gathering information about
the experience of female
coaches in Spanish basketball.
Other
UK
Women in
Coaching
Scottish
Hockey
Hockey
The programme was
developed from research
conducted with hockey
coaches and is designed to
promote coaching as a role for
women in hockey
Women only
UK
Women in
Coaching
England
Athletics
Athletics
The programme aims is to help
empower and mentor women
to start on the coaching
pathway. Through case studies
and video profiles of a number
of female coaches, England
Athletics show how local
women in local clubs become
involved in coaching, what
support was given and how
they juggle family
commitments and work life.
Role models
UK
Women in
Coaching
Bursary
scheme
England
Athletics
Athletics
50% funding towards a
coaching qualification.
Scholarships
UK
Project 500
Sport Coach
UK
Various
Project 500 aimed to recruit
develop and/or deploy 500
female coaches across the
seven South East counties
between April 2013 and March
2015. The project involves
more informal learning
opportunities including
networking and workshop
events as well as financial
support to attend courses.
Progression
20
Country/
Federation
Name of
scheme
Lead
Organisation
Sport
Brief description of scheme
Evidence on outputs/outcomes
Type(s)
UK
Ignite -
mentoring
programme
for women
coaches
British
Cycling
Cycling
Experienced coaches provide
tailored support to female
cycling coaches who may just
be starting out in their career
or feel that they would benefit
from expert guidance.
Mentoring
UK
She Rallies
Lawn Tennis
association
Tennis
She Rallies is designed for
women, to deliver tennis
coaching sessions to girls of
different age groups. The
founder is Judy Murray who is
the former captain of the GB
Fed Cup team, and has been a
tennis coach for over 20 years
and is well known as the
mother of world number 1 -
Andy Murray.
Women only
UK
Women in
Coaching
Scottish
Hockey
Hockey
The programme was
developed from research
conducted with hockey
coaches and is designed to
promote coaching as a role for
women in hockey.
Women only
UK
Scholarship
for female
coaches
Table Tennis
England
Table
Tennis
10 women-only scholarships to
address a shortage of female
table tennis coaches and
promote more women in
coaching in the sport. Provides
grants for up to 50% of the
cost of a Level 1 or Level 2
coaching courses.
Scholarships
UK
Girls4Gold
is a
leadership
award for
girls
England
Handball
Handball
Girls4Gold is a leadership
award for girls aged 14+ who
want to deliver handball
sessions for women and girls.
Women only
UK
This Girl
Can Coach
Professional
Golfers
Association
(PGA)
Golf
This is a unique PGA course
run by women, for women.
Women only
3.5 Summary
As shown in the table above, the mapping review stage of the research identified 36
coaching education programmes with a gender element. The table below summarises
how the programmes can be categorised according to the typology set out in section 3.2,
based on the main gender-specific aspect of the programme. In practice, some schemes
had more than one of the gender-specific dimensions defined in the typology. Some of
the women-only programmes, for example, also contained mentoring elements while
21
others included elements designed to promote accessibility such as the use of women
trainers. Of the programmes identified, 12 were categorised as a women-only
programme, five as scholarships, four as modules and four as accessibility.
Table 3.2 Summary of programme types
Category
Number
Accessibility
3
Marketing
1
Mentoring
3
Modules
3
Progression
2
Quota
2
Role models
2
Scholarships
5
Women only
13
Other
2
The mapping review has revealed very few examples of programmes which explicitly
seek to provide more accessible education activities for women such as programmes
which are more convenient for women to attend. One possible explanation might be that
public websites do not include explicit information on particular aspects such as
timetables which are designed to meet the needs of those with children or availability of
childcare facilities (for example). Another means of promoting the accessibility of
programmes to women however is by involving women role models in both the
marketing and the delivery of the programmes. The review has revealed that the use of
role of models might be a more common way of improving accessibility.
It has also been difficult to identify coaching education programmes with training
elements/educational modules on gender equality. Again this level of detail might be
lacking on public websites. However it may reflect the limitations of the research
approach which necessarily had to rely on a ‘top down’ process by focusing on the
programmes of national federations rather than systematically reviewing all programmes
taken forward by sport agencies and education and training providers at regional and
local levels. A more resource intensive research exercise would be required to probe
more deeply on the accessibility and gender equality elements of modules within all
coaching education programmes (for example through in-depth interviews with
participants or those wishing to participate in coaching education schemes).
22
4.0 Case studies
4.1 Introduction
This section presents the detailed case studies selected from the gender-related
programmes identified through the mapping review.
4.2 Case study selection
At the inception stage it was agreed that the selection of case studies should be driven
by the availability of useful information and evidence maximising the opportunity for
transferability of good practice lessons across member states. A key consideration in the
selection of cases was therefore the need to include a range of different types of
coaching education schemes with gender elements. The focus of the case studies
therefore reflects the range of different types of programmes identified through the
review, with reference to the typology presented in section three.
In selecting the case studies, it was also important to cover examples from various
country contexts across Europe. A very general distinction can be made between
‘Northern and Western Europe’ (FI, SE, DK, NL, BE, LU, FR, UK, IE, DE, AT), ‘South and
South-Eastern Europe’ (CY, EL, ES, IT, MT, PT, HR, SI) and ‘Central and Eastern Europe’
(EE, LT, LV, PL, CZ, SK, HU, BG, RO). A mix of examples from across these three regions
was therefore selected to satisfy this purpose.
The case studies are presented below.
4.3 Coach Development for Women (Estonia)
Programme summary
Scheme name
Coach Development for Women
Focus
To increase the number of women coaches, at all levels, in Estonia
Member State
Estonia
Lead organisation
Eesti Jalgpalli Liit – EJL in cooperation with UEFA
Sport(s)
Football
Delivery Period
2010 – 2016
Type of scheme
Women-only/Progression
Key
findings/lessons
Programme shows the benefits of addressing women’s
development at all levels of coaching (from grassroots to elite
level) through a comprehensive and well-funded programme.
Programme shows the benefits of having strong involvement
and commitment of high profile coaches.
Aims and approach
The Estonian Football Association (Eesti Jalgpalli Liit - EJL) is the governing body for
football in Estonia. Women’s football has grown throughout Europe and UEFA are
committed to progress women’s involvement in the sport. UEFA created the ‘UEFA
Women’s Football Development Programme (WFDP) in 2010 and has seen a growth in
women’s involvement in all areas of football
21
. EJL is working to increase the profile of
21
UEFA Women’s Football Development Programme, National Association Projects
23
the women’s game in Estonia, to increase participation and quality in women’s football.
One of the key objectives is to produce good players, which requires good coaches. With
financial support from UEFA’s WFDP, the number of qualified female coaches has
increased at all levels.
22
In 2013 only 10% of coaches were females, highlighting the gulf in the number of male
and female coaches
23
. In an attempt to reduce the discrepancy between genders, the EJL
established the Women’s coaching development programme. The programme is listed
under the WFDP, where Estonia is listed as a best practice, the main aims of the
programme in Estonia are as follows:
To increase the number of qualified female coaches at all levels (grassroots and
above).
To organise the first-ever all-female UEFA B licence course in Estonia.
To organise a C licence course for 15 current league players.
To organise two grassroots level courses for women primary school PE teachers.
To involve two former women’s A national team players in the Estonian national
women’s team programme as assistant coaches.
To involve national youth team assistant coaches at Estonian Football Association
(EFA) school projects as instructors for a girls’ football programme.
To involve club coaches at EFA school projects and educate them via school visits by
EFA instructor coaches.
To improve cooperation between clubs and the EFA through introduction meetings
between women’s A national team coaches, technical directors and club coaches.
To prepare clubs for a high-performing expert league via a licensing process.
24
The programme’s objectives encompass all levels of coaching from grassroots through to
elite-level coaching. The overall goal of the programme was to increase the number of
female coaches in Estonia, which in turn will increase the quantity and quality of female
players.
Outcomes and learning points
The coaching course, which targets women only, has achieved some notable outputs and
outcomes, as listed below:
1 new woman coach received a UEFA A licence;
14 women received UEFA B licences;
15 women received C licences (all current or former players);
145 female PE teachers were trained over three courses;
32 regional grassroots courses were delivered (lasting 16 hours);
Estonian women’s U19 assistant coach Kaidi Jekimova received her UEFA A licence;
Imbi Hoop and Maria Sootak were included as assistant coaches in the EFA national
women’s teams programme;
Three meetings between club representatives and women’s A national team coaches
were held, resulting in better cooperation between clubs and EFA staff;
The expert league licensing process was prepared.
25
22
http://www.uefa.org/football-development/womens-
football/programme/news/newsid=2449354.html
23
http://www.uefa.org/football-development/womens-
football/programme/news/newsid=1946485.html
24
UEFA Women’s Football Development Programme, National Association Projects
24
In addition to the above achievements, the educational programmes for women’s
football coaches, PE teachers and parents will be continued by the EFA via the club
licensing system, allowing clubs to concentrate more on technical support for women.
Additionally, a 148-page resource was produced for schools and teachers to support their
continued development of children after the coaching course.
26
The Women’s coach development programme has seen the rise of women in all coaching
areas, including two women completing the UEFA Pro licenced coach Katrin Kaarna and
Aleksandra Ševoldajeva. This shows that the programme benefits all levels of women’s
coaching, even at the highest level.
Some of the success relating to the rise of female coaches in Estonia can be attributed to
the involvement and commitment of high profile coaches from the ELJ. This includes at
the highest level, the National team coach (Keith Boanas) and his assistant coach (Katrin
Kaarna) taking active roles in raising the profile of coaching education opportunities for
women.
27
The coaching programme gained publicity and further momentum with Estonia’s u19
assistant coach and former international, Kaidi Jekimova gaining her UEFA A licence. She
also helped to involve other senior international players, Imbi Hoop and Maria Sootak in
the coaching programme.
28
Generating interest by using role models, who are already
involved in the coaching programme led to an increased demand for the course. It was
publicised that Kaidi involved her friends in the coaching course, due to her high profile
in the sport, however, it is likely that this also had an effect in terms of participation at
grassroots level.
In addition to the measured outcomes, the grassroots-level courses have given special
training to 145 women PE teachers at primary schools. Education material has been
made available to schools and teachers to support their continued development of
children after the coaching courses
29
. Targeting the next generation will ensure the
increased participation of women in football and will evidence that women can also
succeed at coaching.
There are aspects of the course that will continue to be developed and delivered
throughout Estonia, to increase female participation in football and in coaching. The
association's women's football education programmes will continue via the club licensing
system, which will enable clubs to give technical support to women
30
. This will allow for
greater gender equality in sports coaching as more women are involved in the sport at
all levels.
4.4 From Athletes to Coaches (Finland)
Programme summary
25
UEFA Women’s Football Development Programme, National Association Projects
26
UEFA Women’s Football Development Programme, National Association Projects
27
http://www.womenssoccerunited.com/boanas-receives-highest-honour/
28
http://www.uefa.org/football-development/womens-
football/programme/news/newsid=2449354.html
29
http://www.uefa.org/football-development/womens-
football/programme/news/newsid=2449354.html
30
http://www.uefa.org/football-development/womens-
football/programme/news/newsid=2449354.html
25
Scheme name
From Athletes to Coaches
Focus
Women-only coaching foundation courses
Member State
Finland
Lead organisation
Coaches Association of Finland
Sport(s)
Various (team sports mainly)
Delivery Period
2013-2018
Type of scheme
Women-only; role models
Key
findings/lessons
Programme shows the benefits of linking coaching education
actions and related empowerment and mentoring activities.
The role of a neutral sport coaching association was key to
engaging a wide range of sport federations and developing a
common foundation course for aspiring coaches.
Aims and approach
The key aim of the Finnish Coaches Association project ‘Women Taking Responsibility in
Coaching’ has been to increase the number of former female athletes continuing their
careers in sport as a coach and, through that, to increase the number of women in
coaching roles. The project was launched in 2013 and is scheduled to last until 2018.
The ‘Women Taking Responsibility in Coaching’ project involves a number of specific
actions, many of which have an educational element. The main coaching education
action is called ‘From Athletes to Coaches’. This provides coaching education
programmes for women only and to date has focused on a number of team sports.
The project responds to analysis that there are only a few female coaches at the top
level of coaching in Finland. This is the situation in the majority of sports in Finland but is
seen as a particular issue in team sports. The focus of the project is therefore team
sports such as ice hockey, football, basketball, ringette, volleyball, American football,
Finnish baseball and handball.
The programme is led by the Finnish Coaches Association which is the umbrella
organisation of coaches and coach networks for different sports in Finland. It is a not-
for-profit organisation, and it has around 4,100 members. The Finnish Coaches
Association is responsible for coordination with support provided by the following
partners: Finnish Professional Coaches Association, Finnish Sports Confederation,
Ministry of Education and Culture (funding and monitoring) and the sports federations of
the respective target sports.
The overall project’s specific objectives are:
To increase the willingness of former athletes to continue their career in sport as
coaches, through which the number of female coaches in team sport can be
increased.
Increase the willingness of former athletes to continue their sport career in positions
within sport clubs and national associations.
Support current female coaches in their careers.
To improve the capability of women transitioning into coaching, through mentoring
programmes.
Identifying the unique characteristics of female coaches and other features involved
in women’s activities within sport, utilise information provided by research as well as
gather more research on the phenomenon.
26
The ‘From Athletes to Coaches’ education programmes are generally half year
programmes of four weekends of contact time. The first group completed in 2016 and
the second group in June 2017. The first two programmes targeted women-only. In
2018 the course will be a mixed course while maintaining a minimum number of women
(probably six). Phase 1 of the overall women coaches programme is still ongoing in some
sports, as the sports have entered into the project at different times. This means that
initial national and regional meetings are still taking place and the coaching education
programmes have not yet started.
The programme has a strong focus on the transformation process from being an
athlete/player to becoming a coach in terms of using the knowledge gained from being a
player and turning that into coaching. There is a strong focus on particular coaching
philosophies and the general communication elements involved in coaching. The
programme works as foundation course in coaching that enables participants to decide
what type of coach they would like to become. It does not focus on a specific sport.
While the women taking part were selected through an open application process, a
general requirement for acceptance on the course is for participants to have played at
the highest level of their sport.
The cost of the education element (for each participant) is 980 Euros with the project
contributing 400 Euros towards the cost with funding from the Ministry of Education and
Culture. In most cases the federations or club contributed to the rest of the costs and
only in a few cases was the remaining part of the fee self-financed.
The ‘Athletes to Coaching’ educational elements complement other aspects of the wider
‘Women Taking Responsibility in Coaching’ project. As part of the wider programme each
sport has organised meetings (between one and three) involving former and active
female athletes and other women who have an interest in coaching. For each of the
respective sports up to 20 current and former athletes can attend the meetings. These
have included a mixture of women who were already coaching and some who were
considering coaching as a career. According to the project manager, some of the
participants in these meetings have gone on to take part in the coaching education
element. Generally the initial meetings were facilitated by a sport psychologist who puts
questions to the participants about what they have learned from their sporting career so
far and how this knowledge could potentially be applied in a coaching role. Through the
meetings and the particular conversations with the sport psychologist, former players
are able to identify specific areas of knowledge about coaching and build their confidence
regarding the possibility to pursue a coaching career.
Outcomes and learning points
Evaluation evidence is currently being collected on the ‘From Athletes to Coaching’ action
and a more detailed evaluation report on the outputs and outcomes of the project should
be available towards the end of 2017. Desk research and an interview with the project
manager provides some insight into the project’s achievements and success factors to
date.
Two groups have so far completed the ‘From the Athletes to Coaching’ educational
programmes. According to information provided by the project manager, 26 women
have completed the programme to date (16 in the first group and 10 in the second
group). The first group had participants from seven different sports and the second from
five different sports.
There is already clear evidence that women participants have moved on to the next level
of coaching education. Some of the participants took a bigger responsibility as a coach
as soon as they completed the programme. A small number of the those who completed
have gone on to take a position as head coach in the highest women’s national league of
their particular sport, while others have gone on to the next level of coach education to
gain a coaching qualification. Other participants decided that they did not want to be a
coach in a high level competitive environment and were content to focus on amateur
27
level sport. This could still be viewed as a positive outcome however as the programme
has allowed them to decide on their preferred route. Another decided that they would
prefer to focus on individual sports even though their playing career had been in team
sports.
The timing of the course sessions at the weekend was considered important as most of
the participants were working full-time and part-time in separate careers. For every
contact period (the weekends) one session involved an experienced coach sharing
experiences on their own progression as a coach. One of these coaches coached a male
football team so demonstrated how it was possible to coach in male sport. The benefits
of having a women-only environment was that the participants were able to share their
common experiences of female sport.
The programme has committed funding from the Ministry of Education until the end of
2017 however the Coaches Association of Finland is currently in discussions to secure
longer-term funding to extend the programme. Some sports are only starting to develop
actions and it is anticipated that demand to attend courses is ongoing but that the type
of holistic programming approach offered through ‘Women Taking Responsibility on
Coaching’ is necessary to support the development of women coaches in those sports. In
some sports the sustainability of the programmes has been guaranteed through ongoing
support from the individual sport federations as they have seen the benefits of the
programme.
One of the success factors of the project is the central role of the Finnish Coaches
Association (FCA) who are able to take a neutral role in developing the programme
actions. The FCA then works together with the individual sport federations to adapt the
general programme approach to meet the needs of the individual sports. The role of the
FCA also allows the different sports to share good practice in the implementation of the
actions. Some of the individual federations have been more proactive in developing the
actions beyond the project and providing additional funding. Other sport federations
require more support and time to develop the actions.
The research has also shown the benefits of having a coaching education element as part
of a wider package of support for women’s coach development and shown how synergies
can develop between the different elements. In developing tailored approaches to meet
the specific needs of women, the wider project has placed an important emphasis on
empowerment and the provision of networking opportunities for female coaches
alongside the provision of education programmes. The project manager highlighted the
potential for beneficiaries of the ‘From Athletes to Coaches’ element to link up with the
mentoring aspects of the wider project. For example in football the project has educated
one female mentor, who will support and mentor five female football coaches. According
to research for the SCORE project, the five mentees were selected through an
application process. All five coaches to be mentored have background as a top level
player and they are in different phases of their coaching career: from a beginner to a
head coach of a Finnish league team. Part of the mentoring process is to create an
individual development plan for each coach trainee, to help them to find their own
pathway in coaching.
31
4.5 Guidelines to prevent sexist behaviours for coaches and in training
schemes for coaches (France)
Programme summary
Scheme name
Guidelines to prevent sexist behaviours for coaches and in training
schemes for coaches
31
https://www.score-coaching.eu/additional-information
28
Focus
The guidelines seek to address gender biases and prejudices to
promote behavioural change at coaches and trainers’ levels (as well
as managers).
Member State
France
Lead organisation
Sport éducation mixités citoyenneté (SEMC): a resource center on
gender equality, education and citizenship. Developed and managed
by the ministry of sports
Sport(s)
All sports
Delivery Period
2014 - ongoing
Type of scheme
Modules
Key
findings/lessons
National sport agencies have an important role to play in the
long-term development and tracking of gender education
modules as these can apply across all sports.
Aims and approach
In France, the Ministry of sports and its agency Sport éducation mixités citoyenneté
(SEMC) developed general guidelines to prevent sexist behaviours in coaching that can
be applied in education courses for coaches. The agency is tasked with the development
on practical tools and actions on the ground and implements the ministry’s policies on
education, gender equality and citizenship. As such, the guidelines are both a reference
document and a tool to be used directly in training courses. Inspired by other guides
previously published by the Ministry of Sports, it provides the following information:
The main theoretical elements required to understand biases in (e.g. gender
sociology; the rationale behind integrated approaches for gender equality)
Quick thematic notes on practical topics around gender biases, such as the key dates
and the history of women participation in sports, identity construction and body
perception, or women/men expectations linked to sport),
Practical guidance to address gender biases as part of training schemes and courses.
In terms of practical guidance, the guidelines provide a set of toolkits or ‘fiches
d’animation’ (around 15) to set up and manage sessions aimed at deconstructing gender
biases. Each toolkit is composed of the following information:
Objectives and pre-requirements (if any);
Group size, duration of the session, required materials;
Preparation required;
Tips for the trainer/session manager;
Evaluation and reporting guidelines.
The sessions cover very different types of activities, ranging from physical exercises
(example of grappling sports) to workshops bridging perceptions of gender biases (e.g.
asking participants to identify pictures which are the best or worst match with their
representation of a female athlete and deconstructing the social norms behind those
choices). The toolkits allow to tackle a wide range of situations (with slight adaptations),
and can be used directly by trainers and/or trainers of trainers. The SEMC staff also
deliver courses every year to train other civil servants to make proficient use of the
different tools available. Participants usually come from the Ministry of Sports and its
agencies, but also from local authorities.
The main driver behind the development of the guidelines was to shift from corrective
measures and initiatives (for example women-only schemes) to actions tackling the
structural issues behind gender inequality in sports and developing educational activities
29
to make a lasting impact and drive behavioural change. This meant targeting the key
‘influencers’ across the sport world, based on their responsibilities and their role in
transmitting messages values across sport practitioners. As such, the guidelines are
chiefly addressed to managers, trainers, and trainers of trainers.
It should be noted that the work on the guidelines took place as part of a broader
political context in the country, where gender equality became a key priority for the
Ministry of Sports as part of the third generation of the overarching gender equality
policy (“politique de l’égalité entre les femmes et les hommes”). Several actions were
then undertaken in the field of sports, including the obligation for all sport federations to
adopt a feminisation action plan (2014-2017). This indeed became one of the conditions
that sport federations have to meet in order to obtain State subsidies. They have to
provide an annual update to report on the results obtained and the actions planned for
the following year.
In this context, the guidelines were developed progressively and built on the experience
stemming from other actions and schemes implemented by SEMC, such as:
thematic notes on the history of women in sport; guidance on sport and maternity;
guidelines for federation managers;
training schemes for administrators and managers in the field of sport to better
address gender inequalities.
These previous experiences were complemented by additional research to give additional
depth to the more theoretical components of the guidelines. The different tools
developed have all been tested and are reviewed at frequent intervals.
Outcomes and learning points
The initiative is ongoing and the guidelines are regularly augmented and reviewed
through user feedback. They can also be adapted to specific audiences and publics, and
new content for specific sessions is integrated over time. While no formal evaluation is
carried out, these frequent ideations allow the SEMC staff to identify any issues or areas
for improvement.
At this stage several key outcomes and success factors can be identified:
Students (in sports management curricula) are trained by the SEMC staff and can
then act as relays and agents of change within the different structures they work in.
This has allowed SEMC’s work on gender equality (including but not limited to the
guidelines) to spill over across the territory in spite of relatively limited human
resources.
A key success factor of the programme is that it focuses on shifting perspectives.
Gender equality should not be perceived as a constraint (imposing more women in
coaches and managerial roles) but rather as an opportunity to rethink governance
and management structures through new perspectives and approaches.
Working in a State agency allows working on the initiative on the long run and
enabled setting up the framework conditions (and background research) required to
go through the step-by-step approach of the guidelines.
Participants to the training courses organised by SEMC often become ambassadors of
the tools developed. They notably contribute to spreading the word and raising
awareness, as well as updating or augmenting the quality of the guidelines & tools.
The guidelines are the most downloaded item on the SEMC website (more than 6,000
downloads).
However, more needs to be done to ensure the guidelines fulfil their objective of
achieving lasting behavioural change. This integrated approach to gender equality needs
to be measured over the long run, and the initiative is still too recent to be evaluated
adequately. It should be noted that methodologies to assess the impact of change
30
management are not widely used and most of the evaluations dealing with gender
equality schemes in France tend to focus on quantitative impacts, which do not fully
account for the key objectives pursued by SEMC here. Another structural challenge for
this scheme – and more broadly for many training schemes in sports – is that
participation in training courses is not very widespread. In the sports sector, the few
days available for career development are often used for training schemes focusing on
issues linked to professional sports.
It also serves as a basis for future policy developments and complementary initiatives
promoting an integrated approach towards gender equality. Thanks to the experience
gained through the development of the guidelines, several additional fields of work have
been identified by the SEMC, including new guidelines dealing with representation of
sportswomen across media to provide:
Media training for sportswomen to work as role models and train their
communication skills.
Advice on ‘bias-free’ marketing & communication strategies
Training and practical tools to avoid gender biases (including guidance on
communication material & visibility tips).
4.6 UEFA Coach Development Project for Women (Hungary)
Programme summary
Scheme name
UEFA Coach Development Project for Women
Focus
The use of a scholarship scheme to support women coaching
education.
Member State
Hungary
Lead organisation
Hungary Football Association
Sport(s)
Football
Delivery Period
2014 - ongoing
Type of scheme
Scholarship
Key
findings/lessons
The programme shows the possibilities for European federations
to support coach development for women in partnership with
national federations who commit to providing coaching
opportunities for participants after the education scheme comes
to an end.
Scholarships can help women to progress to higher
qualifications who would not have considered a career in
coaching without the funding.
Aims and approach
In recent years, there has been a strong growth in women’s football across Europe
including the numbers of girls playing the game. Research commissioned by UEFA shows
however that the number of female UEFA-licensed coaches – and consequently, the
number of role models for girls playing football – remains low. The coaching of women’s
football continues to be dominated by male coaches, as around 80% of coaches are
male.
32
The growth of the women’s game and participation suggest that there is more potential
for women to develop as national coaches however UEFA recognises that women still
32
UEFA (2016) Women’s Football Across the Associations.
31
face barriers in progressing from age level coaching to professional club coaching or
national teams.
In response to clear evidence on the low numbers of women coaches in football, UEFA
has developed specific actions to increase the number of women progressing to the
highest levels of coaching. The main aim of the UEFA Coach Development Project for
Women is to increase the number of qualified female coaches, as well as increasing the
number of club and national teams that are coached by women. UEFA created the Coach
Development Project in order to support women wanting to pursue a career in high-level
coaching or wanting to further educate themselves while working / volunteering as
football coaches in schools, local clubs and teams.
The programme guidelines provide possibilities for all member associations of UEFA to
provide tailored support for the progression of female coaches. The support provided for
coaches therefore includes the following elements
33
:
A. A scholarship scheme for UEFA A and Pro diploma coaches
B. UEFA C and B diploma courses
C. Workshops
This case study focuses on how the scholarship scheme is being used to support women
coaches. The scholarships target women who already display strong potential to develop
as high performance coaches: to be eligible for a scholarship, a coach must
34
:
have the required licence (e.g. a UEFA B licence when applying for a UEFA A diploma
scholarship, and a UEFA A licence when applying for a UEFA Pro diploma
scholarship);
have the required coaching experience (i.e. at least one year’s coaching experience
as a UEFA B licence holder when applying for a UEFA A diploma course, and at least
one year’s coaching experience as a UEFA A licence holder when applying for a UEFA
Pro diploma course);
sign an agreement with UEFA whereby she pledges to complete the relevant coaching
course and coach for at least one full season as a UEFA A/Pro licence holder.
To put a coach forward for a scholarship, a national association must:
send UEFA a completed application form (using the UEFA Coach Development Project
for Women UEFA A – Pro diploma scholarship application form);
sign an agreement with UEFA whereby the association pledges to find a suitable
coaching position for the coach if she does not have one on receipt of her diploma.
One option could be to add her to the coaching staff of one of its national teams (at
either youth or senior level) for at least one year.
UEFA review all applications and grant scholarships are provided to the most promising
coaches. The amount awarded depends on the course fees in the relevant country, with
a maximum of 90% of course fees or €12,000.
Outcomes and learning points
Detailed evidence on the impact of the courses is not yet available; however UEFA has
already collected some feedback from participants and evidence has been published on
the Macedonian and Hungarian scholarship programmes. Information and evidence is
available on the support provided by UEFA to the Hungarian Football Federation (MLSZ)
who launched its first women-only UEFA B course in April 2016. Following a preliminary
selection process, a total of 16 candidates were offered UEFA scholarships for a women-
only course. The course was held in several locations, including Budapest, Bukk, Telki,
33
UEFA Coach development Project for Women Guidelines 2016-17
34
UEFA Coach development Project for Women Guidelines 2016-17
32
Felcsut and Dabas. The participants took their final exams at the beginning of November
2016 and all graduated.
35
The report by UEFA provides qualitative evidence that the scholarship helped women to
progress to UEFA B qualifications who would not have considered a career in coaching
without the funding. The leader of the programme at the MLSZ provided the following
comments on the benefits of having a women-only UEFA B course, as opposed to a
mixed course:
“During the training, it became quite clear that a women-only course format had
many advantages that significantly increased the efficiency of the education
process. Those advantages included greater openness, self-confidence and
enthusiasm, and better sociability and support levels in the working group
sessions. Based on our previous experiences, these features were less present in
mixed-gender courses.”
36
One of the participants shared her views on the benefits of having women-only training:
“It was a nice opportunity to learn among women. We could make mistakes
without being frustrated. The participants were tolerant and understanding with
each other and we could ‘spread our wings’ bravely. I don’t know if we could have
done it in the same way with male participants. And as we also had a female
UEFA instructor, we felt we were more understood and safe.”
37
Further support was provided by UEFA as UEFA technical instructor Monika Staab ran
some of the sessions, offering expertise throughout the course as well as taking part in
the practical assessment at the end, as part of the examination board. The inclusion of a
women coach who also performs a mentoring and support role is seen as crucial in
boosting confidence and pushing the participants a bit more “to show what they can do”
(interviewee) One of the participants commented:
“(the mentor’s) presence, expertise and passion lifted the level of the course. She
proved how dedicated UEFA is about women’s football….it meant a great deal to
the candidates to be able to exchange with an instructor from a recognised, high-
level football culture.”
38
According to the mentor, herself:
“The UEFA B diploma coaching course in Hungary was again a great experience.
It was gratifying to see the participants’ coaching improvements throughout the
course. Driven by their passion and commitment, they learned fast and grew
strongly as a team. The aspiring female coaches needed to feel secure to be
allowed to make mistakes, as most of them do not have the same experience and
selfconfidence as many male coaches. And in that respect, having a female
instructor and being among fellow women students was undoubtedly beneficial.”
39
According to one of the trainees:
“When I applied, I thought that it would be an opportunity for me to learn about
football, as I have loved the game for the past 15 years. All the participants soon
became a real team and learned a great deal from each other. Our self confidence
increased day by day because of our instructors’ positive attitudes and
encouraging words – that meant a lot to us!”
40
35
UEFA Direct No. 165 (March 2017)
36
UEFA Direct No. 165 (March 2017)
37
UEFA Direct No. 165 (March 2017)
38
UEFA Direct No. 165 (March 2017)
39
UEFA Direct No. 165 (March 2017)
40
UEFA Direct No. 165 (March 2017)
33
The evidence from Hungary suggests that the UEFA’s coach development project for
women has already started to generate some positive outcomes for women. According to
the Hungarian FA, the number of female coaches has increased as a direct result of the
scheme. The Hungarian FA value in particular the scheme’s focus on sustainability and
the requirement that the newly qualified coaches are given a coaching role afterwards, in
order to put their education into practice and help their progression.
41
UEFA emphasis
that this it is important that national associations provide coaching opportunities for
participants after the education scheme comes to an end.
4.7 Free Level 1 Boxing Coaching Course for Women (Ireland)
Programme summary
Scheme name
Free IABA Level 1 Coaching Course for Women
Focus
To provide women with a level one coaching certificate in boxing
Member State
Ireland
Lead organisation
Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA)
Sport(s)
Boxing
Delivery Period
24/09/2016 – 10/12/2016
Type of scheme
Women-only
Key findings
Part of the programme’s success can be attributed to effective
targeting of the national federation (by focusing on women
most likely to be interested in participating in a Level 1
coaching course).
Aims and approach
The Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA) is the national governing body for amateur
boxing in Ireland. Its main role is to develop, foster and control amateur boxing in the
32 counties of Ireland. IABA is committed to providing the environment, in which
support and opportunities are given to athletes, coaches and clubs and in doing so, to
increase participation in and improve Irish boxing.
42
It is well known that women’s boxing lags behind men’s boxing in many areas, including
participation (250 male boxers competed at the Rio Olympics, in comparison to 36
women
43
), coaching, training, facilities, etc. The IABA and the women only coaching
course, aims to address inequality in participation and coaching through gender-specific
provision.
The main objective of the programme was to increase the number of female coaches and
raise awareness for female boxing. Raising awareness of gender equality in sport is often
required, however in such a male dominated sport as boxing this is even more so the
case, as female coaches often face prejudice regarding their ability to progress as
coaches.
The IABA Level 1 coaching course usually costs 100 Euros and lasts 1 day. Under this
programme, the free Level 1 coaching scheme was available for 60 women initially,
located in three areas in the province of Leinster, Ireland (Dublin, Kilkenny and
Wexford). A fourth programme was added in response to demand and ran in Drogheda
in December for 35 female participants who were on the waiting list.
41
UEFA Direct No. 165 (March 2017)
42
http://iaba.ie/about/
43
http://www.irish-boxing.com/its-beyond-a-joke-irish-women-boxers/
34
The programme had a range of specific objectives including:
Allow women to gain professional coaching qualifications without any prejudice or
misconceptions during their training course.
Raise Awareness – increase the popularity of women’s and girl’s boxing and coaching
throughout Ireland.
Increase participation in female boxing – by promoting the sport and generating
additional awareness, it is likely that the number of females in the sport will increase.
Change attitudes towards female boxing – in a traditionally male dominated sport, a
coaching certificate can allow women to have a recognised qualification and show the
success of their endeavours, reducing any predispositions or stereotypes.
To give women the confidence to coach – the mentoring at the event and the
qualifications gained can only raise confidence levels in individual coaches and female
boxing as a sport, the course will also ensure they have the required skillset to
successfully coach.
After the programme finished a seminar was held for for women participants,
incorporating, leadership, skills, training, mental health, personal skills and the
requirements of a good coach and positive role model. This helped summarise the course
and provide further encouragement for the women participants to start coaching in their
clubs.
The women only environment was designed to allow the participants to feel comfortable
and confident. It allowed the participants to feel secure in their surroundings, asking a
variety of questions dependent on experience.
The course was marketed using club and county newsletters, Facebook posts and radio
interviews with members of IABA. The main target market was females with affiliations
to a boxing club. It is though that targeting warm contacts led to the course being fully
booked within three days. The IABA was inundated with requests for the course from
around Ireland. Based on the excessive demand for the course, future female only
training programmes are being planned.
The participants were awarded a t-shirt for attending the course, this allowed the group
of women to bond together and bring a sense of pride in their involvement in the course.
When the newly qualified coaches wear their t-shirts whilst around those in the boxing
trade, it is though that this will help to add legitimacy to their coaching status, whilst
also promoting the course to other women.
Outcomes and learning points
The free IABA Level 1 coaching course for women proved to be highly popular with all
courses being booked out within three days, with record numbers of women applying for
the course. The applicants came from over 50 clubs throughout Ireland for the first ever
IABA Female Coach Education Programme
44
.
The programme can attribute some of the success to the IABA effectively targeting
female members of the boxing community, who were most likely to be interested in
participating in the Level 1 coaching course.
To promote the courses further, World Number 4 ranked welterweight Kelly Harrington
(from Ireland) endorsed the campaign and attended the launch event in Dublin. This
level of demand has resulted in the IABA preparing to undertake a further female only,
Level 1 boxing course.
After completing the one-day course, the newly qualified coaches are required to
complete one year of coaching and a final assessment in order for them to progress to
the Level 2 coaching course. As a result, no actions have been taken to prepare a female
44
https://iaba.ie/free-iaba-level-1-coaching-course-women/
35
only Level 2 coaching course, this will be reviewed closer to the assessment date for the
Level 1 coaches.
Moreover as the women who attended the course have a genuine passion for (women’s)
boxing, a large amount have taken up coaching. One participant who attended the
course stated,
“Since doing the course, my role as a coach has taken on a new level. My
confidence in teaching has really improved. I feel like I am making a positive
difference in our boxer’s life and also in our club. I would like to progress with my
coaching career.”
This shows the positive effect of the programme on the individual, the club and the
sport. A wide range of applicants are already in contact with the IABA regarding the
Level 2 coaching course.
The course encourages the newly qualified coaches to give back to the community and
the club through teaching beginners. The course gave attendees the confidence in their
coaching abilities, whilst teaching new techniques and different ways of teaching both
junior and senior boxers. This allows the coaches to evidence their newly acquired skills
to members of the community, promoting gender equality and showing other women of
the opportunities available.
The IABA created an online network (group conversation), between the women attending
the course and the main contact at the IABA. This allows all the women to stay in
contact with each other and keep up to date with the latest information in the boxing
and coaching community. The group discussion also acts as a forum where the coaches
are able to share coaching experiences and best practices. This is seen as vital in
ensuring the programme has a lasting effect, by allowing participants access to a larger
group of female coaches and being able to share valuable information on how to
overcome difficult situations.
Most recently, the details of a national boxing event were shared through the group,
resulting in the younger generation of (female) boxers attending the event with the
newly appointed female coaches, promoting female participation within the sport. With
more boxing events being organised in the subsequent moths, it is anticipated that
female participation will continue to increase, with the network of new coaches and their
group discussion being pivotal to the rise in female participation and gender equality in
boxing, in Ireland. The IABA is hopeful that discussions will continue and that
engagement in boxing events will last.
As a result of the success of the training course, the IABA is looking to run further
rounds of female only Level 1 training courses. It is anticipated that the course will again
be free, however the attendees will have to pay for the final assessment.
For the project to be successful, it was essential that there was a good flow of
communication from the IABA and that messages were distributed quickly. The IABA
relied on a few key contacts within organisations to pass on information and promote the
course to others. This allows the message of the success of the course to be spread
throughout Irish boxing organisations. It is hoped that this will continue and that the
success of the project will be shared throughout Ireland and increase the awareness of
female boxing coaches and the role that they have in the future of the sport.
4.8 Coaching Young Footballers Course Scholarship for Female Coaches
(Malta)
Programme summary
Scheme name
Coaching Young Footballers Course Scholarship for Female Coaches
36
(Women’s Football)
Focus
The use of scholarships and grassroots opportunities to increase
engagement of women coaches
Member State
Malta
Lead organisation
Malta Football Association
Sport(s)
Football
Delivery Period
2015 – ongoing
Type of scheme
Scholarship
Key findings
The programme shows the benefits of engaging women coaches
in grassroots and youth football, as the first step on the
coaching progression path.
Scholarships can encourage women to participate who
otherwise would not have taken part.
Aims and approach
Coaching initiatives targeted at engaging more women in coaching in Malta take the
form of scholarships for women to participate in coach education programmes provided
by the MFA Technical Centre’s Education Department. These scholarships are funded
through the Women’s Football
45
section of the Maltese Football Association. Successful
participants were informed that the Maltese FA wanted them to be positive role models
and actively assist and promote the development of women’s football in Malta. The new
coaches committed to delivering football to girls in affiliated clubs for two years, and to
undertaking the national C licence course within that time.
The development of girls’ youth leagues emphasised the need for female coaches and
role models for girl teams. Getting more women involved in coaching was seen as key to
getting and retaining girls to participate in regular football at a young age. The objective
of the Coaching Young Footballers (CYF) Course Scholarship for Female Coaches
(Women’s Football) scheme, which started in 2015, is ‘to increase the number of skilled
female coaches in women’s football’. CYF training is delivered by the MFA’s Technical
Centre as part of its coach education programme. The scheme pays the 160 Euro course
participation fee for successful female applicants. The CYF scholarship programme was
piloted in early 2015. Upon applying scholarship applications are reviewed and
candidates are interviewed at the MFA Technical Centre’s Education Department and
Women’s Sector, which sits with the Grassroots Department.
CYF is an entry level coaching education programme aimed at the fundamental stage of
player development, the first stage of the MFA’s long-term player development process,
which is followed by UEFA C, UEFA B, UEFA A, UEFA A ELITE and UEFA PRO licences.
46
To
be eligible for a scholarship a female applicant must be working for or part of an MFA
affiliated club, actively involved in women’s football, willing to pass along knowledge and
work to contribute to the development in of women’s football in Malta, and preferably,
be able to demonstrate her practical experience as a coach. CYF course covers basic
principles of football coaching and technical instruction. CYF specifically covers how
training for girls differs from that for boys.
After participating in CYF coaches are required to coach girls grassroots MFA member
teams for a period of two years. If a coach who received a scholarship quits coaching
before the two year period she will be required to pay back the value of the scholarship
in full to the MFA.
45
http://www.mfa.com.mt/en/the-mfa/themfa/13/womens-football.htm
46
MFA Coach Education Courses http://www.mfa.com.mt/en/technical-
centre/technical/10/courses-held-within-the-period-2017-2018-and-2020-2021.htm
37
Outcomes and learning points
There is no formal reporting of the CYF scholarship participation or outcomes. However,
according to an interview with the director of MFA Women’s the initial CYF scholarships
granted in 2015 scholarships primarily targeted ex-national team players. 17 female
coaches received scholarships and participated in CYF training in 2015. As of June 2017
only six or seven of these participants remain as coaches for MFA member teams.
Following the launch of the CYF scholarships in 2015 the MFA realised that they needed
to source more potential coaches from outside of its network. This led to the MFA to put
out an open call for scholarship applicants beyond former Malta players. However, this
expanded recruitment of coaching applicants occurs in tandem with efforts to provide
coaching training to top players and under-17 female players to prepare them to coach
at the club level.
Feedback from a CYF scholarship participant described an increased responsibility in
coaching following the CYF training. This participant was a former national women’s
team player who had been an assistant coach prior at the club level to her CYF training.
Before CYF training she said she did “easier things…I’d just assist the coach.” She now
coaches a club team herself and says “now I have more responsibilities, I have to plan
sessions...adjust the sessions according to the level.” She described leading a team as a
coach as “more challenging” but felt prepared from the CYF training, which she described
as “an advantage.” She also described the differences between participating in football
as a coach as opposed to a player, “I have some experience because I played football,
but when it comes to coaching it’s different than being a player. [CYF training] helped
me a lot.”
Both female coaches interviewed were keen to pursue training of their own initiative, yet
both were clear that a scholarship helped them to actually participate in the training.
“I don’t think I would have been able to do it in 2016. I think if I’d applied
without the scholarship I wouldn’t have been able to do it. I would have waited.”
Regarding CYF course design one coach fed back that while the topics covered in the CYF
training were useful the addition of practical application through training with actual
players would have been useful.
“In the course it was only the tutors and the coaches [no
children/players]…During the course it would be useful to add more practical
elements rather than writing. With the practical you’ll learn more than writing.”
Interviewees were vocal about broader challenges to women’s football and women’s
coaching in Malta. Challenges to women’s football described included the perception by
Maltese parents that football is a sport for boys, not girls. One coach reported that some
parents don’t necessarily see her as a good coach, “because I’m a girl they say that boys
are better, even in coaching. But I do the design, I do the coaching. There are other
parents that are okay that I’m a female coach.” This coach said that formal certification
granted through CYF helped her know how to respond to parents in these situations.
The interviews also highlighted that opportunities in coaching education address only one
aspect of their needs with regard to coaching development. Another challenge
articulated by the interviewees was time for women to participate in coaching. This
challenge was twofold: first, the women were balancing other responsibilities such as
familial and childcare obligations; second, the funding for female coaches and coaching
of girls teams in Malta is minimal. All coaching staff are part-time and only receive
expense reimbursement, not a salary. One coach stated,
“When women have to do other activities, like work, they don’t participate. They
[the MFA] have to improve in this. I think they need to do something like for the
men’s team they have full time jobs like professional coaches and physical
trainers. They have to set up a team like this so they can get more girls into
football…male coaches have with fulltime jobs with fulltime salaries.”
38
Outside funding and support is a clear lifeline to promoting women’s coaching in Malta.
The Women’s Football director stated that UEFA provides approximately 100,000 Euros
per year to women’s football in Malta. In addition FIFA and Adidas sponsor equipment.
UEFA’s campaign ‘Together #weplaystrong’ is also a helpful driving force.
47
Some short interviews with participating coaches completed for this research provide
some insights into the programme benefits. More formalised and consistent data and
reporting on scholarship recipients would however be useful in tracking the development
of MFA female coaching schemes.
One interviewed coach had completed both the CYF and UEFA C licence before 2015 and
was now planning to participate in the UEFA B licence training as a scholarship recipient.
While this scholarship lays slightly outside the CYF scholarship initiative it is similarly
administered and indicates progression for coaches in the MFA programme. It is also in
line with goals for the MFA Women’s Football section articulated during interviews.
In addition to plans to expand the women’s coaching participants and the types of
training, there are also ongoing professional development mechanisms in place for those
who have participated in CYF scholarships. This includes continuing professional
development workshops (five of which have taken place to date), attendance at
international FIFA and UEFA seminars, and visits from international pro coaches such as
Monika Staab.
Promotion of female coaches in Malta is one of the top three priority areas for MFA
Women’s Football to develop going forward
48
. In addition to widening the scholarship
scheme to include UEFA C and B licences, the MFA Women’s Section is also planning to
form a league of former female players over 35. This would have two objectives: 1) to
get former players back to have fun and play themselves; and 2) to get these former
players to help with their local clubs as coaches. The dual approach of player and coach
development is central to driving female coach development in Malta. The momentum
created within Maltese Women’s Football through linking coaching and player
development through initiatives like the CYF scholarship scheme was summarised by one
interviewed coach:
“There are a lot more girls participating in football so I think in the future there will be
more female coaches. I think it’s a big accomplishment that more girls are playing
football. That’s exciting. If more girls play football they will like it and they will want
to be more involved, like a coach.”
4.9 Recognising and preventing sexual intimidation module (The
Netherlands)
Programme summary
Scheme name
Recognising and preventing sexual intimidation (Herkennen en
voorkomen van seksuele intimidatie)
Focus
A one-day module focusing on ways in which male and female
coaches can prevent and deal with sexual intimidation of all forms
Member State
Netherlands
47
http://www.uefa.com/womenschampionsleague/news/newsid=2474339.html
48
Top three areas for development by the MFA’s Women’s Section are: 1) Promote and facilitate
the organisation of more clubs for women to continue female participation in football into adult
years; 2) Improve opportunities for girls playing (targeting ages seven to ten); and 3) Improve
coaching for women.
39
Lead organisation
Academy in the Framework of Sports (Academie voor Sportkader)
Sport(s)
All
Delivery Period
Ongoing
Type of scheme
Training module
Key findings
Module contributes to the creation of a safe working
environment for all coaches and athletes.
After an initial evaluation, the module has been developed to
encompass a range of misbehaviours, including sexual
intimidation, but also including forms of bullying (both physical
and psychological).
Aims and approach
The Academy in the Framework of Sports (Academie voor Sportkader) is part of the
sports development unit of the Dutch Olympic Committee (NOC*NSF). Originally
introduced in 2006 by and for the various sports federations across the Netherlands, it
supports the professionalisation of sports across the country through the development
and training of qualified and skilled staff. They thus aim to train coaches and instructors
as well as referees and management in order to create a safe and professional sports
environment at all levels.
One notable training module offered by the Academy in the Framework of Sports is on
the Recognition and Prevention of Sexual Intimidation (Herkennen en voorkomen van
seksuele intimidatie). In offering this module, it is recognised that acts of sexual
intimidation can manifest themselves many ways, including physical, verbal and
psychological. In order to make the sports world a safe and welcoming environment for
all participants (coaches, referees and athletes, both male and female) this module is
offered to equip coaches with the necessary skills to recognise, prevent and when
needed address the issue of sexual intimidation the workplace.
The purpose of the module is to create awareness of the issues related to sexual
intimidation in sport, thus understanding the various kinds of intimidation that exist
(both subtle and overt) and how these can best be prevented. The module presents the
key behavioural norms in sports and in what instances sexual intimidation can often
arise. It aims to teach coaches how to tackle issues of intimidation by showing them how
to adequately address the individuals involved in the act. It also teaches coaches how to
best support the victim of sexual intimidation and what the possible consequences are
for both the victim and the perpetrator.
The module covers one day of training and is open to coaches that are experienced in
offering coaching sessions and coaching athletes independently. Notably, coaches do not
need to be certified in order to attend the training. The level of the training is KSS level
3 as defined by the sports federations affiliated with the Dutch Olympic Committee
(NOC*NSF). The training costs EUR 25 and is offered across the country.
Generally, the training opens with a short introductory round whereby participants are
asked to introduce themselves as well as share their expectations for the day. They
additionally are encouraged to ask any particular questions regarding the thematic area
that they seek to answer through discussions in the training. They apply interactive
methods and group work in order to understand and explore the subjective nature of, for
instance, personal space and comfort. Following a short break they discuss the key
learning outcomes of the exercises and link these to a more theoretical debate. Prior to
attendance of the training, it is possible for coaches to make use of e-learning
opportunities as well as participating in a short quiz on the topic. This is intended to help
participants in formulating their learning objectives and questions for the discussions
during the in-person training. The key objectives of the training are:
40
Raising awareness of the context in which a coach operates (in terms of power
relations) and how to best deal with this dynamic
Understanding the behavioural rules set by the NOC*NSF as well as any other codes
and rules that particular national sports federation have introduced in relation to the
prevention of sexual intimidation
Recognising what kinds of behaviour can be considered sexually intimidating or which
kinds of behaviour can potentially lead to sexual intimidation
Signalling undesired behaviour
Understanding how and to whom coaches should report undesired behaviour
Understanding and being able to share what the consequences of sexual intimidation
are for both the victim and perpetrator
Being able to deal with differences in opinion on what kinds of behaviour are deemed
acceptable and which are not.
Ultimately, through participation in this training, the Academy in the Framework of
Sports seeks to raise awareness of sexual intimidation and wider gender issues. As both
men and women are invited to the module, it is an interesting example of how jointly
awareness is raised on the prevailing issues and how these should be prevented and
addressed. This helps create a safer environment for both athletes and coaches, and in
turn could support the retention of female coaches in the coaching profession.
Outcomes and learning points
National sports federations across the country promote the attendance of this module
and encourage their coaches to participate. Following attendance in the training, coaches
receive certificate of participation, and depending on the national sport federation
through which the training is offered, coaches can potentially receive points that will
support them in gaining their official coaching qualification. An information brochure was
also produced and dissemination, highlighting the key points of interest regarding the
recognition and prevention of sexual intimidation in the workplace.
49
While this form of support does not directly lead to an increase of female coaches in the
coaching profession, it contributes to the creation of a safe working environment for all
coaches and athletes. It can therefore indirectly support female coaches in their
experiences of coaching as they are better prepared to deal with issues of sexual
intimidation in the workplace. It also allows for men to have a better understanding of
what the key issues surrounding sexual intimidation are, allowing them to adjust their
behaviour accordingly.
One key conclusion following the evaluation of the module, is the fact that it is important
to consider the language used when offering such modules. In 2017, the title of the
module was changed to “Recognising and preventing unacceptable behaviour”
(Herkennen en voorkomen van grensoverschrijdend gedrag) as it was felt that using the
term “sexual intimidation” in the title decreased the take-up of the module. The new
module encompasses a range of misbehaviours, including sexual intimidation, but also
including forms of bullying (both physical and psychological). It was felt that by
realigning the title and content of the module, there would be greater interest in
attending the training.
4.10 Coaching education courses for women only (Norway)
Programme summary
49
This information brochure can be accessed via: http://www.nocnsf.nl/stream/folder-si-trainer.
41
Scheme name
Coaching education courses for women only
Focus
A series of courses held by clubs focused on introducing women to
grassroots coaching
Member State
Norway
Lead organisation
Norwegian Football Association (Norsk fotballforening)
Sport(s)
Football
Delivery Period
2015-
Type of scheme
Women-only
Key
findings/lessons
Introducing women only courses has seen a significant increase
in the participation of women in coaching courses.
Women-only programmes allow women to overcome initial self-
confidence issues with regard to entering the coaching
profession.
Aims and approach
Since the 1970s women’s football in Norway has enjoyed success, both in terms of
participation growth but also competitively at the elite level.
50
Football is by far the
largest organised sport in Norway among girls and women, and females account for 30%
of all registered players.
51
Norway is renowned as a successful nation in women’s football
- the women’s team has also been much more successful than the men’s, winning the
World Cup in 1995 and then Olympic gold in 2000. Despite the growth in popularity of
women’s football and the success of the national team, UEFA statistics show that only
15% of coaches in women’s football in Norway are women and only four (5%) of the
UEFA Pro License holders are women. No more than 20 women (3%) hold an UEFA A
License.
Aware of the barriers that women face in progressing to elite level coaching, and with
the objective of increasing the number of women coaches, the Norwegian Football
Association (FA) has initiated women-only education provision. The Norwegian FA’s
approach reflects research findings brought together by a renowned Norwegian sports
scientist and expert on gender issues in sport (Kari) who has wrote extensively about the
continuing discrimination against women coaches and women in football in general.
Interviews with women coaches showed that that their presence continued to be
questioned and that their participation attracted constant attention that made them feel
uncomfortable:
52
“With respect to opportunities in coaching they found themselves outside the
male network and overlooked by those (men) at the clubs responsible for the
recruitment of coaches. They also experienced that typical masculine behaviours
such as self-confidence, ambitions and strong leadership skills were crucial in
order to be accepted as coaches, while this at the same time represented a
deviation from the norm of being a woman and a stigmatisation as being ‘un-
feminine.”
Kari’s research included interviews with women coaches who commented that they had
faced discrimination in a coaching education setting:
50
Fasting, K. Sand, T. S., Nordstrand, H. R. (2017) One of the Few: The Experiences of Female
Elite level Coaches in Norwegian Football, Last Soccer and Society
51
Fasting, K. Sand, T. S., Nordstrand, H. R. (2017) One of the Few: The Experiences of Female
Elite level Coaches in Norwegian Football, Last Soccer and Society
52
Fasting, K. Sand, T. S., Nordstrand, H. R. (2017) One of the Few: The Experiences of Female
Elite level Coaches in Norwegian Football, Last Soccer and Society
42
“… both as an athlete and as a coach one could have wished a better gender
balance, I have experienced that here there are only guys, and that one is not
accepted because one is a female coach.”
As a result of the Norwegian FA’s initiative on women-only courses, a number of women
football clubs in Norway have taken forward women-only coaching education
programmes. These courses have mainly focused on grassroots training, as the first step
on the ladder to higher level and elite coaching. Oslo Football Club, for example, has
recognised the need to develop progression routes for women. Ultimately, the club would
like to host a regional UEFA B license course only for women but in order to progress
towards this goal, the club is providing opportunities for more female participants to take
part in grassroots coaching. It has therefore offered the NFF Grassroots course 1
(Children's Football Course) free to all women in the Oslo Football Club.
A Norway FA education course for grassroots coaching was also held at Rogaland in
September 2016. This licenced education programme was Step 1 of 4 in the Norway
Football Association’s training education ladder. The primary target group was women
coaches in children's and youth soccer but also anyone with ambitions to go on to
become a coach in adult football. Agder club has also conducted a C-licence course open
to girls only.
An important element of the gender-specific focus of the programmes is the role of
women trainers as positive role models for women who might be new to coaching or
considering coaching as a career. The profile of the women coaches is generally
highlighted in the course marketing materials, with their experience in top level football
and many years of coaching experience emphasised in order to encourage women to
attend.
Outcomes and learning points
There is limited data and evidence available on women-only courses, as many of the
courses have started only recently. However through desk reviews, an interview with an
academic expert in Norway and reference to academic research on the benefits of
women only courses in Norway, some achievements and outcomes from the women-only
programmes can be identified.
After introducing women only courses Agder FC has seen a significant increase in the
participation of women in coaching courses. Looking at the figures for courses completed
in 2016, Agder has seen a significant increase in girls / women taking a training course.
The Norwegian Football Association has a stated goal of 20% female participation in
coaching education. In 2016 Agder identified that 21% women who have taken C license
and 23% women had taken the Children's Football Day. This was a significant increase
from 2014 and 2015, where Agder was under 10% female participation in these courses.
Website information indicates that about 30 women participated in the programme at
Rogaland in September 2016. According to the website “many good discussions and
practice sessions were conducted by keen and talented participants, both in Stavanger
and Haugesund”. The website also suggested that there was good feedback from the
participants on both courses. The participants were especially positive that the course
was targeted at women only and several of the participants expressed their wish for
further training.
Based on five in-depth interviews with female elite-level football coaches who took part
in a larger Norwegian research project entitled ‘The elite-level coaching role and gender’,
Kari (2017) found that some coaches participated in and benefitted from women-only
courses with positive outcomes: “they felt that they were among people like themselves,
which made them more secure, also in relation to participating in discussions”
53
.
53
Fasting, K. Sand, T. S., Nordstrand, H, R, (2017) One of the Few: The Experiences of Female
Elite level Coaches in Norwegian Football, Last Soccer and Society
43
Two of those interviewed had also taught at such courses and had received very positive
evaluations:
“The feedback from the participants was that it was easier to be active. Some had
taken mixed gender courses before, but they had experienced that they dared to
contribute more (at the women only course).”
Kari’s research however highlighted that the content of the course may be more
important than the gender distribution of the participants. The interviews showed that
even at female only courses “men’s privileges and central position in football are
normalised, and that female participants can be discriminated against during the
education sessions”. One interviewee indicated the same when she stated that when
continuing with mixed gender education at a higher level, it is important that the
teachers also are updated and schooled about women's football. And she continued:
“The point is that all discussions are related to men's football. Because as women
coaches ... we follow what happens in men's football in the same way as the male
coaches do ... meaning for us it is not a problem to take part in a discussion
about what's going on in the highest male league, but for a male coach to take
part in a discussion about the highest female league, is often impossible, because
he has not seen one single female match.”
This type of approach where subsidised provision is available to women only therefore
appears to have worked well in encouraging more women to attend and in allowing them
to overcome initial self-confidence issues when weighing up whether to pursue a
coaching career. The use of experienced coaches as role models in promoting the
courses and leading the sessions is also a useful mechanism for engagement. However
additional qualitative evidence has shown that the content of the course also needs to be
addressed in order to support a gender-neutral approach to education and provide
additional encouragement for women to move on to the next level in their coaching
development.
4.11 Women in Coaching Programme (UK)
Programme summary
Scheme name
Women in Coaching Programme
Focus
Mentoring female coaches in Scotland, improving their qualifications
and helping them reach their coaching potential.
Member State
UK (Scotland)
Lead organisation
Sportscotland
Sport(s)
Hockey, Gymnastics, Netball, Swimming and Tennis
Delivery Period
2009 – 2011 (Scottish Hockey has developed the programme
and is running a subsequent course as a result)
Type of scheme
Women-only; mentoring
Key findings
Mentoring and non-formal elements were highly valued by
coaches.
Aims and approach
The Women in Coaching Programme was run by sportscotland, the national agency for
sport in Scotland. One of sportscotland’s main objectives is the promotion of equality
and respect for others in sport
54
. The programme started in 2009 and lasted three years,
54
https://sportscotland.org.uk/about-us/
44
finishing in 2011, however it has had a long lasting impacts on some participants and
sports.
Research at the time identified that across the UK women were underrepresented in
coaching, with only 25% of coaches being females.
55
This increasing recognition resulted
in the pilot course, with its main objective being to increase the skills of existing female
coaches who were interested in a career in coaching (only 12% of female coaches were
paid full time coaches).
56
The programme also aimed to retain and increase the quality
of female coaches in sport, helping women achieve their potential.
57
The programme targeted gymnastics, hockey, netball, swimming and tennis in four local
authority areas of Scotland: Edinburgh, Glasgow, Tayside and Fife and Scottish Borders.
In order for sportscotland to target these sports, partnerships were established with
each sport’s governing body (federation). As a result, partnerships agreements were
discussed, developed and signed, with the programme receiving over £135,000 of funds
over the three years. The funds were mainly used for the costs related to professional
coaching certificates. The programme aimed to target up to 70 female coaches
58
.
To enable the programme to attract suitable coaching candidates, each sport’s governing
body created a selection and application process. Some of the most important elements
were consistent for the five sports incorporated in the programme. The selected coaches
then signed an agreement, outlining their roles and responsibilities.
The governing bodies and local authorities then identified potential mentors to support
develop the coaches. Each mentor was assigned one or two coaches to guide throughout
the duration of their involvement in the programme. The mentors engaged with the
coaches, providing guidance in their coaching practices, helping to improve the quality of
their coaching outputs. The mentors were also required to sign a contract, outlining their
responsibilities. In order to encourage the mentors to actively engage with the coaches
and improve their skillset, a clause was put into the contract, stating that if the mentors
did not undertake their responsibilities they were not paid.
59
The programme required each coach to create and implement a personal development
plan, which was supported by his or her dedicated mentor. The coaches were able to
stay on the course between one and three years, dependent on their coaching ambition.
Sportscotland established a steering group with representatives from each governing
body and each local authority. The group met every two/three months throughout the
duration of the programme and analysed how the programme could be improved and
made decisions on the delivery and implementation of the course. This allowed the
programme to be flexible and responsive to any unforeseen circumstances and changes
in the five sports in Scotland.
Outcomes and learning points
Sportscotland evaluated the Women in Coaching Programme, the findings were based on
a limited number of responses from coaches and mentors. From the surveyed sample,
over half of the coaches had increased their coaching qualification by at least one level,
some had even increased by two levels, since being involved in the programme. For
those who had not improved their official coaching qualification, the main reasons were
due to working/coaching commitments or the location of courses being unfeasible.
60
55
https://sportscotland.org.uk/about-us/what-we-do/profile/archived-articles/sportscotland-takes-
positive-action-to-support-women-in-coaching/
56
https://sportscotland.org.uk/about-us/what-we-do/profile/archived-articles/sportscotland-takes-
positive-action-to-support-women-in-coaching/
57
Women in Coaching programme, Evaluation report
58
https://sportscotland.org.uk/about-us/what-we-do/profile/archived-articles/sportscotland-takes-
positive-action-to-support-women-in-coaching/
59
Women in Coaching programme, Evaluation report
60
Women in Coaching programme, Evaluation report
45
The evaluation report highlighted that the course has been successful, increasing the
quality and number of female coaches within Scotland in the five sports. The majority of
the respondents agreed that involvement in the course would help secure future work.
Increasing the quality and number of women in coaching was one of the projects main
objectives, which the programme has achieved, two coaches secured employment as a
coach as a direct result of being involved in the programme (2 out of 15 respondents).
The mentors had a vital role in the development of the coaches, with most coaches
stating that the best aspect of the course was the firstly the financial support received
and secondly the mentoring. The financial support included the payment of official
training qualifications. The mentoring came in a range of forms, including technical
advice, feedback on courses, encouragement, friendship, career support and specific
coaching guidance (REVIEW framework). One of the coaches stated, ‘I think we have
both grown through it (mentor/mentee experience). I am not sure that (the mentor)
knows the value (they) have been to me!’,
61
showing the pivotal role of a mentor in the
development of the coaches.
An important factor in the success of the project was the commitment and quality of the
mentors (and coaches). The evaluation study found that the mentors’ primary
motivation was to help and support the coach’s development. Other mentors stressed
the importance of the course in raising awareness of the barriers for female coaches. The
mentors gained support through attending training workshops, via sportscotland or
networking with other members, which helped develop the mentors training skills which
would be passed on to the coaches.
The course was a definite success, however to make future courses more fruitful the role
of the mentor and coach needs to be clearly defined, sometimes this was not the case,
leading to a lack of understanding of responsibilities. As a result some of the mentoring
did not having the desired affect for some coaches. The importance of matching the
coach with the appropriate mentor can not be underestimated, creating a good match
between mentor and mentee is fundamental in the development of a mentor/mentee
relationship
62
. Generating the right relationship can have a positive or detrimental effect
on the engagement and trust between the two parties.
As a result of the success of the Women in Coaching Programme, Scottish Hockey, the
national governing body for hockey in Scotland (engaged in the previous programme) is
continuing to run the Women in Coaching Programme, continuing its partnership with
sportscotland. Scottish Hockey have also collaborated with Aberdeen Asset Management
and together have introduced the ‘Aberdeen Asset Management Women in Coaching
Programme’ promoting women’s coaching in hockey.
63
The current programme has
many similar aims of the previous campaign, such as;
Identify and develop opportunities for individuals to enrol in coaching courses and
further professional development.
Develop strategies to encourage women coaches to become qualified in leading
training sessions.
Actively promote women coaching in the adult and performance environments.
Provide on-going development opportunities for coaches working within the children
and youth environments.
4.12 Development of 500 Women Coaches (UK)
Programme summary
61
Women in Coaching programme, Evaluation report
62
Women in Coaching programme, Evaluation report
63
http://www.scottish-hockey.org.uk/coaching/women-in-coaching-programme.aspx
46
Scheme name
Project 500
Focus
To recruit, develop and/or deploy 500 female coaches across the
seven South East counties between April 2013 and March 2015
Member State
United Kingdom
Lead organisation
Sport Coach UK
Sport(s)
All
Delivery Period
April 2013 and March 2015
Type of scheme
Progression through bursaries
Key findings
Informal aspects such as networking events and workshops
were highly valued by the participants.
The project shows the benefits of a neutral coaching body
taking the lead on a coach education project in close association
with the national sport federations.
Aims and approach
In the aftermath of the London 2012 Olympics and Paralympics, Sport England, a non-
departmental public body under the Department for Culture, Media and Sport in the
United Kingdom, called for more inclusive policies in sport
64
. Responding to this call, and
recognising the significant gender imbalance in coaching, Sports Coach UK and seven
South East County Sports Partnerships (Sport Hampshire & IOW [SHIOW], Oxfordshire
Sport Partnership, Leap, Get Berkshire Active, Active Surrey, Active Sussex and Kent
Sport) introduced Project 500. Launched on International Women’s Day in 2013, the
project covered a two-year period and had several key objectives, including:
The recruitment, development, deployment and/or retention of 500 female coaches
across the South East between April 2013 and April 2015;
The establishment of an supportive culture for women in coaching whereby there are
opportunities for mentoring, co-coaching and the development of communities of in
order to stimulate the development and deployment of more female coaches;
To raise the profile of female coaches through the development of a women’s
coaching network both at local and national level;
The creation of clear guidelines and evidence to encourage the expansion of the
project nationally from April 2015 onwards.
The project involves more informal learning opportunities including networking and
workshop events as well as financial support to attend courses. Notably, the project
offered scholarships to women in order to continue their training, and over the first year
approximately £20,000 was spent on scholarships to over 250 women. Sports Coach UK
concluded that it was easier to “increase resources through things like scholarships” but
that it is “far more difficult to influence mind-set, beliefs and confidence.”
65
The second
objective of Project 500 is therefore to establish a culture of support that includes
mentoring, co-coaching, communities and coach observations in order to support coach
development and deployment.
Outcomes and learning points
In order to understand the impact of Project 500 and whether it would be potentially be
useful to expand the project nationally an evaluation was carried out by Sports Coach UK
64
https://www.sportscoachuk.org/blog/project-500-what-difference-year-makes
65
https://www.sportscoachuk.org/blog/project-500-what-difference-year-makes
47
after the first full year of the project.
66
The methodology included a review of the Project
500 monitoring information, two surveys of beneficiary coaches and several telephone
interviews with coaches.
The evaluation covers the first half of the project. The overall target of the project was to
support 500 female coaches across the two years. At the halfway point, the project was
on course to achieve this target as it had supported 264 coaches (53% of the target)
across 37 different sports. The most popular sports were netball (49 coaches – 19% of
total coaches supported), athletics (29 coaches – 11% of total coaches supported).
It was found that 169 coaches had been able to develop their skills by making use of
formal or informal learning opportunities, while a further 70 were upskilled through the
receipt of formal coach education training. Notably, 66 coaches were recruited from a
non-coaching role to the P500 level
67
. In terms of qualification outcomes, the evaluation
showed that:
over a third of the coaches supported so far (35%, 96 coaches) said they were
unqualified when they first registered on the project. Of these, a quarter (24
coaches) are now qualified at level 1 (71%) or level 2 (29%).
In addition, 34 coaches who were qualified at registration have been upskilled to a
higher qualification level. The majority (74%) have moved from level 1 to level 2,
wth small numbers also advancing from leader to level 1 (15%), leader to level 2
(3%) and old (non-UKCC) level 3 to a current level 2 (8%).
It is clear that the project has helped to develop a more highly qualified female coaching
workforce.”
68
Overall, it was concluded that the first year of the project was a success in engaging
female coaches and supporting them in their pathway into the coaching profession.
Three recommendations were offered to improve the project for the second phase of the
project. These include:
Offer all the coaches high-quality information, advice and guidance following their
registration. This information should include sufficient support on the aims of the
project and the various opportunities that it offers. Maintaining regular email contact
with the project branding will also ensure that coaches feel part of the project.
While the networking events and workshops are already highly valued, it would be
beneficial to allow for more time for networking among coaches at events. It was
recommended to potentially start an online platform (e.g. a Facebook group) where
coaches can interact and share experiences.
The key barrier expressed by coaches to the project is the lack of time to attend all
the events and training. As a result, it was offered that potentially the organisers of
the project could provide video or audio content of key sessions and workshops via
the Project 500 website
69
.
The project has proven to be most effective in the one-to-one mentoring sessions, sub-
regional networking events and women-only CPD
70
. The project continued to year two
and subsequently subjected to another review. Notably, the project has been endorsed
by seven governing bodies (The Footballl Association, The Rugby Football Union,
66
The evaluation report can be accessed via:
<http://www.ukcoaching.org/sites/default/files/P500%20Evaluation%20Report%20final.pdf>.
67
p. 7, Sports Coach UK (2014). One Year On… An evaluation of the first year of Project 500.
Available via:
68
p. 8, Sports Coach UK (2014). One Year On… An evaluation of the first year of Project 500.
Available via:
69
p. 19, Sports Coach UK (2014). One Year On… An evaluation of the first year of Project 500.
Available via:
<http://www.ukcoaching.org/sites/default/files/P500%20Evaluation%20Report%20final.pdf>.
70
Interview with Project 500 representative
48
Exercise Movement & Dance Partnership, England Netball, England Handball, The ECB
and ETTA) showing the willingness of national sports federations to support the
development of female coaches and in doing so addressing the gender imbalance that is
currently in place.
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5.0 Conclusions
There is a wide acceptance of the notion that women coaches (as visible role models)
can provide inspiration and encouragement to girls and women to take part in sport and
sustain their participation. While there is a need to develop understanding on how
gender imbalance in coaching should be assessed with regard to different sports and the
gender of the athletes, and levels of coaching, it is clear from available statistics that
women are generally underrepresented in the coaching profession.
This study has focused on the role of coaching education programmes in helping to
address gender issues in coaching. It is important to acknowledge however that the
development of gender perspectives in coaching education addresses only one aspect of
coaching development for women. Further consideration also needs to be given to issues
such as transparency of recruitment and gender issues in the working conditions of
coaches, which is outside of the focus of this research.
The mapping review indicates that the most prevalent type of education approach with a
gender element is women-only courses. This type of approach, where only women are
able to attend the programmes, appears to have worked well in increasing levels of
attendance amongst women and allowing them to overcome initial self-confidence issues
with regard to entering the coaching profession. An increase in women-only courses at
the entry level (or foundation level) of coaching education can also give women more
opportunities to make more informed decisions about their preferred coaching pathway
and prepare them for some of the challenges they might face.
There are conflicting messages, however, both in the research literature and from
stakeholders on the relative merits of women-only programmes and quota-based
approaches (where a certain proportion of places on mixed courses are allocated to
women). The case studies suggest that women-only courses have worked well where the
numbers of women coaches are starting from a low base and particularly in sports where
the confidence of women to take up coaching has been influenced by the perception that
coaching is a male–dominated profession. However some federations prefer a quota-
based approach as regard it as more beneficial for women to take part in mixed
programmes as they progress.
The mapping review has revealed very few examples of programmes which explicitly
seek to provide more accessible education activities for women through more flexible
timetabling or childcare facilities. One possible explanation might be that public websites
do not include explicit information on aspects such as timetables which are designed to
meet the needs of those with children or availability of childcare facilities (for example).
A more common approach in improving accessibility is through the involvement of
women tutors and coach developers.
It has also been difficult to identify coaching education programmes with training
elements/educational modules on gender equality. Again this level of detail might be
lacking on public websites. It may also reflect the limitations of the research approach
which necessarily has had to rely on a ‘top down’ process by focusing on the
programmes of national federations rather than systematically reviewing all programmes
taken forward by sport agencies and education and training providers at the regional and
local level. A more resource intensive research exercise would be required to probe more
deeply on the accessibility and gender equality elements of modules within all coaching
education programmes.
Nevertheless, research has shown that the content of the course may be more important
than the gender distribution of the participants. Even at female only courses men’s
privileges and central position in sport can be normalised, and research has shown that
women can feel discriminated against even when all the participants are women. The
mapping review has identified two examples of educational modules on gender equality
which have been developed by national sport bodies. In France, the Ministry of sports
50
and its agency Sport éducation mixités citoyenneté (SEMC) developed general guidelines
to prevent sexist behaviours for coaches and training schemes for coaches. The Academy
in the Framework of Sports (Academie voor Sportkader), which is part of the sports
development unit of the Dutch Olympic Committee (NOC*NSF) developed a training
module for coaches on the Recognition and Prevention of Sexual Intimidation. The
research suggests that the development of such modules has the potential to support
female coaches in their experiences of coaching as they are better prepared to deal with
issues of discrimination in the workplace. They can allow for men to have a better
understanding of what the key issues surrounding discrimination are, allowing them to
adjust their behaviour accordingly. Both the French and Dutch case studies indicated
however that participation in the gender equality training module is not very widespread
suggesting that further development work is needed to embed such approaches in
mainstream coaching education.
The more detailed case study research has also highlighted a number of common lessons
in the implementation of coaching education programmes for women:
The benefits of having strong involvement and commitment of high profile coaches
(men and women)
The benefits of linking coaching education actions and related empowerment and
mentoring activities
The importance of neutral sport coaching bodies having a lead role in engaging a
wide range of sport federations in innovative and gender-related coaching education
programmes.
The possibilities for European federations to work in partnership with national
federations to develop coaching education opportunities for women (for example
through funding provision but also by ensuring the commitment of national
federations to support women with coaching opportunities post-training).
The role of National sport agencies in the development and tracking of gender
education modules which are relevant to education and training in all sports.
The typology developed for this study (section 3.2), which encompasses a range of
approaches designed to engage women in coaching education and improve their
experience at the education stage, could be useful in developing a framework for gender
mainstreaming in coach education.
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Annex One: Sources
European Commission (2010), Communication from the Commission to the European
Parliament, the Council, the European Economic and Social Committee and the
Committee of the Regions of 21 September 2010 - Strategy for equality between women
and men 2010-2015 [COM(2010) 491 final – Not published in the Official Journal].
European Commission (2014), Resolution of the Council and of the Representatives of
the Governments of the Member States, meeting within the Council, of 21 May 2014 on
the European Union Work Plan for Sport (2014-2017) 2014/C 183/03.
European Commission (2014), Gender Equality in Sport. Proposal for Strategic Actions
2014-2020
European Commission (2016), Expert Group on Good Governance Recommendations on
Gender Equality in Sport Final document, 10 February 2016
Fasting, K. Sand, T. S. and Nordstrand, H. R. (2017), One of the Few: The Experiences
of Female Elite level Coaches in Norwegian Football, Last Soccer and Society
Pfister, G. (2011), Gender equality and (elite) sport. Enlarged Partial Agreement on
Sport (EPAS). Strasbourg: Council of Europe.
SCORE Project/ENSGO (2014), Gender Equality in Coaching: Interactive Toolkit
UK Coaching (2013), Women and Qualifications Research
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Annex two: Contributions by stakeholders
The Euro Commission and Ecorys are grateful to all those who kindly agreed to give up
their valuable time to participate in in-depth interviews and discussions conducted by the
study team.
Stakeholders
Kristiina Danskanen (Secretary General, Coaching Association of Finland)
Carole Bretteville (President of the National Commission for Women’s Sport, France)
Kari Fasting (Norwegian School of Sports Sciences)
Christina Fritz (Women Coaches Development Specialist, UEFA)
Louisa Arnold (Director of Project 500, UK)
Case studies
Sari Tuunainen (Coaching Association of Finland)
Pierre Brincat (Head of Women's Football, Maltese Football Association)
Geraldine McTavish (Club Development Manager, Irish Athletic Boxing Association)
Colleen Reid (Coach Education Development Manager, Scottish Hockey)
Karlijn Westerman (Academie voor Sportkader - NOC*NSF, The Netherlands)
Stéphanie CORNU (Project officer Pôle ressources national "sport, éducation, mixités,
citoyenneté" (SEMC))
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[Catalogue number]
