Guide to Inclusion - Step 6

Retain & Champion

Once community members are involved as members, the key is to ensure they stay involved and that their community views the game as a genuine option. Once established in the club the participant can become a champion - a voice for promoting the game to their friends and family.

Some key techniques to help retain diverse participants include:

• Leadership development - Support development of diverse committee members, volunteers, coaches, referees, scorers.
• Clear and transparent selection procedures - in a competitive structure, transparent selection processes will help ensure any real or perceived selection matters are about the participant's skills, and never their background.
• Offer the community your facility to hold community meetings to increase environment familiarity.
• Celebrate the community across their annual calendar. Reference them on club's website / newsletters / Facebook posts etc.
• Put on a community friendly night; e.g. Ladies night, Diwali night.
• Make the club family friendly - create roles for other family members.
• Ambassadors – evolve participants to be club, community and/or school ambassadors.