Our volunteers are our biggest asset and their contribution is invaluable

Chief executive Jane Nickerson hails the work of Swim England’s biggest asset during National Volunteers’ Week

The legendary football manager Brian Clough once famously said of his right-hand man Peter Taylor: “I’m the shop window and he’s the goods in the back.”

It’s an analogy which could certainly be applied to our aquatic clubs up and down the country.

Our swimmers, divers, artistic swimmers and water polo players are in the shop window, representing their clubs with pride and distinction at events from local galas through to national competitions.

The goods in the back are the dedicated volunteers who work tirelessly behind the scenes and are the heartbeat of all our sports.

Without their willingness to give up their time to support our athletes, our clubs and Swim England simply couldn’t function.

Our volunteers are our biggest asset and their contribution is invaluable.

We depend on those on the committees, who make informed decisions to ensure clubs remain financially sound and viable for members.

We count on the coaches and team managers who make sure athletes receive the right preparation and training and are ready to compete. 

Extremely grateful

We rely on the goodwill of our officials in all disciplines without whom our events would simply not happen.  

It’s easy to take the jobs all our tens of thousands of volunteers do – and all the work that goes on behind the scenes – for granted.

However, we should all be extremely grateful to them – and as Swim England chief executive, I’ll never be able to thank them enough.

Volunteers’ Week is an amazing opportunity to put them all in the spotlight, however, and praise them for their commitment.

It’s also an opportunity to shout out for more people to discover the huge benefits of giving up their spare time to help others.

Our Value of Swimming report discovered that volunteering contributes to, and supports, an individual’s motivations and goals – as well as impacting on their social and community development.

If you want to find out more on how to become a volunteer, please click here to find out more. 

You won’t regret it.