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From cleaner toilets and safe routes into the ground, to a repainted clubhouse, Natalie Doyle, of Sport Sister, provides five tips for a brighter environment.
Facilities are a huge part of the experience for participants in sport.
Female soccer players, in particular, much prefer arriving at, changing in and being around clean, friendly and safe environments.
Your facilities can make a big difference in how people perceive your club, so it is important to make them welcoming for women and girls.
Here’s how to ensure your facilities are attractive to current and prospective players.
Let’s get straight to what can be one of the worst parts of some facilities.
If you want women and girls to have an enjoyable experience at your club, start with the toilets.
They need to work and be clean. You will need doors with locks on, soap in dispensers, and hand dryers that work (or a regularly topped up supply of paper towels).
Make sure that all your cubicles have sanitary bins in them and ideally provide free sanitary products that people can help themselves to if they need them. And make sure there’s a plentiful supply of toilet roll!
Think about your location and the journey people will take to the facility.
Are all parts well lit? Are women and girls going to feel safe walking there when it’s dark? How can you adapt your arrival and departure procedures to make this experience better?
Are some of your pitches of a better quality than others? If so, make sure that all teams get equal access to use them.
Don’t put your girls’ teams on the worst pitches every week. Show they are a valued part of the club by implementing a fair rotation system for pitches.
If you have a bar, clubhouse or similar at your facility, think about what you have on display.
Make sure any imagery is representative of all parts of your club. If you have girls’ and boys’ teams, make sure they are both on the walls. Celebrate the girls’ achievements in the same way you do the boys’.
Of course, having a full refurbishment of your facilities will make it look amazing, but realistically that’s going to cost a lot of money.
Think about what a difference you can make with a small budget. A fresh coat of paint, some nice air fresheners, giving everywhere a good clean – these things can all make a big difference.
Talk to your parents and you might have some decorators who would be willing to give up their time or donate some materials.
These are just a few ideas to get you started, but get creative and ask your players what improvements they’d like to see.
If they’re older, then get them involved in the transformation. They’ll love to see how you value their input and will be proud of the final outcome. Good luck!
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