25/03/13….Rugby club gains prestigious ‘Accreditation’ status

IN its 50th anniversary year, Chinnor RFC which has been based in Thame for 30 years, has something very special to boast about. The Rugby Football Union has awarded the club Accreditation status.

This great achievement began with a complete review by the Chinnor RFC of its activities on and off the pitch when it asked all members to complete a survey. This was followed up with a workshop involving a cross selection of members to review the responses.

Carol Bradbrook-Taylor, Honorary Club Secretary, explained. “We were keen to get opinions from those who are not directly involved in the day-to-day running of the Club. This helped us understand how members view the Club and to consider its future development on and off the pitch. The phrase SUCCESS WITH GROWTH summed this process up. The learning from this process informed a development plan which, together with existing good practices, allowed the RFU to judge whether Chinnor RFC met the high standards of an Accredited Club.”

As an Accredited Club, The RFU found Chinnor RFC to have effective and efficient plans and processes to

? Retain and develop players
? Recruit new players
? Recruit and retain high quality coaches,
volunteers and referees
? Maintain and develop effective and efficient
facilities
? Manage and govern effectively and efficiently
? Further integrate with the local community

But it doesn’t stop there. SPORT ENGLAND has also awarded Chinnor RFC ClubMark status. This measures Chinnor RFC against a number of criteria to determine if the club achieves a high standard of providing:

? A playing/participation programme
? A duty of care and safeguarding and protecting
children
? Knowledge of how the club works especially in
regard to its community
? Top quality club management

The Club has an active volunteer base of some 150 people managed by a Committee of 10 responsible for the day to day running of the Club which was recently incorporated by guarantee. The Board maintains the strong overview required by a Club and a business which has over 1100 members, one of the largest in Oxfordshire.

A new Action Plan relating to further improving coaching, hosting a foreign team, and to improve the clubhouse facilities and pitches is under way. “We are on target to achieve these in time for the annual Accreditation review,” concluded Carol