VISION
Lichfield Hockey Club
This action plan is a detailed plan of Lichfield Hockey Club’s proposed actions for the next five years.
It is written in line with the overarching Development Strategy and Recruitment Plan for Lichfield Hockey Club in mind and aims to give specific and measureable targets for the club to achieve each season to move the club towards the ultimate aims of the Development Strategy.
It is likely that aspects of this plan will be delegated to various committee members or sub-committees who will take ownership for their actions and who will report back progress at subsequent meetings. For example, entertainments will be taken up by the entertainments group; the junior committee will take up junior actions, etc.
This action plan will be reviewed at each management committee meeting to assess progress and to review specific actions as they are completed and to agree new actions and set criteria.
What is the Ethos of the Club?
Where are we now?
The club has the number of players shown in the tables below. This has come about from an extensive coaching programme for members and within schools. At the moment the club is coaching in primary and secondary schools locally and this has produced an extensive group within the Junior Section who have coaching both on Sunday mornings and specialist coaching on Monday evenings. The club has taken on board Quicksticks and coaches this in Junior Schools as well as holding Quicksticks tournaments and mini-hockey tournaments for Junior Schools for both A and B teams from these. The club also runs the Staffordshire Hockey Cup entries for local Secondary Schools as well as the Lichfield District Cup involving all of the local secondary schools.
The club runs teams at Under 8s (mixed teams), Under 10s, 12s, 14s, 16s and 18s with both girls’ and boys’ teams entering England Hockey Competitions at all of these levels as well as friendlies against other Midlands teams and our own tournaments. Within the senior club there are six men’s teams in the Midlands League and a badgers’ sides. On the ladies sides the 1st XI and 2nd XI are in the Midlands league and then the next five teams play in the newly formed Midlands.
The club has been instrumental in the setting up of the South East Staffordshire Development Centre which trains on the Lichfield pitch. This has proved very popular and has been fully booked at Under 13, 14, 15, 16 and 17 age groups for both boys and girls. Lichfield has also provided coaching facilities for the Girls and Boys Staffordshire Academy Centres with coaches from Lichfield as well. Coaches who coach at Lichfield also take part in coaching and managing RPC groups.
The club also runs a veteran’s side in a Monday night league; the club entered the England Hockey Cup with the Ladies’ 2nd XI and a veterans’ team. The club also entered the Midlands indoor league this year gaining promotion.
The club has an extensive programme of DBS checks whereby an individual within the club is qualified to check members documents before sending off the filled in forms to England Hockey, all coaches have been DBS checked and there is a programme to ensure that all captains and volunteers have an up to date check over the next twelve months with then have a rolling programme to maintain that status.
The club has a policy of encouraging members to become qualified hockey coaches by paying either some or all of the cost of this qualification in exchange for a period of coaching within the club this has meant that we have a large number of qualified coaches keen to see the youngsters’ progress.
Each year the club has run a level 1 umpires’ course for between 10 and 20 players to gain this qualification, this has led to the club having a large number of qualified umpires and some of these have gone on to umpire at higher levels. The club is now encouraging members to become umpire coaches to mentor and assess the new umpires.
During the winter the present pitch is used every day of the week and for at least six hours most days, in the summer the club runs six women’s sides in Midlands or Staffordshire summer leagues, two men’s sides in the Midlands league and also runs its own summer league for those players who would not otherwise get a game. The club has also run a weekly summer tournament for Under 14 girls involving local clubs. The club also runs “Back to Hockey” courses for adults returning to the sport.
Our Development Plan is to ensure that this level of activity is maintained and that any increases in activity can be sustained. Ideas for future: –
- Increasing the number of teams playing each Saturday.
- Holding specialist coaching for the players that have already reached a high level of competence.
- A coaching session for returning players, especially aimed at parents.
- To introduce a group of paid coaches available during the day and after school to coach at the club pupils both in lessons and after school