"Coaching in the UK is a hostile environment for women" - Part 3
Part 3 is here...let's dig through more of the research. This time the focus is culture nd inclusion
This is the third part in a series examining some of the headlines of the research conducted by Women in Sport and Leeds Beckett University.
Check out part 1 and 2 here:
The first and second part looked at employment conditions, coach development and progression.
This part will look at culture and inclusion
Culture and Inclusion
“Coaches’ sense of belonging is shaped by their personal characteristics and working environment.”
Belonging is “feeling valued, respected and able to contribute fully to the role and the organisation’s activities.”
The report focuses on an intersectional approach to belonging. What makes one person feel like they belong will be different to another person. Organisations, therefore, must foster belonging in ways that ensure everyone can be valued.
One in four female coaches do not feel like they fully belong. 63% of female disabled coaches felt a sense of belonging compared to 70% of male disabled coaches.
I’ve worked in grassroots and professional organisations and often I was in a flux of belonging, between high and low, depending upon the sub-environment or team I was operating within or the task I was doing that day.
“Bias fuels negative assumptions about the competence and abilities of female coaches.”
4 in 10 women believe their gender negatively impacts how their competency is viewed. Female coach representation, especially as a coach moves along a pathway, is low. The report also highlighted that women feel they have to work harder than their male counterparts in order to be recognised for roles.
It’s no surprise then, that women feel like they don’t belong in sporting organisations. It’s hard to look round a room and see no one like you in a similar role to you. That automatically makes you feel like you don’t belong. I’ve been in organisations where I’ve been the only female coach, including the only woman on committees
“Women coaches feel less heard and valued in their coaching environment.”
The report revealed that women feel they are listened to less and the more they progress along a pathway the less they feel they are listened to. This perpetuates a male-dominant echo chamber, even when women have a seat at the table.
Being repeatedly not listened to or feeling like your voice is not valued will lead to feeling disrepected and, therefore, a lack of belonging.
In meetings, it can be a battle to be heard. I’ve been in discussions where I’ve made a point and two minutes later a male coach has made the same point. This happened once as a method of allyship as the male coach was aiming to amplify my point and myself.
I make a commitment to myself to not take group meeting notes. I write notes for myself. However, I do not take meeting minutes so that I can be present in the meeting instead of feeling like my presence is ticking a box but I’m just there to take nice notes.
"Women are less likely than men to feel comfortable being their authentic selves while coaching.
Not feeling at ease in an environment can mean that someone doesn’t show up in a way that’s authentically them.
Having to diminish or change who you are can affect your ability to develop your own coaching and form meaningful connections. It can also make you feel marginalised.
Being able to be yourself is the key to growth, engagement and honest contributions. Therefore, fostering belonging is the key to a successful coaching team.
“Negative cultural experiences impact the retention of women coaches.”
The amount of female coaches decreases the further along the grassroots - high performance continuum.
The report showed that not feeling valued, heard or respected were the main factors in why women stopped coaching. However, the report showed that a third of women who had stopped coaching would consider returning if the cultural barriers were addressed.
The majority CEOs interviewed in the research said that their boards were aware of the lack of diversity within the coaching workforce. This suggests the next steps is continued awareness of the issues partnered with long term solutions for organisations and NGBs. That must happen otherwise there will continue to be a drop off in retention of female coaches.
“The Boards and Senior Leadership Teams surveyed are predominantly male.”
When CEOs were surveyed 48% recognised that gender imbalance is a continuing problem for Boards, however only 38% were concerned about the diversity of their executive leadership team.
How leaders view gender equality shapes the lived experiences of the coaching workforce. It is vital to have diversity, including gender, within leadership teams and boards. This includes rugby club committees.
Conversations about gender equality must be had reguarly. It cannot be a check in every International Women’s Day.
What can we do?
Belonging is crucial. As coaches we reguarly talk about ensuring belonging within players. It’s just as important for everyone else. A coach that feels like they belong feels like they are listened to, can engage, develop and are retained.
As a female coach this is a non-exhaustive list of the things I need that focus on coach development and progression:
Gender equality to be reguarly discussed across all levels of an organisation
Opportunities to shadow or contribute as a guest within club committees - with a view to gaining diverse views and increasing club members that have committee experience
Education for coaches and other employees/members on biases
Support for coaching teams to ensure everyone’s views are heard - how can we develop great co-coaching teams and their meetings/chats?
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