Frequently Asked Questions

If the answer to any of the following questions is yes, then you are someone the agency would love to hear from:

• Do you want to develop your skills as a sports coach?
• Do you enjoy helping others to improve their performance and their levels of fitness?
• Are you considering a career in coaching?
• Have you got the desire and commitment to be the best coach you can be?
• Are you willing to learn and develop your skills?
• Do you want to pass on your coaching skills to other coaches?

Register and complete our online application form. Once that is done you need to request an advisory interview. Once the advisory interview is successfully completed you will have joined the agency subject to a completed CRB and satisfactory references.

There are lots of coaching opportunities in the north west, and working for an agency can give you more access to these opportunities. The agency can also help you to develop your coaching qualifications and equip you to be a better coach and to organise coaching employment.

Other benefits the agency can offer can be found at Benefits to the Coach page

Coaching North West is a not for profit social enterprise agency, and therefore any money made is put back into the agency, and in turn back into you, the coach/volunteer.

We are a market leading organisation, in the fact that our agency is integrated into the existing delivery system for sport, and is endorsed and funded by partners such as Sport England, Sports Coach UK, Greater Sport and Merseyside Sport.

Aside from coaching hours we provide opportunities to attend training courses, continuous professional development (CPD) courses and help and advice to all who need it.

We also provide an E-news service and news articles on the website to keep our users abreast of the latest developments in coaching and sports development.

Types of employment/placement opportunities available:

• None paid (voluntary) assistant coach: Suitable for someone just starting out on a their coaching career with only limited experience and either no qualifications or a level 1 in their chosen sport/s. This person would be assigned to a senior coach mentor to gain experience and would have a number of training needs to satisfy (eg a level 2 award) before being able to operate as a coach without supervision. Minimum age: 16 years.
• Paid assistant coach: Suitable for someone who has some previous experience operating as an assistant coach, but will otherwise have a similar background to the voluntary coach described in number 1.
• None paid (voluntary) coach: Suitable for a qualified level 2 coach who wishes to offer their services in a voluntary capacity. Most voluntary coaches will be providing their services to a voluntary sports club. Minimum Age 18 years.
• Paid coach: Suitable for a qualified level 2 coach who wants paid work, which will be appropriate to their skills and experience. E.g. if the coach has the experience and ability to work in a school environment then they can be considered for this type of paid role. This assessment will be made during the screening process and by a process of continuous assessment. Minimum Age 18 years.
• None paid (voluntary) senior coach mentor: Suitable for an experienced level 2 coach or above whom has undergone a mentor training programme. This coach will be able to mentor assistant coaches in a supervisory capacity during coaching sessions. As a none paid mentor this coach will most likely providing their services to a voluntary club. Minimum age 18 years
• Paid senior coach mentor: Suitable for an experienced level 2 coach or above whom has undergone a mentor training programme. This coach will be able to mentor assistant coaches in a supervisory capacity during coaching sessions. Minimum Age 18 years.

N.B. For all placement opportunities, coaches will be subject to an enhanced criminal record check and will be required to satisfy the standards required by the agency before they can be deployed.

Either or both. Coaches will have the opportunity to work with a supervisory coach, as a stand alone coach, working in a team of coaches and working supervising/managing other coaches. This is dependant on your qualifications, experiences and in what field of coaching you wish to work in.

The agreement outlines your resonsibilities for safe and professional practices whilst working through the agency, and also our pledge to try and find appropriate placement and training opportunities and support you in your coaching.

We hope that this agreement will help drive up the level of support for coaches and the standards of coaching sessions delivered and help make coaching a recognised and quality profession.

Yes, due to employment regulations the agency will only be inviting people over 16 to apply and join. There is no upper age limit for joining to agency and we welcome people from a wide range of sports, ages and backgrounds.

Each disclosure of a criminal caution or conviction (from self-disclosure of a criminal record check) will be dealt with on a case by case basis by a team of Coaching North West and Greater Manchester Sports Partnership staff.

At all times Coaching North West recognises that the safety and well being of participants is of paramount importance.

If the above explanations do not answer your queries on the agency, please contact Coaching North West by either emailing your query to info@coachingnw.org or by phoning 0161 2233443

The potential benefits for a placement provider from joining the agency include:

• Access to quality sports coaches
• Guarantee of minimum standards. All coaches will have:
  • Been police checked
  • Gained the minimum level qualification required by the governing body
  • Received specialist training (eg working in schools, first aid)
  • Had two references
  • Undergone a screening interview
  • Undergone an observation session with a trained observer
  • Will be insured
• You will have a named contact with the agency who will be responsible for meeting your needs
• You will have the opportunity of viewing profiles and CVs from a number of coaches (if available) before making a final selection
• You will be able to provide feedback about the coach online
• If employing the coach you will not be liable if the coach has to cancel a session at short notice and where possible the agency will find a replacement
• By accessing the services of the agency you are accessing the only service being supported by Sport England, Sports Coach UK and the County Sports Partnerships.
• The agency is a not for profit and the cost of the pilot service is subsidised by a lottery grant which will be reflected in lower costs to you.

All coaches deployed through the agency will have to have met a set of minimum standards to ensure the quality of our coaches. Our minimum standards are as below:

• NGB level 2 qualification (level 1 working as an apprentice coach with a more senior coach)
• Emergency first aid qualification
• Enhanced CRB check
• Specialist training e.g. working with people with a disability/multi skill
• Minimum age: 18 years (16 for an apprentice)
• Satisfactory interview and induction with the agency
• Sign agency agreement
• Sign up to the professional code of practice
• Insurance
• References
• For a coach to be able to perform a supervisory role for the agency, they would need all the above and a satisfactory completion of agency supervisory training.

Ongoing requirements

• Satisfactory placement provider evaluations
• Annually updated CRB
• Satisfy CPD requirements of the sport
• Periodically observed sessions

If a coach is ill or unable to attend a session, the coach will be responsible for letting the agency and the placement provider know, and wherever possible the agency will provide a suitable replacement and liaise with the placement provider.

Our key contact from the placement provider will have the contact details of someone at Coaching North West, and will be able to contact us in the instance of a coach not turning up to deliver a session they are contracted to do. Wherever possible Coaching North West will try and find another coach/time for the session to be taken, and will follow the appropriate procedures (as necessary) in dealing with the coach concerned.

It is the responsibility of the placement provider to let both the agency and the coach know if they choose to cancel a session if it is no longer needed. If sufficient time is given then penalties should not have to be issued as the agency can look at finding other work for the coach. The penalties for late cancellation will include a percentage of the coach fee being paid even if the session is cancelled

We can provide newsletters to keep your organisations knowledge up to speed with all the latest developments in the Coaching and Sports Development fields. We can provide training opportunities for coaches already working in your organisation. We also provide endorsement services for coaches whom you recruit outside the agency, and can give help and advice of where to look for coaches, and the types of sessions that we have the highest number of coaches in and would be able to supply to you quickly.

When a Recruiter requests a coach, a search is conducted of the screening interview and applicant information, and the website brings up a list of coaches with suitable qualifications, experiences and personalities to suit recruitment at your organisation, ensuring we find the right people for the right coaching opportunities.

NOTHING!! In the pilot phase of this project, registering with the agency will be free, and payments will only commence once you obtain a coach for paid sessions through the agency or wish us to collect data on sessions led on behalf of your organisation

This will be dependant on the sport and the participants in the session that the coach is leading. Normally they will require someone to meet them when they arrive for the session, a list of those participating in the session, and the necessary equipment (that the coach doesn't have themselves) to deliver the session.

Coaching North West will require a Recruiter to have a completed application form on the website (including addresses and key contact information of all sites) before a coach can be placed. During the placement there should be a link for the coach to have direct contact with at your organisation, and after the session we require someone who observed the session to complete an evaluation on the coach online, which will provide us with valuable feedback.

N.B. The coach will also be asked to provide an evaluation on their recruiter, which will allow a good employer to build up a portfolio of positive comments, which will attract good quality coaches to work there.