Club accreditation

If you are starting a new club or developing an existing club, you should think about getting your club accredited through a reputable accreditation scheme.

Gaining accreditation demonstrates that a club has addressed issues such as equality and child protection gives confidence to parents who are choosing a club for their children.

Sport England's Clubmark is an accreditation scheme used by National Governing Bodies of sport (NGBs) in recognition of a quality club, as part of their accreditation programmes for sports clubs with junior sections.

The Clubmark scheme works across all participating sports. Clubs with a junior section qualify for the award by proving they have met strict criteria in the following areas:

If you are keen to start a sports club, the Clubmark webpage also has useful template documents that can be downloaded and used on behalf of your club to establish and then improve the services you offer to new and existing members.

Downloadable document templates include:

The Clubmark website also has a list of national governing bodies of sport currently using the Clubmark award as part of their club accreditation programme, and a downloadable fact sheet and resource pack.