Sussex County

 

Vision

 

“To support the potential of all aquatic athletes in Sussex and to ensure that the most talented have access to the necessary support”.

 

Introduction

To realise this vision I have again tried to ensure that the Development Plan:

• Engages with different groups in a way that is appropriate for them.

• Uses our resources as efficiently as possible;

• Continues to support the organisation to move from being character led to becoming function led, and;

• Establishes clear lines of responsibility and empowers individuals.

 

These ‘golden threads’ should be behind each and every action. In this Development Plan I have tried to achieve this by identifying clear aims for each section.

 

The central thrust of this development plan is to continue to the work bringing together the different facets of the organisation into a single organic body. I have again tried to take a whole sport approach and wherever possible remove barriers between disciplines and open opportunities to as wide a group as possible.

 

We need to work in a different way if we hope to deliver better value and be valued more by clubs and swimmers.

 

The 2012/13 Development Plan was year 1 of a two year rolling programme – I had envisaged that in 2013/14 we would be reviewing undelivered or incomplete schemes of work from 12/13 before developing this Plan. Unfortunately I have not received any feedback on the effectiveness of the Plan and have therefore not been able to reflect on comments.

 

I have developed reporting templates that will need to be used if we are going to be able to manage, monitor and report on the development plan and its related budgets.

 

Summary of the plan

One of the challenges with setting an ambitious programme is to avoid it becoming onerous and failing to meet expectations. To avoid this I have again tried to reduce the number of fixed points and instead create a structure that should be the basis behind our decision making. My objective has been to try to identify why we do what we do and ensure that what we do, we do better.

 

Each section of the plan is devolved to clearly identified ownership and therefore accountability. These ‘owners’ are often in more than one group and includes the county Aquatics Officer. This mechanism will ensure a greater spread of knowledge and experience.

 

I have tried to ensure that each measure flows naturally to the next and therefore delivery is more efficient and streamlined. Having said that the plan still relies on volunteers – there is a huge capability in the county and we need to engage with it, something that we have started and must continue to do.

 

There will be members of our community that do not want to face change but if we are going to support our athletes we are not going to be able to ignore the environment around us – either economically, socially or politically. We need to change to meet these challenges and expectations.

 

Sponsorship

We are a successful organisation. We attract an audience from across Sussex and from all sections of its community. As an organisation we play a key role in supporting a range of governmental, sporting, educational and social objectives, including:

• Healthy lifestyles;

• Life long skills;

• Social inclusion, and;

• Safe communities.

 

We have a positive image and strong brand with clear relationships to high profile events and nationally recognised personalities.

 

These factors mean that we are well placed to attract sponsorship capable of giving us the support that we need to deliver on ambitious development plans in future years. We need to capitalise on these opportunities and establish committed partnerships.

 

Key points for 2013/14

 

1. The review of committees, their roles and responsibilities needs to be completed.

 

2. Given the difficulties incurred prior to the Masters Championships 2012 I would like to see the formal structuring of a Competitions Delivery Group to oversee the delivery of all county competitions. The recruitment of volunteers to take on the roles of Technical Secretaries should not be conditional on their ability to deliver a competition. Similarly the expertise that has been developed in the county to deliver quality competitions needs to be more widely available. The formation of a CDG, included in this plan as item 4.1, would address these points.

 

3. I am proposing that the management of all swimming squads, training camps and events is through the Swimming Hon Sec – delegating to a group that would include the county coach (s). The budgets associated with these activities sits within the swimming committee budgets and should be managed by that group.

 

4. I am hoping that everyone involved in delivering this development plan will seek to identify and develop opportunities that will engage and value experienced athletes so that they remain committed to the county and to the sport whether as athletes, teaches, administrators or officials. Only in this way will the county have long-term sustainability.