News
VK Barnet Volleyball Club is London Regional Satellite Club of the Year
Posted on: November 26th 2015Olympian Zara Dampney presented the award to VK Barnet Volleyball Club for their efforts in providing young people of all abilities the opportunity to get involved in sport
Since its forming in 2014, this Satellite Club has done more than simply deliver basic skills training to groups of young people interested in taking up a new sport. The club has created a friendly community made up of young people of a variety of ages and different schools with an emphasis on fun and enjoyment. For these reasons VK Barnet Volleyball Club was awarded with the Regional Satellite Club of the Year Award.
The club, which boasts an attendance of up to 30 children each week presents an all-inclusive atmosphere created by its team of coaches; Sean Poole, Eric Hill and Southgate School PE teacher Nick Robinson. Three sessions are run by the club each Tuesday where the youngsters have the opportunity to attend a beginner’s session, advanced session, and the Satellite Club session – with attendees from the Satellite Club session being fed in to the advanced class as their skills progress.
Head Coach Sean Poole, who has almost 25 years’ experience in coaching, was happy with the club’s success at the school: ‘What is so good about this club, is that we have children from 13 different schools attending - they come in twos and threes with their friends and try it, it’s a very friendly atmosphere.
‘We integrate the beginners with the more experienced players and what has been great over the last two years, is that they’ve developed a community among themselves’
VK Barnet Volleyball sessions have offered many young people their first experience of volleyball. The effectiveness of the club has inspired some of the children to have aspirations of pursuing careers in sport and encourage others to be more involved in being active.
Tommy, 18, who has been part of the club since its forming, has gained life-long skills from the club: ‘My skills have come a long way since I started playing but also outside of sport my confidence has really improved and I’ve gained a lot of friendships. A lot of my friends have come from here and I speak to them a lot outside of volleyball’.
‘Last year I did a sports apprenticeship and one of my aims was to promote volleyball to younger children because it’s something good for them to pick up early on - it gives them a new sport to try.’
This club is just one of over 500 Satellite Clubs in London and its ability to maintain numbers whilst encouraging new members is truly an admirable feat. Southgate School host the club in their sports hall that could potentially cater for up to 60 children, allowing for the club to continue to grow.
Please click on the link below to view the article published on the front page of Volleyball England's website
http://www.volleyballengland.org/news/article/5226/top-award-for-london-club
Please refer to the media gallery to view photographs of the evening.
