England Boxing
Standards for Coaching Olympic-Style Non-Contact Boxing in Schools
Introduction
Good coaching is vital in providing children with a positive introduction to boxing which allows
them to learn the basic skills and techniques in a safe and enjoyable way. Such experiences
will help to encourage more children to participate in boxing and to join their local clubs. This
guidance is intended for both schools and coaches to ensure that children throughout the
country can have a positive introduction to boxing in their schools.
All of the guidance within this document relates to Olympic-style non-contact boxing activity.
Only affiliated England Boxing clubs can deliver competitive boxing. Schools may become
affiliated clubs should they wish to and are able to meet the required criteria. Schools should
contact England Boxing for further information.
Standards for Coaches
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England Boxing Registered Coach – as the Governing Body for the sport of
amateur boxing England Boxing recommends that schools only use individuals that
are registered England Boxing coaches. All England Boxing registered coaches hold
a coaching qualification and have undergone a DBS disclosure. You can check if a
coach is registered by contacting your Club Support Officer. Contact details can be
found on our website.
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England Boxing Full Coach Qualified or Above – the Full Coach qualification is
England Boxing’s Level 2 qualification and is the level at which a coach can assume
supervisory responsibility for leading a session. It is recognised that in some
circumstances there may be no full coaches available and the school may wish to use
an England Boxing Assistant Coach (Level 1) to ensure that activity can take place.
In such cases the coach should always operate under the direct supervision of a
teacher. The school is responsible for ensuring that the coach is suitable to deliver
the session/s in question.
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Boxing Leaders and Boxing Tutors should only be used to assist delivery under the
direct supervision of an England Boxing Full Coach or higher. Leaders and Tutors
should also be registered with England Boxing.
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Safeguarding Children Awareness – all coaches that work with children should be
familiar with and fully abide by England Boxing’s guidance relating to safeguarding
children. In particular they should be familiar with the Child Protection Policy and the
content of the Best Practice Guide. We would strongly recommend that coaches that
wish to coach in schools should attend an England Boxing recognised safeguarding
children workshop.
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Equity Awareness – all coaches should be familiar with and fully abide by England
Boxing’s Equity Policy.
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Managing Challenging Behaviour – where coaches will be working with groups that
have been specifically identified due to problems with behaviour and discipline, for
example children and young people from Pupil Referral Units, Youth Offending
Teams, and excluded children, coaches could benefit from attending appropriate
training on managing challenging behaviour.
In addition to the above standards the previous experience and training and development of
the coach will enhance their suitability for working in schools.
Schools may be approached by professional boxers wishing to deliver sessions for them.
These would need to meet the standards outlined here in order to be considered suitable by
England Boxing to deliver coaching activity in schools.
Boxing in Schools – Roles and Responsibilities
This section highlights the relative roles and responsibilities of England Boxing, the school
and the coach.
England Boxing
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To promote these standards to schools and England Boxing clubs and coaches
To support access to development opportunities for coaches that work / wish to work
in schools including training and resources
To signpost schools to local clubs that are affiliated to England Boxing
To support clubs to create effective links with schools
England Boxing cannot make a recommendation based on the suitability of the coach to
coach within a school. England Boxing can signpost schools to coaches based on the
understanding that they meet the defined standards, but this shouldn’t be used as a basis for
assessing the quality of the coach or his or her suitability to coach a specific group of children.
Further information contained within this brochure will help schools to fully determine
suitability.
Schools
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To ensure that these standards are followed when employing / deploying boxing
coaches
To adopt appropriate recruitment and selection procedures to meet safeguarding
responsibilities
To ensure that selection methods are employed to ensure that the school is satisfied
with the suitability of the coach to meet the needs of the group/s to be coached, for
example getting the coach to deliver a trial session. A checklist is available from
England Boxing which may help to assess suitability
To provide an induction for the coach to clearly communicate to him / her relevant
roles and responsibilities, the standards that are expected of them and the school’s
working practices and policies and procedures, such as health and safety
To provide opportunities for continuous professional development (CPD) where
possible
To support, guide and provide feedback to the coach as required to help them to
coach effectively within a school environment
To agree rate and method of payment with the coach. Fees may be negotiated
based on budgets, comparable local rates etc, but we would recommend that schools
do not pay more than £25 per hour per coach. A higher fee may be justified if a
coach can demonstrate significant added value.
To provide feedback to England Boxing where concerns exist about the standard of
coaching or conduct of any England Boxing registered coach. Schools may also wish
to provide feedback where they are particularly pleased with the standard of coaching
that they have received.
Ultimately the school will be responsible for any activity that takes place within it and must be
satisfied regarding the quality and suitability of the coach.
Coaches
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To follow the appropriate England Boxing policies, procedures and codes of conduct
(as outlined previously) when coaching in schools
To abide by the policies and procedures of the school and to follow the school’s
working practices and expected standards
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To undertake training and development opportunities as appropriate
To communicate with the school to agree the aims of the programme and to clarify
expectations
It is the role of both schools and coaches to ensure that they are happy with the working
relationship and that they work together to provide a good quality programme that is beneficial
to the children.
Coaches are only insured by England Boxing to deliver coaching in schools if they meet the
standards that are set out here.
Practical Guidance for Coaches Delivering in Schools
When coaching in a school it is useful to remember that:
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in most cases you will be dealing with beginners
there may be people in the group that are not interested in boxing
The main focus of the coach in a school is to provide an enjoyable, fun, non-contact
introduction to the sport of boxing for the whole group, not to develop an Olympic champion.
For some children this will mean developing and improving skills, for others it may be about
emphasising the health and fitness benefits of boxing without being too concerned about
whether they are technically competent.
Those that show an interest in furthering their involvement with boxing, whether competitively
or recreationally, should be signposted to a suitable England Boxing affiliated local club.
Whilst in the school environment the coach should focus his / her attention on all participants
and not only those that show potential.
Some key points for delivering a good session in schools are:
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Keep the amount of activity high – the children would rather be practising their skills
than listening to the coach talk. Keep instructions clear and concise and allow lots of
time for the group to practice
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Keep everyone active and focused – it can be easy for the coach to get into ‘gym
mode’ and focus attention on one child doing padwork whilst others in the group lose
interest or start messing about. When taking a child on the pads make sure
everybody else in the group has a clear activity to do and that you maintain an
awareness of what the rest of the group are doing. For example, you may want to
position yourself in a place where you are able to see everybody in the group whilst
coaching using padwork
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Make the session fun - and remember that the children themselves will often have
ideas about how activities can be made fun, for example by adding targets and goals
for them to achieve
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Be positive and enthusiastic in your approach and manner
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Make sure that there is an appropriate level of challenge for all in the group, including
the most and least able. All skills and activities should be able to be progressed and
adapted as required to suit different ability levels within the group. Appropriate
pairing and grouping of individuals will also help. Good planning is key here, along
with the ability to assess the needs of the group
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Try to provide individual feedback to everybody in the group and find something
positive to say; this can be about their skills, their effort or anything else that is worthy
of praise
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Ensure that there is plenty of variety within sessions to prevent boredom
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Encourage the children to ask questions, and listen to and act upon their feedback
and ideas as appropriate
Remember, children are more likely to misbehave when:
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they feel bored
they find an activity too easy or too hard
they do not feel they are being listened to
the coach is too lenient or too harsh
their efforts are not noticed.
Following the above guidance will help to ensure that sessions are enjoyable and purposeful
for all.
The Youth Sport Trust identifies a number of key outcomes for young people. Being able to
demonstrate to schools that your sessions can help to achieve these may be useful to you
when looking to work with schools. The outcomes are as follows:
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young people healthy and comfortable with their bodies
young people feeling a sense of belonging
young people happy and with a sense of well being
young people who have the skills for work
young people who are not afraid of challenge and value success and failure
young people with confidence and who are comfortable communicators
young people who have their own opinions and personal values
young people enabled to be the best they can be – achieve their potential
Practical Guidance for Schools – Making the Most of Your Sessions
The following guidance will help to ensure that your children are able to get the most out of
their opportunity to participate in Olympic-style non-contact boxing activity.
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Meet with the coach in advance of delivery to discuss the aims of the programme and
to clarify expectations.
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Use England Boxing programmes to support the delivery and the achievement of
your aims. ‘BOX’ and the Junior Boxing Organiser (JBO) are both excellent
programmes for delivery within schools. For more information please see contact
details at the end of this brochure or visit the England Boxing website
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To promote long-term sustainability of Olympic-style non-contact boxing in your
school it is recommended that you identify 1 or more members of staff to attend a
‘BOX’ course.
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Do not limit the attendance at sessions to those children with challenging behaviour.
Whilst boxing can help to instil discipline the sport has many more benefits that many
children can benefit from
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Establish a link with an England Boxing affiliated club to ensure that opportunities
exist for children to further their involvement in the sport
Suggested Continuous Professional Development for Coaches
The following sports coach UK workshops may be beneficial for coaches that work with
children.
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Safeguarding & Protecting Children – this workshop explores good practice when
coaching children and helps coaches to identify and deal with concerns regarding
poor practice or potential abuse
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An Introduction to the Fundamentals of Movement – this practical workshop helps
coaches to develop the fundamental movement skills of agility, balance and coordination – the building blocks of athletic performance – in children
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How to Deliver Engaging Sessions for Young People - this practical-based
workshop will help coaches to better meet the needs of this age group. Through the
use of practical examples coaches will learn about new participants’ needs, including
how to build their self-confidence, motivation and self-esteem. This in turn will help to
improve the coaching experience of young people and help to ensure they keep
coming back for more sport
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Positive Behaviour Management in Sport – this workshop will help coaches to
create a positive coaching environment to reduce the chances of inappropriate
behaviour occurring and highlights techniques that coaches can use to effectively
deal with challenging behaviour
Your County Sports Partnership (CSP) will be able to provide details of local workshops. For
more information on sports coach UK workshops please visit their Learning Zone at
www.sportscoachuk.org.
Further Information
England Boxing, EIS Sheffield, Coleridge Road, Sheffield, S9 5DA
Website: www.abae.org.uk
Tel: 0114 223 5654.
To find contact details of your local Club Support Officer please visit:
http://www.abae.co.uk/aba/index.cfm/about-us/club-support-officers1/