Executive Summary

We started our research with the understanding that golf clubs want to attract and retain more golfers and to engage members as volunteers in the running of their clubs. We were conscious that the long-term health of golf depends on engaging a diverse range of participants.

In our research, we sought to understand volunteers’ experiences within golf clubs. We explored how members became volunteers and what helped sustain their involvement. We considered how these experiences varied across different types of people.

Summary of key findings Summary of recommendations

Our research highlights how golf clubs are essentially social places in which everyday social interactions shape members’ and volunteers’ experiences.

The research found the following:

• There is a common pathway to becoming a golf club volunteer. This pathway involves a journey from feeling uncertain as a new member, through becoming an established member and culminating in active participation as a volunteer. Some members make this journey more easily than others, with the formation of social relationships being vital to this process.

• While life circumstances may limit each individual’s capacity to get involved, volunteering is also dependent on the availability of convenient opportunities. The availability of accessible opportunities that can be fitted in alongside other life commitments promotes participation.

• Volunteers encounter and interact with a wide range of members. Many discussions with members are constructive, but some are not. The nature of these interactions has a significant influence on whether volunteers feel supported or frustrated.

Volunteers are some of golf clubs’ most committed members. Understanding how they became a volunteer and what sustains their involvement is important . We can use this knowledge to encourage participation and commitment among all golf club members.

We recommend that golf clubs:

• Take a strategic approach to managing the pathway to participation to improve member retention and create a diverse pool of volunteers.

• Encourage participation among members with other life commitments by creating accessible and convenient opportunities to get involved.

• Nurture constructive member discussion of club affairs. This should help members find common ground and create a supportive environment for volunteers.

We provide detailed recommendations on pages 15, 17 and 20. By implementing these recommendations, golf clubs can create an environment that encourages and sustains active participation among all members. We recognise that clubs won’t be able to implement all of the recommendations. We therefore suggest two high impact actions on page 22 and 23.

Golf club volunteering is bound up with a sense of belonging, involvement and pride in the club. It’s not something that can be turned on and off like a tap. Volunteering thrives where the club actively and consistently supports member participation and where the culture is open and inclusive.