BRIEF REPORT ON THE MAIN FINDINGS FOR EACH LOCALITY AND MAP OF STAKEHOLDERS PER CLUB
Deliverable 2.1
1.Introduction
SCOUT (Sport Clubs Opening Up To girls’ participation) focuses on institutionalized sports practices, or otherwise known as organised sports, which take place via federations and sports clubs. The focus on organised sport was chosen because clubs tend to be considered as the prime setting for sport, especially for children and adolescents. The evidence to date1 indicates that participation in institutionalized sports can play an important part in the development of a child, or adolescent, in different aspects: social, motor, emotional, behavioural, and psychological. Sports practice is located at the epicentre of extracurricular activities that children do today and that occupies them more time outside of family environments (excluding school).
However, from the volume of children who practice sports, it has been observed in many countries that there is a certain group excluded due to various reasons. Although participation predictors are broad, still, there is clear evidence that relates low sports’ participation to a low socioeconomic status2 . Within this group, as well as in general, the gender gap is also very evident at all levels of sports, and it increases with age3. Besides the socioeconomic factor, the other factors that influence low participation from girls,
1 Logan, K., Cuff, S., LaBella, C. R., Brooks, M. A., Canty, G., Diamond, A. B., Hennrikus, W., Moffatt, K., Nemeth, B. A., Pengel, K. B., Peterson, A. R., Stricker, P. R., Bagnall, D. W., Solomon, J., Halstead, M. E., Faigenbaum, A. D., Gregory, A. J. M., Kinsella, S. B., & Emanuel, A. (2019). Organized sports for children, preadolescents, and adolescents. Pediatrics, 143(6). https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2019-0997
2 Vella, S., Cliff, D., & Okely, A. (2014). Socio-ecological predictors of participation and dropout in organised sports during childhood. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport, 18, e133–e134. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jsams.2014.11.121
3 Sabo, D. (2013). The Gender Gap in Youth Sports. Journal of Physical Education, Recreation & Dance, 80(8), 35–40. https://doi.org/10.1080/07303084.2009.10598374
include gender stereotyping and lack of support systems especially geared towards the girls4. Therefore, it is important that the factors that influence exclusion are minimized so that they can participate.
A method to minimize exclusion of girls of the age proposed in the project is The Positive youth development (PYD) which is an intentional pro-social approach, which engages the youth within their communities and works on building their strengths and providing support and opportunities to help them transition to adulthood in a productive and healthy manner. The literature review provides different considerations as to what objectives constitute PYD when designing and implementing such programs. Based on a preliminary literature review, SCOUT will build the framework around eight principles, out of which, the following potential actions could be followed:
1. Physical and psychological safety
2. Appropriate structure
3. Supportive relationships
4. Opportunities for belonging
5. Positive social norms
6. Support of efficacy and mattering
7. Opportunities for skill building
8. Integration of family, school, and community efforts
4 Capranica, L., Piacentini, M. F., Halson, S., Myburgh, K. H., Ogasawara, E., & Millard-Stafford, M. (2013). The Gender Gap in Sport Performance: Equity Influences Equality. International Journal of Sports Physiology and Performance, 8(1), 99–103. https://doi.org/10.1123/IJSPP.8.1.99
Because of all of this, the objective of SCOUT is to design, test and evaluate a new positive youth development sport programme that facilitates access and opportunities to engage in organised sport activities for girls at risk of social exclusion or in situations of vulnerability. The project activities entail careful planning and designing in collaboration with sport clubs (amongst others) to be instrumental in making the programme deliver positive youth development and other development assets fostering the inclusion of the girls in situations of vulnerability. The pilot recruitment and intervention programme will be implemented in 3 sport clubs from France (Istres Provence Volley), Italy (SP Anderlini) and Spain (AE Carles Vallbona), engaging more than 160 girls in sport practice and exchanges with peers, 78 coaches in training and exchanges with peers, 200 parents, amongst others.
In order to start this whole project, the first step is to know as deeply as possible, the context and the characteristics of the clubs. It is not possible to guarantee a successful project if it is based without considering the features that define the intervention context. Thus, in order to design the athletes’ recruitment plan and to design the Training of Trainers (ToT) plan to the clubs, it is necessary to gather data on the situation and conditions of each club. For doing so, it is required to know quite extensively the clubs’ features as well as the clubs’ corporate culture. Both elements will give us a wide perspective of the micro and macro clubs’ systems. So, in this document we present a brief report on the main findings for each locality and map of clubs’ stakeholders as well as the first assessment of the use and perceptions of the agents about the PYD development The content of this report is structured in two parts Firstly, we explain
how the instruments through which we have collected clubs’ data. Secondly, we present the data for each club.
2. Procedure and Data Collection
Introduction
The data collection was twofold. Firstly, the clubs were required to provide the available information asked in a survey to the clubs, the datacollectionquestions as we will see below. Secondly a personal one-to-one interview to 4 different agents was organised to know more about the clubs. This interview was conducted by a researcher of the UVicUCC
Regarding the club survey, the list of information asked in the datacollectionquestions was to provide solid information about the facts and features of each club. This information is related to the following 3 aspects:
Demographic,
Socioeconomic, and
Cultural/ethnic/religious.
The technical documentation or dossiers of the club was a fundamental part of this data collection, as well as, a description of the demographic, socioeconomic, and cultural/ethnic/religious background of the club agents: athletes, coaches, and managers.
To know deeply and widely the clubs we have also designed qualitative interviews to different stakeholders. All of them, in sum, provided insights and very valued information about the “cultural life” in the club.
Data collection questions
To obtain information of the club we used a questionnaire. A questionnaire is a research tool featuring a series of questions used to collect useful information from respondents. It was expected that all these questions provide an image of the club from the internal mission, vision, and values since to the ecosystem context which this club is part of. This information will help us to define the direction that the athletes’ recruitment and design the Training of Trainers (ToT) plans shall take place.
Below we present the questions we have used to diagnose the clubs. We were aware that there are a lot of questions and many of them redound to similar information. However, we considered important to formulate these questions to precise in the details of the club’s system and ecosystem. We were also aware that some of questions might be difficult to answer in some countries but not in some others. Therefore, we organized the questions in different data sections to facilitate its understanding. We expected clubs to keep the available information provided in the specific section. In such a situation, questions are tentative and tried to focus on the main topics that we considered could help us to get an in-depth and solid idea of the club’s system and ecosystem. Rather than only numerical data, we also required clubs to describe the data for each section.
Now we present the content of thequestionnaire:
Questionnaire
City context.
City population
Demographic data of the population
Socioeconomic distribution
Information about sport clubs and sport involvement of the society (sport licenses, sport licenses population percentages, etc.)
Information about migratory processes
Information about cultural, religious, neighborhood associations, etc.
Neighborhood where the volleyball club is placed.
Neighborhood population
Demographic data of the population
Socioeconomic distribution
Information about sport clubs and sport involvement of the society (sport licenses, sport licenses population percentages, etc.)
Information about migratory processes
Does the neighborhood have cultural and/or religious or associations?
Does the neighborhood have high complexity schools?
General description of the club.
Overview. Basic description of the club (sort of, sports, structure…)
Some historical data about its birth, growth/development, and recent years activity
If it is available, it would be interesting to have relevant documentation to know the club (structure, project, website…). Annex it please.
Specific population description.
Number of club members
Number of teams in the club
Number of athletes
Athletes’ gender distribution (if applies)
Most likely entrance age at the club. Average years of retainment. Most likely age of sport abandonment.
For the female athletes (in percentage, if known):
o Demographic data distribution [age, race…]
o Ethnic, religious, or cultural diversity (in percentages, if known).
Generation number
o Country of origin of ethnic / cultural diversity.
o Do athletes practice or are enrolled in any religion?
o Socioeconomic distribution
For the coaches (in percentage, if known):
o Demographic data distribution [gender, age, race…]
o Ethnic, religious, or cultural diversity (in percentages, if known).
Generation number
o Country of origin of ethnic / cultural diversity.
o Do coaches practice or are enrolled in any religion?
o Socioeconomic distribution
Other relevant information.
Training time: weekly training timetable
Club training facilities and distribution to teams, if applies.
Club membership fees
Minimum expenditure for participation (equipment, travels, clothes…)
Description of the bonds the club has with social services, schools, and neighbourhood / cultural associations / ...
Is there a formal or informal link between the club and the neighbourhood / city schools? Are athletes class tutors linked with the club? Could you explain how these links are done and what they provide?
Is there a formal or informal link between the club and social services of the neighbourhood / city? Could you explain how these links are done and what they provide?
Beside coaches: does the club have other supporting actors for the athletes? (e.g., psychological support, pedagogist, mentoring, delegates, parents’ associations…)
Is there a formal or informal link between the club and religious, cultural, or neighbourhood associations? Which associations? Could you explain how these links are done and what they provide?
Who are the team delegates? (Parents, professional ones, others) What criteria are used to choose them? Apart from representing the team in a competition, do these delegates have other functions/roles in the club or team?
Is there a team internal regulations code or rules, not related to how to play the sport but how to behave properly? (Positions, functions, responsibilities, commitments, etc.)
Does the club promote regular extra-regular-competition activities (dinners, parties, tournaments, visits, cultural activities…) that involve athletes or families?
Does the club know about the main reasons why athletes quite the club?
Specific population description.
Number of teams from these ages
Number of athletes
For the female athletes (in percentage, if known):
o Demographic data distribution [age, race…]
o Ethnic, religious, or cultural diversity (in percentages, if known).
Generation number
o Country of origin of ethnic / cultural diversity.
o Do athletes practice or are enrolled in any religion?
o Socioeconomic distribution
o Jobs and studies of parents
o Parents' salary (approximately)
o Number of athletes in social benefits / school programs or financial benefits from the government
o Sort of schools they come from (State, chartered, private). Do any of the athletes' study in a high complexity school?
How many days/hours do they train per week?
Where do they train?
Club enrolling fees and basic expenditure for participation
Coaches of the specific population description.
Number of coaches
Demographic data distribution [gender, age, race…]
Ethnic, religious, or cultural diversity. Generation number
Country of origin of ethnic / cultural diversity.
Do coaches practice or are enrolled in any religion?
Socioeconomic distribution
Academic qualification / coaching specific training or qualification
Years of coaching experience. Years of work at the club
Average salary for coaching these girls
Does the club have an “athlete’s sport development plan” or project? (If yes, could it be attached, please?)
Does the club have an “educative / developmental athlete’s plan” or project? (If yes, could it be attached, please?)
How is the club defined in relation to the cultural, religious, and ethnic diversity?
How does the club communicate with athletes, families, and community? Are there formal channels, which ones?
Does the club have a clear positioning in relation to athletes’ gender, cultural/ethnic/religious diversity, or economic difficulties?
Is there regular contact with families? What communication channels does the club have? How do players and families communicate?
What values does the club promote?
Competition is a core aspect of sport. Besides, volleyball is a team sport and there is also a need for collaboration between players. Therefore: in which of these two elements does the club focus the more? (Explain the answer) What actions evidence your position?
How is the club involved in the social inclusion or in projects for social inclusion through sport promoted by the city council?
Does the club already have recruitment campaigns or strategies? Can you explain these campaigns or strategies and the results of the actions? Are potential girls with risk of sport or social exclusion a target of these campaigns? If yes, what actions do you address to recruit them? If not, is there a specific potential girls target that you are searching for?
Does the club provide regular training to coaches? If yes, what actions are you doing? Which impact do they have?
Does the club have any support system for athletes without financial resources? (In case of yes, explain the system and how the support is distributed)
Is any action taken in relation to the athletes' diet / nutrition and / or their health habits?
Qualitative interviews
To know in depth the clubs we carried out one-to-one interviews with the population that comprises a sport club An interview is a structured conversation where one participant asks questions, and the other one provides answers. We asked the clubs to find 4 different agents to be interviewed. The agents are:
An athlete,
A coach,
A club manager, and
A parent.
The criteria we asked for to find each of these agents was, as a general criterion, all individuals should be able to speak English. Furthermore, there was specific criteria for each agent, that was necessary to look for:
Athlete. To be a feminine athlete and to have played in the club for at least 3 seasons. It is not mandatory, but recommended, to be an extrovert individual keen to talk about the club and her experiences in it.
Coach. To have coached in the club for at least 3 seasons. It is not mandatory, but recommended, to have coaching experience in the 8-12 years girls in the same club, to be a woman, and to be keen to talk about the club and his/her experiences in it.
Manager. To have been manager for at least 3 seasons. It is not mandatory, but recommended, to have had a female child playing in the club during the 8-12 years and to be a woman.
Parent. To have an own girl-child currently playing and to have been a clubparent for at least 3 seasons. It is not mandatory, but recommended, to have had a child playing or currently playing in the club during the 8-12 years, and to be a woman.
The purpose of these criteria is to obtain significant and reliable information about the topics of interest of the diagnose.
Our expectations were to interview 2 persons for each club and for each agent. This is 24 interviews. At the end of the process, we have done 21 interviews distribute as follows:
AEC Vallbona: 8
Istres Provence Volley: 5
SP Anderlini: 8
The set of interviews was conducted by a woman-researcher of the UVic-UCC, during September and October 2022 by online meeting. The length of the interview depended on how the conversation evolved but, on the average, they lasted from 50 to 60 minutes.
Only few of them lasted more or less minutes than these minutes.
Ethical standards were taken into account. The UVic-UCC experts’ team have had the favourable report of the UVic-UCC ethics committee (approval id. 224/2022) about the working procedures of this project to ensure that ethical standards are being upheld. As
well as expressed in the articles 13 (confidentiality and security), 14 (ethics and values), 15 (data protection) and 16 (intellectual property rights (IPR) background and results access rights and rights of use) of the grant agreement. The steps to ensure the standards were the following ones: a) prior to the interview, participants were informed about the specific purpose of the interview; b) an informer consent was asked; c) data treatment ethical procedures such as anonymity, reliability transcription, secured data deposit, and confidential and anonymous data use and sharing were followed.
The purpose of all these interviews was to understand the corporate culture of the club as well as to complement some items of the survey. For this purpose, questions were addressed to the following topics: personal demographic data, personal experience as a club member, personal perception of levels of athletes’ inclusion in the club, the volleyball as a sport for athletes’ inclusion, and perception about corporate culture (e.g., psychological safety, relationships, belonging, social norms, athletes’ supports, opportunities or community). In some of them, the interview was required to evaluate, from his/her own perspective, the quality of some indicators.
3. Report of clubs
We present a brief report on the main findings for each locality. The order in which the different localities will be presented is:
- AE Carles Vallbona
- SP Anderlini
- Istres Provence Volley
It must be noted that the information we present about the different localities and clubs does not contain the same amount of information. As explained in the data collection procedure, it was the clubs themselves that provided the information through the different instruments. Therefore, the amount of data that is presented depends on the contributions of each club.
3.1. Associació Esportiva (AE) Carles Vallbona
City context
Granollers is a municipality in central Catalonia, about 30 kilometers north-east from Barcelona. It is the capital and most densely populated city in Vallès Oriental, with 62.475 inhabitants (INE 2021).
Fig. 1. Map of the situation of Granollers in Europe and in Catalonia
Granollers forms a conurbation with Canovelles, Les Franqueses del Vallès and the district of La Torreta in La Roca del Vallès. The city is crossed by the Congost river, a tributary of the Besòs.
Regarding the economic characteristics of the context, Granollers is now a bustling business center, having grown from a town dominated by Catalonia's textile industry that was prominent during the 19th Century. However, in the southern portion of the municipality, the Palou area retains the agricultural characteristics of the past.
Regarding city indicators of population, we would like to highlight their data on migration processes in the last few years, as you can see in the following table:
The demographic data of the population in 2020 is: births 520, deceases 551; internal immigration 2612, internal emigration 2675; foreign immigration 864, foreign emigration 559; total growth 211. The total growth goes from –414 in 2012 to 211 in 2020.
All these population movements have fostered the creation of several neighborhood associations in different neighborhoods. It also has many cultural associations, among them “La Troca”, ”Centre de Cultura Popular i Tradicional” and ”Associació Pro Cultura
Familiar del Vallès Oriental”.
Granollers have been promoting organizations related to the sport as well. There are 60 sports organizations and 22 sports centers.
Brief history of the club
Associació Esportiva Carles Vallbona is a women volleyball club. The history of the club begins in Carles Vallbona a secondary school, established in 1986 and named after the illustrious doctor Carles Vallbona, son of Granollers, professor of Community medicine
at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston and renowned as scientist and humanist, as well as prominent sportsman.
Currently Carles Vallbona secondary high school has become a Center of Special
Awareness of Sports Practice, and volleyball is one of the sports of this project concerning Catalonia for its academic results and for sporting results. This high school relates to AE Carles Vallbona, a symbol of volleyball in Granollers and Catalonia, which was created in 1997, and this year celebrates its 25th anniversary.
In 2006-07 season it was create the first Senior team, which in 4 years has climbed three categories, and in the 2010/11 was in Catalan Champions of 1st Catalan (highest Catalan clubs' competition) and climbed to 1st National Spanish league.
General composition and organization of the club
The organization of the members of the club is:
1. President
2. Committee
3. Three coordinators
4. Coaches and second coaches
5. Players
6. Physiologist, Physical trainer, and administration.
AE Carles Vallbona it is composed by 384 players, from 5 years to veterans distributed in 32 teams. It has players from different origins. The main population is from Catalonia, but they have 13 South American players, 3 African players and 1 from Ukraine as well.
To support all these teams there are 21 coaches, 1 specialist strength and conditioning coach (S&C coach) and 1 sports psychologist. About the coaches, there are 19 girls and 2 boys. The ages of the coaches are from 16 to 38. All of them have Spanish nationality and are born in Catalonia. All of them have different coach sport trainings, such as from Physical Activity and Sport Sciences bachelor’s degree to specific training courses for coaches (Level 1, 2 and 3) supported by Volleyball Catalan or Spanish Federations. In order to have their own identity as a club, they try to invest in training and in working all on a joint line of action, and not to changing coaches constantly. All the staff members are involved in technical, nutrition, physic preparation and psychologist training courses.
There is a good relationship and strong cohesion between the agents of the club. For the first year, the club has stablished 3 new positions as coordinators to take care of the communication and to ensure that the different teams and organization agents work in the same direction. As part of the team building and cohesion plan of the club among the staff, there is a training weekend spent at the beginning of the season.
Every team in the club has a delegate of parents who perform some specific functions, such as attending meetings, performing statistics, videos, or photos of the matches, and various other tasks required to help the coach.
The club offers different services to the players, as a psychologist specializing in sports, a physical trainer, and discounts in physiotherapist.
The club have two sort of teams, those organized via federation (aka. federated) teams and schoolteams (not taking part in federated competitions). School teams are teams organized with schools to promote volleyball at an economic level so that the girls can
practice volleyball, as an extracurricular practice, after the curricular school schedule but in their own school facilities.
Regarding to the training sessions, they are carried out in the Can Bassa Pavilion and in the Tub Pavilion, which contain a total of 8 courts. On the one hand, federated teams train 3 days/week during 1’5hours with one game each weekend. Also, this season, they receive a weekly technification session. On the other hand, for the school teams, they practice two days/week during 1’5hours, and one game each weekend. And the club organizes at least three school tournaments during the season.
About quotas, the fee for federated players is 600€, for school players under 12, 14 and 16 is 400€, and 225€ for under 10 and under 8 categories. Granollers city council offers grants to the most vulnerable players, and some parents from the club, apply for this grant to be able to pay the cost of the club’s annual fee. Usually, there are three or four players has the benefit from the aid.
Relation between the club and the context
Even if there are several neighborhood associations in different neighborhood, the club has not link with other associations, just with schools to promote volleyball at an economic level as we have already seen. Specially the club has a link with the Carles Vallbona secondary high school. The students at this secondary school participate in IAPE project, which consists of training volleyball during physical education hours.
About the communication network, the club contacts with athletes, families and community by telephone, email, or social networks. Moreover, their office opens two afternoons per week on site.
About social inclusion the club tries to participate in all the initiatives proposed by Granollers City Council. The club has been collaborating in the DONA Project (Dual Career for Women Athletes), and after that the club has an educational project of values, where every month a value is worked on, such as: time organization, punctuality, companionship, etc.
The club runs some projects to recruit players, but not specifically for vulnerable girls in risk of exclusion.
Club’s corporate culture
The club considers that today there is a lot of sedentary and unhealthy habits among young people and adolescents. That's why the club tries to promote physical activity and sport in a responsible and healthy way. "While they are here doing physical activity or organized sport, they are not elsewhere”. For the good habits, the club aims to transmit healthy habits, having a fruit snack once a week and receiving talks on nutrition and sports psychology.
The culture they want to transmit is that everyone can play volleyball. Therefore, there are teams for all levels, and it is a sport that allows to progress step by step, even so, it is a very technical sport that you must like and know how to play. They consider that volleyball is a very inclusive sport for its intrinsic rules: for every ball-touch of a player does, another player to touch again the ball, is needed. Therefore, an athlete cannot touch the ball twice in a row. This makes volleyball a sport that encourages the inclusion of each player.
From the point of view of the players, coaches, managers and familiars, everyone feels part of the club AE Carles Vallbona. Specially because of their multifactorial project, the quality of the service, and a good report with coaches, also with conditions.
The most important thing for the club is the girls’ learning and the values they want to transmit. So, the results must be the fruit of these values, as respect, passion, collaboration, commitment, cooperation, credibility, ethics, education, professionalism, openness, belonging, growth, sharing, etc.
Even though the commitment they have with these values, AE Carles Vallbona does not have set an explicit action or document about how to specifically include and welcome vulnerable girls. It is discussed among the staff during the initial training. Each coach does it in his own way. Some coaches say it is a role that the team captain plays, they talk to the captain, and it is she who pulls the team and encourages support to integrate the new players. In this way, there are no club rituals, but each team creates its own. To promote cohesion, each team have their own “team shout”, arriving before a match to have a snack together, team lunches and dinners, etc. specially inside the court, such as “Cheer shout”, listen to songs and shake hands between the players before the game.
This is not a club where conflicts are common. The small conflicts that may occur are due to misunderstandings between players. If there is any conflict, it is first managed by the coaches, but always with the support of the sports psychologist and the coordinators, who, if it is important, decide what should be done and the protocol to follow.
A strong point of the club is to ensure the permanence and good treatment of the players, so that they feel comfortable in the club. To create cohesive and competent teams it is important to work together for a long time, especially in a sport as technical as volleyball. Despite all this work, the sport dropout is around the age of 17.
PYD in the club
In order to promote a deep knowledge of these cultures' values and inclusion, we present information organized in the PYD areas. As we have already introduced, PYD is a key aspect of the project, therefore we have collected specific information about it from each of the agents. This data summarizes the information gathered by means of the 8 interviews done in the club. When information gathered is inconsistent or contradictory, it will be clearly stated and different perceptions will be shown.
1. Physical and psychological safety
In AE Carles Vallbona there are no explicit policies that indicate that physical and sexual harassment, violence, and bullying are not tolerated. However, the club is clearly against these behaviours. In this regard, the staff is aware of these topics and during the season they work on it. Coaches give support, welfare, and security to the players; by being beside them and talking about these topics. In addition, there is a sports psychologist, who makes clear to the families and players that they can count on her or ask for support in any circumstance. Relationships between players and staff tend to be positive and safe, with coaches always proactively trying to resolve any conflicts they may encounter. In terms of group dynamics, safe environment and sensitive issues, coaches who want to be trained must do it on their own.
2. Appropriate structure
The structure of the club promotes that all players are equal. It is said that there are always enough adults supervising the activities, keeping the players safe and giving positive support. In this sense, coaches and directors set clear boundaries, rules, and roles for everyone. Besides, players' opinions are always listened and valued in the organizational policies of the club. If athletes have something to say, they seem to feel free to talk about whatever might be discusses, as well as the club assesses what is convenient.
3. Supportive relationships
The girls report that the staff members are reassuring and provide them with opportunities to interact positively with each other, as well as try to promote healthy relationships and support in developing positive relationships.
As far as communication with management is concerned, the president is the one who is the responsible for being the spokesperson and being present when needed.
4. Opportunities for belonging
It is an inclusive club and open to a variety of cultures and backgrounds including LGTBI, disability, etc. To date, they have not had any disability cases, nor any conflict regarding LGTBI. As an experience, they had once, a girl who was deaf and any problem was reported During this season, a new trans-girl player has enrolled the club and is going to play in the youth team without any barrier or obstacle
As the interviewed agents state, the other cultures’ inclusion is not a problem. This means that they are all treated as equals and the club does not exclude anyone. In terms of training, the club does not formalize any training in cultural competencies or ethnicity, poverty, and sexuality. However, they plan to dedicate a few minutes to work on values, each month a different value, but not always is carried out. As observed in the 1st area of the PYD, actions to promote this area seem to be made, but all of them are informal and without a coaching club policies.
The athletes and staff seem to be part of the club. Agents clearly state the belonging feeling to the club. They state there is cohesion between the agents, there is a shared trust in the others, and all agents seem to feel well cared. However, it is agreed among the agents that it is little time to sharing, listening, reflecting, and talking on the field. These moments tend to occur more off the field, in their team moments.
5. Positive social norms
There is a protocol of action regarding the rules of coexistence within the club among equals and different players. However, it is state that there are no conflicts between agents or among athletes. It seems that players tend to have fair play in their behaviours. Also, it is agreed that there is mutual respect, interest, and commitment to the sport and its social conventions from all agents involved in competitions.
In addition, the staff provides clear messages emphasizing that any unappropriated behavior in the pitch or outside, is not accepted. It is also stated that staff also try to encourage the girls to create a positive environment in their schools and community, transmitting the different values of team sports.
6. Support of efficacy and mattering
In general, it is perceived that coaches promote the autonomy of the athletes, being flexible and responsive when it comes to fulfilling the sport and its commitments. About community service-learning projects, nothing specific is done, although in "El Dia de l'Esport de Granollers (Granollers Sports Day)", the club is open to the community because it allows anyone to play on a volleyball pitch set up for this occasion.
Coaches state that the club tries to encourage the athletes in achieving their learning goals at school. In fact, until now, the club is part of a wider project aimed reduce the sport and school dropout.
7. Opportunities for skill building
Beyond the specific skills of volleyball, the athletes have opportunities to practice other skills, for example, when they train with the strength and conditioning coach once a week, or when they warm up, with games or other sports.
The coaching staff tries to help the girls' creating connections between what they learn and other situations in their daily lives, since in general, they try to encourage them to take with them the values they learn on the field also outside.
The staff also work on identifying their goals, with small and large milestones that are marked throughout the season.
8. Integration of family, school, and community efforts
The club connects the girls, if necessary, with the community services they need, for example, the club offers reinforcement lessons for players who may need it. Because of
the bonds between the sport club and the high school, it is widely stated by the agents that high school families with a girl enrolled in the club, are highly involved in the club daily life. By contrast, the surrounding community and neighbors, are not so much.
One of the club's goals this season is to do more activities to involve the families. There is an informative website of the club, and this season they want to start with social networks, also including families to participate in it.
PYD initial assessment
As part of the interview, we asked to each interviewed to assess the level of development for each area of the PYD. Colours indicate the perceived corporative culture quality for each PYD area for each agent. For detailed information about the assessment criteria, see the instructions.
In this table we present an initial assessment of the perception that the interviewed agents have shown in relation to the different areas of the PYD.
Player 1 (W)
Player 2 (W)
Coach 1 (W)
Coach 2 (M)
Manager 1 (W)
Manager 2 (M)
Familiar 1 (W)
Familiar 2 (M)
PYD Areas
1. Physical and psychological safety
2. Appropriate structure
3. Supportive relationships
4. Opportunities for belonging
5. Positive social norms
6. Support of efficacy and mattering
7. Opportunities for skill building
8. Integration of family, school, and community efforts:
Red = Insufficient / Orange = Weak / Yellow = Positive / Green = Excellent
(W) = Woman / (M) = Man
Main conclusions
After analysing all the collected information, in this table we present some of the aspects that we have diagnosed that could be more deeply worked in the club:
Aspects that could be deeply worked in the club
1. Efforts and actions to improve areas 1, 4, 7 and 8 of PYD must be addressed
2. Increase the explicit work of some social skills
3. Increase the number of athletes from diverse ethnicities
4. Expand relationships with the context, families, services, and organizations.
5. Include a “Welcome aboard plan” for new players and families
6. Include a specific recruitment plan for local vulnerable girls
7. Include a “Welcome aboard plan” for local vulnerable new players and families
8. Include local vulnerable players’ families in the structure of the club
9. Write and disseminate clear policies to support PYD plan among agents
3.2. Scuola Di Pallavollo Andrerlini
City context
Modena is the capital of Modena’s province, in the Emilia-Romagna region (Italy), with a population of 184,973 inhabitants (89.397 men, 96.018 women).
The town lies on the Padana plain and is surrounded by two rivers, the Secchia and the Panaro, both tributaries of the Po. Its presence is symbolised by the "Fontanadeidue fiumi" in the centre of the city, a work by Giuseppe Graziosi, connected to the Panaro by the Naviglio canal, and its cathedral, the Civic Tower and the Piazza Grande, declared World Heritage Sites by UNESCO.
The demographic data of the population in 2021 is: born 1412, deaths 2106, number of families 84.633, immigrants 5443, emigrants 5438, population density 10, foreign citizens 29.075 (5.242 from EU; 6.698 extra Europe; 9.326 from Africa; 1.356 from America; 6.444 from Asia). There was a consistent increase in international migratory flows. Undoubtedly the main demographic phenomenon it has characterized the
municipal area from the nineties to today. From 3,075 foreign residents in 1991, it has reached 28,499 in 2015.
Fig. 4. Demographic movement of Modena population
In Modena there are many cultural associations, religion, social cooperatives that work with migrant communities, fragile people, people at risk of social exclusion.
Brief history of the club
In 1985, two pillars of the glorious G.S. Panini of Modena, Andrea Nannini and Rodolfo Giovenzana, founded the G.S. Scuola di Pallavolo aimed at teaching and perfecting volleyball for young people. Over 30 years, the Volleyball School's commitment has been to create a real culture of sport, that is not to experience sport only as a competitive moment, but to live it as a pleasure of to be together, in communion with oneself and an ongoing relationship with others.
Nowadays, the club has grown as a solid reality, with 55 teams and more than 1200 members. 120 of them are staff, becoming a technical and managerial benchmark all over the country. They focus its attention on values and ethic. This club is well known for its coaching and educational approach over the country and Europe.
General composition and organisation of the club
Scuola di Pallavollo Anderlini is a club that supports volleyball for young athletes aged between 3 to 19 years old. With 55 teams, 932 athletes (during 2021/2022 season), which are 341 men and 591 women.
The organization of the members of the club is:
1. Four Presidents
2. Five Managers for each area of the club: sports, events, marketing, resources and service and development.
3. Coordinators
4. Coaches
5. Players
The demographic data distribution for the female athletes is: 21 players under 3 y.o. (3’55%); 49 players from 3-5 y.o. (8,2%); 65 players from 6-7 y.o. (11,1%); 72 players from 8-9 y.o. (12,1%); 28 players from 10 y.o.(4,7%); 38 players from 11 y.o. (6,4%); 61 players from 12 y.o. (10,3%), 61 players from 13 y.o. (10,3%); 66 players from 14-15 y.o., (11,3%), 66 players from 16-17 y.o. (11,1%); 64 adults (10,9%).
The club has some athletes born outside Italy: 1 from Germany, 1 from Serbia, 1 from Switzerland, 1 from Romania, 2 from Vietnam, 2 from Moldavia, 1 from Morocco and 1 from USA. About religion, as far as we know, a good number of athletes attend Catholic parishes and participate in catechism up to the age of 12/13.
The coaches average age is 39 years old. There are 38 women and 47 men, all of them from Italy, except one from Bosnia.
SP Anderlini is made up for: two amateur sports social cooperatives, Anderlini Volleyball School (based in Sassuolo) and Serramazzoni Volleyball School (based in Serramazzoni), and two associations, the ASD Franco Anderlini Volleyball School (based in Modena) and ASD Volley Pavullo (based in Pavullo).
Scuola di Pallavolo Anderlini believes that physical activities play a key role in growth. Therefore, their children start playing in the club at the young age of 3 years old, and it is divided in 3 kinds of activities:
1. “Pallandia” is the activity for children from 3 to 5 years old. In this activity children can play with teachers, reading fairy tales and making fantastic trails alongside with the fairy tale's characters. By playing they can know children and team sports (such as volleyball). The purpose of “Pallandia” is to encourage the spontaneous expression of the children and to stimulate a life full of experiences, trying to integrate physical and mental aspects. These goals are pursued only using games, which takes a fundamental role in the psychomotor education over the first years of life. They play in mixed groups for one hour once or twice a week in the gym. They use three different gyms. Children are divided in 3 groups and make different activities depending on the age (3 years old, 4 years old, 5 years old). Staff includes one main coach and one assistant.
2. The next type of activity is called: “Minivolley”, from 6 to 9 years old, where they have 15 groups with about 300 children. The main purpose of minivolley is to introduce children to volleyball as a fun and educational sport. Without any competitive exasperation boys and girls who attend the volleyball courses, primarily, want to have fun. In doing so, under the guidance of our trainers, they not only learn the basic techniques of this discipline, but they also learn to socialize and respect each other. They play in mixed groups for one hour twice a week in the gym. They use seven different gyms. Children are divided in 2 groups and make different activities depending on the age (6-7 years old, 8-9 years old).
Staff includes one main coach and one or two assistants (depending on the number of athletes per hour).
3. Finally, there is “Agonistica”, the competitive level, from 10 to 19 years old: 45 groups with around 600 athletes. At the young age of 10 years old, boys and girls are ready to start playing as a team, separated by gender, taking training sessions during the week and play games and tournament during the weekend.
The teams train mainly in the competition field which is used for the matches of their respective leagues. In general, the smaller facilities are reserved for younger teams, which do not need a lot of space, while the larger ones are reserved for high-level competitive teams, also providing the participation of the public in matches.
Regarding the training sessions, the weekly training timetable is about 2 days/week, during 1 hour for children 3-9 y.o.; 3 days/week, during 2 hours for athletes 10-19 y.o.;
4 days/week, during 2 hours for athletes 12-14 y.o. in high level team; 5 days/week during 2/2,5 hours for athletes 17-19 y.o. in high level team.
The registration fees vary from 350 to 450€ per year depending on the type of activity, which are added extra expenses for participation in tournaments at other companies (from 200 to 800€ per year). Some aspirations of the club are to find future and sustainability, and to have the necessary resources to be able to maintain the whole club and staff in good conditions, as in recent years it has been complicated. The covid pandemic has been a problem and, after this complex period, because of that, families need to face more economic expenses than before which is not good for sport practice. The club is making adaptations and is looking for resources to be able to achieve families’ aspirations to keep being enrolled in the SP Anderlini. For athletes without financial resources, the Municipality helps them paying the fee or the club helps them with special prices or with instalments payments. In Modena, for disadvantage families is difficult to access to volleyball clubs, as there is a reference to the fact that it is a sport for well-established families, as the clubs are always looking to provide a high-quality service with trained staff.
The club collaborates with physiotherapists, physical trainers, nutritionists and has many workers who are involved in the organization of all the activities of the club.
Relation between the club and the context
The club has several collaboration agreements with elementary, middle, and high schools for the organization of sports activities within schools and/or other initiatives
(tournaments, conferences, etc.). The club has an active agreement with the health service for sports activities for autistic children.
Players can participate in a state program in which top-level athletes can schedule their school activities according to sporting commitments.
The club have some projects with the schools and have contact with students, which could be a good option to recruit players. The schools they have projects with are: Scuola Matarella, Scuola Pisano e Scuola Domillane.
Club’s corporate culture
The mission of the club is helping to grow and educate young people through sport, creating opportunities for the area in terms of services offered and jobs. Their vision is spreading and legitimizing the value of sport as a possible way for education, development, and growth of the new generations. They create a sharing network between athletes, families, organizations, institutions, and companies in order to play sports as a real educational activity. The values the club wants to promote are respect, passion, collaboration, commitment, cooperation, credibility, ethics, education, professionalism, openness, belonging, growth, sharing.
It is agreed that the best thing about being part of this club is the passion of the staff for their sport and what they want to offer to the players. Their goal is to transmit the values of the sport and above all human values and personal growth, not only to train players but also people.
About team internal regulations code or rules related to how to behave properly, the club has the ethic chart for players, parents, and staff. In 2013 a selected group of people, composed of athletes, managers, and families, worked to write “Carta Etica
Anderlini” (Ethic Guide Anderlini). This document describes how athletes, staff and families should behave to be fully aligned with Scuola di Pallavolo values and philosophy.
It has been published (more than 2,000 copies) and distributed to all Scuola di Pallavolo Anderlini stakeholders. Each team creates its own rules agreed upon by the coach and the players, which must be complied with, in accordance with the Ethical Guide.
One of the objectives of the coaches with the players, both on a personal and sport level, is to achieve cohesion, friendship, and reciprocal help between them, which is also an important aspect to their team. Therefore, cohesion also exists between coaches, but it needs to be improved, especially after the pandemic. All the staff is involved in training courses dedicated to technical and relational aspects, relating to soft skills and the needs of athletes and families. Each coach has his own method and different sensibility, but in general the coaches seek to positively reinforce the players by analysing and valuing their strengths.
The club promotes extra-regular-competition activities (dinners, parties, tournaments, visits, cultural activities…), as they consider it an excellent opportunity to grow and develop a positive environment. Each team has its own traditions, cheers, and group habits. At staff level, a training session is held at the beginning of the season to unify and align the group. With the younger ones, they celebrate traditions such as Halloween and
Christmas. And at club level, they always try to have an End of Season celebration at the end of the season.
Players tend to feel comfortable in the club, nonetheless they sometimes quit the team/club for reasons as school problems, other interests, low skills or too many commitments a part from sport. A difficult and conflictive moment for the staff is when they must choose players for the A team or the B team, as it is not an easy decision, not only with the players but also with their families. From the club, this selection is not a way to exclude any player, but to adapt the group and the level to the capabilities of each player. As far as competitive results are concerned, at youth level, the aim is not to look for results, but for continuity and constructive work. They look for growth not based on results but on their training.
The club do not set religious, racial, and cultural limits welcoming everyone and trying not to place barriers to the club's entrance. The club works with children with disability, in collaboration with the local health service and tries to adhere to all the initiatives proposed by the Municipality of Modena. The club believes that everyone can play volleyball, that it is an inclusive sport, that it allows people to socialise and that it can be useful for socialising, for learning to be part of a team and a context. Afterwards, an athlete can be more or less skilled, but it can help a lot on a personal level.
The high-level game is not so inclusive, as it requires the best physical and technical performance as possible. But for the level each athlete has in Anderlini Youth, everyone
has their place on the court, where they could play and look for their context, without exclusions or limits.
The club communicate with athletes, families, and community through newsletters, WhatsApp groups, social media, website, and meetings.
About athletes' diet, nutrition and their healthy habits, the club organize training courses for athletes and parents differentiated by age group and type of activity carried out.
The relations between the agents of the club are good, although being such a big club, it is difficult to have a useful and strong relationship with everybody.
PYD in the club
In order to promote a deep knowledge of these cultures' values and inclusion, we present information organized in the PYD areas. As we have already introduced, PYD is a key aspect of the project, therefore we have collected specific information about it from each of the agents. This data summarizes the information gathered by means of the 8 interviews done in the club. When information gathered is inconsistent or contradictory, it will be clearly stated, and different perceptions will be shown.
1. Physical and psychological safety
In SP Anderlini there is an Ethical Guide which indicates that physical and sexual harassment, violence, and bullying are not tolerated. These indications are renewed every year, and staff, families and players must read and accept them, and therefore
train aware of these regulations. Coaches are the figure that gives support, welfare, and security to the players, showing that they can count on them for whatever they need, but in addition, in the club there is a physiotherapist, physical trainer, and they are looking for a sports psychologist. They also focus on monitoring good nutrition. Relationships between players and staff tend to be positive and safe, with coaches always proactively trying to resolve any conflicts they may encounter. As it is a sport team, it is important to foster good relations.
Most coaches are trained and competent in the field of dynamics, safe environment, and sensitive issues, but it is not a training carried out by the club.
2. Appropriate structure
The interviews show that the club structure favours and encourages players to feel welcome. There are almost always enough adults supervising the activities, keeping the children safe and giving positive support. Except in the case of some seasons that they have found themselves unable to complete the staff.
Coaches and directors set clear boundaries, rules, and roles for everyone. Organisational decisions are normally taken only by the board and staff. However, if any player or family member wants to comment something, they are always listened.
3. Supportive relationships
Players report that the staff is trustworthy, and their activities give them the opportunity to interact positively with each other. At the club, they belief a lot in these opportunities
so they organise activities such as tournaments and away events. There is good communication from the managements to players, but the but there is still a bit of distance due to the size of the club
4. Opportunities for belonging
It is an inclusive club and open to a variety of cultures and backgrounds including LGTBI, disability, etc. Perhaps the economic difficulties are the most distant barrier that the club faces because the club is mostly composed of well-off families.
In general, staff and players feel part of the club, yet relevance is one of the aspects they are trying to work on. Coaches and managers state that on the field the staff dedicate time to share listen, reflect and talk, and provide opportunities for youth to work together to accomplish a goal.
In terms of formation, the club does not formalize any training in cultural competencies on ethnicity, poverty, and sexuality.
5. Positive social norms
There is a protocol of action regarding the rules of coexistence within the club between equals and different players.
In general, players have a fair play behaviour, and there is usually interest, mutual respect and commitment to the sport and its social conventions. A lack of social norms in the volleyball has been stated in the interviews.
In addition, the staff provides clear messages emphasizing that any violent relationship, of any kind, is not accepted. The club is effective in encouraging the players to create a positive environment in their schools and community, transmitting the different values of team sports.
6. Support of efficacy and mattering
As seen in the interviews, coaches tend to promote the autonomy of the athletes, being flexible and responsive when it comes to fulfilling the sport and its commitments.
As the interviewed agents state, the club does not currently have any projects aimed at encouraging young people to make a difference in their community by developing or referring teenagers to community service-learning projects.
It is agreed among the agents, that the club try to encourage the players in achieving their goals related mainly to education and work.
7. Opportunities for skill building
Beyond the specific skills of volleyball, the athletes have opportunities to practice other skills, mainly related to general and personal competences of the players as group dynamics, learning to be in a group, to respect one's own roles, etc.
It is seen in the interviews that the coaches and staff try to help the girls' creating connections between what they learn and other situations in their daily lives, since in general, they try to encourage them to take with them the values they learn on the field also outside.
The staff also work on identifying their goals, and goals to celebrate while they are on the way to achieving their objectives, with small and large milestones that are marked throughout the season.
8. Integration of family, school, and community efforts
The club in general does not tend to connect players with community services.
Families, neighbourhood schools and the community could be more involved in the club. The club could also try to involve families more with family activities, but they are trying to improve it.
PYD initial assessment
In this table we present an initial assessment of the perception that the interviewed agents have shown in relation to the different areas of the PYD.
Player 1 (W)
Player 2 (W)
Coach 1 (W)
Coach 2 (M)
Manager 1 (W)
Manager 2 (M)
Familiar 1 (W)
Familiar 2 (M)
Main conclusions
After analysing all the collected information, in this table we present some of the aspects that we have diagnosed that could be more deeply worked in the club:
Aspects that could be deeply worked in the club
1. Efforts and actions to improve areas 3, 4, 6, 7 and 8 of PYD must be addressed
2. Open the club to weaker economic status families
3. Include families with economic difficulties
4. Include a specific recruitment plan for local vulnerable girls
5. Increase the number of athletes from diverse ethnicities
6. Expand relationships with the context, families, services, and organizations.
7. Include a “Welcome aboard plan” for new players
8. Write and disseminate clear policies to support PYD plan among agents
3.3. Istres Provence Volley
City context
Istres, a commune in southern France, in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the Bouches-du-Rhône department, with 42.724 inhabitants.
It is located 60 km north-west of Marseille, 20 km south-west of Salon-de-Provence, 10 km north of Martigues and 45 km south-east of Arles. Istres is adjacent to the Étang de Berre lagoon (the largest in Europe) and the Étang de l'Olivier lagoon, and adjacent to the Plaine de la Crau and the Camargue national park.
Fig. 5. Map of the situation of Istres in Europe and in France
About the demographic data of the population, as we can see in the following tables, we can consider a notable population growth over the years, from 13,404 inhabitants in 1968 to 43,626 in 2019.
6. Historical population since 1968 in Istres
Regarding the annual variation of the population, it can be observed that the most notable growth occurred from 1975 to 1982 (6.7%).
As can be seen from the percentages, in Istres city, there are not many differences in terms of gender.
Regarding the socioeconomic distribution of Istres, we would like to highlight this table, which shows significant differences in salaries according to gender.
Fig. 9. Average net per hour earnings (in euros) by socio-professional category in 2020
All these data provided an image of the commune and their characteristics. Regarding to sport, the city has numerous sports facilities and exactly 102 clubs.
Brief history of the club
Istres Provence Volley was created in 1973 with the aim of promoting it as a high-level training club. Since then, the club has managed to be 16 seasons in the Professional League and has been managed as a “Training Center” for Youth and Sports. Their ambition is the excellence and performance for all sectors of activity.
The club now has more than 150 members from the Training Center, the Pro Team, leisure, and volunteers. All of them participate in the proper functioning and share the same ambitions which are, solidarity, passion sport and sharing, all united for the best.
General composition and organization of the club
The organisation of the members of the club is.
1. President
2. Vice President
3. Committee
4. Secretaries
5. Treasurer
6. Coaches
7. Sport & Conditioning coach (for Professional Team)
8. Players
Istres Provence Volley Club is composed by 150 club members, with 125 girls' players distributed in 9 teams. The main population is born in France. The most likely entrance age at the club is 11 y.o, the average years of retainment is 6, and the most likely age of sport abandonment is 17/18 y.o.
About training sessions, they carried out in The Gymnase Paul Caballoni and the Gymnase le Podium. Regarding training frequency, l'Ecole de Volley is training 1 day per week during 1’5 hours (+ 1 day/month with families); M-9/11, M15-18 (Départamentale) and Section Sportive M18 are training 2 days per week during 2hours; M13, M15-17 (Coupe), N3, Loisir and Régionale are training 3 days per week during 2hours. In addition, all teams play a match every weekend.
Relation between the club and the context
Istres Provence Volley is also a citizen club. It is committed with the city:
- Through its action in the animation of the districts and in the schools to make discover the sport to the children and the teenagers.
- On a humanitarian level, by proposing partnerships for sick children with humanitarian associations such as "Un maillot pour la vie", "Lilou", "Néna'venir", "Vaincre le cancer".
- In favour of the environment, by participating in the "Grand Istres Propre" event and the "sustainable development" stand.
Club’s corporate culture
There is a team internal regulations code, not related to how to play the sport but how to behave properly.
They organise different days during the season, where they open the club for all girls.
To recruit more players, they have also one coach from the club who is going to train volleyball in schools, like an extra-curricular activity, as an opportunity for them to try to convince children to come to the club. However, they feel that they need more actions and help from the local public institutions or town hall.
They have a good relationship between the members of the club, in fact, members of the club define to be in the club as belong to a big family. Once per month they organise an informal tournament for everyone to encourage cohesion. Besides, before the start of the season, they organise a cohesion training course-activities with the staff and
different teams. The aspiration of the club, as is a formation club, is to make all girls participate and socialize. The strongest point of the club is the organisation, for the games, de training sessions, for the formation of the girls. But they would like to have more formation for the coaches.
For the club one of the core values is to make all players feel welcome, included and part of the team. It is not usual to have conflicts between players, but if they detect some of it, they will try to stop it, talking with players, family and if it is necessary with the president. The club try to promote different values like respect and participation.
For player retention, the club is fortunate to have a beach nearby, and during the summer they continue with beach volleyball, organise summer tournaments and they have organised a summer camp for all the players. The club promote regular extraregular-competition activities, like dinners, parties, tournaments, visits and cultural activities, that involve athletes or families. As celebrations and traditions, each team has its own, and as club-wide celebrations, they have a meal for Christmas and at the end of the season.
For the professional team, they have specific rules to follow regarding commitment to and for the team. If they do not comply with the regulations, they pay for the equipment.
With the amateur players, however, they do not, they simply comply with the schedules but without a written regulation or a penalty system.
From the club's perspective, volleyball is an inclusive sport as it is a team sport played with other teammates with different teams and personalities, as well as encouraging cohesion.
PYD in the club
In order to promote a deep knowledge of these cultures' values and inclusion, we present information organized in the PYD areas. As we have already introduced, PYD is a key aspect of the project, therefore we have collected specific information about it from each of the agents. This data summarizes the information gathered by means of the 5 interviews done in the club. When information gathered is inconsistent or contradictory it will be clearly stated, and different perceptions will be shown.
1. Physical and psychological safety
Istres Provence Polley has a code that indicates that physical and sexual harassment, violence, and bullying are not tolerated, and everyone from the club must sign it, so everyone is aware of these policies.
Agents state that the club has never had any support, well-being, and safety problems. They are always trying to make the players feel comfortable and safe. Relationships between players and staff tend to be positive and safe, with coaches always proactively trying to resolve any conflicts that they may encounter.
In terms of group dynamics, safe environment, and sensitive issues, some of the trainers have some formation because they are involved in education, but not all of them are, because these trainings are not organised by the club.
2. Appropriate structure
There is a general perception that, due to the lack of resources and support, the club is experiencing the lack of adult coaches
It is observed in the interviews that coaches and managers set clear boundaries, rules, and roles for everyone.
About players' opinions, if they have something to say, they are free to comment on it, and the organization assesses what is convenient.
3. Supportive relationships
Players comment that the staff is trustworthy, and their activities give them the opportunity to interact positively with each other, as well as try to promote healthy relationships and support in developing positive relationships.
There is good communication from the managements to the players.
4. Opportunities for belonging
It is agreed among the agents that, the club is inclusive and opened to all contexts. They have not encountered any situation but if that were the case there would be no problem with it. Players, staff, and family members feel part of the club, there is a good relationship in general, without feelings of distinction or superiority.
During the training sessions staff provide opportunities for youth to work together to accomplish a goal.
Staff members do not receive training in cultural competence related to ethnicity, poverty, sexuality.
5. Positive social norms
Among the staff there is usually no problem of coexistence, there has never been a need for rules of coexistence.
In general, players have a fair play behaviour, in fact the coaches train it with them. In addition, they usually show interest, mutual respect and commitment to the sport and its social conventions.
Agents state that the club has never had any problems of this kind, but if it is necessary to make clear that violent behaviour is not accepted at the club, it is repeated, and action is taken.
It is agreed among the agents that staff members encourage youth to create a positive environment also in their schools and community.
6. Support of efficacy and mattering
In general, the coaches promote the autonomy of the athletes, being flexible and responsive when it comes to fulfilling the sport and its commitments.
As a projects to encourage players with community service-learning, with the youngest children, one of the projects is called "Grand Istres Propre", in which they participate with the help of volunteers in the cleaning and maintenance of the city. The children have a great time, as it is a different activity, they receive T-shirts, and it is a rewarding activity. And with the pro team, for example, one of the actions they do is to go to schools and do some volleyball sessions for children.
Agents state that the club tries rto encourage the players in achieving their goals related mainly to education and work.
7. Opportunities for skill building
Apart from training specifically in volleyball, in the training sessions for the younger ones they practice with games so they can change positions and practice the others. With the professional team they have physical training in the gym every morning with the physical trainer.
About making connections between skills they learn related to sport and success in other settings, such as education and work, apart from fitness and healthy habits, we could say that the biggest connections they can stablish are related to sport values.
As the interviewed agents state, staff members engage youth in determining their goals and in identifying how those goals can be achieved, helping them to enhance and improve their weaknesses, and reinforcing players when they are doing well.
8. Integration of family, school, and community efforts
There is a general perception that club connects the girls, if necessary, with the community services they need.
It is difficult to involve schools, the neighbourhood, or the community in the club. But they are trying it, especially with the families, through family tournaments and media (newsletters, Instagram and networks).
PYD initial assessment
In this table we present an initial assessment of the perception that the interviewed agents have shown in relation to the different areas of the PYD.
PYD Area/ Agent
Coach 1 (M)
Coach 2 (M)
Manager 1 (M)
Familiar 1 (W)
Familiar 2 (M)
Main conclusions
After analysing all the collected information, in this table we present some of the aspects that we have diagnosed that could be more deeply worked in the club:
Aspects that could be deeply worked in the club
1. Efforts and actions to improve areas 2, 3 4, 7 and 8 of PYD must be addressed
2. Include a specific recruitment plan for local vulnerable girls
3. Increase the number of athletes from diverse ethnicities
4. Include local vulnerable players’ families in the structure of the club
5. Write and disseminate clear policies to support PYD plan among agents
6. Increase the explicit work of some social skills
7. Include a “Welcome aboard plan” for new players
8. Train coaches and implement actions for comprehensive training of the athletes.
4. References
Accueil. (2017, July 18). Istres Provence Volley. https://www.istres-volley.fr/
AE Carles Vallbona. (n.d.). AE Carles Vallbona. Retrieved from https://aecarlesvallbona.cat/
Anderlini. (2013, August 8). Anderlini dal 1985. https://www.anderlini1985.it/
Commune d’Istres (13047). (n.d.). Insee.fr. Retrieved from https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/2011101?geo=COM-13047
Comune di Modena. (n.d.). Demografia Modena.it. Retrieved from https://www.comune.modena.it/servizio-statistica/paginetematiche/Demografia/demografia
Indicadors demogràfics i de territori (n.d.). Idescat.Cat. Retrieved from https://www.idescat.cat/pub/?id=inddt&geo=mun:080961