Starting an athletics club: affiliation, insurance, DBS, constitution

Starting a club is less about finding a track and more about getting the governance right first. A governing body will not affiliate a club, and insurance will not cover it, without the basics in place.

A constitution

Your constitution is the document that sets out how the club is governed: the rules it operates by, voting rights, how officers are elected, and how disputes get resolved. Rather than writing one from scratch, England Athletics provides a template which needs approving by your club's own membership before affiliation.

Committee roles

A functioning committee typically needs a chair, treasurer, secretary, membership secretary, welfare officer and DBS verifier. At least three committee members need to be unrelated and not living together, which exists to avoid a small handful of connected people controlling the whole club unchecked.

DBS checks and welfare

Anyone coaching or supervising children needs a clear Disclosure and Barring Service check before they can work unsupervised with young athletes. Your governing body's affiliation package includes support for running these checks properly, which is not something to handle informally given what is at stake if it is done wrong.

Insurance and what affiliation actually buys

Affiliation brings eligibility to apply for track and field and cross country competition licences, up to £50 million in public liability insurance cover, and legal support and advice for organising races and events. From 2026, all seven Club Standards became a mandatory requirement for affiliation, so it is worth checking the current standards before you apply rather than assuming an older, lighter-touch process still applies.

Coaches before members

None of this works without qualified coaches. See our guide to athletics coaching qualifications for the LiRF, CiRF and Coaching Assistant awards most new clubs start with.