Our Club Community Volunteers
Volunteers help uphold training standards, deliver competitions and support every pathway across the club.
Most are parents of swimmers or players, Masters members, older swimmers or others connected to Bluefins who want to contribute.
Some help at individual events. Others find a role they enjoy, develop new skills and become regular members of the team.
You don't need to know swimming inside out or commit every weekend. There are opportunities to suit different interests, experience and availability with training and guidance along the way.
Bluefins actively develops officials, Team Managers, junior volunteers and coaches, helping to strengthen the club for the future.
Bluefins is built on people who choose to be involved.
Getting Involved
You don't need previous experience or to know exactly which role is right for you.
Some roles require training, accreditation or safeguarding requirements while others can be learned alongside experienced club volunteers. We will help you understand what is needed and you won't be expected to work it out alone.
You might start by helping at one home meet, discover that you enjoy it and decide to do more. Or you may simply continue helping when you can.
Either way, you become part of the team that makes Bluefins work.
Be Part of It
Bluefins couldn't provide the training, competitions, camps, Development Meets and opportunities it does without people choosing to get involved.
You don't have to do everything.
Start with something that interests you. Learn from people already doing it. Help when you can.
You may discover that volunteering gives you something back too, new skills, new friendships, a better understanding of the sport and the satisfaction of knowing that you are part of the team helping make these opportunities possible.
Meet & Event Volunteers
Not every meet role requires a qualification.
Our home competitions need people behind the scenes to keep everything moving. Depending on the meet, this can include marshalling swimmers, helping with awards, refreshments, equipment and supporting the practical jobs before, during and after racing.
Announcer
The Announcer is an important part of the competition team.
They provide safety and housekeeping announcements, help control warm-up periods and keep swimmers, coaches and volunteers informed as the meet progresses.
Once racing begins, they introduce events and races and help create the atmosphere around the competition.
You don't need to be a professional commentator. A clear voice, confidence using a microphone and the ability to follow the meet programme are much more important.
At our home meets we currently don't have space for a dedicated spectator area. Volunteering therefore offers something else too, you get to become part of the action and experience the meet from inside the competition.
For many parents, helping at a meet is the easiest place to start.
Talk to us if you'd like to help at our next home meet.
Officiating
Trained officials help ensure swimming competitions are delivered safely and fairly and are essential to licensed swimming. There is a clear pathway for anyone interested in becoming an official.
Timekeeper
A straightforward introduction to competition, learning how races operate and how swimmers' times are recorded.
Judge 1 (J1)
Develops practical experience across the different judging roles and an understanding of the rules of swimming.
Judge 2 (J2)
Builds greater technical knowledge and experience across officiating roles.
Judge 2S (J2S)
Adds the skills required to act as a Starter.
There is no expectation to complete the whole pathway. Some volunteers are happy timekeeping or officiating at J1 while others choose to progress further.
It is also one of the best ways to experience racing up close and become part of the team that makes competition possible.
Growing our team of trained officials will also help us restore our popular internal Development Meets, giving younger swimmers valuable early racing experience within the familiar Bluefins environment.
Sarah oversees our officials group and guides new volunteers through training and accreditation.
Contact Sarah to find out how to get started.
Read: Officials Pathway Overview
Referee
The senior technical official responsible for the overall conduct of the competition.
Team Managers
Team Managers organise swimmers at competitions, manage communication and provide structure on poolside. Their leadership helps create a calm, safe and focused environment.
But Team Managing is about much more than organisation. TMs bring energy to poolside, helping to motivate and encourage swimmers before they race, celebrating their efforts afterwards and offering reassurance or consolation when a race doesn't go as hoped.
Team Manager 1 (TM1)
Covers the essentials of supporting swimmers at competitions, including supervision, communication, safeguarding and managing the team throughout the event.
Team Manager 2 (TM2)
Builds on this experience for teams travelling or staying overnight. For Bluefins, this includes residential swim camps and the coach travel that takes our teams to Arena League competitions.
Additional safeguarding and DBS requirements apply as volunteers progress through the Team Manager pathway. Bluefins guides volunteers through what is required.
Team Managers work alongside coaches to help competition days run smoothly. They are often right at the heart of the team, helping swimmers feel organised, supported and ready to race.
For many parents, Team Managing becomes a rewarding way to experience competition alongside the swimmers rather than simply watching from outside it.
Kat coordinates our Team Managers and helps new volunteers learn how competition weekends operate.
Contact Kat to find out how to get started.
Read: Team Manager Spotlight
Tech Desk Team
The Tech Desk sits behind the timing and results operation at our home meets. It brings together meet software, electronic timing and poolside hardware to turn each race into an accurate result.
Meet Software & Results
The team uses Hy-Tek Meet Manager to help run the competition, managing events, swimmers, heats and results as the meet progresses.
Race information from the electronic timing system is brought together with the meet software so results can be checked, processed and published throughout the competition.
The team also helps keep Meet Mobile updated — the app many parents and swimmers use to follow heats, results and the progress of the meet.
At our home meets, where there is currently no dedicated spectator area, Meet Mobile provides an important way for parents to follow the racing and results.
Accuracy matters but new volunteers don't need to arrive knowing Hy-Tek or the timing software. They learn alongside experienced members of the team, starting with straightforward tasks and building their knowledge over time.
You don't need to be a computer expert or electronics engineer. If you're practical, organised, interested in technology or simply willing to learn, there is plenty to get involved with.
Timing Equipment, Set-up & Breakdown
There is also a practical hardware team responsible for preparing the pool for electronic timing.
Before racing begins, volunteers install and connect equipment including touchpads, timing units and the cabling connecting each lane to the system.
Everything is positioned, connected and tested before the first race.
At the end of the meet, the process is reversed. Equipment is disconnected, removed carefully, checked and packed away ready for the next competition.
For anyone interested in software, equipment or problem-solving, it is a fascinating way to understand what happens between a swimmer touching the wall and their result appearing on screen.
Tom leads the Tech Desk team and helps new volunteers learn the systems and equipment.
Contact Tom to find out more about joining the Tech Desk team.
Coaching
Volunteer coaches work across every pathway in the club.
Some are former swimmers or Masters members. Others are parents who swam with clubs when they were younger and want to bring that experience back into the sport. Some begin through the Junior Volunteer pathway.
Swim England is currently introducing a new Coach Education curriculum built around four stages:
Coaching Assistant
Supporting the delivery of coached sessions.
Session Coach
Developing the skills to lead and deliver individual sessions.
Coach Practitioner
Developing broader independent coaching practice.
Senior Coach Practitioner
Advanced development for experienced coaches.
At Bluefins, the qualification is only part of becoming a better coach.
Our volunteer coaches work alongside experienced senior coaches with mentoring that develops the practical knowledge a course alone cannot provide.
Coaches learn from coaches
They observe sessions, share ideas and experiences, discuss what works and develop a deeper understanding of the technical details behind each stroke, starts and turns.
That exchange of knowledge is an important part of our coaching culture. It develops coaches with a strong technical eye and creates greater consistency in how swimming is taught across the club.
Formal qualifications provide the foundation. Mentoring, experience and learning from each other take that knowledge further.
There is a simple reward at the heart of coaching too: helping a swimmer understand something they couldn't do before and watching that skill become part of their swimming.
Spencer leads coaching development and can advise on mentoring, training and opportunities to become involved.
Speak to Spencer to discuss coaching opportunities.
Read: Coaching Development
Junior Volunteers — Coaching
Swimmers aged 14+ can assist our lead coaches across development, inclusive, fitness and Water Polo squads.
Consistent involvement with an agreed squad gives young volunteers meaningful responsibility and helps develop confidence, reliability, communication and leadership.
Bluefins also supports young volunteers taking part in the Swim England South East Young Volunteers Programme. Open to 14–18-year-olds, the programme provides opportunities across coaching, events and officiating with regional recognition for their contribution.
For older swimmers, volunteering is also another way to remain involved in Bluefins and give something back to younger swimmers coming through.
Our lead coaches support junior volunteers as they begin their coaching journey and help them make the most of these opportunities.
Speak to Spencer to explore the Junior Volunteer pathway.
Welfare
Our Welfare team helps ensure Bluefins remains a safe, welcoming and supportive environment for swimmers, players, parents and volunteers.
Welfare Officers provide a point of contact for safeguarding and welfare concerns and help the club apply the appropriate Swim England requirements.
It is a role for someone who is approachable, discreet and comfortable listening to people with appropriate training and guidance provided.
Welfare may operate away from the racing and training but it is fundamental to creating a club where people feel safe and supported.
Operational Roles
Not every contribution happens on poolside.
Behind the visible roles is another team helping Bluefins operate effectively. This includes coordination of officials and volunteers, SwimMark, fundraising, bookkeeping, administration, communications and helping organise the social events that bring swimmers, parents and volunteers together away from the pool.
These roles suit many different skills — organisation, finance, administration, communications, events or simply being good at bringing people together.
Skills developed through work, family life or other organisations can be just as valuable to a swimming club.
Fleur supports operational volunteers and can help match people to roles that suit their skills and availability.
Contact Fleur to explore current opportunities.