Your first month on a swimming club committee
In your first month on a swimming club committee, read the constitution, the last AGM minutes and accounts, get your own access to the systems your role needs, learn the club's calendar, and meet the head coach. Most new committee members feel overwhelmed because the job lives in other people's heads. A month spent finding where things are, and writing it down as you go, makes the rest of the year much lighter.
The main roles
Titles vary by club, but most competitive clubs have these:
| Role | What it covers |
|---|---|
| Chair | Runs committee meetings and the AGM, holds the club's overall direction, signs off decisions |
| Secretary | Minutes, correspondence, the club's formal records and its contact with the governing body |
| Treasurer | Fees, payments, the budget, accounts and pool and coaching costs |
| Membership secretary | Joining and leaving, membership records, governing-body membership |
| Welfare officer | Safeguarding, DBS checks, the first point of contact for welfare concerns |
| Meet or gala secretary | Gala entries, entry files, results and personal bests |
Some clubs combine roles; larger clubs add others, such as a volunteer coordinator or club captain.
Week one: read
- The constitution. Who decides what, how meetings work, how fees are set.
- The last AGM minutes and accounts. What was promised, what was agreed, where the money stands.
- The safeguarding policy. Clubs affiliated to Swim England adopt Wavepower. Clubs in Wales and Scotland follow their own governing body's policies.
- Any handover notes from the person before you. If there are none, ask them for an hour.
Week two: get access
Get your own login to everything your role needs: the club's systems, email, banking if you are treasurer. Never use a shared or inherited personal login. Check whether your role needs a DBS check and safeguarding training; your welfare officer will know.
Week three: learn the calendar
Most of a committee's year is predictable. Find out when these fall at your club:
- The AGM and the committee meeting cycle
- Governing-body affiliation renewal
- Pool hire contract renewals
- The gala season and the club championships
- Fee reviews and when changes take effect
- DBS renewals due in the coming year
If your club is affiliated to Swim England, note that its new membership system went live on 20 October 2026. See what clubs should check.
Week four: meet the people
Spend time with the head coach. The committee holds the budget, but the coach runs the club day to day and knows where the pressure is. Ask what takes up time that should not, and what they wish the committee knew. Then ask the same of the volunteers who keep galas and fees running.
Write it down as you go
The single most useful thing a new committee member can do is leave better notes than they found. Where things are stored, who to call at the pool, what each recurring task involves. The next person will be in your position sooner than you think.
Why the job feels bigger than it is
Committee roles feel overwhelming when the club's knowledge is scattered across spreadsheets, inboxes and group chats. When membership, fees, safeguarding records and galas live in one system with access set by role, a new volunteer can see what they need on day one. That is the idea behind Olympus Swim: a new treasurer or membership secretary useful in a week, not a season. Read about what club software should cover and volunteer burnout in swimming clubs.
Common questions
What does a swimming club secretary do? The secretary keeps the club's formal records, takes minutes, handles correspondence and is usually the main contact with the governing body.
Do committee members need a DBS check? It depends on the role. Some committee roles, such as welfare officer, require one. Ask your club's welfare officer what your role needs.
How much time does a committee role take? It varies with the role and the club's systems. Roles take far less time when records are shared and organised rather than held by one person.
Written by Joel Knight, swimming coach and founder of Olympus Swim (about).
Checked 26 October 2026
If this sounds like something your club needs, get in touch.
I read and reply to every message myself.