Welsh Cycling are pleased to announce the launch of the Cycling Award for Young Volunteers with the inaugural workshop being delivered at the Go-Ride Conference in Swansea on Saturday 28 March.

The training is provided for young people who are looking to build their leadership and communication skills in a practical environment. You can develop these skills whilst contributing to the development of one of the most successful Olympic sports in recent years,

Cycling Award for Young Volunteers

A fantastic place to start volunteering within cycling is through the Cycling Award for Young Volunteers (CAYV) programme. This combines an introductory workshop, which covers the fundamentals of cycle sport and volunteering roles, with practical placements within our Go-Ride community clubs.

You can work towards a bronze (12 hours), silver (24 hours) or gold (36 hours) award with free branded volunteer clothing, certificates and memberships.

Volunteer passport information and downloads section

The volunteering options: coaching, officiating and club management

Option 1: Coaching

Coaching is at the heart of cycling performance at every level from teaching basic bike handling skills in a school or club through to training athletes for the Olympic Games or Tour de France.

After completing the CAYV workshop you can start to  get involved by shadowing a British Cycling qualified coach within a Go-Ride club or at one of our Welsh Cycling organised coaching Programmes.

In addition, depending on your age, you may wish to become a qualified coach yourself.

• The Level 1 Certificate in Coaching Cycling (L1CCC) - 16 years +

• The Level 2 Certificate in Coaching Cycling (L2CCC) - 18 years +

For more information about British Cycling's coaching awards, including the discipline-specific awards, please see the Coaching section of our website.

Option 2: Race planning and delivery

There are thousands of cycling events every year and they all rely on officials to ensure that they are safe, fair and most importantly fun! The CAYV demonstrates a broad overview of the roles required for a cycling event. The best way to get involved following the CAYV workshop is through Go-Ride Racing.

Option 3: Club management

For those of you intrigued by the workings of a Go-Ride club, its activities and all of its different volunteers then club management may be the option for you. The CAYV provides an insight into the varying roles required for a club to function effectively and we can set you up within a local club to explore the opportunities.

You could become a youth representative by outlining the views of the younger club members to committee members and even attending regional or national forums with other young club representatives.

Book your place for the Young Volunteers Workshop and the Go Ride Conference Wales.

Young Leaders Programme - Platinum Award

On the completion of the CAYV programme our young volunteers are offered the opportunity to take their volunteering to the next step by becoming young leaders and working towards their Platinum Award.

National Youth Forum

The National Youth Forum has recently been set up by British Cycling to empower young people and enable them to actively help us to develop opportunities for their peers, providing the chance to ride, race and volunteer beyond 16.

The National Youth Forum will be made up of 8-12 young volunteers from across the country, who are 16+ and currently working towards their Gold or Platinum Award on the CAYV Programme.

The group will meet on a quarterly basis to discuss how we can continue to engage with young people and encourage them to participate in our fantastic sport. Young volunteers are the future of our sport and we are keen to use their experiences, options and ideas to help develop our programmes going forward.

If this is something that you or the young volunteers within your club may be interested in you can download an application form.

Contact us

For more information on the Cycling Award for Young Volunteers, contact Alistair Waldron, Worforce Offficer by email Alistair.Waldron@welshcycling.co.uk or call 01633 274691