Dorney BC’s Hannah Vines wins UK Coaching’s Community Coach of the Year Award
Widely regarded as the pinnacle of recognition within the coaching community, the UK Coaching Awards shine a spotlight on the extraordinary contributions of coaches across all levels of sport and physical activity
This year’s UK Coaching Awards – held at The Queens Hotel in Leeds – honoured an outstanding group of winners, showcasing their transformative impact on individuals, teams, and communities.
The Community Coach of the Year (Children and Young People) Award, supported by the Children’s Coaching Collaborative and Play Their Way, recognises a coach’s outstanding contribution to coaching children and young people to meet their sport and physical activity needs and aspirations.
Sarah Harris, Head of Learning, Education and Development Manager at British Rowing said, “Hannah has enabled so many young people to benefit from participating in our wonderful sport over many, many years. We’re really delighted that she has been recognised for what she’s achieved.”
Hannah’s citation said:
Over an impressive 35+ year career, Hannah has supported an average of 200 people each year to enjoy learning to row in an environment that prioritises individual needs, ambitions and experiences, and to develop useful life skills, such as the ability to work effectively in a team.
Hannah has created innovative solutions to enable more young people to participate, such as a ‘pay it forward’ membership to help fund participation for others, and by enabling kit to be earned through reaching milestones instead of bought.
Effective questioning encourages participants to gain confidence, be reflective, and use their voices to shape sessions. Effective goal setting alongside encouraging participants to choose their own challenges for each session empowers them to take ownership of their journeys in sport and physical activity.
Earlier this year Hannah won the British Rowing Community Coach of the Year Award, and in addition to her work leading the sessions at Dorney BC, she is a mentor to young athletes on the Diploma in Sorting Excellence programme.
