Name of organisation
Deciding on a name is a fun way of bring your volunteer coaches together. Readeasy, Get It, and FRED, the Forest Read Easy Deal, are some of the groups set up so far.
Aims
Aims are a statement of what you want to achieve and how you want to achieve it. For example: “To provide opportunities for those who can’t read or who struggle with reading, to meet up with a volunteer coach to receive one-to-one coaching and support, at an easily accessible, relaxed and non-threatening venue, using Yes We Can Read as the coaching tool.”
Members
Members will be your volunteer coaches. You might like to include your learners, but they may be wary or reluctant for reasons of confidentiality.
Equal opportunities
An equal opportunities policy should be included. For example: "The group will not discriminate on the grounds of gender, race, colour, ethnic or national origin, sexuality, disability, religious or political belief, marital status or age."
Committee and officers
Coaching Reading Groups usually share or ‘rotate’ the jobs that need doing. Many groups run very successfully without an elected committee. In this instance, the entire group is the ‘management committee’ and everyone is responsible for the group’s affairs. You will still need to have members who take responsibility for long term tasks such as managing the money. It is useful to decide in advance of each meeting who will be the Chair or Facilitator and who will take minutes. When you make decisions (such as running a press campaign or organising a fundraising event) you will also need to decide who will be responsible for carrying them out.
A SAMPLE CONSTITUTION is available for download here
