Our Work

Runners at the National Relays

What we do

As the not-for-profit membership and development body for grassroots athletics and running in England, we support 1,650 affiliated clubs and organisations (covering track and field, road running, fell, hill, trail and cross country clubs), 142,000 registered athletes, 30,000 licensed coaches and leaders and 5,450 officials.

Our purpose is to inspire more athletes and runners of all abilities and backgrounds to fulfil their potential and to have a lifelong love for the sport. Our vision is for athletics and running to become an inclusive sport where everyone belongs and can flourish.

This purpose and vision drives our strategic plan for 2021-2032 in which we are putting athletes and runners at the heart – creating opportunities, enhancing experiences and powering potential. Learn more about our strategic plan including our guiding principles and our five key areas of focus: Clubs, Club Leader and facilities; Competition; Coaches and Officials; Participation – young people and running; and Talented Athletes.

As the membership and development body for the sport in England, we lead on support for grassroots athletics and running clubs, facilities and schools, affiliation and membership, domestic competition opportunities at area, county, national and international [England] level, the recruitment, training and retention of coaches, officials, and leaders, volunteering, participation and the development of talent pathways for athletes through to the Commonwealth Games.

We work in partnership with UK Athletics which, as the national governing body for the sport of athletics in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, is responsible for a number of high level functions, including the provision of world class performance athletics such as GB & NI international teams, rules and regulations for UK competition, licensing for coaches, competitions, officials and tracks, welfare and safeguarding, anti-doping and broadcasted events.

How we work

England Athletics Board

The Board of England Athletics, diverse and representative of the sport it serves, will oversee the delivery of our strategy. The Board is made up of two members of England Council, two Directors elected by the membership, one Executive Director and six independent Directors bringing expertise, experience and perspective from other sports.

England and Regional Councils

The nine Regional Councils act as the representative body for member clubs at a local level and will play an essential role in three pivotal areas to aid delivery and maintain member engagement:

  • Generating feedback and ideas from clubs to develop insight to ensure support provided is solving problems and genuinely making a difference and is valued. This can be generated from networks etc.
  • Conduit of information to clubs to aid effective communication so clubs feel informed, involved and valued
  • Providing local knowledge to help support important national processes such as club affiliation, licensing, competition planning and education needs.

Find more England and Regional Councils information and key contacts

England Athletics delivery: core staff, expert consultants and partners

England Athletics has established a staffing structure that will effectively service important areas of work critical to delivering this strategic plan and providing support to our members.

Two departments will focus on the delivery of programmes and services:

Clubs and participation

Including direct support, coach and officials education, club resource production, facility development, club-focused competitions, club participation, inclusion and road running club support.

Talent

Including talent development, management of England teams, England Athletics national Championships and competition partnerships.

Regional networking

A network of regional expert consultants will provide an extra layer of local support and development for coaches and clubs.

Operations

Including member engagement, IT, licensing, marketing, communications, digital and research.

Finance

Including financial control, governance structures and business development.

Partnerships

England Athletics will not be able to deliver this strategic plan alone. Effective collaboration and partnership working will be required across all priority areas and disciplines.

This will include UKA, other HCAFs, leagues, competition providers, associations, event providers, commercial partners, specialist agencies, technology, providers and many more.

Participation: young people and running

Schools, Teachers, Youth Sport Trust (YST), funetics delivery providers, RunTogether groups, running event providers, London Marathon, parkrun, Running All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG), Active Partnerships.

Clubs, Club Leaders and facilities

Clubs, volunteers, member bodies, facility providers

Competition

National Athletics League (NAL), Youth Development League (YDL), leagues, area competition providers, English Schools’ Athletic Association (ESAA), English Cross Country Association (ECCA), Fell Runners Association (FRA), Trail Running Association (TRA), Race Walking Association (RWA), British Milers Club (BMC), British Masters Athletic Federation (BMAF), County Associations

Coaches and Officials

Tutors, Coaches, Officials, Leaders

Talent

Coaches, Commonwealth Games England, Athletes Commission