Affiliating your club
Why affiliate with England Athletics?
As an affiliated club you will be able to access a range of benefits and services to help, manage and engage your club and its members, including:
- Club support services
- Partner offers
- Club programmes
- Competition, events and licensing
- Qualifications and development opportunities
View a full list of England Athletics Club Affiliation benefits and services.
What do you need to affiliate your club?
Constitution
A club constitution approved by the club membership developed from the England Athletics template.
Committee
Appoint a committee to cover a range of roles to represent your club. Club should have a committee that is made up of representatives to fulfil the following roles;
- Club Chair *
- Club Treasurer *
- Club Secretary **
- Club Membership Secretary **
- Welfare Officer
- DBS Verifier
* Please note the Club Chair and Treasurer must not be the same person. These two roles should not be linked to individuals co-habiting/related. The role of Treasurer should not be connected to other roles and be independent, due to the financial nature of the position.
** The roles of Club Secretary and Membership Secretary can be combined and also the positions of DBS Verifier and Welfare Officer
Conflicts of interest should be recognised, managed by the Chair and recorded. At least three of the people on the committee should be unrelated or not cohabiting.
Access Committee role descriptions.
Club Bank Account
Registered bank account in the name of the club, evidence must be uploaded as part of your club application.
Club Colours
Clubs should have a unique vest design and colour compared to other clubs within the same region and across potential league competitors, a digital illustration must be uploaded on application.
Licensed coaches/leaders
Clubs should only use appropriately licensed UKA coaches or leaders at a level relevant to their membership base and activities.
Committee Meeting
Minutes of the committee meeting approving the application for affiliation must be recorded to upload with your application.
Club Standards: Advanced notice of change for 2026
For 2025/26, we introduced Club Standard 6 (safeguarding) as a mandatory requirement for club affiliation. As clubs come to reaffiliate in 2026, all 7 Club Standards will become a mandatory requirement for affiliation. To affiliate to England Athletics in 2026/7, you will be prompted to update your club profile, and complete the Club Standards checklist in full before paying your club affiliation fee.
*Clubs affiliated to British Triathlon can opt out of this mandatory standard, and choose instead to follow British Triathlon’s guidance.
This stems from our shared desire for, and commitment to, running and athletics clubs being genuinely safe and welcoming environments, at which everyone can participate, flourish and share enjoyment of our sport.
The process of affiliating your club
Clubs can apply to affiliate with England Athletics by completing an online application form.
Please have all of your supporting documents listed above, ready to upload online, this will ensure your application can be processed as quickly as possible. Once all documents have been received, the applicant will receive a decision within 6-8 weeks. If your application is approved, a Member Engagement Officer will be in touch for you to send your £200 affiliation fee (increasing to £205 from 1 April 2025) to activate your club affiliation.
The affiliation year runs from 1 April to 31 March. If you join part way through the year your club affiliation will need to be renewed on 1 April. If your club joins in January they will receive 15 months membership.