Why clubs should register U10 and U12 athletes

As we look ahead to the new affiliation year in April, there are even more benefits to affiliating with us this year. Here’s why you should register all of your club's athletes and runners with England Athletics, including your U10 and U12 athletes.

Age group changes are approaching on 1 April, with even age groups coming into effect, including U10s and U12s. You can find out more about age group changes here, including our handy age group calculator.

To benefit from new and existing opportunities to compete

UK Athletics will soon publish an updated rulebook, incorporating the new age groups. Whilst the rulebook changes to age groups will mention U12s and their requirement to register to their Home Country Association to compete, they will not be listed as an official age group where competition licensing and rules apply.

There will be occasions where some U12s will compete within meetings that are licensed – for example, an U12 funetics Multi-Challenge event happening at the same venue and time as a county championships.

U10/U12 athletes will be encouraged to take part in fun, flexible, local, team events as an introduction to competition opportunities before they enter structured, individual events.

funetics Multi-Challenge is a brand new competition format from England Athletics, and will provide budding athletes, particularly U10s and U12s, the opportunity to start competing and developing their skills.

Sportshall offer Primary and Secondary programmes, and are essential components of the national competition framework for athletics.

To develop the sport and ensure athlete safety and welfare

We want to encourage fun and flexibility for the U10 and U12 age groups and to clarify, U12s and upwards will pay registration fees and U10s should be registered with England Athletics from April 2026, but the payment of a fee will be optional for this age group. We would encourage payment of a fee if possible, with all funds being reinvested directly back into the ongoing development of our sport. We have developed an incentive scheme to benefit both clubs and parents for these age groups (outlined below).

The collection and submission of personal data and information on each individual who is registered with a club helps England Athletics for us to better understand participation trends in the sport, but also in order to keep the sport as safe as possible it is important accurate data is held for insurance, health and safety, and safeguarding and welfare purposes. 

To help boost volunteer recruitment

Registered U10 and U12 athletes will receive an electronic pack, as well as an offer for their parents/guardians to attend a Leading Athletics or Officials course free of charge, which will encourage parents to be available and volunteer in their child’s club environment.

You’ll also receive a free club voucher for a Coaching Assistant course place for every 30 x U10/U12 athletes for the club to allocate to a volunteer, to enable you to encourage your volunteers to begin their coaching pathway and help your club to grow.

Many clubs, like Aldershot Farnham and District, struggle with volunteer recruitment which can limit the amount of support they can offer to their athletes. That’s why registering their current U11s has been invaluable in helping Ian and the club find more support and be able to continue to deliver sessions - and this offering will be extended to both U10 and U12 age groups this affiliation year.

“We register our younger athletes so that they can benefit from being part of a club. They benefit from structured coaching sessions, practising safely on an athletics track with access to safeguarding advice.

“Last year, we were the recipients of a coaching voucher, and one of our keen helpers passed the Coaching Assistant course and now helps out on a weekly basis. We now have six regular coaches helping the under 11 athletes.”

At the beginning of each month, England Athletics will calculate the number of U10/U12s registered and supply each club who has met this criteria with a voucher code to supply to their chosen candidate. They will then be able to enrol and begin their coaching pathway.

To benefit from more product discounts in 2026

From April 2026, all athletes and runners who join England Athletics will have access to a wider range of product discounts from top brands.

For example, parents of U10 and U12 athletes can take advantage of discounts on family days out such as 10% off at Alton Towers, Legoland, Sealife Centre, Go Ape, and Chessington Zoo.

You'll also get 15% off at SportsShoes.com to save on running shoes for your child, or for yourself, plus discounts from many other retailers.

To help us reinvest back into the sport

Over 80% of membership fee income is reinvested directly into our key delivery priorities of club development, coaches' and officials' development, the support of competition delivery, the support of the retention of athletes and participation growth, and investment in talent.

The diagram on the right demonstrates the breakdown of how all of our income is reinvested back into the sport, within our key delivery priority areas:

Register now for a discounted fee and extended term

Any athletes registered between now and March, including U10/U12s, will pay the lower 2025 fee of £20 rather than the 2026 fee, and get 13-14 months’ membership for it.

This way, you can take advantage of all of the additional benefits which will come into effect from 1 April, for longer, at a lower cost.

Make sure you register athletes via the myAthletics portal before 25 March, when the portal will shut down for reset ready for the new affiliation year.