Guidance for Young Whistlers and their Mentors

& Coaches

Welcome to the Society of Referees Young Whistler Group. May I start by introducing myself? I am Ricky Rees Young Whistler Academy Manager; my role is to lead the Young Whistlers Group. I am also the RugbySafe Lead for Warwickshire RFU. The Young Whistlers (YW) Group has been an important part of the Society’s activities for 10 years and a number of the group’s members have gone on to successful careers in the Adult game. The objective of the YW Group is to allow young match officials to put into practice their learning from the ERRA Level 2 course and to help you to develop at your own pace. To do this we will: • Appoint you to carefully selected games that will enable you to develop as a Referee. • We will appoint a Mentor / Coach to support you at each game. • After the game the Mentor / Coach will Review the game with you and produce a report giving details of what has gone well and areas to consider for your next appointment. • Together with the Mentors / Coaches I will review your progress and report on this to the Executive of WSOR.

The Officers of the Society are: Matt Smith (President) Gwyn Airdrie (Chairman) Jeff Williams (Vice-Chairman) Ian Roberts (Secretary & Safeguarding Officer)

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Steve Challis (Chairman of the Appointments Committee) Emma Sly (Training & Development Officer) Jeremy Nesbitt (Recruitment & Retention Officer) Howard Russell (Treasurer) Myself. Which Clubs and Schools will I referee? If you are appointed to a game on a Friday night or a Sunday morning you will be appointed to a club game. If you are appointed to a game on a Saturday it will be a school game, usually involving one of the schools we use regularly. These are: King Edward, Stratford School High School Bablake School, Coventry King Henry VIII, Coventry. Wherever you are appointed you will not be asked to referee players from your own age group or an age group older than yourself. Can I referee games at school or at my club? Yes you can. However please let me know so that I can up-date my record of appointments.

How will you be appointed to games? All appointments are made through the Whostheref (WTR) system, this is the system that holds details of fixtures for the clubs and schools in Warwickshire. It also holds details of your availability. As a referee you will need to indicate on the WTR system when you are Available. Once we know when you are available I (or the Appointment Committee) will review available fixtures and, if there is a suitable fixture appoint you to it.

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You will be notified of an appointment by an e-mail from WTR. The e-mail will give you details of the fixture and of contacts for the Home side. There is also an embedded link so that you can either Accept or Decline the fixture. Once you have Accepted a fixture an email will be sent to the Home Club notifying them of your appointment and that of your Coach / Mentor and it will give your contact details.

What happens next? In the days before your fixture the Home Side should contact you to confirm that the fixture is going ahead, the kick off time, where the game is taking place, the shirt colours for the Home & Away sides. It is important that you check the time of kick-off. These may vary. Some Saturday school games start at 10am – others at 10 30. Occasionally, usually at Warwick School games are in the afternoon. After confirmation from the home team/school send a text/e-mail or telephone to confirm with your Coach / Mentor.

What happens if the School / Club do not confirm with you? All schools and clubs have been told that they must confirm their Referees in advance of their fixtures. If by 6.00pm on the Thursday before your fixture you have not been contacted by the home side please let me know. I will contact the School / Club to check if the game is going ahead. I will then let you know. If no confirmation is received the Society’s policy is that you should not travel to the game.

Pre-match Preparation. When you are sure of the kick-off time plan your journey so that you arrive 45 minutes before the planned start. THIS IS THE MINIMUM TIME YOU WILL NEED TO GET YOURSELF PREPARED, WARMED UP AND DO THE PRELIMINARY KIT INSPECTIONS AND BRIEFINGS.

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Should you find that you are going to be later than that please telephone your mentor or the school contact and let them know. Get the numbers in your phone in advance. Its common courtesy. If you have to cry off late for any reason contact Ricky Rees (07963611715) and your mentor. This is very important. Please share this with those who normally transport you to games so that they are aware of what is expected.

What kit should I wear? You should arrive at the ground either in kit or dressed smart. For your early appointments please wear a plain top that does not clash with the colours of the 2 teams. A club or School shirt will be fine. After 5 games you will be given a yellow Warwickshire Young Whistler shirt. Once you have received this shirt you should wear it for al fixtures unless it will clash with one of the teams.

If you want to buy additional WSOR branded kit please see the information at http://www.warwickref.com/society-kit

What do I have to think about during the game. To put it simply just put into practice what you have learnt. You should try to enjoy the game and help the players to do the same.

After the game. You and your Coach / Mentor will review the game and agree what went well and what you need to think about for you next game. A copy of the guidance to the Coaches / Mentors is attached.

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Contact details Young Whistler Academy Manager & Deputy Safeguarding Officer: Ricky Rees 07963 611715 Email: [email protected] Secretary & Safeguarding: Ian Roberts 07777 604393 E-mail: [email protected] or [email protected]

Notes for parents/ guardians. Safeguarding. As a Society we have a Safeguarding Officer and a Deputy Safeguarding officer in place. Under current RFU Guidelines all Coaches / Mentors used by WSOR for Young Whistler appointments hold Enhanced DBS clearances. Communications. It is the Society’s policy that all e-mail communications for Young Whistlers aged 17 and younger will be directed to the e-mail address held on WTR. Travel Expenses These are covered by the Society’s Expenses policy. I will discuss the application with you in a one to one basis Society Policies All of the current policies for WSOR can be consulted at http://www.warwickref.com/society-policies

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