Included in this article:

• The impact of visible LGBTQ+ role models
• Tips to help you ensure that LGBTQ+ children and young people feel safe
• VOICE and CHOICE: Session planning for an inclusive group
• JOURNEY: Discussing inclusion in a team sport environment
• Everyone can benefit from an inclusive approach
• VOICE: It takes a village: the impact of connecting with community
• JOURNEY: Keep an open mind
• RESOURCE: The Coaching Compass
• RESOURCE: FAQs: Working With Parents and Carers of LGBTQ+ Children

by Charlotte Potterton

Erin Williams has been involved in sport her whole life, and alongside playing Lacrosse internationally, has been coaching since the age of 15. 

As well as instilling in her a keen passion for the position of goalie in Lacrosse – a role often frustratingly undervalued – her experiences have left her under no illusion as to the powerful impact of providing positive and varied opportunities for LGBTQ+ children and young people to participate in sport and physical activity. 

Given that only 47% of children and young people in England were found to be physically active in 2022/23, efforts to ensure that children and young people from all backgrounds and walks of life have the opportunity to take part is of vital importance. 

The impact of visible LGBTQ+ role models

Erin explains that she was "really fortunate" that, around the ages of 15-17, she had positive queer role models among the coaches at the camps she attended and the teams that she played for, especially as her immediate family was not supportive of her orientation. She explains: 

For LGBTQ+ children and young people living under those circumstances, sport may offer an opportunity for them to not only enjoy reaping the benefits of participation, but also to express themselves in a safe and welcoming environment, which can be particularly impactful if those opportunities are thin on the ground in other areas of their lives. 

As such, Erin adds, it is essential to create an environment where, regardless of their background, participants can be their authentic selves, as well as feel empowered to have input into and shape their experiences. 

Erin also draws attention to the fact that her coach’s openness about the gender of her partner presented a powerful antidote to damaging negative stereotypes about LGBTQ+ people that were particularly prevalent in the 90s and early noughties, creating hope and the reassurance that her dreams could become reality.  

“They were just another couple and just another family, and that helped me realise at a young age that being LGBTQ+ was okay, and that I could have a family of my own.” 

Speaking highly of her coaches, Erin draws a clear thread between how she felt in their sessions and her ceaseless determination to facilitate long-term positive change in sport and physical activity. 

“My life has 100% been shaped by those women who were coaching me. If I can do that as well for someone now, then I’d be very happy. And I’d love for them to take that experience into other environments that they’re in.”  

In aid of that work, Erin brings together the following golden nuggets from her varied experiences, brought together here to support the creation of great experiences and the delivery of inclusive sessions for LGBTQ+ children and young people. 

Tips to help you ensure that LGBTQ+ children and young people feel safe

If you’re new to running inclusive sessions, you may be worried about how you can ensure that people feel comfortable to be themselves. Offering the following tips, Erin emphasises that it’s important not to overthink it. Simply use them to tweak your coaching practice to be even more inclusive. 

Sharing your pronouns

Something as simple as sharing your pronouns establishes a precedent for participants to share theirs if they feel comfortable, and to give a different name to the one on their registration form if applicable.

Using team-focused language

The language you use at your sessions is also key to facilitating an environment in which everyone is included. Erin recommends using gender-neutral, team-focused language where possible, and avoiding dividing up participants in a mixed session by gender. As well as fostering a more welcoming environment, this can also help build team cohesion.

To illustrate, Erin suggests saying 'team' instead of 'boys' or 'girls.'

Avoiding making assumptions about the people in participant's lives

Instead of saying 'mum and dad,' Erin recommends saying 'parents or carers,' as this is inclusive of all different types of families.

Further, if coaching slightly older people, she suggests avoiding assumptions about the genders of participants' partners.

Be curious about who your participants are beyond the pitch, but leave it to them to disclose those specifics only if they want to, and use the same pronouns that they do.

Learning from the people you coach

No one will know better how to ensure that LGBTQ+ children and young people feel comfortable than they do, Erin explains. As well as seeking their feedback on sessions, be open to learning about all sorts of subjects from the people you coach.

"Young people may know more about LGBTQ+ identities because they have adults in their lives – family members, family friends, teachers – or even friends who are openly LGBQ+. They may also be watching shows or reading books with LGBTQ+ characters or listening to music by LGBTQ+ artists. So they may be more familiar with diverse identities than some adults, who didn’t grow up with this awesome visibility and representation."

That isn’t to say that you should worry about knowing less than your participants. Instead, take this as an opportunity and explore ways that you can educate yourself on the same topics.  

Perfection isn’t the goal here – simply putting the effort in will have an impact. 

Session planning for an inclusive group

Now that you have an inclusive group all set up, use the following considerations to guide your thinking and tweak your approach to ensure that you’re being inclusive in session planning, as well as to adapt everyday behaviours and language. 

Think about your context 

Erin starts by offering an apt reminder to consider your coaching context. You’re the best person to advise on what will and won’t work in your environment and with the people in front of you. 

For example, if you know your group, there probably isn’t a need to introduce your pronouns every time. But if it’s a new group or you’re welcoming new people, you might want to set out some time to explain who you are and encourage the team to state their pronouns. 

Be clear about your values 

Erin adds that it’s crucial to be "really clear about your values of inclusivity and respect," including with an established team. Your values should be at the foundation of your work and explaining that inclusivity lies at the heart of your coaching can help ensure that everyone is on the same page.  

Then, potential participants can make an informed choice about whether your sessions are right for them. 

Make sure people aren’t alienated 

LGBTQ+ children and young people may feel alienated outside of sessions due to their identity, so it’s crucial to ensure that they, just like any participant, feel welcome and included. 

As such, if you notice someone on their own, try to pull them in a little more. 

Erin also recommends keeping in mind the fact that different people will be participating for different reasons and will be working towards unique goals. Make sure to tailor your approach to each person’s needs and abilities, as this will better support their development and long-term involvement and encourage them to work towards goals that are relevant to them. 

Erin adds that if there’s a point during the session where certain participants won’t be receiving as much of your attention, such as when you’re working with defenders on an activity relevant to them, then be clear about when and why that will be happening and think of ways that you can highlight and celebrate different skills at other points of the session. 

"Let people know what the focus is and what they can expect."

Discussing inclusion in a team sport environment 

Erin explains that highlighting the power of inclusion can help to foster acceptance and camaraderie between teammates.  

Her approach is to emphasise the importance of differences between participants. For instance, a Lacrosse team comprised of only attackers or only defenders wouldn’t be as successful as a team with a greater variety of players with different skills and roles. 

Inclusion then becomes key to establishing a strong, capable, and balanced team in which differences between participants strengthen the team as a unit. 

A crucial element of this is to highlight and celebrate those differences, boosting confidence and encouraging participants to think about how they contribute to the team, tapping into their individual motivations for taking part and goals for the future. 

The example she gives is that if in Lacrosse a participant isn’t a great long-distance runner but is strong and powerful over short distances, she would encourage them to work on ways to use their explosiveness to great effect. 

Everyone can benefit from an inclusive approach 

Think about someone in your life who is LGBTQ+. That person is likely to be brave and self-aware, and to have great communication skills, because they have had to communicate something important and vulnerable about themselves to others. 

Aren’t those the qualities that you want on a team? 

This is the approach that Erin uses to discuss the benefits of inclusion. Keeping it team-focused, she emphasises how LGBTQ+ children and young people may have personal qualities that are an undeniable asset to the growth and development of the team beyond their performance on the pitch. 

To illustrate, she offers the timely reminder that while an issue might arise for an LGBTQ+ person, “it’s not always just a queer issue; it’s an everybody issue,” and that solving it will benefit everyone. 

The case in point: she once worked with a team where someone was cut off by their parents after coming out, and subsequently couldn’t afford the kit. When they had a conversation about it, Erin discovered that other people on the team also couldn’t afford the kit, but for different reasons. This then led to a wider conversation that included other players and culminated in the creation of a fund to support players financially. 

It takes a village: the impact of connecting with community 

Whether you’re new to coaching inclusively or want to refine your practice, Erin emphasises the importance of speaking to the people you’re working with and their communities and ensuring that their voices are heard and respected.

Not every queer experience will be the same, but making connections in those communities will enable you to ask questions and seek support. 

This in turn will help you to refine, check, and challenge your coaching practice. 

But where should you start? 

Erin explains that a lot of regions will have queer youth groups. If you’re having trouble finding one local to you, then organisations like Just Like Us, who work explicitly with people in the community, may be able to help out. 

If you’re coaching at a school or a university, then start with their Queer Alliance or LGBTQ+ Society. 

As well as supporting your current coaching, you may come across opportunities to reach more people, and gain a better understanding of barriers and challenges affecting specific populations. 

Keep an open mind 

The best advice, and the most important element of being inclusive, is to keep an open mind, explains Erin.  

Understand that young people, including LGBTQ+ young people, are on a journey, and might be a different person now than when you first met them. Whatever their personal goals, they all deserve an opportunity to take part. 

As a coach, you have the enviable power to ensure that that happens.