Having been involved at club level for while, and now at county level, from what I have seen, there is always one theme that runs through the middle of all great coaches and coaching.... It's a peoples game.

In fact when you look for an answer to the above question, the PEOPLE acronym spells out the answer – it is people that change people – and to leverage the full potential of participants, coaching should first and foremost be person-centred. The benefits of coaching go far beyond helping people become better athletes. Coaching positively and profoundly impacts on all aspects of people’s lives.

To help define what great coaching may look like these six key principles of great coaching were identified. Centred on the appropriate and easy-to-remember acronym PEOPLE – because coaching isall about people – these principles are:

P – Person centred

E – Empowering

O – Organised

P – Positive

L – Learning

E – Engaging

Through these Principles the coaching, playing and observing public now have a guide to understand what that is and what effect it can have on them and society at large. At the heart of all of this is the idea that people change people. People change the lives of others. Good coaches make this happen in clubs around the country. So, if you want to make a change in your community, go and become a great coach and help young people be their best self.