Will you Slip! Slap! Swing! this Spring?

from The Golf Club Manager May 2021

A new life in golf club management for Rob

With golf back, and everyone tentatively returning to a normal routine, we met up with Michelle Baker, CEO of the Melanoma Fund and creator of the Slip! Slap! Swing! campaign. She is set on getting your club involved in the fight against skin cancer

What is the Slip! Slap! Swing! campaign? Slip! Slap! Swing! is a FREE prevention campaign which raises awareness of sun protection and skin checking in a bid to impact the high levels of skin cancer which affect golfers and greenkeepers. Our aim is to get golf clubs Sun Protection Accredited, putting into place simple but effective actions that will educate and protect their staff and members.

The campaign was everywhere last year. How did you manage that? It certainly was not a result of a big budget, but more the generous support and belief of the golf industry. From the backing of every county body and overarching organisation, countless trade and consumer editorial articles, golf organisations offering us free ad space, endorsements from our incredible team of ambassadors… and the clubs who signed up first. It all really helped us create noise.

How did COVID affect your roll out? We soft launched the idea in 2019 to get feedback from the industry, which was really positive. I admit we were sceptical about launching our Sun Protection Accreditation scheme in 2020 due to the lockdowns. However, with the encouragement of Craig Cotterill at the GCMA and Stephen Carpenter at the PGA, we agreed we should just go for it in June. It could have gone either way, but thankfully it worked!

How many clubs did you get on board last year? We started off getting a few smaller clubs signed up by

calling them personally and it just snowballed from there. After a few months, the bigger clubs in the UK and Ireland started signing, as well as most of the major golf groups. It took lots of phone calls and emails, but gradually they started coming back!

In September we sailed past our target of 250 clubs, getting over 350 signed up last year. This still only represents around 10% of clubs, so there is still lots to do!

Why did you select golf and not cricket or tennis? I work closely with melanoma surgeons, dermatologists and GPs and take their advice on who we should be targeting with our campaigns, which are aimed at high-risk groups.

Many mentioned that golfers are always in and out of their surgeries, which led to talks with England Golf about the idea. They were the first to agree to come on board, followed by every other major golf organisation, including the PGA and R&A, which gave us the inspiration to keep moving forward. With regards to tennis and cricket, watch this space!

Do you do think golfers don’t take sun protection seriously? Despite the overwhelming evidence on how dangerous too much UV exposure can be, a recent survey undertaken by SMS Marketing for the Melanoma Fund revealed that only 42% of golfers use sunscreen when the weather required it, and a massive 72% never reapply it when on the fairway. With nearly 30% admitting they avoid sun protection in favour of a tan, it could be that many are in denial and we aim to change that attitude.

How rife is skin cancer? It is an epidemic and the most common cancer in the world today, with nearly 152,000 new non-melanoma skin cancer cases reported in the UK every year - that’s more than 410 every day (2015-2017), with men more prone due to their habits.

Although rare, rates of melanoma - the most serious form - have more than doubled in the UK in the last 30 years, with incidents in women having doubled (100% increase) and for men nearly tripled (181%). Melanoma is one of our fastest rising cancers, and although still higher in older people, rates in 25 to 49-year-olds increased by 70% over the same period.

Why should clubs become Sun Protection Accredited? Never has it been so important for organisations to recognise and improve the health and wellbeing of their stakeholders by upgrading their duty of care.

When it comes to golf, obviously sun protection is only part of the bigger picture, however it is important - due to how golf is played and the laissez-faire attitude of sun protection in this sector.

The advice relates to both staff and members, so it covers everyone in the industry. We don’t ask why get involved, more so why not? It is easy to implement, free, and offers clubs the chance to enhance any existing advice, not to mention that the actions will save lives.

What is new for 2021? This is an exciting year for us. We are launching a brand new website in May, which features all three of our campaigns on the main Melanoma Fund website.

We have installed new CRM systems, which will really help us scale up and grow and

manage our audience. We have made signing up quicker, we have refreshed our resources and have made them easier to download. We are launching a new accreditation scheme for tournaments, as well as aiming to increase the golf clubs that sign up.

It sounds very busy, but also very seasonal, what do you promote in autumn/winter? Tackling skin cancer is not just limited to sun protection and being ‘Sun Savvy’. We launched ‘Get Skin Savvy’ last year, promoting the importance of skin checking, which is an important aspect of heath and wellbeing that many overlook. Our survey of golfers revealed that only 29% check their skin once a month, which is a habit recommended by leading dermatologists. Catching skin cancer early makes it extremely easy to treat, however a late diagnosis makes it exceedingly difficult to treat.

How easy is it for a golf club to become Sun Protection Accredited? We have purposely made it easy to implement because we know managers are busy and especially so in the current climate. Once the actions have been undertaken, it simply requires tweaking during the summer. We offer lots of free content to be used both in the clubhouse and for socials to keep it fresh and front of mind. To become accredited, clubs simply need to pledge five actions:

• Nominate a Sun Pro Ambassador • Add a sun protection statement • Display awareness posters • Ensure sunscreen is available • Display the Sun Protection Accreditation logo

How easy is it for clubs to access and stock sunscreen? To support and encourage the availability of sunscreen, the Melanoma Fund has partnered with Lee Brother.

We will be offering refillable sunscreen dispensers and 100ml bottles of Stokoderm SPF30/50 in an exclusive deal to Sun Protection Accredited members.

There are no minimum orders or delivery charges and, for every unit sold, a donation will made to the charity to keep the campaign expanding year on year.

Who pays for the Slip! Slap! Swing! campaign? The campaign is free to golf clubs and always will be.

Obviously, charitable donations to help support what we do are always appreciated but, more importantly, we want the clubs to get actively involved.

The charity covers the costs from general donations, so if you are planning on a fundraiser or looking for a club charity, we are always happy to chat to you about this!

Fancy becoming accredited? The new Slip! Slap! Swing! campaign launched on May 3 and can be found at www.melanomafund.co.uk.

Michelle is happy to discuss getting your club involved so get in contact at: michelle@melanomafund.co.uk.

business partner

from A-Plan Insurance

Are you looking for a solution to add value to your membership and provide protection for your members and golf club in 2021? Offer the Golfplan Club Membership Policy for your members.

It started with a call to Alex, following an article in The Golf Club Manager journal. We arranged a workshop morning for our Members with Alex in attendance and interest instantly grew from there. We now have over 75% of our Members signed up to Golfplan, with additional members joining the scheme as their current annual insurance plan expires. With the insurance documents on the Members’ area of our website, all the necessary information is readily accessible. In addition, Alex is always contactable for any advice & support.

Trisha Leonard | General Manager | Old Fold Manor GC

• Take this policy out at your golf club today and cover your members as beneficiaries • Stand out from the industry and add these members benefits into your membership package

PLEASE NOTE: Terms and conditions apply, for full details of policy cover/benefit limitations and exclusions, please refer to our policy wording and summary of cover, a copy of which is available upon request.

Call Alex and his team today to find out how: 01527 868160 | golfplan.co.uk

‘We are a small firm with BIG PLANS’

Tell us about your company MS Rubric is a boutique commercial law firm, with a history of instructing owner managed entities and member run organisations. Based in the South West, our fresh and dynamic team has a varied skill set specialising in five key sectors: golf and leisure, property, franchising, healthcare and veterinary.

Why did your company decide to partner with the GCMA? We have extensive experience of working with golf clubs, and our team prides itself on providing expertise in this niche sector. There are very few law firms focusing on the golf sector and, as we are one of the few that do, it seemed a natural progression to become a GCMA business partner. We have taken great pride in being able to support clubs through COVID-19 with employment law and business advice, and are looking forward to continuing to support them as membership numbers grow.

How can your company benefit GCMA members? In our experience, we’ve found that, often, golf club managers operate without all of the resources that they may want or need to properly run the course as a business. Our core services provide support and solutions that give affordable peace of mind. This might be, for example, terms

James Howell

We sat down with James Howell, Managing Director at MS Rubric, to find out how his law firm can help GCMA members

of business to engage members and protect the club against claims and risks. We’ve also worked with clubs throughout lock down on employment matters and furlough.

Most recently we have seen members of clubs requesting discounts or refunds on their membership because of course closure. We have found that golf clubs often do not have appropriate terms of business in place and require assistance with handling member requests. At MS Rubric, we can assist golf club managers in adopting a more professional approach when it comes to handling these kinds of issues.

Golf clubs have been affected, like most other industries, during the pandemic and we have worked hard to support clubs with employment and contract advice. Now that clubs are reopening, and membership numbers are growing, the time is right for clubs to review their legal documents, staffing levels and business plan ahead of what will hopefully be a positive period for the golf sector.

Tell us more about how you assist golf clubs as land-owners? There will always be considerations based around the land that a golf club owns. This might be the sale of a plot for housing development, acquiring a parcel of land, change of use applications, boundary disputes, lease renewals, right of way issues, or access rights. Our team has years of experience in acting for clubs in these areas. So, whether it be advice on an option agreement, the process for purchasing a parcel of land, or any other property related matter, our specialist solicitors will be able to assist you in achieving the best outcome for both your club and your members.

As employers golf clubs may need advice but don’t want a huge cost associated with it, how could MS Rubric help? The meter doesn’t start running the moment you call us. We offer a free consultation to GCMA members. Our approachable service and honest way of working means we’ll always be up front with clubs before undertaking any work for them. We’ll also take the time to discuss more cost-effective options for you and your club, if this is an issue.

How else can GCMA members benefit from your involvement? Through our exclusive partnership with the GCMA, we have an offer for clubs to add value to their membership, which enables club members to have a free consultation about their Will and estate planning with our private client team. This offer is an opportunity for clubs to add value to their membership package at renewal time.

An interesting fact our readers might not be aware of? Whilst many of our legal counterparts have offices based in city centres in corporate highrise buildings, we are not your typical law firm. Set amidst the bucolic surroundings of rural Aust, from our ‘Cowshed’ office, we have kept our overheads low and our interests in outdoor pursuits very much in line with our sector specialisms. We may be a boutique firm but we still manage to punch above our weight, having closed £500 million worth of corporate deals over the last four years. We also pride ourselves on providing a personable approach which challenges the stuffy legal stereotype. Essentially, we provide a high level of advice and service akin to the top law firms but without the overheads or infrastructure that they’re carrying. That being the case, we can provide excellent legal services at a fraction of the price.

Plans for the future? We are a small firm with big plans. May is an exciting month for us with our rebrand launch. Our new brand will remain true to the MS Rubric values whilst encompassing an innovative, fresh and modern aesthetic. Our focus is on growth and expansion. We also look forward to our continued partnership with GCMA and providing its members with the support and advice they require for their clubs to thrive. * For a free review of your commercial or employment contracts, email James at info@ msrubric.co.uk

Making sure golf is safe for everyone AT YOUR CLUB

SafeGolf has been in the headlines and Matthew Draper, England Golf’s club, county and membership senior manager, explains how it will protect the sport

It revealed the horrors of sexual abuse in football. The Sheldon Report, released in March, spanned 700 pages – and was an indictment of how predatory abusers had run unchecked from the grassroots game through to some of the biggest clubs.

The document also laid bare the historical paucity of measures in place to protect children – and that should be a wake-up call for all of sport.

For golf would be naïve to think it was somehow clear of such concerns.

“Safeguarding issues can arise anywhere in society,” said Matthew

Draper, the governing body’s club, county and membership senior manager and a GCMA member.

“Golf is not immune to that, and golf clubs are not immune to that.”

SafeGolf, the partnership of golf bodies committed to promoting a safe and positive environment for anyone that participates, works or volunteers in the sport, hit the headlines recently after England

Golf sent a letter to affiliated clubs warning those who had failed to make sufficient progress on gaining required accreditation that they could face disciplinary action from the governing body.

The angry reaction from some club managers to the email, and the familiar cries of ‘there’s no problem here’ from some golfers on social media, threatened to mask the overall aim of the scheme.

SafeGolf was introduced in 2018 and England Golf made achieving accreditation a mandatory requirement of affiliation in

December 2019.

But it’s a process that largely happens behind the scenes, with committees, managers and welfare officers handling the nitty gritty of ensuring their club complies.

Golfers may have seen the certificates showing a club has the necessary procedures in place. Educating them about what to look for if they fear there is a safeguarding issue at their club, and what to do about it, is a really key element.

And this is where, at England Golf, the hard yards of work are being done.

“It’s making sure that, should the worst happen, there is education so people know exactly what to do should an issue arise,” added Draper, who is in charge of the SafeGolf programme for the governing body.

“That means the volunteers that are on hand, or the staff at golf clubs, know how to spot a safeguarding issue.

“What we want to do, through SafeGolf, is create a consistent set of policies and procedures across the country that we know are in place.

“It means that should something happen at any of our affiliated golf clubs, the people on site handling it know exactly what to do, the reporting process to England Golf or, in the worst-case scenario, the authorities such as the police.”

That’s achieved through education – either of volunteer welfare officers or staff that might be in contact with children or vulnerable people on a regular basis.

They attend a Safeguarding Protecting Children Course, while welfare officers may also visit Time to Listen sessions to help them understand the kinds of situations they may come across.

“Most safeguarding issues aren’t obvious,” explained Draper. “It could be something from home that you picked up. It could be a child saying something that pricks your ears up.

“It could be anything, but these courses help people identify where

Matthew Draper

there may be an issue in place and when they may need to do more investigation.

“They may need to make the club welfare officer aware, they may need to make England Golf’s safeguarding team aware.

“But the process is in place within the policies to make sure that should they hear something, should they have an inkling about something, should they have a concern, they have a direct route of reporting and they know exactly what to do.”

When safeguarding appears in the news, we naturally tend to assume these are issues of sexual abuse. But SafeGolf goes much further.

Its mission is also to protect the welfare of adults at risk, as well as children and young people, and, as Draper pointed out, that applies to all of us.

“It could be anyone who suffers from a mental health issue. It could be anyone that’s vulnerable to people preying on them. Unfortunately, there are types of abuse where people may prey on vulnerable adults. It could be to extract finance from them. Abuse happens in many different circumstances.

“So this does involve everybody – all members of golf clubs, anyone who plays golf, anyone who visits a golf club.

“Anyone could be susceptible to some form of abuse.

“What is important is that, through SafeGolf, people will be able to identify it better and know exactly what they need to do when reporting.”

Only together, believes Draper, only when everyone in the game is protected – and every club has these standards – can golf be confident that the kind of scandal unveiled in football won’t be replicated.

And seeing that SafeGolf logo should give members and visitors confidence that those correct policies and procedures are in place.

“It doesn’t work, as a project, unless every golf club is there. You can’t have a missing link,” he said. “You have to make sure that everyone has a consistent level of policies and procedures in place.

“We want everyone to enjoy their golf club life and have environments they can thrive within.

“The most important thing is they’re safe. Golf clubs are people’s second home.

“We want to create fun environments where people want to spend every minute that they’re not working or every minute they are not at school.

“The first point in doing that is making sure the environments where they are going to play, or socialise, or however they use their golf club, is safe.”

HOW SAFEGOLF IS WORKING FOR FULFORD GOLF CLUB Fulford Golf Club general manager Jon Dry has spelled out the importance of achieving SafeGolf accreditation and explained how England Golf staff were on hand to help his club every step of the way.

The Yorkshire venue has joined the ranks of clubs across England who have shown their commitment to providing a safe and secure environment for all staff and visitors to their facility.

Through SafeGolf, Fulford have standard and robust procedures in place to not only safeguard children and at-risk young adults, but also all staff and visitors who come through their doors.

SafeGolf accreditation has now become mandatory for all clubs and counties wishing to affiliate to England Golf.

And for those clubs who have registered for SafeGolf and are working to attain full accreditation, Dry is able to offer words of encouragement as they face what may, on the face of it, appear to be an onerous task.

“When I first saw what was required to achieve SafeGolf, it was a little daunting but after a very helpful call with our club support officer, I had a clear pathway for what was required,” admitted Dry.

“This process can then be broken down so everyone can play their part.

“The constant support throughout the process made something which was initially daunting, actually very simple and straight forward.

“By gradually ticking off all of the areas which need doing you have a clear understanding of what is required and also why.

“A huge benefit is that now we can continue to update our information and keep on top of the various areas, ensuring we maintain our accreditation, offering a safe environment for all.”

Safeguarding has always been important, but England Golf has now moved to make sure it is embraced by all clubs and counties by making it a term of affiliation from today onwards.

Most clubs will have had safeguarding procedures already in place. SafeGolf helps to raise and standardise the levels.

At Fulford, Dry found that he was able to use existing policies to make a start on SafeGolf.

He also found support from England Golf’s club support network, as well as downloadable resources such as the simple ‘six steps to SafeGolf’ video, invaluable.

Fulford have long recognised the importance of safeguarding and Dry has explained why it has formed such an important part of their club ethos.

He added: “Ensuring you provide a safe environment to play golf is a top priority for any club manager.

“Every club wants their members and visitors to come and play, safe in the knowledge that everything is in place for them to be able to relax and enjoy their visit.

“The SafeGolf accreditation is a matter of pulling together all of the documentation that you should already have.

“The staff and volunteers involved in these areas should all have their DBS and SPC in place.

“SafeGolf provides a process which a club manager can use to check that everyone’s paperwork is

up to date and current.

“Looking outside of just junior golf makes sure you are covering the safety of all players and communicating these policies effectively with your members and visitors. By achieving SafeGolf I can prepare the club for the season, safe in the knowledge that we have the right measures and processes in place. That is a very good re-assurance to have!”