Queen's Ladies Rugby New Joiners 22-23 Campaign

Aim

Attract new players to QUBLRFC and build on our current Rugby offering for female participation through the University .

WHO ARE WE?

We are a women's rugby club based in Belfast. We are the only Premier Rugby University in Ulster and currently have two teams and cater for women of abilities in rugby- from those who play at a provincial level to complete beginners.  Our 1XV and 2XV compete in the Ulster Deloitte Women's Premiership and Championship respectively, and our 1XV are the current champions of the Junior Cup, the highest cup competition in Ulster women's domestic rugby.

We are open to members from all backgrounds and have a mix of students, alumni and those in full-time employment. We want to make rugby accessible to all women, regardless of their experience or background, and grow a love for the support and the community that it provides.

Community Impact

At QUBLRFC we have fostered an environment where all players, regardless of experience or ability, can participate in sport that is aligned with their goals -whether it be for recreational fun or to develop into an elite athlete.  For many, we are a key part of University life, and from our student population we welcome players from all across the world.

As a club, we strive to live out the club values of Inclusivity and Care off the pitch as well- last season, alongside the men's rugby teams, we helped promote a mental health campaign to raise funds for SOSAD Ireland, and had club representatives marching in the Belfast Pride Parade.  This year we have partnered with local charity Women's Aid Belfast and Lisburn to help them raise funds for the invaluable services they provide to local women.

WHY ARE WE CROWDFUNDING?

As a result of the covid-19 pandemic, our club saw a fall in membership, volunteers, and coaches.  We want to build back this membership by targeting new female university students, identify and train new coaches, and attract new volunteers to the club.

We aim to do this by developing a series of new and innovative programmes as detailed below:

• Introducing 'taster' rugby sessions, including a new 6 week beginner programme to introduce rugby to local and international students, who may have never played the game before
• Host an open tag tournament between spring and summer season for the first time
• Organise a series of friendlies and training sessions with local clubs to allow our newest players to compete in ability-appropriate matches
• Sending our volunteer coaches to Ulster Rugby led coaching programmes to increase their knowledge of the game
• Deploy our newly qualified coaches out to local schools to help develop the women's game from an early age
• Run education workshops with players to develop their knowledge for their individual physical and mental wellbeing

HOW WILL WE SPEND FUNDS RAISED?

Our affiliation fees are the lowest across Ulster, as we don't believe cost should be a barrier to sport. In order to keep our fees so low and to keep Rugby accessible to our students, we need to continue to fundraise, specifically for coaching, transport hire, kit and first aid training for coaches and volunteers.

• Recruit specialised coaches who can focus their attention on the development of our students 
• Coach/volunteer training
• Purchase equipment for our new intake of players to ensure they have the correct tools to develop their basic skills
• Purchase club-owned kit
• Contribute towards travel costs for our players across Ulster

This project successfully funded on 2nd December 2022