Glass awards
Volunteer of the Year Award
A volunteer of the year award recognises the work that never shows up on a scoresheet: the tea hut, the kit wash, the car park, the timekeeping. Every club runs on it, whether that is a running club marshalling its own 10k, a swimming club staffing a gala or a cricket club making teas every Saturday. This page looks at how to recognise volunteers properly, including when one award is not enough.
A few ways to make it yours
The designer
Design yours
Upload your club crest, type up to four lines and see it on the glass.
Simple pricing
End of season award prices: £8.99 small · £13.99 large
Mix sizes and designs freely. One delivery charge per order.
Minimum 5 awards. Delivery £10.00 per order.
Who counts as a volunteer
At a grassroots club almost everyone is one, which is why it helps to define the award. Many clubs aim it at people who are not coaches or committee members, so it reaches the parent who washed the kit every week or the member who painted the changing rooms over the winter. Including volunteers in your end of season awards gives the people behind match days a moment of their own.
Swimming clubs often think first of their poolside officials and gala helpers. Running and triathlon clubs depend on marshals and the people who set out the course before dawn. Bowls clubs rely on members who look after the green and the clubhouse between matches.
One winner or several
A single volunteer of the year award gives the night a clear moment. The risk is that it lands on the same handful of people every season. Some clubs solve this by presenting one Large award at £13.99 and a set of small thank-you awards at £8.99 each for everyone who helped regularly, each carrying that person's name.
Another option is a young volunteer award for a teenager, perhaps one helping with a junior section as part of their Duke of Edinburgh's Award or a sports leadership course. Recognising them early is how clubs grow their next generation of helpers.
Picking the moment
Volunteers' Week takes place at the start of June each year in the UK, which suits football, rugby and netball clubs whose seasons finish in spring. Summer sports may prefer to hold the award for the autumn dinner, when the season's helpers are fresh in everyone's mind. Either way, close nominations early and order once the list is settled, not the week before.
Wording ideas
Line one can be VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR, YOUNG VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR or simply THANK YOU. Line two is the club name, line three the volunteer's name and line four the season. If you want to say what they did, swap line two for a short role such as GALA OFFICIAL or TEA HUT, since the crest at the top already shows which club it is from.
For a batch of thank-you awards, design the first one, then use the same crest, new name option to add everyone else, or paste the full list in one go with the bulk option. Check each name as you go, as volunteers are often known by a nickname around the club.
Good to know
Questions
Can we order a thank-you award for every volunteer?
Yes. Design the first award, then add more names with the same crest, or paste a list of names using the bulk option. Every name can be different and the order can mix small and Large blocks as you like.
What wording works for someone who did lots of different jobs?
Keep it simple. VOLUNTEER OF THE YEAR on line one and their name on line three says enough. The presenter can list the jobs on the night, which often means more to the winner than a line of small text would.
Can the award carry a different logo from our club crest?
The award has one image area at the top, so upload whichever logo you want there. Use a PNG or JPG, ideally a transparent PNG. If the logo is white on a transparent background, a dark backing panel keeps it visible.
How much does delivery cost?
Delivery is a flat £10.00 per order, whatever the quantity, so adding volunteer awards to your main end-of-season order costs nothing extra in postage. Made in Cornwall and delivered within 7 days
Keep exploring
Related awards
Club secretaries
Ordering for the whole club?
Finish one design, then reuse the same crest with a new name. Or paste a list of names and add every award in one go. Whatever the number of awards, there is one delivery charge per order.
Ordering for a club