Children & Youth - CAPS

What is CAPS?

CAPS (Challenge, Achievement and Pathways in Sport) is a national leadership development program for young people between the ages of 14 and 20….young people just like you!

CAPS offers you a great opportunity to develop valuable skills such as leadership, communication, teamwork and self-confidence. The great thing is that you can develop all of these skills through your involvement with sport.

What is in it for You?

CAPS is all about assisting young people develop skills to not only be a good player, but also a good leader within clubs and the broader community.

By participating in CAPS you are saying that you are serious about being the best sportsperson you can be. However there is a lot more to sport than just playing. To be a successful player, you need a club that has good coaches, officials and volunteers to the 101 things that make it possible for you to play.

By participating in CAPS you will have the opportunity to get involved in the behind the scenes aspects of your club. You will learn about your sport from the perspective of a coach, official and club volunteer. The skills that you gain will be valuable not only to you, but also to your club, and future employers.

Once you have completed your CAPS program you will receive a certificate of achievement. This certificate looks fantastic in your resume. It communicates to employers that you can challenge yourself, set and achieve goals, work in a team and communicate effectively. These are qualities that employers look for when hiring staff.

CAPS is a great way for you to learn more about your sport, your club, and teammates. You will have the opportunity to meet new people and try new things.

What do you have to do?

CAPS is divided into 3 steps. Everyone starts at step 1 and works, at their own pace, right up to step 3. The good thing about working at your own pace is that CAPS wont take up too much of the time that you spend on playing, training, studying, working or hanging out with friends and family.

Each step is divided into activity areas. You will need to choose an activity to do in each of the areas for a minimum amount of time. The activity areas you can choose from are:

• Administration
• Officiating
• Coaching
• Event / Team Management
• Sport Health
• Participation (Step 1 only)
• Sports Fun

Each step requires a new challenge. So as you progress from Step 1 to Step 3 you are encouraged to try new things and go outside of your comfort zone.

Who can help you?

One of the great things about CAPS is there are a lot of people who value your contribution and involvement in the program and your club. This means that there will be a lot of people who can lend a hand and support your development.

The first thing you need to do is choose a Coordinator. A Coordinator is someone who is interested in your sport and enthusiastic to give you a hand. They don’t have to be a skilled or accredited person. They just need to be someone who you feel comfortable approaching and spending some time with.

For example, if in Step 1 you would like to learn a bit about coaching, your perfect Coordinator may be a coach of a junior team. Or if you choose to learn about the many administration tasks involved with your club, you may ask your club secretary to be your Coordinator.

If you don’t know who to ask, have a talk with your teacher or someone at your club that you feel familiar with. They may be able to suggest someone.”

You will meet with your Coordinator on a regular basis. During your first meeting, you will need to identify some personal goals that you that you want to achieve. You will also chat with your Coordinator about activities you want to learn about.  Once you have identified your goals, you set about achieving them with the support and encouragement of your Coordinator.

CAPS is all about you achieving your personal best. Therefore you don’t need to worry about striving for a set standard. You only need to choose activities that will challenge you as an individual.

Your coordinator will help you plan a program and develop a structure so you can achieve your goals and learn about the activities that you identified.

How do you get started?

After you have finished reading this you may be thinking ‘Yep, I want to give CAPS a go’. All you need to do to get started is fill out the attached registration form and send it off.

Send your registration form to:

Office for Recreation and Sport

C/O Carlye Bowden

PO Box 219

Brooklyn Park  SA  5032

After your form has been processed a Participant Diary and starter pack will be sent to you.

Participant Diary

You record all your achievements and met time requirements in your Participant Diary. When you have met a time requirement, ask your Coordinator to sign off the relevant section to verify your achievements.

Once you have completed Step 1 you are able to move onto Step 2 and then Step 3.

After achieving Step 3 you will become eligible for the Active Australia Leadership Award. The Award recognises the participant’s achievements and commitment in completing the three CAPS steps and applying their newly developed skills through volunteer service to their sporting community.

To complete the Award you are required to complete 30 hours of service over a minimum of 3 months. You also have to submit a diary and records of your achievements that outline your involvement (i.e. certificates, newsletters etc).

Any questions?

If you have any questions about CAPS all you need to do is speak with someone at your Club / School.

For further information
School Club Link Project Officer
Office for Recreation and Sport
Phone: +61 8 7424 7764
Email: participation@saugov.sa.gov.au