The Cycling Independent Review was jointly commissioned by UK Sport and British Cycling in 2016, to address issues raised regarding the culture of British Cycling’s World Class Programme (WCP).
The final report was published in June 2017, by which point British Cycling had already made significant progress with its 39-point Action Plan, which outlined the steps the organisation would take in response to the findings.
That progress continued, with all requirements met across the four themes: athlete development; our culture and behaviours; overall governance; and our management and operations.
Key developments include:
Athlete Development
The rider induction process is under continual review to ensure it meets the needs of all riders when they join the programme, as well as providing opportunities for existing riders to attend the induction should they wish to revisit any sessions. The inductions are spread throughout the year to allow the sessions to run alongside training sessions, and incorporate ‘whole life’ development sessions, such as workshops on taxation and opportunities for further education.
A Rider Representative Commission (RRC) acts as an advisory group to British Cycling. The RRC represents the views of the riders to British Cycling’s board and Executive Leadership Team and the Great Britain Cycling Team’s (GBCT) Senior Leadership Team to help ensure that all areas of British Cycling can best support the riders’ needs, be directly informed about the rider experience and ensure the views of the riders are heard.
The RRC provides an opportunity for GBCT staff to consult and review processes with riders, an example being the engagement from both parties in implementing a programme membership policy.
Psychological support provision has been enhanced, with two psychologists now working full-time with the GBCT. British Cycling has also appointed a Lead Safeguarding Officer, who will have a focus on both the sport as a whole but also on British Cycling’s safeguarding responsibilities. This will mean welfare plans being developed for all camps and events involving children and vulnerable adults, and will also provide an additional outlet for riders or their parents where they may have concerns about their treatment.
Our Culture and Behaviours
Common values, leadership principles and employee behaviours by which the whole organisation will live are established. Values of unity, passion, integrity and innovation were created in collaboration with staff, and will continue to underpin everything that we do.
A staff survey is conducted annually, allowing staff to give opinions on the culture and environment within the organisation, while exit interviews are carried out with all departing staff, with findings recorded in order to enable the organisation to identify any cultural trends.
The GBCT stages annual all-staff and all-rider conferences, called ‘Team Talk’, to ensure all members are aligned to our values and goals.
The charging of athletes to lodge an appeal stopped with immediate effect upon receiving the recommendation, and athlete reviews are conducted on a quarterly basis, including clear communication with the rider as to the outcome of their review.
Overall Governance
At an Extraordinary General Meeting held in July 2017, changes to the Memorandum and Articles of Association and Bye Laws were made to enable British Cycling to comply with the new Code for Sports Governance.
Changes were also made to the role and structure of both the Board and National Council, establishing the Board as the ultimate decision-making body of the organisation, with National Council continuing to preside over the Memorandum and Articles of Association.
These changes also led to the appointment of an independent Chair, Frank Slevin, who was appointed in January 2018.
By this point, Chief Executive Julie Harrington and Great Britain Cycling Team Performance Director Stephen Park were in post, and a series of Executive Leadership Team (ELT) roles have been recruited since, with Jonathan Rigby (Commercial Director), Danielle Every (Cycling Delivery Director), Rod Findlay (Integrity and Compliance Director) and Martin Merryweather (Strategy Director) all having taken up their roles, joining Jamie Obank (Chief Operating Officer).
A comprehensive organisational restructure also followed, with each ELT member leading directorates which have been established to group staff with the relevant skill-sets and experience to accelerate progress and bring about positive change.
Our Management and Operations
The restructure and implementation of new directorates ensures a unified leadership team can progress with consistent messaging and effective ways of working collaboratively across the organisation.
A unified appraisal system gives staff the opportunity to set and assess themselves against individual objectives which align with the organisation’s strategy.
