Grow the game
THE R&A LAUNCHES FIRST
WOMEN’S CHARTER FOR GOLF
The R&A has unveiled a new Women in Golf Charter as part of the
organisation’s drive to increase the number of women and girls
participating in golf and to encourage more opportunities for women
to work within the golf industry.
T
he Women in Golf Charter aims to inspire
an industry-wide commitment to developing
a more inclusive culture within golf around
the world and to enable more women and girls to
flourish and maximise their potential at all levels
of the sport. Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A,
outlined its plans to work in collaboration with
its affiliated organisations, partners and the
wider golf industry to achieve these goals at a
launch event at The View from The Shard, one of
London’s most iconic venues.
Adoption of the Charter will also require national
federations and other golf bodies to build on
current initiatives and develop new projects that
will focus on encouraging more women and girls
to play golf and stay within the sport as members
of clubs, while also empowering women to
enjoy successful careers working within the golf
industry. Hosted by renowned sports broadcaster Hazel
Irvine, the event also featured presentations and
panel discussions with guest speakers including
Nick Pink, Chief Executive of England Golf, Sky
Sports’ Golf Presenter Sarah Stirk, Chyloe Kurdas,
National Female Participation Manager at Golf
Australia, and Liz Dimmock, Founder of Moving
Ahead.
The Women in Golf Charter
specifically aims to: The event was attended by representatives
of golf organisations worldwide who have
pledged their support as signatories of the
Charter, including the European Tour, the
Ladies’ European Tour, the European Golf
Association, the Professional Golfers’ Association,
the European Disability Golf Association, Golf
Australia, Golf Canada, the Golfing Union of
Ireland, England Golf, the Irish Ladies Golf Union
and Scottish Golf.
• Strengthen the focus on gender balance and
provide a united position for the golf industry.
• Commit national federations and
organisations to support measures targeted
at increasing participation of women, girls and
families in golf.
• Call on signatories to take positive action
to support the recruitment, retention and
progression of women working at all levels of
the sport.
• Set individual targets for national federations
for participation and membership and annual
reporting of progress.
• Develop an inclusive environment for women
and girls within golf.
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Martin Slumbers, Chief Executive of The R&A,
said, “We are asking the golf industry to recognise
the real importance of increasing the number of
women and girls playing golf and empowering
more women to enjoy successful careers at all
levels of the sport.
“The Charter is a strong statement of intent
from the golf industry that it has to change and
a commitment on behalf of all of us to take
measures designed to achieve positive change
for women, girls and families. This is crucial to
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