Where are all the women in turfcare?
Although Britain’s groundscare industry has enjoyed many recent successes on the global stage, it is still marred by a distinct lack of diversity. Jemima Codrington spoke with some leading women in the industry in a bid to uncover barriers, discuss challenges, and discover plans for change…
There’s no getting away from it – the British turfcare industry is one that’s male dominated.
The lack of women working in roles in groundscare and greenkeeping is something that’s become more noticeable as the sector has evolved in recent years, and industry bodies and colleges are starting to take notice.
For over four years, Elaine Harrison has overseen a 16-acre site at Penweddig School in Aberystwyth.
Reports have been commissioned by educational institutes such as Myerscough College in a bid to examine issues at entry points to the industry such as apprenticeships, while industry board BIGGA has created a Facebook Group (Women in Turfcare) in a bid to help those in the industry connect.
The IOG Young Board has spent 2016 taking active steps to broaden outreach to both male and female students, according to Will Graves, Groundsman at Watford F.C. and IOG Young Board of Directors Chairman. “We are very much aware of the shortage of young women entering the grounds care profession, and we’re working hard to address this through our Schools into Stadiums initiative, open to both boys and girls aged between 14 and 16,” he says.
“We also aim to encourage young women into the grounds care sector at the careers events that we attend, across the country and also through our social media channels. The Young Board also have an established Support Group that gives ground staff such as Elaine Harrison a fantastic opportunity to get involved with the Young Board and our projects.”
Elaine Harrison is the Grounds Person at Penweddig School, Aberystwyth, and she too recognises the shortage of women in the industry. “I don’t think it is an obvious choice for women. I think the industry can be quite demanding physically out in all weathers and working with quite a lot of different equipment, but I’ve found that there are a lot of supportive people who are happy to lend a hand or give advice when needed.”
Elaine oversees a 16-acre site at a Secondary School, and has been in the job for over four years. Like many in the industry, Elaine didn’t formally train to be a grounds person, but moved into the industry after gaining experience in conservation and horticulture. Having spent time in Australia to do conservation work on reserves, Elaine returned to the UK where she juggled a number of jobs in landscaping and gardening.
“I then went onto university to study Countryside Management HND at degree level, and spent 15 months working on a island nature reserve, where I gained a lot of experience with tractors and other machinery. After that I studied nursing but found it wasn’t to be, so I applied to be a grounds person. With my conservation experience, experience with tractors and enthusiasm to learn new skills, I was offered the job.”
She cites the Toro/Hayter Trailed 5 Cylinder Mower and a John Deere tractor as favourite pieces of kit to do the job, which for Elaine, is about more than maintaining the grounds. “As I work in a school, I know that I could be a possible role model to future women, so I am conscious of showing a good work ethic.”
Katie Croft is now a permanent member of Manchester City’s grounds staff.
Sue Lawrence is the Senior Grounds person at Edgbaston Priory Club in Birmingham, the host venue for the WTA Aegon Classic. There are 36 courts on site, including clay, astro turf hard courts, and international standard grass courts. Sue and the team are also responsible for working within the community to maintain several schools courts and some local authority courts. “
My role within the team is to support the grounds manager and assistant grounds in all areas, but particularly with the grass courts,” says Sue. “One of the main bits of responsibility I have is the identification of any issues (disease/pest/weed) problems within the grass courts and remedying these through cultural/mechanical or with chemicals if required. I particularly enjoy this part of the role as early signs can be sorted quickly in most cases and it’s nice to be entrusted with this.”
Sue has been working directly in the industry for around twelve years, although she’s been involved in some capacity over the last 28 years with her husband through his roles within the industry. “I made the decision in 2004 that I wanted to do this type of work full time having previously run my own catering business, which had also been involved with several sports clubs and venues,” she says.
Her career started at the University of Nottingham, where she spent 11 years and attended several IOG courses to further her qualifications. Initial forays into the industry were positive, but things took a turn when personnel changes at a particular job left her feeling overlooked.
“There were some who gave the impression that they did not all accept a woman could do the role, for whatever reason. It felt very clear to me when job came up that when I applied for the position, I was not even being short-listed, and the interviews I did get were very brief. I did hope at the time that I wasn’t short-listed because I was a woman, but as time went on I felt more and more that this was the case.”
The experience left Sue feeling “totally destroyed”, so much so that she contemplated leaving the industry altogether. “As well as management roles I even tried to move sideways at one stage to gain more experience but was unable to get past the briefest of interviews. I went on training courses where I felt singled out on some occasions, although I was able to do whatever was put before me.”
Sue persevered, and in her current role, feels completely supported not only by her team, but by the Board that runs the club as well as the LTA. “They see me for what I am – not as a person of any gender, but as part of the grounds team, someone who can be entrusted to do any job that anyone is asked to do and with certain responsibilities, be it spraying, measuring in courts or doing COSHHE sheets and risk assessments.”
For all the areas for improvement, however, there has been ground broken in recent years, perhaps notably through the appointments of Tara Massey and Katie Croft as the only female apprentices in the Premier League. Having completed her apprenticeship, Katie is now a permanent member of the club’s groundstaff.
Not only this, but she is in contention for the Toro Most Promising Sports Turf Student of the Year Award Katie completed her Level 2 Diploma in addition to being promoted, and is already keen to move on to her Advanced Apprenticeship – a far cry from her former job as a check-in clerk at Manchester Airport.
“I’ve always loved football and working outside, so when I was looking for jobs in sports turf and horticulture, becoming a grounds person was perfect for me,” she says. “So far my experiences have been amazing, I can’t believe I have fit into this job so well as I was quite nervous at first. I have gained so many new skills and have been able to pick up great advice and help from the guys around me.
“With professional sports in general being a male-dominated environment, I think the industry around it is the same. But in recent years, with the increasing popularity of women’s sports, I think this in turn will encourage more women to feel they can come into groundsmanship and other professions like it.”
Where greenkeeping is concerned, Wendy O’Brien has had vast experience working in the UK and overseas. “I think it’s a shame there aren’t more women in the industry, I think anyone can do the job as long as they want to,” says Wendy.
“I think we’ve got a problem at the moment, we’re falling behind in this country – especially when you look at Europe and the US.” Wendy has been in the industry for 18 years, and is currently the First Assistant Greenkeeper at Carden Park Estate. She works on two 18-hole courses, and also maintains an FA standard training football pitch.
Wendy O’Brien has been in the industry for 18 years and has vast experience working in the UK and overseas.
Wendy’s career has seen her work overseas in places like Spain and the US, where she notes there’s a vast difference when it comes to accepting women in the industry. “Working on the continent, it’s different over there. In Spain, I was a Golf Course Superintendent and at one point there were four women on my crew out of a crew of 16. In America, America too, there’s lots of women working in this industry over there. I mean, you’re still a minority, but it’s a lot better.”
Wendy’s first appointment in 1998 saw her hailed as a groundbreaker, and upon her return from 18 months in the US, she did numerous presentations throughout the country in a bid to raise the profile of women in the industry. Though years have passed, there’s much that hasn’t changed.
“I don’t think the industry has evolved massively, I think there’s still a stigma,” she says. “I’ve been to job interviews where I’ve been asked, “as a woman, how do you think you’d cope with this position?’ and it’s like you know, I’ve been doing this for 18 years!” Wendy reveals that when male colleagues have received job applications from women, she’s the first they’ve turned to for advice.
“I’d get questions like, do I have to give her a separate bathroom? And it was almost like because they weren’t sure, it was as safer bet to take a lad on. They’d be worried about how it would affect the crew dynamic, and I think that can act as a bit of a barrier when all that’s needed is a bit of education.”
So what can industry bodies, employers and fellow groundstaff to combat gender biases such as perceptions about inability to do the job? “I think having role models – seeing women working in the industry and seeing that these jobs are satisfying – can possibly lead to more women in these jobs,” says Elaine.
Sue agrees: “More work needs to be done by our governing bodies with female grounds persons across the sporting disciplines to highlight the work. The industry needs to highlight a majority of our work is science-based to enable us to produce the best playing surfaces possible, particularly when you are working with a small budget.”
She adds that emphasising the fact that women don’t need an interest in or knowledge of sport is also essential to encouraging women into this sector. While many may choose to work in a particular sport as that’s where the passion lies, for Sue – and many in the industry – the passion lies with growing turf.
“I enjoy the science aspect, and this needs to be highlighted. What we need is the support from industry’s governing bodies – they should be more proactive in making the industry less of a ‘boys club’ and more open to all genders.”