Build a coaching portfolio that shows your decisions.

Turn your coaching approach into observable actions

Start with the role or audience for the portfolio. A community club and a performance programme may want different examples. Introduce the groups you have coached, the scope of your responsibility and the setting in which your approach developed.

Explain what your principles look like in practice. Instead of simply writing “player-centred”, describe how you invite a player’s view, check understanding or adjust an explanation. Use a real example where possible. Label an approach you hope to develop as an intention rather than presenting it as established experience.

Build a session case study around a coaching decision

Choose a session you can explain in enough detail to discuss at interview. State the objective, the group’s starting point and the practical constraints. Include a readable plan or diagram, then explain why you chose that structure for this group.

A plan alone shows intention. Add what actually happened: what you noticed, any adjustment you made and the reason for it. Identify your contribution when another coach designed or delivered part of the session. The outline below is a presentation structure, not a prescribed training session.

Coaching case-study outline

Context
[Sport, group or level, date and setting — without identifying participants]
My role: [What I planned, delivered or supported]

Objective and plan
[What the group was working towards]
[Relevant starting point, constraints and reason for the activities]

During delivery
[What I observed]
[What I changed or asked, and why]

Evidence
[An anonymised observation, permitted excerpt or other relevant record]
[What the evidence shows and what it cannot establish]

Reflection
[What I would keep, change or investigate next time]

Select evidence that supports the point you are making

Use a small set of relevant examples: an annotated session plan, a reflection note, a permitted observation from a colleague or a short video excerpt where sharing is allowed. Give each item a date, a caption and an explanation of what the reader should notice.

Keep claims proportionate to the evidence. A player’s improvement may have several influences; explain your contribution without attributing the entire outcome to one session. If an activity did not work as intended, a clear explanation of what you learned can be more useful than an unsupported success claim.

Check qualifications, ownership and permissions

List each relevant qualification with its exact title, awarding organisation and accurate completion or renewal status. Distinguish completed awards, courses in progress and informal development. Requirements differ by role and organisation, so check the current job description and issuer information instead of implying that a qualification authorises every type of coaching.

Before sharing session materials, video, photographs or feedback, check that you have permission for this audience and purpose. Club ownership and participant consent can affect what you may use. Remove player names and identifying details where they are unnecessary, and leave private assessments and personal records out of a public portfolio. If permission is unclear, create an original illustrative example and label it as such.

Finish with a short contents list and descriptive file names. Test links as the intended reader would see them. Keep the public version concise; provide additional material through an agreed private channel only when sharing is permitted.