Feasibility of the volunteer training programme
CORONAVIRUS
Nineteen volunteers were recruited, 15 completed training and 9 volunteers (47.3%) were retained at the end of the study. Four volunteers withdrew before training due to beliefs that they were unsuitable for the role, including lack of time to commit, and poor confidence in their skills to deliver exercise. Six volunteers withdrew after training because of: ill health (1), work commitments (1), concerns regarding the safety of online exercise (2), and reduced commitment to the volunteer role with the return of normal activities after the Coronavirus pandemic 2019 (COVID-19) lockdown (2).All volunteers completed 3 online group training sessions, 60–90 min, with 1 trainer (SJM), and additional online one-to-one training depending on competence and confidence (33% of volunteers). In total, each volunteer completed a median of 2.7 h (interquartile range [IQR] 2.7–3.3) of training. The trainer (SJM) was a qualified and experienced exercise practitioner. Volunteers were mainly female (78%), mean age 68 (± 6.3) years (age range 59 – 77 years), retired (67%), with previous volunteering experience (78%), but no experience delivering exercise (78%). The trainer (SJM) visited clubs to support volunteers, conducted fidelity checks, and organised 5 volunteer group support meetings.