British Cycling says it is launching an "action plan" after a confidential survey in which some responses reportedly described its World Class Programme as "toxic". The survey was funded by UK Sport and carried out by an independent company earlier this year.
The Times reported that the results found a drop in morale among riders and performance staff. "Toxic" was the joint-second most common response to a question asking for words to describe the programme.
A British Cycling spokesperson said the wellbeing of our staff and riders is fundamental to everything the organisation does. The Culture Feedback Survey, which has been the subject of recent reports, is independently run to help it learn and improve. The spokesperson stressed that most team members say they love their jobs, and that overall favourability has increased, ranking "very good" in the latest study.
The body acknowledged that others want to see improvements. "We are committed to listening and acting on this," the spokesperson said. As a result, the GB Cycling Team has developed an action plan, being implemented alongside wider work across British Cycling focused on leadership, development, feedback and wellbeing. UK Sport is aware of and supportive of the action being taken.
Source: BBC Sport · Summarized by HeadlinesBriefing