Frequently asked questions

We are a welcoming and predominantly road running club that tries to cater for runners of all abilities. However, if you have very little or no running experience you might find our training sessions are probably a bit too intense, and we wouldn't want to put you off running by expecting you to train at an inappropriate level. Therefore, we advise beginners to start out on their own or with a running friend to develop some running fitness before joining a running club.

There are many sources of advice available to help you get started, two of which are accessible from the links below:

Running Tips for Beginners

How to Start Jogging

See the next FAQ for information about our training groups.

Our training sessions are organised as four groups. In Group 4, the slowest group, the distance is generally about 5 miles and you should be able to run this distance in a time of about 50 minutes to train comfortably with this group. As your pace improves you will gain benefit from moving to a faster group.

We have a considerable female membership which enjoys all the benefits of the club. The Women’s Team Captain organises entries for women’s team road and cross-country events.

We do not have a section specifically dedicated to junior runners. The minimum age for membership is 18 years. We recommend junior runners to approach Sphinx AC or Coventry Godiva Harriers both of which cater for juniors.

The club meets on Wednesday evenings at the Jaguar Sports and Social Club in Browns Lane.

Main training sessions take place on Wednesday evenings and start at 7pm. Weekly sessions are posted on the training page of the club website.

Longer distance or special sessions may take place on Sunday mornings at 9.00am. Routes and distances are posted on the training page of the club website.

Wednesday evening sessions start at 7pm.
Monday evening sessions start at 6pm.

Training is organised as four groups suited to different abilities.

Typically the pace for a 5k distance would be:
Group 1 – under 21 minutes
Group 2 – 21 to 24 minutes
Group 3 – 24 to 30 minutes
Group 4 – 30 to 35 minutes

Due to continuing Coronavirus restraints training sessions are restricted to members only for the time being. We hope to be able to invite guests to our sessions again in the near future.

We occasionally organise a Wednesday evening track session at the Warwick University running track.

We currently have 200+ members.

You must complete a Membership Application form. We suggest the most convenient method is to use our online Application Form. You'll find a link to this form on the Membership page. When you submit this form we will email you with instructions on how to pay your membership joining fee.

Alternatively you can download and print an Application Form. Post the form to the Membership Secretary with the correct fee, or hand it with the fee to a committee member after a Wednesday evening training session. Cheques are accepted but no cash please.
Refer also to the How to join page.

If you are not sure about taking out club membership you can join in our sessions as a guest for a few weeks on a “try before you buy” basis.

Please note:
This invitation is suspended for the time being due to continuing Coronavirus restraints.

The fee for new members is £49. We offer concessionary rates to students, unemployed persons and state pensioners. The joining fee includes a club vest.
To use the facilities at the Jaguar Sports and Social Club you must take out Social Club Membership, paying the additional fees as determined by the Jaguar Sports & Social Club.

Visitors to the area are welcome to run with us as guests.

Please note:
This invitation is suspended for the time being due to continuing Coronavirus restraints.

If you are not sure about taking out club membership you can join in our sessions as a guest for a few weeks on a “try before you buy” basis.

Please note:
This invitation is suspended for the time being due to continuing Coronavirus restraints.

A member of another running club can join Northbrook AC as a second claim member. When entering a UKA licensed event a second claim member must register in the name of their first claim club, ie the club responsible for paying their UKA affiliation fee.

Yes. Part of the annual membership fee is used to pay the charge levied by UKA on all first claim club members.

Jaguar Sports and Social Club requires that anyone using its facilities, including the car park, be a member of the Jaguar Sports and Social Club. JLR employees are automatically enrolled as members, anyone else must take out Associate Membership.

The Jaguar Sports and Social Club car park is managed by a 3rd party organisation that uses number plate recognition technology to capture details of vehicles entering and leaving the car park. Parking Charge Notices are issued to owners of vehicles that visit the car park if a parking permit has not been obtained.

There are shower facilities at the Jaguar Sports and Social Club Leisure Centre. To use these facilities you must be a member or associate member of the JS&S club. The Leisure Centre may levy a small charge to use the showers.

There are changing facilities at the Jaguar Sports and Social Club. To use these facilities you must be a member or associate member of the JS&S club.

There is a bar at the Jaguar Sports and Social Club. To use the bar facility you must be a member or associate member of the JS&S club.

Food is available to purchase in the bar of the Jaguar Sports and Social Club. To use the bar facility you must be a member or associate member of the JS&S club.

We stage the Coventry Northbrook 10k road race each year in July. We also usually organise or co-organise one of the races in the Birmingham Invitation Cross-Country League.

You should be at the start point by the published start time. If you competed in a Club handicap race in the previous season the handicapper will have worked out a handicap time for you , and this will be included on the list available at the start.

If you are new to the series then you will be invited to suggest a realistic time for the course, and a suitable start time will be allocated. You will not earn points on your first such race.

Guests can run in the summer handicap races and will be given a time and a position. However, guests do not qualify for points or prizes.

The Club is registered for track and field and may therefore enter teams for these events. A member may also enter a track & field event as an individual.

The Club usually enters men’s teams in the Birmingham Invitation Cross-Country League races, and women’s teams in the Midland Women’s Cross-Country League races. The Club pays the entry fees for these races.

Given sufficient interest the Club will also enter teams for the National Cross-Country Championships and the Midland Cross-Country Championships.

The Club usually enters men’s teams for the Midland 12-Stage and women’s teams for the. Midland 6-Stage Road Relay races. The Club also enters men’s and women’s teams for the Cotswold Hilly 100 relay race. The Club pays the entry fees for these events.

For safety reasons the Club does not permit the use of portable audio devices during training sessions.

First claim Club members must wear the approved Club competition vest or competition T-shirt when competing in a UKA licensed event, or in any team event for which the Club has paid the entry fees. A vest is provided to a new member upon joining the Club.

A range of Northbrook branded training and warm-up apparel is available from the Club’s Kit Manager via the Club website.

Please visit our Contact Us webpage. So that we can deal with your message more efficiently please select the appropriate topic at the head of the contact form. We will respond as soon as possible.