New partnership with the National League Trust to fund clubs across England
WNST is delighted to announce an exciting new partnership with the National League Trust (NLT), to increase the opportunities for women and girls living up and down the country to play football at projects delivered by their local Vanarama National League club.
The NLT oversees the community work undertaken by football clubs playing at the two levels below the EFL (English Football League). Its 68 members cover a wide range of clubs, from those with a long history of playing professional league football (Leyton Orient, Wrexham, Hartlepool, York) to those working their way up the football pyramid from the lower reaches of the non-League game (Concord Rangers, Brackley, Dulwich Hamlet). What they all have in common is the part that they play in the life of their local community and the ability to engage people of all ages in a love of sport and football in particular.
New programme details
WNST is pleased to be making up to £100,000 available, over the coming year, enabling the NLT to pilot a programme of women’s and girls’ projects at a number of their clubs, to help them meet the ever-increasing demand for female football and enable them to evaluate the impact of the delivery. Funds are only available to those clubs where the club community organisation is established as a separate charitable entity. The programme was devised in consultation with the FA’s National Women’s Development Manager, Rachel Pavlou, to ensure that funding is targeted at areas of the country where current provision is either low or has the capacity to expand.
NLT manager, Susan O’Brien said “Our aim is to get more women and girls playing the game and to use its power to inspire volunteers, create coaches and help women get their lives back on track.”
The clubs benefitting to date are:
- Dagenham & Redbridge FC Community Trust – @Daggerstrust
- Guiseley Community Foundation – @GAFCCommunity
- Boston United FC Community Foundation – @BostonUnitedCF
- Torquay United Community Sports Trust – @TUCSTrust
- York City FC Foundation – @YCFCFoundation
- Magpies in the Community (Maidenhead United) – @MagpieCommunity
- Bath City FC Community Foundation – @BCFCFoundation
- Barrow AFC Community Sports – @BAFCCommunity
- Chester FC Community Trust – @CFC_CommTrust
- Dover Athletic Community Trust – @DAFCCommunity
WNST Chief Executive Stewart Goshawk added:
“We are delighted to be joining up with the National League Trust to take forward this exciting programme. It just goes to show the importance of football clubs to their local communities at every level of the pyramid. Supporting these clubs to deliver work for women and girls will demonstrate the value of working across the football family to help expand the game in every direction.
“It is really interesting to see clubs working not just in schools, but at youth offending institutes and inside a women’s prison, as well as running open sessions out in the community to encourage greater female participation, whether just for fun, in helping to get fit, or to play competitively. Many of the clubs will already have their own ladies team, which can provide the pathway for those who want to play at a higher level.”
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