Talent development

Women and Football Coaching

Female Coach Development is an innovative project aimed at sustaining the participation of teenage girls in football through the provision of more qualified female coaches. This three year project will produce a coach development model that demonstrates how barriers faced by women who wish to embark on a career in football coaching can be overcome to provide more qualified female coaches.

Overview

The London Playing Fields Foundation along with partners has  developed a programme that aims to get more women involved in coaching football.

Project detailsProject duration: 01 October 2008 - 01 October 2011
Organisation: 
London Playing Fields Foundation
Project name: 
Female Coach Development Project
AudienceAll women
Age group: 
16 - 24
Innovation
There has been little support for grassroots coaches wishing to progress from the Level 1 Certificate to Level 2 despite the significant increase in required levels of technical knowledge and understanding of the game. This project has tried to address this need by providing a mentoring system whereby the candidates are able to receive one-to-one support from a mentor throughout the duration of their Level 2 certificate. They not only have the opportunity to watch taster sessions, but to deliver and receive feedback on their own performance. At the end of the preparatory course each mentor completes an action plan for the coach so that they are able to identify and work on their weaknesses.
Recruitment and promotion
LPFF worked with the five County FA’s to recruit participants to the project. It also posted information on the County Sports Partnership website and directly contacted local women’s leagues. The project was officially launched by Hope Powell, England Women’s National Coach, on 16th October 2008 at London Marathon Playing Field, Greenwich. Hope was joined by her Assistant Coach Brent Hills, Faye White and Emma Byrne from Arsenal LFC and Anita Asante from Chelsea LFC. The event was attended by project funders and partners and it received good coverage in the local and trade press. In December 2009 Hope Powell returned to the project to celebrate its successful first year. The event received press coverage via the FA, London FA, Fair Game magazine and local press.
Location
Local
How was your project delivered?Football
Funding
The project has acquired funding for a three year period from various sources including Football Foundation, Jack Petchey, Nike, Sportsmatch and the London Marathon Charitable Trust
Partnership
London Playing Fields Foundation set up a project Steering Group comprising: London FA, Essex FA, Middlesex FA, Kent FA, Surrey FA, AFA, London Football Coaches Association, WSFF and SELKENT League. The Steering Group monitors the programme in terms of achieving its outputs and outcomes, ensuring that the project co-ordinates with existing structures and initiatives. It also checks that the project meets the needs of the target groups. In addition it is a forum for generating new ideas on how the project can continuously be improved, especially with a view to planning for future expansion and sustainability. LPFF works closely with the London FA to enrol candidates on their Level 2 courses and to support the recruitment of Level 1 coaches. LPFF and LFA have also worked in collaboration with two Girls Centres of Excellence to establish Saturday morning coaching clinics in order to introduce girls to the game.
Results
Lessons: 
The project has just completed its first year and twenty five coaches completed a preparatory course and enrolled on a Level 2 course. All of the fourteen coaches who took their final assessment achieved the Certificate and this is a source of great encouragement and inspiration for new coaches joining the project. The feedback from the coaches has been very positive: “The preparatory course really set me up with confidence and knowledge for the week. It also motivated me and I look forward to the Level 2 course.” “I think watching the mentors deliver sessions and seeing what was required and expected of us and then delivering sessions taking on board things that they had employed was a very effective way of learning.” A number of monitoring tools were used to capture data from participants during their involvement in the project: -Application form -Attendance registers -Outcome Star -Post preparatory course action plan -Coaches’ feedback form -Quarterly monitoring following completion of the Level 2 Certificate course Of the fourteen Level 2 qualified coaches ten are currently coaching; with four prevented from doing so by injury, work commitments or travel overseas.
Evaluation: 
The main problem that we have had to overcome is recruiting a group of young people with the appropriate ability and experience with whom the coaches could work during the preparatory course practical sessions. The Football Development Officer has worked closely with local clubs to recruit boys and girls teams for each block of sessions.
Themes

Facilities

Other

The venue for the project is London Marathon Playing Field, Greenwich, a dedicated mini-soccer centre and base for the SELKENT league. The pavilion is gender-friendly and the ground regularly hosts girls mini soccer tournaments for leagues and local schools. Through the project the ground has been designated London’s female coach development centre so that it can become a central venue for the delivery not only of preparatory courses but also for female coaching masterclass sessions.

Growing and sustaining participation

Tackling drop off

The purpose of the project is twofold: 1. To increase the number of qualified female coaches in the game 2. To retain the number of girls playing football By increasing the number of Level 1 and Level 2 coaches in the game it is envisaged that they will become role models for the girls they are coaching and they will provide a more empathetic and cooperative style of coaching. In doing so it will encourage more girls to stay engaged in the game therefore tackling the drop off in participation by teenage girls. The project involves the delivery of a five week preparatory course aimed at providing the coaches with an introduction to the demands of the Level 2 course. It also gives them the opportunity to watch the delivery of practical sessions and to deliver and receive feedback on their own sessions. During this preparatory phase the coaches become familiar with the Level 2 course content and their confidence increases.

Workforce development

Coaching

The focus of the project is to support more female coaches through their Level 2 certificate so that they are able to make a contribution to the female game either in a paid or voluntary capacity. The coaches are assigned to a mentor during the preparatory course who follows their development through the Level 2 course until the final assessment. The mentors are on hand to give advice and support to the candidates who are encouraged to return to the preparatory course sessions to practise their mock and final assessment topics if they require. The coaches are offered a year’s free membership to London Football Coaches Association so that they are able to access its programme of masterclass sessions and newsletter which features coaching and employment opportunities.

Talent development

Player pathway

The project provided London FA with financial assistance to subsidise candidates on Level 1 courses. Any outstanding candidates are identified by the tutors and recommended to join the Female Coach Development project to complete their Level 2 certificate. Outstanding candidates from the Level 2 course are recommended to the Girls Centres of Excellence, with five of the fourteen successful candidates now working within a C of E.

Confidence and self esteem issues

The purpose of the project was to provide the female coaches with the confidence to enrol on and to complete the Level 2 course. The courses are male dominated and this can be intimidating for some female coaches, particularly those that do not have a high level of playing ability. The preparatory course introduces the coaches to the topics covered by the course and makes sure they are aware of the technical and practical elements that they will be required to demonstrate. It gives them the opportunity to practise these sessions in a supportive environment and to receive feedback from the mentors and fellow coaches. The levels of confidence before and after the preparatory course have been measured and a marked improvement in the levels can be seen at the end of the course.

Health & wellbeing

The ultimate aim is to sustain the participation of girls by increasing and improving the female coaching workforce, so there will be a health benefit in terms of fewer girls dropping out of the game.

Key links: 
http://www.lpff.org.uk/whatwedo_projects_details.aspx?id=758

Female Officials Programme

The London FA Female Officials Programme is run in partnership with Arsenal Girls’ Centre of Excellence.  Starting in 2008/09, it consists of a group open to all qualified female officials and run by a Level 3 referee with extensive experience in the women’s game. The aim of the project is to increase the support given to female officials, and subsequently increase the number of female referees in London.

Project detailsProject duration: 01 January 2008 - ongoing
Organisation: 
London Football Association
Project name: 
Female Officials Programme
AudienceAll women
Age group: 
0 - 15
Age group: 
16 - 24
Age group: 
25 - 40
Age group: 
41+
Innovation
The project provides an opportunity for female officials to gain experience in an environment where the focus is on development, giving officials the opportunity to start with a younger age group and work their way up to games involving older players as they gain more experience.
Recruitment and promotion
Participants were recruited by directly contacting all London FA registered female referees. The project was promoted by holding an official launch at The FA HQ incorporating a Q&A session with a panel of special guests including experienced referees and representatives from Arsenal and London FA, as well as promoted through various websites and e-newsletters.
Location
Urban
How was your project delivered?Football
Funding
The project is jointly funded by Arsenal Girls’ Centre of Excellence and London FA
Partnership
The main partnership is between Arsenal Girls’ Centre of Excellence and London Football Association
Results
Lessons: 
The hardest thing is to attract enough female officials to the programme so sometimes running the programme jointly with another County FA might be a good idea to ensure a big enough pool of officials.
Evaluation: 
The project was monitored using feedback from the female officials involved. This was positive demonstrating a successful project. This success is also demonstrated by the progression and improvement of the female officials over time as confirmed by Arsenal and the London FA mentors. Eight officials took part in the programme in Year 1 and 6 in Year 2. Oone referee who joined the programme at the beginning of year 1 by refereeing U10s games. She has steadily progressed and recently started refereeing the U16s and received excellent feedback from Arsenal and her mentor. She now also referees 11 a side games regularly outside of the programme. The number of female officials taking part in the second year decreased. This is being addressed by arranging a female-only referee course nearby so that the females that qualify from this are able to get involved in the programme.
Themes

Workforce development

The programme provides mentoring and support for female referees, as well as paid employment through refereeing on match days at Arsenal Girls’ Centre of Excellence.

Key links: 
The London FA

Faith and Action: Born to Succeed

application/vnd.ms-powerpoint icon
Case_Study_MWSF.ppt

The project aims to tackle the low number of Muslim women and girls in sport, in order to bring equality through the arena of sport. This is done through the provision of a suitable environment in which they could train and compete against women and girls of the same and different faiths.

Project detailsProject duration: 01 August 2009 - 01 August 2012
Organisation: 
Muslim Women’s Sports Foundation
Project name: 
Faith and Action: Born to Succeed
AudienceMuslim
Age group: 
16 - 24
Age group: 
25 - 40
Age group: 
41+
Innovation
The project is unique as it is the first project to is focus specifically on delivering activity for Muslim women.
Recruitment and promotion
We recruited participants through schools, word of mouth and the media.
Location
Regional
How was your project delivered?Basketball, football
Funding
Our project is reliant on funding from the Football Foundation and Nike Player Panel.
Partnership
Partners include Sporting Equals, the Prince’s Trust, Elite Youth, Islamic Societies, Asian Football Network, Harrow and Brent Council, BBC One Extra and many sporting organisations including England Basketball and The Football Association. The chair of the MWSF was voted one of the top 20 most influential Muslim women in the UK by the Times and sits on the FA’s Advisory Group for Race Equality, the FA’s Asian and Muslim Women’s Support group, and John Mann’s (MP) Tackling Islamophobia and Anti-Semitism taskforce. The MWSF have also been recognised by winning the 2008 Mosaic Award, Nike Player Panel Award and 2009 Muslim News Award for Excellence for Sport.
Themes

Growing participation

The Faith and Action: Born to Succeed project was specifically introduced to tackle the low number of Muslim women and girls in sport, in order to bring equality through the arena of sport.  Part of the project is to research Muslim women’s participation in sport across England, in particular barriers that prevent such women from participating at all levels of sport, and recommendations for ways to engage them.

Confidence and self-esteem

The project aims to help MWSF build an organisational infrastructure that has the scope to change attitudes about, and the understanding of, what sport can provide Muslim women and support other organisations to deliver appropriate coaching sessions for such target audiences.

Key links: 
Muslim Women's Sport Foundation

Fit For Girls - Bishopsbriggs Academy

We wanted to increase girls' participation in sport and physical activity at Bishopsbriggs School in Scotland.

Project detailsProject duration: 17 August 2009 - ongoing
Organisation: 
Bishopsbriggs School
Project name: 
Fit for Girls - Bishopsbriggs - Netball League
AudienceSchool
Age group: 
0 - 15
Recruitment and promotion
We kick-started the programme with netball team trials evenings, using posters and staff to promote the events; approximately 60 girls from S1 and S2 attended. We then used a second trials evening to further encourage these pupils and to sustain their interest. At this point girls were informed they had all been successful in their try-outs, that they would all be invited back and that they had ‘made’ the team.
Location
Regional
How was your project delivered?Netball
Partnership
Support from partners has been essential. Netball Scotland provided specialist coaches, constant guidance and advice; while the local sports centre provided the hire of facilities and equipment; and local newspapers promoted the league and reported on fixtures.
Results
Lessons: 
On average 90 girls from the six participating schools competed in the league competition. Around 40-50 of these pupils also attended the monthly coaching sessions.The league has resulted in a significant increase in the number of girls participating in regular sport and physical activity. The trials evenings ensured the girls developed a sense of identity and pride in representing their school and allowed us to sustain the high number participating in weekly training sessions, match fixtures and monthly specialist coaching sessions. We now find ourselves with around 5 squads and struggle to provide them all with a team kit! We have seen a vast improvement in the fitness level, skill level and overall attitude towards sport and physical activity; 80% of our S2 girls have gone on to select Standard Grade PE as one of their subjects to study in S3/S4. “Training and match nights were great fun and taught me a lot more skills and how to play netball better. I think that S2 netball was really good. I hope the S3 league is as good as I hope to have great fun again.” S2 pupil All schools have committed their involvement to the S1/S2 league next session, and an S3/S4 girl’s league will be introduced to continue the pathway for current participants. Netball Scotland has also requested that this programme be taken forward to set up an East Dunbartonshire Coaching School to develop an elite squad of netballers who will have the opportunity to be selected by scouts to represent Glasgow and/or Scotland Netball squads.
Themes

Growing and sustaining participation

The Bishopbriggs Academy was created to increase girls' participation in sport and physical activity. The schools involved in the programme conducted weekly coaching sessions with a focus on netball skills and fitness. The combination of competition and skills was critical to sustaining the group of girls. 

We invited specialist coaches to run monthly clinics for players that were interested and ran a weekly competitive league.

We have seen a vast improvement in the girls' fitness and skill levels and overall attitude towards sport and physical activity.  80% of our S2 girls have gone on to select Standard Grade PE as one of their subjects to study in S3/S4.

We have also introduced a transition netball programme for P6/P7 girls and a league style competition between primary schools.

Key links: 
Bishopbriggs Academy

Kirkintilloch High School changing room refurb

From the Fit For Girls survey we found 17% of S2/3 girls believed the facilities for PE were not good. We discussed this with the girls and found out that they were in fact referring to their changing area. The girls were sure that they would feel better about coming to PE and getting changed if the environment was improved.

Project detailsProject duration: 01 November 2009 - ongoing
Organisation: 
Kirkintilloch High School
Project name: 
Fit For Girls
AudienceSchool
Age group: 
0 - 15
Innovation
The Fit For Girls Kirkintilloch project started with a feedback session where the girls compiled a ‘wish list’ for changes to the changing room facilities. We then negotiated with the students and agreed on what would be realistically achievable and would make the biggest difference to them. Ten S3 girls volunteered to stay after school on a Friday afternoon to make the changes; none of these girls had attended any extra-curricular clubs before. Graffiti was removed, canvases painted and walls brightened with positive images of women and girls involved in sport. The after-care and upkeep of the new changing facilities has been remarkable. There are no longer the same issues about mess and graffiti and lack of respect for this part of the school. The staff have not needed to remind the girls to look after this space and to date it is kept in a manner which is acceptable to all using it.
Location
Local
How was your project delivered?Facilities upgrade
Funding
The make-over was financed through a combination of funding from Fit For Girls and an allocation from the School Facilities budget.
Results
Lessons: 
The impact has been positive and immediate. All of the girls who use this area love the changes and are taking much greater care of the room. There is no graffiti and there has been no difficulty with toilets or sinks being blocked now that toilet paper and paper towels are readily available. Mirrors will soon be added to complete the project. We have yet to do the follow up Fit For Girls questionnaire which would be able to produce evidence in change of attitude to PE by girls. However, the class registers on a weekly basis have demonstrated that there are less girls NOT taking part than before the make-over of the changing rooms and staff do not have the same issues in persuading girls to get changed to take part in class. This is a positive step forward for girls and staff in the department. “It is brighter … a lot more colourful ... nicer to get changed in ... feels much cleaner … much better not asking teachers for toilet paper ... now we want to go to PE … it is girly, bright and eye catching and there is always toilet paper.” S3 Girls “If was fantastic to see these girls getting involved. Working together, making their ideas a reality especially at 6pm on a Friday night!” PE teacher
Evaluation: 
The project worked because the girls felt their concerns had been listened to, they contributed to the decision making process, they were given the chance to get involved to make the difference and those who were involved had great fun during the make-over (music, chat, hard work, pizza and lots of laughs!). They could see that their words had quickly turned into action; they definitely felt a sense of ‘ownership’ of their facility.
Themes
Facilities Using feedback from our students, the Fit For Girls Kirkintilloch project focussed on improving the changing room facilities. The facilities were noted as the biggest barrier to lack of PE attendance. We painted the changing room, added hand painted canvasses to dress the walls and provided an abundance of toilet paper, paper towel and other items to make the girls feel more positive about PE. The next step is installing new mirrors.
Key links: 
Kirkintilloch High School
Syndicate content