April 2024 Newsletter

SHROPSHIRE FA

The unexpected ways your club can receive free funding! Just one person could earn your club £120 doing their weekly food shop for a year, £45 by switching their household bill providers, £18 by buying annual insurances like home, car, or pet, and £60 on average when booking a holiday. How do you ask? By doing their online shopping through easyfundraising. The online platform partners with over 8,000 online retailers, so your club can receive free funding from online shopping. But, for your club to benefit, it needs to sign up to easyfundraising. Two minutes of your time can provide a continual income stream your club can use to help fund running costs, new equipment, pitch fees, and more. Get started today: www.easyfundraising.org.uk/shropshire-fa

women’s walking football

Fun, Friendship & Football – Women’s Walking Football

With its emphasis on fun and friendship, walking football really is the perfect fit for a whole variety of people.

For starters, it’s ideal for anyone who would very much like to carry on playing the game even after their ‘running legs’ have run out of juice.

Although even those who have never played football before will soon find themselves having fun and getting the hang of it

But it’s also a great way to make new friends, to just get out of the house for a while and to stay active.

With no running, jogging or heading involved – and reduced physical contact – walking football is a fun and safe way for older players to enjoy the game and socialise together.

Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin has supported a men’s walking football club for some time, but the charity has recently helped to set up a women’s walking football club too – at the Monkmoor Recreation Centre in Shrewsbury.

The volunteer organiser Kate said: “We have around 23 players attend between the ages of 55 and 83. We didn’t have the opportunities to play when we were younger, so it is great to be able to play now through these sessions which take place weekly ”

This centre at Monkmoor was set up in October 2022 and was spearheaded by women living in Shrewsbury who wanted a female walking football session similar to the male session run by Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin.

This then sparked a partnership between the participants and the charity as they agreed to help with the admin of the sessions including advertisements, organising a venue and equipment while also providing all members with health advice. More recently the team have taken part in occasional tournaments with varied successes.

Local charity Energize Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin have also supported this project through providing funding from Sport England’s Together Fund to allow the team to purchase equipment and hire venues to train weekly. This project quickly gained attention across Shrewsbury with the Town Council supporting the group where possible and BBC Midlands Today and BBC Radio Shropshire completing interviews on the group to further promote them.

Asked why the club was important, Kate replied “We were all inspired by the Lionesses Euros success and more recently the Women’s World Cup! This group is continuously growing as we have gone from 9 to 23 members in under a year. All women should have the opportunity to play football and through the support of Age UK Shropshire Telford & Wrekin we have been able to participate and enjoy the sport we love If I could describe the session in a few words, it would be fun, inclusive, approachable, and friendly, it really is a team environment where you feel comfortable and can have a laugh.”

This group currently trains every Wednesday 10.30am-12pm. Anyone who is interested in joining this team or joining the group as a player can contact 01743 233 123 or enquiries@ageukSTW org uk

If you are interested in other walking football opportunities within Shropshire, please contact phoebe.warner@shropshirefa.com

Interested in a Referee course before start of 2024 /25

Courses unless stated are usually ran over a weekend Friday 6.30pm9.30pm and Saturday or Sunday 9.00am - 4pm

Course cost is £130 Under 16 years of age / £160 if over 16 years of age

This includes Laws of the Game and Safeguarding For All (both on line learning)

If you are over 16 years of age you need to complete Safeguarding for Children (£30 charge included in your course fee) and are required to complete a FA DBS (additional £10 charge).

dbs support

Please find the link to First Advantage's new Football Association Customer Support Microsite. https://help.fadv.com/s/thefa

This Microsite has within it an IA integrated 'Chatbot' which will provides answers and also will link customers to FADVs dedicated FA Support team during office hours.

Customers can find information on setting their club/verifiers up and there are links to other FAQ (these will grow) and to TheFA.com safeguarding pages.

The microsite also includes a 'submit a query' section which opens up a query service that goes direct to The FA specific FAD DBS customer support team along with detailing the tel. number if people prefer to call the team.

safeguarding requirements

safeguarding requirements

Phoebe’s April out in the community

Newport Girls go to Wembley!

England U23s Women Open Training Session

England U23's women played against Sweden at AFC Telford on 4th April, and Shropshire FA and the FA collaborated and organised for all age groups of Newport Girls to attend the match day minus one training session 40 girls attended alongside parents, coaches and volunteers and each got players signatures and photos The coaches even came away with a few new coaching ideas! An inspiring day for some potential future lionesses!.

In addition to England U23s playing Sweden, the senior lionesses also headed to Wembley to play against Sweden a day later. Shropshire FA provided two tickets for the game to Newport Girls, and Becky and her daughter Eliza went along and said how great the atmosphere was!

Shropshire FA CPD

Walking Football:

Our Shropshire FA Walking Football League kicked off on 7th April, five teams played each other in a round robin style tournament and the morning was full of great skills and competitive spirit Shrewsbury 99ers are currently sitting top of the league with Market Drayton 3 points behind. The next round of fixtures will take place on 5th May.

Shropshire FA held a CPD event with FA Coach Development Officer - Stacey Miles. The CPD focused on Developing on the Pitch, and coaches began with a workshop and then moved onto a practical session. The evening was full of new ideas, and the energy from all of the coaches was fantastic to see (especially in the games at the end!)

Telford College Football Festival

Telford College Sport Students in collaboration with Shropshire FA delivered a Girls Football Festival aimed at students in year 9/10. The main purpose of the day was for students to enjoy themselves as they took part in a carousel of skill games. Medals were awarded to students who showed the best attitude to participation, and all students received a Telford College / Shropshire FA goodie bag that included certificates for participation and contact information for the nearest Squad Girls centre in the local area for the girls to attend. The students should be really proud of themselves for organising such a great event.

From the heart of the action, to the centre of the stage. Let's celebrate our amazing referees!

It’s time to turn the spotlight on our fantastic referees.

To recognise their unique contribution to football. To show our appreciation for their dedication to our game, our clubs and our communities.

Nominate a referee who’s impressed you this season, and they could carry home one of 9 prestigious awards in the Referee Recognition Awards 2024.

You can nominate as many referees in as many categories as you want.

Just tell us why you think they should win, and we’ll take care of the rest!

Nominate a referee you believe deserves a national award.

After last years success of having a Winner and Highly Commended in the first ever National Referee Recognition Awards let’s get

Shaun Currall

Inspirational Role Model of The Year

Richard Butler

Read the full article via ShropshireLive at: https://www.shropshirelive.com/ Get

SHROPSHIRE FA COUNTY CUP

FINALS

ShropshireLive has been providing Shropshire news and entertainment since 2009. We reach tens of thousands of readers per month, making us the biggest online-only news publication in the county. You can now also listen to ShropshireLive.

Not everyone has the same opportunities when it comes to developing life skills that can help secure a job, or support career growth. England Football Learning and Chase, as the Official Banking Partner of England Football Learning, want to help change that, by harnessing the power of football to help individuals develop transferable skills that can unlock their potential, on the pitch and beyond.

Chase fully funded places have been created to provide funding opportunities for coaches who would benefit from financial support towards completing either the Introduction to Coaching Football, UEFA B Licence or UEFA A Licence.

The programme is aligned to our wider goal of helping to increase participation within the game, as well as Chase’s ongoing investment in community-based programmes. By fostering diversity and inclusion within our coaching workforce we aim to: Increase participation: Inspiring individuals from all backgrounds

£200 off for all Shropshire County FA clubs, coaches, teams, and members

We're not done yet! Check out these updates and features of the

Veo Cam 3:

• Extended Control Range and Better WIFI Coverage

• 5G Ready for Future-Proofed Technology

• Sharper Video Quality with HDR

• Wind Noise Reduction for Crystal-Clear Audio

• Tough Design Built to Last

• IP54 Rating for Any Environment

Don't miss out on this exclusive opportunity to experience the future of sports camera technology with the Veo Cam 3!

If you missed out on the Live Launch show or just want to catch it again to see all the cool features of the Veo Cam 3, you can watch the recording on the Veo youtube channel.

longserviceaward

As an Association we wish to record and reward the service to Shropshire FA. A Long Service Award may be presented to Club Officials on completion of 21 years’ service with an individual Club, League or- Competition. The Club, League or Competition concerned shall have the option of making the application and producing the necessary supporting evidence.

You can apply for individuals to receive a long service award from The Football Association after serving 50 consecutive years. A Long Service eferees on completion eree affiliated to this on

This year the programme focuses on groups operating in areas of high deprivation and supporting young people from the following underrepresented groups; women and girls, racially diverse communities, young people with disabilities, from the LGBTQ+ community, and from lower socio-economic areas. Community sports groups can apply to receive:

£1k Access Grants to spend on increasing underrepresented young people's access to play (note this has increased from last year’s £500)

Up to £5k Deep Impact grants available for existing fund recipients

Coaching grants to get more women qualified to coach girls' football at a grassroots level

Access to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion training and resources

Exclusive opportunities to apply for Premier League and Barclays FA Women's Super League tickets, mascot opportunities and exclusive promotional experiences

There will be two application windows:

12 Feb – 12 April 15 Jul – 15 Sept Further information has been issued to Disability and Women & Girl’s lead officers via the relevant teams channel. Full details about the fund can be seen here

RESPECT isn’t just earned on the pitch, its earned off of it as well. When we talk about Respect, we are talking about the positive environment we want to encourage across all of football.

It’s about making the game a better place for all to enjoy.

To achieve this, we understand the importance of the role of our coaches across the game in implementing a positive environment to make their players better on and off the pitch.

A coaches dedication takes players to the next level. Tactics, skills, fitness - all these things are important, but there’s one big factor that can make a huge difference to the people you coach - and it could be the simplest change you make this year to transform your team.

Links

SPORT SHOULD BE UNFORGETTABLE

We're working across multiple sports to help fans better understand symptoms and take the first step in seeking an all-important diagnosis if they, or a loved one, may be experiencing signs of dementia. One in three people born in the UK today will go on to develop dementia in their lifetime, but too many people still think it’s just a sign of normal ageing, unsure of the symptoms, and too afraid to visit their GP.

Getting a diagnosis means you can get the practical advice and emotional support you need. You can plan for the future and feel the relief of knowing your next steps. And most importantly, you can avoid reaching crisis point.

Visit our Memory Hub if you notice a loved one experiencing memory loss or displaying other signs of dementia. There you’ll find more information about dementia and how we can help you, as well as our symptoms checklist which you can also complete below.

If you're worried that you or someone else may have dementia, complete our checklist and show it to a GP or health professional to help describe your symptoms.

The Player Welfare in Open Age Football course by England Learning is now available to complete online

Develop your understanding of the importance of player welfare and gain insights into creating a positive, safe environment for your team

Concussion is a relatively common injury in football

That’s why everyone who takes part in football needs to know four things:

• What concussion is

• How you recognise it

• What to do if a player is concussed

• How to manage a player’s return to training/playing

You can read more about all these aspects in England Football's comprehensive guidelines. In addition, we strongly recommend you spend 20 minutes taking the online free concussion guidelines course provided by England Football Learning, the education arm of England Football. .

Get on the front foot for this school term with @EnglandLearning's Online PE CPD for Teachers course

These free modules are suitable for anyone involved in delivering engaging, fun PE.

Find out more click on the picture below

GUIDANCE FOR USE OF SHIN PADS IN GRASSROOTS FOOTBALL

Why should shin pads be worn in football and which shin pads should you wear?

Safety is a key consideration for our game and the Laws of the Game state that shin-guards/pads are a compulsory piece of equipment. Shin pads play an important role in injury prevention as they are intended to protect the shin from injury. The amount of shin physically covered is an important consideration, as any part of the shin that is not covered is not as well protected. “Micro” or “Mini” shin pads may therefore increase the risk of injury due to the smaller amount of shin covered compared to larger sized shin pads.

complaints procedure

This procedure outlines the details with regards to sending a complaint to the Shropshire Football Association regarding a Match Official, Club, League, Participant or the Shropshire FA itself.

SAFEGUARDING COURSES

Safeguarding is everyone’s responsibility. Take our courses and learn how to implement best practices.

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best practice

Over the years The FA has been asked for advice and guidance to help clubs create fun, safe and inclusive environments.

This advice the form of Guidance Notes, available to download in themed-sections of this website.