New scheme to help develop youth football in Northamptonshire

Each regional hub will contain a minimum of one Charter Standard Community Club, which the county FA envisage will be pivotal in helping them to deliver a variety of initiatives, from coaching courses through to Charter Standard support and pitch maintenance.

A spokesman for Northants FA said: "Whilst continuing to work closely with its Adult and Youth leagues, Northants FA will ensure the needs of individual clubs are met and will look to offer training within the local community.

"The project, which will begin next season, has already started to take shape, with FA mentors allocated to work within certain hubs with coaching courses and CPD events planned for each area. But this is just the start and it is hoped the initiative will continue to grow."

Every club will shortly receive full details of the plans and which hub they are assigned to, followed by regular ‘what’s on’ updates so they can keep their members informed on planned events. The NFA will actively seek regular feedback and suggestions as to what clubs would like to see within their hub so they can address any demand.

Debbie Preston, football development officer and project leader, said: “For me, regional hubs just make sense. We shouldn’t be asking volunteers to travel long distances and this scheme will offer the perfect opportunity to bring the NFA to the doorsteps of our volunteers.

“To make this scheme work we are reliant on the clubs and leagues communicating their specific requirements so we can plan strategically. I am very excited by the initiative as I feel there has been a demand for something like this for some time and now we are in a position to start making it happen.”

For more information or to suggest events that could be held within your region, please contact Debbie on either 01604 678408 or [email protected]