Developing diverse communities through football

Representatives from Arsenal, Brentford, Chelsea and Crystal Palace's club community organisations (CCOs), joined the FA and Premier League Charitable Fund at Brentford FC this month for a special England Football Learning event.

Centred around supporting community coaches to create more inclusive environments for their diverse communities of players, the event was part of England Football Learning’s ongoing commitment to educating, developing and diversifying the coaching and football administration landscape from communities and grassroots level through to the elite game.

The day featured workshops on privilege and how to make the environment for players as inclusive as possible, as well as a session supporting coaches with adapting delivery to create a safe, friendly and welcoming environment for females, while also looking at male allyship within the women’s game.

A practical workshop at the Gunnersbury Park Sports Hub concluded the day, giving the participating coaches a chance to apply their theoretical learnings to the playing field.

The sessions were led by FA diversity and inclusion officers, coach developers and women’s development staff, as well as Brentford FC ambassador and former professional footballer Marcus Gayle, encouraging courageous, open conversations about race and creating female friendly environments.

The activities tasked CCOs and other participants to think differently about how to foster environments that embrace diversity and promote inclusivity among all groups, while collaborative sessions and networking opportunities were provided to help coaches understand each other’s shared experiences and develop practices.

“Events like this are so important as they give people a chance to voice concerns, but also reinforce the positives and celebrate things that have gone well in the community," said Gayle after the event.

"Education enables people to be empowered with knowledge and give them a voice based on that knowledge.

“The room today was well balanced and diverse, with everyone feeling included, welcomed and valued. The more we can connect and collaborate, the more communities in the local areas will feel the impact. Understanding cultural differences will allow us to see the benefit and the value of what people from different backgrounds can bring to football.”

The afternoon workshop took a deep dive into how to create an environment that allows women to thrive, while educating participants on male allyship and the importance of empowering women and enabling opportunities for participation.

FA regional coach development officer Debbie Barry, who led the afternoon session, commented: “It’s so important to get a variety of people with different experiences in the same room for an event like this and provide the support which they can take back into their own context. It’s also important for community coaches to connect and talk about their own environments.

“To be able to collaborate and share knowledge through events like this enables coaches to connect and develop, ultimately helping to diversify the game and give access to everyone who wants to participate. There are so many great learning resources available which are easily accessible and of course it’s great to be able to deliver workshops in person.”

The day was wrapped up with a practical session where on-field learning was delivered by Mark Leigh, an FA women and girls officer, who demonstrated practical coaching techniques which involve people from every background and engage communities to participate in football.

Events such as this form England Football Learning’s objective of improving the diversity of the football workforce across all levels of the game and driving participation through reaching new coaches from underrepresented backgrounds.

This forms part of our latest equality, diversity and inclusion strategy, A Game For All, which outlines a long-term commitment to using our influence across English football to create a game free from discrimination. You can learn more about this here.

You can find out more about the England Football Learning courses available here.