Wardle FC get £5,000 in grant funding

Members of Wardle Juniors on a sponsored walk in April 2013

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Grassroots football in Rochdale has been given a helping hand following a £5,000 Grow the Game grant, from the Football Foundation, the country’s largest sports charity.

The grant will allow Wardle FC over the next three years to enhance the coaching skills of everyone involved at the club including:

• One coach trained to FA level 2 standard
• Three coaches trained to level 1 standard
• One coach to trained to teach children with disabilities
• Two members of the club to become qualified referees

The funding will also help towards the costs of running the football club, including affiliation and league entry fees.

Rik Fielding, Chairman of Wardle FC, said: "I believe that every child should have the opportunity to participate in football without prejudice or discrimination.

"Undoubtedly this grant will enable us to build on already strong foundations to provide fantastic sporting opportunities in our community.

"I would like to thank the members of the committee that have put in the time and effort that has secured us this grant.

"The help of the Football Foundation has been excellent and clubs like ours wouldn’t succeed without their invaluable support."

Grow the Game funding increases participation by helping clubs to provide opportunities for new players, or training volunteers to support new players and teams. The programme is delivered in partnership with all of the 46 County FAs and funded by The FA.

So far Grow the Game has awarded 874 separate grants worth around £4.2m to grassroots football clubs. Analysis of the monitoring and evaluation  predicts that this will result in the creation of 3,791 brand new football teams competing in FA-affiliated leagues, 72,872 new players participating each week and 10,959 new qualifications or courses being completed.

The key strength of Grow the Game is that its participation increases are sustainable rather than transient. Its grants create a solid infrastructure of teams and newly-trained coaches in which new people can start playing the sport, rather than simply providing temporary activity sessions, which are then vulnerable to drops in participation once the programme ends.

Paul Thorogood, Chief Executive of the Football Foundation, said: "Grow the Game has become one of the Foundation’s most popular schemes.

"This additional funding provided by The FA is excellent news for grassroots clubs seeking to start new teams and get their volunteer coaches qualified with FA coaching badges.

"This most recent funding window has seen £2.1m invested into 420 clubs right across the country.

"Congratulations to Wardle FC for working with the Lancashire Football Association to secure their £5,000 Grow the Game grant which will increase participation in the region as well as support football development in the area."