Last Friday, on International Women’s Day, the Community Trust celebrated by hosting a #LetGirlsPlay Football Festival at Staveley Miners Welfare FC which saw the Trust work with local organisations to provide an experience that the girls would never forget.
Women & girls inclusion officer Alyss Jackson reflected on the event, saying: “It has been great to see so many young girls attend this event, along with some key figures from local women’s football too.
“Events like this are important when looking to provide opportunity to play and inspire the next generation of females in the game.”
The event saw all organisations involved deliver activities for the girls to take part in, including inflatables set up by Chesterfield Lawn Tennis Club and the Trust which not only the children enjoyed, but the staff as well.
Paul Ryan from the SHAPE Learning Partnership said: “It was a delight to see so many young girls enjoying a memorable experience with others just like them. The FA’s ambition to grow the game was on show for all to see.
“Young girls like this just need to be given the opportunities which will inspire many to play football. Their positive relationship with physical activity will have been strengthened today and I couldn’t be prouder of the work we do to bring enjoyment, meaning and value to so many young people’s lives.
“A huge thank you must go to our funding partner Barclays who fully support the girls’ football schools’ partnerships across the country. We are honoured to be part of it which is only strengthened further with our commitment to working in partnership with the likes of Chesterfield Football Club Community Trust, who share our same passion for inspiring more young people to play the game.”
Alice Shipley of Bolsover School Sports Partnership added: “Delighted to see many young girls from across North Derbyshire and Bolsover enjoying an afternoon of football activities at Staveley.
“We hope that this first introduction to football for many girls will give them the confidence to get involved more in and outside of their school.
“Thank you to everyone from Chesterfield FC Community Trust, Staveley Miners Welfare FC and Chesterfield FC Women’s team that made the afternoon a real celebration for our schools.”
These events wouldn’t be possible without the support from local venues like Staveley Miners Welfare, who support all these community organisations to deliver the events that we do, bringing more girls into the game and growing their love for it at the same time.
Staveley Miners Welfare chairman Terry Damms said: “Our facility provides local children with the opportunity of playing football in their community. It stops them and their parents having to travel miles around North Derbyshire to football venues wider afield. A safe and secure environment is provided where family members can watch from around the ground or from the clubhouse.
“We see our facilities as being totally community driven. Since we opened the 3G facility in the second quarter of 2021, following the Covid-19 closure, we’ve seen our girls teams increase in numbers and we are now seeing our U16-girls training with our women’s first team who amazingly won their league last year, going unbeaten.
“The Trust’s events have been great for our club and for us to be able to assist in this way is so rewarding. Today, for example, seeing the terrific organisation and preparation that goes in to running into these events and enabling over 100-girls playing football is heart-warming.
“The enjoyment levels that the Trust provide for these kids is off the scale and our club wish to be able to assist our local professional club in any way we can.”
