The Football Development Strategy 2001-2006 highlighted the importance of club development and of the need to develop a more effective Club structure. It stated that ‘The Football
Association must support clubs who have the potential to develop a number of teams, providing ‘football for all’ and ‘football for life’.’
The FA Charter Standard Club Programme now has three levels:
● FA Charter Standard Club (Youth, Adult)
● FA Charter Standard Development Club (Youth, Youth and Adult)
● FA Charter Standard Community Club.
Current challenges
The following challenges have been identified with The FA Charter Standard Club Programme:
● Established within the youth football community but not a strong brand within the wider community
● No national quality assurance model
● Varied levels of monitoring and evaluation by County FAs
● Varied levels of support by County FAs
● Valued by those who believe in the philosophy
● Easily damaged brand through ‘bad practice’
● Internally seen as a Football Development programme
● Intrinsic benefits positive, external benefits inconsistent
● Progression up the award levels is fundamentally linked to increasing number of teams rather than progressive quality development within key areas.
Current uptake
There are now 3,218 FA Charter Standard Clubs of which 339 are FA Charter Standard Community Clubs.
FA Charter Standard Clubs now account for 50% of all youth football.
As a result of research findings and in line with delivery of the key outcomes of the National Game Strategy, a target of 75% team coverage has been established for The FA Charter Standard Club Programme up to 2012.
Renewals
From 2010, FA Charter Standard should move to an annual health check as part of re-affiliation. This would involve the Club tracking qualifications of volunteers and ensuring that the Club was maintaining the standard of the award. To support quality assurance and to protect the integrity of the award, the proposal would be to introduce a system of League and CFA monitoring.
This could include:
• Secret match visits - CFA CSWP, League officials
• Cross reference discipline at CFA and League
• Leagues to comment as part of CS application and health check
• Development Clubs to receive an annual visit to review development plans and support the development of new plans
• Community Clubs to receive two visits to support and review the delivery of the Club’s development plan. Where leagues operate a fair play system in which scores are collected weekly, any CSC receiving a score of below five would trigger a secret visit and if at any stage a CSC has an average across one team or the Club of below six, it triggers a letter from the League
to the CFA, which could lead to the CFA integrating Stage 1 discipline against the Club.
County FA support
Feedback from Clubs is that they welcome the support provided by CFAs. However, it is fair to comment that this support does differ from County to County. The proposal is that CFAs should be provided with guidance on the minimum level of support a FA Charter Standard Club should expect.
Ideas include:
• 4 x Coach In-service provided by RCDM
• Mini Soccer Festival - leading to National Festival at Wembley
• Administration Support Sessions - Workshops which could be delivered with leagues
• Support with funding applications - could include surgeries/buddy sessions
• Access to subsidised Coach Education Programme e.g. Age Appropriate
• Establish local buddy groups
• FA Awards programme
• FA/McDonald’s Coaching Programme
• Introduction to Refereeing – to be developed by Referees’ Department and delivered free
• Umbro kit deal.
Development Clubs to receive an annual visit to review development plans and support
the development of new plans. Community Clubs to receive two visits to support and review the delivery of the Club’s development plan.
This programme should be in addition to a CFA programme which would be open to all
Clubs which should include:
• Coach Education Programme
• Equity and Safeguarding
• Referee Development
• Medical courses.
For more information on Charter Standard contact Stephanie Litten Football Development Officer steph.litten@berks-bucksfa.com