Clubs: Affiliation opens 16 May 2022 Leagues: Sanctioning opens TBC

Deadline: Clubs must have submitted their affiliation by midnight on Sunday 31 July 2022 to guarantee entry into County Cups.

New Teams can be added at any time after Clubs have affiliated using our online form. Clubs can book a 1-on-1 support session with a member of staff to help them with the affiliation process here.

Please note, every Team must be affiliated before it can play any form of affiliated football.

Following a review of our affiliation model, we have removed Club-level affiliation fees.
 
There is an affiliation fee of £10 per team, across all age groups, levels and format. 

Public Liability and Personal Accident insurance can be purchased for all Clubs and Teams at Step 5 and below through the affiliation portal.

There are two levels of Public Liability Insurance available:

County Cover: £30 - includes public liability coverage up to £10m
County Cover Plus: £60 - includes public liability coverage up to £10m plus player-to-player legal liability

Personal Accident coverage is based on Bluefin Sports’ Intermediate (Adult) and Superior Gold (Youth) levels at the following rates:

Adult Teams: £36.45 U13 and above: £26.50
Small Sided: £24.50 U12 and below: £20.50
Walking Football: £24.50

If you wish to upgrade your insurance to a higher level (“Superior 120” and above for Adult Teams, or “Superior Platinum” level for Youth Teams), please first purchase Intermediate / Superior Gold cover via affiliation with Berks and Bucks FA, and once completed, visit the NGIS website to increase the cover accordingly. The premiums quoted on the NGIS website incorporate a discount to reflect the cover arranged via affiliation, thus ensuring you are not paying twice for the same cover. 

Teams playing at Step 6 and above in the National League System, will require a higher level of personal accident insurance than what is provided via affiliation, in order to meet The FA minimum cover requirements, and will therefore need to upgrade the insurance by following the instructions above. Details of the minimum cover requirements can be found in the NGIS Personal Accident insurance brochure.

Clubs can still purchase Personal Accident insurance from a third-party provider; however, it must provide an equivalent level of coverage.

We will be running the following County Cup competitions for the 2022/23 season:

Saturday Men’s Cups

• Senior Cup Mandatory for Men’s Teams competing in the NLS/EFL
• Charles Twelvetree Trophy Optional for all other Saturday Men’s Clubs, with one Team entry per Club

Women’s Cups

• Senior Cup Mandatory for Clubs with Teams competing at Tiers 1 – 6 of the WP
• Women’s Trophy Optional for all other Women’s Clubs, with one Team entry per Club

Sunday Men’s Cups

• Sunday Cup Optional for Clubs whose Sunday First Team plays in the top division of a Sunday League
• Sunday Trophy Optional for Clubs whose Sunday First Team plays outside the top divisions of a Sunday League, with one Team entry per Club

Youth Cups

• Mixed U12-U18 Optional for Clubs with Teams in those age groups, with one Team entry per Club
• Girls' U12-U18 Optional for Clubs with Teams in those age groups, with one Team entry per Club

Clubs will be able to enter Teams as part of the Affiliation process at £10 per Team.

As with previous seasons we will be running Saturday and Sunday pathways in the mixed U12 and U13 Competitions. Clubs can enter one Team across both age groups and must confirm which pathway they wish to enter. The County Cup Final will be held between the winner of the Saturday and Sunday pathways in each age group.

Any player registered with any Team within a Club in the relevant age group or day of the week will be eligible to play in Cup fixtures.

Every player must be registered through the Whole Game System to their Club, Team/s and League and have a unique email address (or be linked to a parent with a unique email address).

This applies across all age groups and formats.

The FA have created an extensive library of resources to support Clubs and Competitions with the registration process which is constantly updated with new information which can be accessed via their Grassroots Helpdesk.

If you need any support with the player registration process, please contact Support@Berks-BucksFA.com.

Clubs can also book a 1-on-1 support session with a member of staff if they require help with the player registration process, here.

Any individual coaching under 18s must hold an FA-approved DBS check issued within the past three years. 

All clubs with youth teams must have a Club Welfare Officer (CWO) appointed. Club welfare officers require an in-date, FA-approved DBS check and must have attended an FA Safeguarding Children Course and an FA Welfare Officer Course.

For all clubs with youth teams, the Chairperson, Secretary, Welfare Officer and Treasurer must also have completed the online Safeguarding for Committee Members course within the past five years.

All Youth League officials must have completed the online Safeguarding for Committee Members course within the past five years.

Youth League Welfare Officers must also have an in‐date FA‐approved DBS check.