The Premier League Girls Programme is delivered in partnership with The Football Association which aims to provide opportunities for females aged 11 years and over to take part in football in the community.
The Peterborough United Foundation has delivered sessions at 8 different venues in Peterborough and the surrounding area in the 2018/19 season. These venues include: Nene Park Academy, Mick George Training Academy, Bourne Grammar, Gladstone Academy, Hampton Gardens, City of Peterborough Academy and various others within the area.
The sessions have been a resounding success with participants travelling from out of Peterborough to get involved and try something new. Girls have been given the opportunity at their school to participate in the fun, competitive sessions free of charge to help them develop their skills and move along our pathway into further opportunities.
This season, players have started playing at their after-school club, and have then progressed into our elite and development centre centres, showing the impact that the programme can have on girls in getting into football. These long-term participation opportunities mean that girls always have something to step into, regardless of their age.
A Ladies Session has been innovative idea to try and target different ages to come along and play for fun, meet new people and develop new skills as well as improve fitness. This has been a big success over the season with ladies from different backgrounds coming along to the session and trying football for the first time.
A girl’s futsal session has also seen us engage many participants in a different sport which challenges them to make quick decisions on and off the ball, use close control and improve in their social skills. So far, the project has seen us engage 233 females in football/futsal with 111 of them being 14 years or older. 191 of these females have attended five or more sessions throughout the season developing a keen interest in continue participating in football.
The impact the programme has had on developing and encouraging female participation within Peterborough and surrounding has been fantastic with 146 females attending 10 or more sessions over a 3-month period. Overall, the programme this season has been very successful in the amount of females who have got into football on a regular basis and we will continue to offer these opportunities to the local and surrounding community.