Kent FA Invest £30,000 in Grassroots Coaching

The Kent FA have today announced details of a major boost to grassroots coaching with the launch of a £30,000 coaching bursary scheme. The £30,000 will be given directly back to grassroots coaches in the form of bursaries, which will be awarded when booking on a range of coaching courses from February 2013.

300 coaches working with Kent clubs will be able to claim £50 off the course fees for the FA Level 1 coaching award, as well as the FA Youth Module 1 and Youth Module 2 development courses. A further 150 coaches successfully assessed on the FA Level 2 The criteria for the FA Level 1 Award coaching bursary stipulate that coaches must be working with an FA Charter Standard club. Lee Suter, Football Development Officer, explained the need for Charter Standard. "By making this bursary available to FA Charter Standard clubs, we're ensuring that the investment goes to coaches working in a quality environment. The Level 1 award is the entry route into football coaching, with many coaches going on to coach youth teams. We want youth players to be in the best possible environment, which is FA qualified coaches at Charter Standard clubs".

A number of places on the £50 bursary scheme have been ringfenced for coaches with disabilities and applications are welcome from disabled people wanting to become more involved in football coaching.award will be able to apply for a £75 refund on completion of the course. More information on the coaching bursary scheme and details of how to apply are available on the Kent FA website at www.KentFA.com

Kick-start 2013 with a McDonald's Grant

The McDonald's Kick-Start scheme is a grant programme for everyone who's involved in community football. With up to £75,000 available this year, the Kick-start scheme will award cash grants to the most deserving clubs throughout the UK.

To be eligible to apply, clubs must be affiliated to the Kent FA and have at least one team at u18s or younger at the club. You can apply for one-off grants of between £500 to £2500 for a single project, which can be anything which will help to support, grow or develop your players and the community.

Examples of things McDonald's will support include club facilities, grounds-keeping tools, training courses, pitch hire, mini-vans and washing machines; whatever your club and team could significantly benefit from.

The application period for the first quarter of 2013 closes on March 31st and you will find out before the end of April if your project has been successful.

For more details, terms and conditions or to make an application visit http://www.mcdonalds.co.uk/ukhome/Sport/Football/Investment/small-grant.html or contact a member of the Kent FA Football Development team.

Line Marking Paint Offers for Kent Clubs
Clubs affiliated to the Kent FA are eligible for a discounted rate on line marking paints through Kent FA patrons Expoline.

Expoline are a specialist manufacturer of high quality line marking paint for the use on grass playing surfaces, with customers throughout Europe from grassroots clubs through to elite-level professional clubs. The paint has an advanced formula that ensures a durable coating and high visibility in natural light or under floodlights. Contact Ian Trendall on 01279 424386 or Ian@expoline-marking.com

Details of the offer are here

The Priory School Post 16 Male & Female Football & Education Programme has opened its recruitment process for 2013 applications. The football & education programme is in partnership with Charlton Athletic Community Trust.

The second trial will take place on Saturday 2nd March. If you know any pupils who might be interested in this great opportunity, please point then to the school website via the following links:

http://www.priory.bromley.sch.uk/

http://www.priory.bromley.sch.uk/Sixth-Form/Charlton-Athletic-Community-Trust/

In association with Meopham School, in Sept 2013 we are launching  a football academy for girls that will enable those with a love of the game to continue with their education whilst also developing their football and coaching ability.  The girls will study for a BTEC National Diploma in Sport plus one other A-level and will also benefit from daily professional football coaching from UEFA coaches.  

Those selected for the academy programme will play weekly matches in the Kent Schools FA league as well as friendly matches against pro club girl's teams. They will also obtain their FA level 1 coaching qualifications and gain valuable experience coaching in local schools.

Interested girls will require a minimum of five GCSE's A*-C including Maths & English and will attend trials in early 2013.  The programme will aim to recruit around 18 girls. Please  click  here for more details.

Kent FA's first Girls for Goals tournament takes place at Anchorians FC

Saturday 6^th October saw the kick off of the Goals for Girls Festivals organised by Kent FA.

The festival was for U8s and was played in the 4 v 4 format. At present the Kent Girls and Ladies League start their age groups at U10. We hope the success of these festivals will enable the league to introduce divisions for the younger ages.

Six teams took part Ashford Angels, Brazilian Soccer School, Meridian FC, Sittingbourne Lionessess and West Kent. The festival was the first of 5 festivals set to take place across the season.

A huge thanks goes to Leigh Willis from Anchorians FC for hosting the event.

The next festival is on Saturday 10 November 2010 at Ashford Angels FC. It will be open to school teams, club teams and individuals who we will put into teams on the day.

For more information or to enter a team please contact Kent FA Development Officer Liz symons on 01622 792140 or email liz.symons@kentfa.com

The Girls’ Player Development Centres are part of the FA Female Player Pathway.  If a girl is involved within a PDC it means they will receive an additional 1.5hour training per week from FA qualified coaches, with also the opportunity to participate in some festivals.  Players CAN still play for their grassroots team and this is actively encouraged.