Football's coming home to the East with a new FA hub
A new centre hopes to nurture the next generation of talent in women's football
Football's coming home to the East, as the region welcomes a new Women's High Performance Football Centre, funded by the FA.
Located at the University of Essex, the centre will work with clubs and players from Norfolk and the surrounding areas to help develop the women's game through a new generation of coaches, players and behind the scenes staff.
The centre, which is the only one in the East of England, aims to increase the number of women and girls in the sport to create a world-class talent pipeline from grassroots to elite level.
It's hoped the facility will become a hub for talent development across the East, and will drawn in talent from across Essex, Suffolk, Norfolk, Hertfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Bedfordshire.
Susy Davies is the performance support manager at the university: "We're proud to be part of the project because we feel that we can benefit the community with the expertise that we have here at the university.
"We can also support students into placements at clubs we'll be supporting in the region."
She points out the centre is coming at an exciting time for women's football, after England's Euros win, partly down to North Walsham's very own Lauren Hemp: "Since the Lionesses' Euros win, there's been an increased interest in women's football.
"There are always lots of opportunities on the male side of the game and this project will hopefully transform the women's side to match...
"We are really proud to be part of the journey now for women's football and hopefully this project, along with the Lionesses, when will be the catalyst for women's football in this country and particularly in this region."
The FA has awarded the University of Essex more than £80,000 of funding over the next two years, as one of two new centres along with Birmingham City University, in a national network of ten universities.
The centre will work with clubs and players from grassroots level up to elite internationals, and will also help recruit and develop coaches to pioneer development in the women’s and girls’ games.
It's also hoped the developments will strengthen the University of Essex’s existing partnerships with clubs like Ipswich Town, Billericay Town, Hashtag United and AFC Sudbury.
The centre will also focus on employability and future careers, offering students hands-on football coaching experience – with work placements in coaching, sports science, and sports therapy.
Ipswich Town centre forward Maddie Biggs, who is a student in the School of Sport, Rehabilitation, and Exercise Sciences at Essex, was thrilled to hear the news: "This is a golden opportunity for women’s football after the Euro final win.
“If you think about the number of people at the stadium and watching the win at home on the TV, it just shows there is interest in the game.
“There are girls now who will be given the opportunity to play football at school and this is a chance to really grow the game.
“I’m proud my university and club are working to open doors and inspire the next generation of players.”
The university have also announced it will be coordinating a new regional women’s goalkeeping centre to develop and nurture talent.
Dr Dave Parry, is the director of Sport at the University of Essex. He said: “We are delighted to have been selected.
“The success of the Lionesses at the Euros has inspired the whole country, and there really couldn’t be a better time to partner with the FA on the next phase of growing the women’s game and developing coaches and support staff.
“We’ll be forging new links across the region, as well as deepening our existing partnerships with clubs and schools, which will provide opportunities for our students to gain experience and apply the knowledge they have gained through their studies in an applied setting.
“We are very excited about the opportunities that this new partnership presents, and, who knows, perhaps we can help develop the next Sarina Wiegman!”