News

Schools' Football Week

Schools’ Football Week 2024 hits record participation levels

The English Schools' FA
  • Over a quarter of a million school pupils to benefit from the ESFA’s Schools’ Football Week campaign, in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport
  • Almost 120,000 girls will benefit from some kind of schools’ football week activity from the 5th – 11th February 2024
  • Schools’ Football Week participation has continued to grow for the 5th consecutive season, with an additional 24,000 pupils engaging in activity thanks to primary and secondary school teachers in England

Schools’ Football Week (SFW), in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport, is an ongoing initiative created by the English Schools’ FA (ESFA) and designed as an opportunity for schools, teams and Associations from across the country to embrace schools’ football and the wellbeing benefits it provides to pupils and players. It celebrates the importance of schools’ football, competitive or otherwise, to pupils across England and provides teachers and coaches with tools and a motivation to further discuss the benefits of schools’ football within their educational environment, from the pitch to the classroom.

In February 2023, the campaign reached record levels of participation with 235,000 pupils benefitting and 108,000 girls and the ESFA is delighted that in 2024, these participation numbers have grown again and will see:

  • Over 260,000 pupils benefitting from Schools’ Football Week activity
  • Almost 120,000 girls taking part in activity thanks to the campaign

Schools have been provided with resources and opportunities to win football equipment for their activities, an assembly from award winning author of the Jamie Johnson football series, Dan Freedman and the opportunity for pupils to design their own England kit thanks to Pro:Direct Sport and Nike, with two winning designs to be turned into physical shirts for the winning artists to receive. The campaign has also promoted resources from the PLCF’S Premier League Primary Stars website, which can be used to enrich SFW classroom activity.

The ESFA’s SFW campaign is a fantastic way to show the many benefits of schools’ football both on the pitch and in the classroom. The Association, which is founded on the ethos of an educational establishment, works hard to share the many benefits of playing football at school such as, providing opportunities to develop positive relationships, creating a positive impact on pupil behaviour and truancy and encouraging teamwork. The SFW campaign is a great way to promote this messaging and to provide a platform for schools to showcase the excitement and enjoyment pupils get to experience first-hand.

Marvin Robinson, ESFA Chair said: “This event has consistently been a remarkable platform for celebrating the extensive benefits of school football. Collaborating with Pro:Direct allows the ESFA to extend our reach and share our enthusiasm for this initiative more widely than ever. 

I eagerly anticipate the variety of activities scheduled by schools next week, I am delighted to witness the continued growth and impact of this campaign in 2024 and look forward to seeing some of the activities taking place in schools from the 5th – 11th February. This year, the training camp for our England U15 Schoolgirls and U18 Schoolboys will also coincide with the end of Schools’ Football Week, and it is fantastic that those representing schools’ football at the highest level, will be able to do so and play their first friendly fixtures against ISFA, during the week-long celebrations”

The ESFA’s ambition is to continue to grow Schools’ Football Week year on year, but also use key data received from the 1,200+ schools that register their interest to find ways to create new and additional activity for those schools that are passionate about providing these opportunities to children, particularly within girls’ football.

Schools' Football Week, SchoolsFootballWeek

THE SCHOOLS’ FOOTBALL WEEK BIG COMPETITION

The English Schools' FA

Design your own England shirt with the SFW Big Competition

The English Schools’ FA and Pro:Direct Sport are delighted to launch the first ever Schools’ Football Week Big Competition, where pupils from schools participating in Schools’ Football Week activity from the 5th – 11th February 2024, are invited to Design an England shirt, using the SFW template we have created.

During Schools’ Football Week, it’s as important to us to bring football to the pitch as well as the classroom and we hope that the SFW Big Competition will inspire your pupils to draw on their design skills, flex their creativity and use their imagination to create their perfect England shirt.

The Competition

We have created a SFW Big Competition worksheet with shirt template for you to download and print for your pupils. All they need to do is let their imaginations run wild, put pen (or pencil) to paper and create their dream England shirt.

SFW-Big-Competition-Shirt-Design-TemplateDownload

The competition opens on Monday 5th February and closes on Friday 16th February. Once you have your designs, please scan them and email them to memberservices@prodirectsport.com for the shortlisting process.

Top Tip: You might want to hold your own competition within school to pick your top 3 entries to submit for the competition!

For the winners

A winning design will be selected from one primary school pupil and one secondary school pupil. The winning entries will not only be shared across the English Schools’ FA and Pro:Direct social channels, but the winning designs will be made into genuine football shirts and presented to the pupils that created them. Using Pro:Direct’s creative software, they will recreate the designs and make them into a SFW shirt for two lucky school pupils to be proud of. The winning pupils will also receive a £250 Pro:Direct voucher to spend via the Pro:Direct website.

Winners will be announced on or around the 28 February 2024.

Good luck to all those who take part – and don’t forget to post your pupils’ progress and tag #schoolsfootballweek as they begin their designs!

Schools' Football Week, SchoolsFootballWeek

The ESFA is set to celebrate Schools’ Football Week with Dan Freedman

The English Schools' FA

Award winning Author, Dan Freedman will be helping to celebrate Schools’ Football Week 2024 and registered schools could win a visit from the man himself.

photo (c) John Cairns

Schools’ Football Week, in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport, takes place from the 5th – 11th February 2024 and is designed to give schools, teams and Associations the opportunity to celebrate all the many benefits of schools’ football both on and off the pitch.

The ESFA is teaming up with Dan Freedman, award winning author of the Jamie Johnson series, I Am Lenny Brown and Unstoppable, to help teachers to celebrate Schools’ Football Week in the classroom and showing that football is a fantastic learning tool for all pupils. To celebrate SFW, all schools that register their activity will be in with a chance to win one of Dan’s school visits!

You can read what some teachers have said about Dan’s previous visits to their schools below:

“I can’t even describe the vibe in school today – everyone, including adults, were buzzing from your visit yesterday. Thank you Dan for sharing your story of resilience, passion and following your dreams. And the queue for books after school was really something to behold – a teacher’s dream!”
Ameena Gamiet, Head of English – Trevelyan Middle School, Windsor

“I will never forget our student Jimmy who refused to read a book until he met you on a school visit, he then wrote a letter to the BBC along with some of our other students to ask for the Jamie Johnson books to be made into a TV series. Now that’s impact!”
Kelly Longman, LRC Manager – Debden Park High School, Essex

Whilst Schools’ Football Week is, as ever, about creating the opportunity for physical activity for pupils during the celebratory week in February, it is also an excellent way for teachers to introduce football into the learning environment, within the classroom. There are an infinite number of ways to utilise the sport to spark imaginations, explain equations and inspire children to learn through football.

Click here to view the SFW 2024 resources & don’t forget to register your planned SFW activity to be in with a chance to win a fantastic school visit from Dan Freedman!

Schools' Football Week, SchoolsFootballWeek

Registration for Schools’ Football Week 2024, now open!

The English Schools' FA

The English Schools’ Football Association is delighted to announce the return of Schools’ Football Week, in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport, from 5th – 11th February 2024!

Schools’ Football Week (SFW), in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport, is an ongoing initiative created by the English Schools’ FA (ESFA) and designed as an opportunity for schools, teams and Associations from across the country to embrace schools’ football and the wellbeing benefits it provides to pupils and players. It celebrates the importance of schools’ football, competitive or otherwise, to pupils across England and provides teachers and coaches with tools and a motivation to further discuss the benefits of schools’ football within their educational environment, from the pitch to the classroom.

The 2023 campaign saw a celebration of the growing participation of girls’ football in schools – promoting the importance of equal access to schools’ football for both girls and boys. In this new season, following the continued growth of the girls’ game, the ESFA has seen over the last two years, SFW 2024 will continue in its pursuit to celebrate girls’ and all schools’ football next February.

Schools’ Football Week 2023 saw the campaign reach huge new levels of participation:

  • Over 235,000 pupils took part in SFW activity
  • Over 1,400 schools registered for events
  • Over 108,000 girls benefitted from schools’ football activity during SFW

Don’t miss your opportunity to be part of this fantastic campaign in 2024!

The ESFA and Pro:Direct Sport, will be encouraging schools, Associations, clubs and teams to introduce some football-related activity into their environments throughout SFW from the 5th – 11th  February. From football-themed lessons, to inter-house or intra-school tournaments, the campaign is designed to celebrate schools’ football, girls’ football and everything in between, in a way that is inclusive to all pupils and players.  We have created a toolkit full of ideas to support SFW activity and it’s available to download here.

This season, Schools’ Football Week will continue to champion all the activities schools choose to put on, we will also: 

  • Be airing our National Schools’ Cup draws for the third year, on the ESFA’s YouTube Channel, ESFA TV on Monday 5 February 
  • Sharing classroom resources for schools to utilise within lessons
  • Enter all schools that register activity before the 8th December into a draw to win £1k worth of football equipment, to help support SFW activities in 2024

The campaign isn’t designed to focus wholly on competitive football, but the wide-ranging benefits that being part of a team can have on school age children in England. For example, SFW aims to bring together opportunities for schools to bring football off the pitch and into classrooms, providing learning resources from other ESFA partners that can be useful tools to engage pupils in the wider world of football.

The ESFA and Pro:Direct Sport will work together to create fantastic Schools’ Football Week opportunities for all participants in 2024.

click here to register

Marvin Robinson, ESFA Chair said: “On behalf of the English Schools’ Football Association (ESFA), I am thrilled to announce the further strengthening of our partnership with Pro:Direct for Schools’ Football Week 2024. 

This campaign has consistently been a remarkable platform for celebrating the extensive benefits of schools’ football. Collaborating with Pro:Direct allows the ESFA to extend our reach and share our enthusiasm for this initiative more widely each year.  I eagerly anticipate the variety of activities scheduled by schools from 5th to 11th February and am excited to witness the continued growth and impact of this campaign in 2024“

Activity for Schools’ Football Week 2024 can be registered by clicking this link. There are also lots of useful resources and downloads on the SFW resources page, here. Don’t forget…all schools and Associations that register before Friday 8th December will be entered into a draw to win £1k worth of football equipment – don’t miss out on the chance to win!

Schools' Football Week

Schools’ Football Week: 5th – 11th February 2024 – Save the Date

The English Schools' FA

Let’s support even more pupils to enjoy the benefits of Schools’ Football! 

The English Schools’ Football Association is delighted to announce the return of Schools’ Football Week, in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport, from 5th – 11th February 2024!

Schools’ Football Week (SFW), in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport, is an ongoing initiative created by the English Schools’ FA (ESFA) and designed as an opportunity for schools, teams and Associations from across the country to embrace schools’ football and the wellbeing benefits it provides to pupils and players. It celebrates the importance of schools’ football, competitive or otherwise, to pupils across England and provides teachers and coaches with tools and a motivation to further discuss the benefits of schools’ football within their educational environment, from the pitch to the classroom.

The 2023 campaign saw the ESFA continue to embrace the growing participation in girls’ football in schools – promoting the importance of equal access to schools’ football for both girls and boys. In this new season, following the continued growth of the girls’ game the ESFA has seen over the last two years, SFW 2024 will continue in its pursuit to celebrate girls’ and all schools’ football next February.

Schools’ Football Week 2023 saw the campaign reach huge new levels of participation

Don’t miss your opportunity to be part of this fantastic campaign in 2024!

Save the date

The 2024 campaign will officially launch on Thursday 23 November. The ESFA will be asking schools, Associations and teams to register activity, allowing the Association to see participation levels from across England and to understand the activities taking place to celebrate SFW in local areas. The registration link is already live for those who want to sign up straight away, but full information, along with a toolkit to help with ideas on how to get involved, will be shared on Thursday.

Don’t delay – register today!

Every school and Association that registers for SFW before the 8th December, will be entered into a draw to win £1k worth of football equipment to support their 2024 SFW activity! There is a draw for a Primary pack and a Secondary pack, too and winners of the draws will be announced just before the Christmas break, to get you into the holiday spirit.

Click the link below to make sure you’re involved:

click here to register

This website is dedicated to Schools’ Football Week and it will be kept up to date with news stories, resources and information in the coming weeks. Simply favourite www.schoolsfootballweek.co.uk to find out more and don’t forget to follow @schoolsfootball on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook to be kept up to date with all of the activity for 2024.

Schools' Football Week

Schools’ Football Week in the community- How the campaign is supporting pupils of all ages

The English Schools' FA

Veritas Primary Academy in Stafford teamed up with the Stafford Rangers Academy to show how Schools’ Football Week can benefit pupils of all ages

Schools’ Football Week, in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport, in an ongoing English Schools’ FA initiative, designed as an opportunity for schools from across the country to embrace schools’ football and the wellbeing benefits it provides to pupils and players.

On Tuesday 7 February Veritas Primary Academy in Stafford hosted some fun training sessions for pupils in years 3 to 5, with the help of Stafford Rangers Academy students. The students, who are enrolled in Stafford Rangers’ full-time education and football programme for 16 – 18 year olds, used the opportunity as valuable work experience, to go towards their university applications.

Sam Brown, one of the students enrolled on the course said “Today has been a great opportunity to get work experience, which links to the university courses I’m looking to do. It has given me a good insight into what I have to look forward to.” Sam, who also has experience in playing schools’ football said “Schools’ football is important because it provides an opportunity to play against different people of all different abilities and it’s a great introduction to football. Playing schools’ football is great for all pupils and is really great for your mental health”.

Schools’ Football Week provides a platform every year for 1000s of schools across England to celebrate the many benefits of schools’ football both on and off the pitch, providing opportunities and resources to take football inside the classroom but also for pupils to experience new opportunities and activities.

Kelly Dean, PE Coordinator at Veritas Primary Academy in Stafford said “At Veritas Primary Academy we fully embrace Schools’ Football week and all our children from Nursery to Year 6 took part. We had sessions from Stafford Rangers Academy students, Wolves Foundation and Berkswich. The pupils enjoyed special football puddings at lunch, class tournaments, wear a football kit to school day, mindfulness colouring and penalty shootouts. The children and staff had a lot of fun playing football throughout the week.”

The activities carried out by Veritas Primary Academy in Stafford is just a small example of the plethora of SFW celebrations that have taken place across thousands of schools in England this week. Schools’ Football week has seen activity for over a quarter of a million school pupils and over 108,000 girls in England from the 6th – 12th February 2023.

English Schools’ FA Chair, Stuart Botham said, “Schools’ Football Week has been and continues to be, a fantastic platform on which to truly celebrate the many and far reaching benefits of schools’ football. I have been delighted to see the huge increase in participation from schools across England for this 2023 campaign.”

Schools’ Football Week 2023 has been a record-breaking year for activity and promotion and impact will continue to be prevalent throughout the rest of the season.

Photo Credit: 353 Photography

Schools' Football Week, SchoolsFootballWeek

Pupils invited to ‘get creative’ and have their artwork published as part of SFW competition

The English Schools' FA

The English Schools’ FA (ESFA) is pleased to promote a fantastic opportunity brought to schools as part of Schools’ Football Week 2023, thanks to The Women’s Football Magazine (TWFM).

Formed six years ago, The Women’s Football Magazine, is the only monthly digital publication which celebrates women’s football in the UK from grassroots to the home nations. Based in Salford, our team of talented editors, writers and photographers produce a 90-page publication each month designed to be read on a tablet or phone providing inspiring stories and interviews behind the headlines

In January 2023, The Women’s Football Magazine created a printed magazine special ‘The Year That Changed Women’s Football’, which completely sold out and was also made available to purchase from the National Football Museum in Manchester. This is now set to be followed by another print special in April 2023, set to celebrate ‘The Next Generation’ of women’s football across the United Kingdom.

With a strong focus on girls’ football activity as part of the 2023 Schools’ Football Week campaign and over 108,000 girls and almost a quarter of a million school pupils taking part in activity between the 6th – 12th February, TWFM and the ESFA are offering a fantastic competition for school pupils in England.

About the competition…

The Women’s Football Magazine are inviting school pupils to design the cover for their next printed edition of the magazine! Entries open on Monday 6th February and close on Tuesday 21st February. TWFM have created a template for pupils to use which can be downloaded here. Entries need to be submitted by a teacher or parent/ guardian and there is no limit to how many each school submits.

The winning cover will be made into the cover for the printed April edition of The Women’s Football Magazine and shared online via ESFA channels. The winner will also receive a TWFM season ticket subscription for their school and an individual digital subscription. Furthermore, all finalists will also receive a copy of the magazine, have their artwork included within the issue, plus a personal digital subscription to TWFM.

The ESFA consistently aims to make schools’ football an inclusive environment for all pupils and to show that it is relevant across all school subjects. The Association is delighted to provide this opportunity for school pupils, this Schools’ Football Week.

Good luck to all those budding designers that take part. 

Issue-P4-April-2023-1Download
Schools' Football Week, SchoolsFootballWeek

Free Coerva Coaching Courses – Sign up here

The English Schools' FA

There’s no time to waste – the link to register for the free Coerva Coaching sessions as part of Schools’ Football Week, in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport is available now!

Coerva Coaching specialist, Scott Wright is presenting two 45 minute online sessions after school next week, one for primary school coaching and one for secondary school coaching. These are open to anyone who is interested in creating or maintaining schools’ football activity and we are keen to invite as many school staff as possible to take part.

Click here to book your place

The ESFA and Pro:Direct are keen to utilise Schools’ Football Week to not only celebrate schools’ football but also to help to generate more interest, more activity and more opportunities for school pupils in England. Coerva Coaching are supporting this mission by providing their “The recipe for effective coaching” workshop, which is live and interactive and a fantastic experience for all those involved in schools’ football to take part in. Whether you are new to the idea and want to learn some new tips and tricks or whether you are looking to find some new ways to engage with pupils.

These training sessions aren’t just a one-off, following the sessions, attendees will also receive a full half-term session plan (6 weeks) and an exclusive discount to attend the Coerver Virtual Intro course.

Click the link above or below to register your attendance at the relevant course for you and the ESFA, Pro:Direct and Coerver Coaching look forward to welcoming you along!

Primary School Session – Wednesday 8th February | 4pm – 4:45pm

Secondary School Session – Thursday 9th February | 4pm – 4:45pm

coerver-x-prodirect-3-1Download
Schools' Football Week, SchoolsFootballWeek

Schools’ Football Week 2023 – Save The Date for Free Coaching Courses!

The English Schools' FA

Coerver Coaching are offering free coaching opportunities for school teachers duirng schools’ football week 2023

With Schools’ Football Week 2023, in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport, just around the corner, we are delighted to announce that Pro:Direct alongside Coerver coaching will be offering exciting and informative online coaching sessions for teachers during Schools’ Football Week 2023.

Since 1984 Coerver Coaching has been at the centre if the evolution of skilful, modern football, and is now recognised as a leader in youth football education worldwide. The Coerver® methodology is currently delivered to players, coaches and clubs in excess of 50 countries across the globe at all levels of the game. The sessions will be delivered by Director of Coerver Coaching, Scott Wright who has worked with a plethora of Premier League clubs including Liverpool FC, Manchester United, Arsenal and Manchester City FC.  

Save the date:

Scott is presenting two 45 minute sessions after school next week, one suitable for primary schools and one for secondary. These sessions are for anyone who is interested in creating or maintaining schools’ football activity and can be shared with school staff to help inspire new football activity within your school.

  • Primary – Wednesday 8th Feb (16:00-16:45)
  • Secondary – Thursday 9th Feb (16:00-16:45)

Scott will present a Live, interactive workshop aimed at delivering effective coaching sessions within primary and secondary school settings. It doesn’t stop at the session – following the talk, attendees will be able to access a 6 week lesson plan that they can use following Schools’ Football Week 2023 which will help facilitate football sessions during the week and beyond. You will also be able to access an exclusive 50% discount on the Coerver Virtual Intro course.

Registration details will be published here on the Schools’ Football Week website as well as sent out to teachers via email- so put the date in your diary, tell your colleagues and we hope to welcome you along to the sessions on the 8th and 9th of February.

Schools' Football Week, SchoolsFootballWeek

Schools’ Football Week set to see a quarter of a million school pupils take part from 6th – 12th February

The English Schools' FA

The ESFA’s Schools’ Football Week campaign is once again highlighting the importance of girls’ football and will see over 108,000 girls benefitting from schools’ football activity this February

Schools’ Football Week (SFW), in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport, is an ongoing ESFA initiative designed as an opportunity for schools, teams and clubs from across the country to embrace schools’ football and the wellbeing benefits it provides to pupils and players. It celebrates the importance of schools’ football, competitive or otherwise, to pupils across England and provides teachers and coaches with tools and a motivation to further discuss the benefits of schools’ football within their educational environment.

This year, the ESFA is delighted to be working on SFW in partnership with Pro:Direct Sport – The World’s largest online specialist sports store, who will support the Schools’ Football Week campaign and help raise more awareness of this initiative than ever before.

The 2022 campaign saw the ESFA embrace the growing participation in girls’ football in schools – promoting the importance of equal access to schools’ football for both girls and boys. 2022 saw 56,000 girls taking part in schools’ football activity as part of the campaign. In this new season, following the incredible journey of the Lionesses and continuing the trend the ESFA have seen over the last two years, the Association plans to continue in their pursuit to celebrate girls’ and all schools’ football. The ESFA has seen the highest ever number of girls’ entries into National Cup Competitions in 22/23 and since opening registrations for SFW activity, the ESFA has also seen the highest ever participation numbers for SFW activity, including an increase of girls’ participation of over 50,000 on last year’s figures, meaning over 108,000 girls will benefit from the campaign this season and almost a quarter of a million school pupils across England will enjoy SFW activity.

Schools’ Football Week 2023 will see the ESFA reach huge new levels of participation –

  • Over 235,000 pupils registered to take part in SFW activity
  • Over 15,000 teams will benefit from the campaign
  • Over 1,400 schools have registered for events
  • Over 108,000 girls will benefit from schools’ football activity during SFW

In addition to continuing to champion girls’ football this season, Schools’ Football Week is also focussing on: 

– Airing live National Schools’ Cup draws for the second season, on the ESFA’s YouTube Channel, ESFA TV on Monday 6 February 

– Providing more classroom resources than ever before, including a focus on Children’s Mental Health and the positive benefits of sport

– Three balls and a Pro:Direct Ball carrier for every school plus some SFW branded bibs for the first 250 schools that registered activity

The campaign isn’t designed to focus wholly on competitive football, but the wide-ranging benefits that being part of a team can have on school age children in England. For example, SFW aims to bring together opportunities for schools to bring football off the pitch and into classrooms, providing learning resources from other ESFA partners that can be useful tools to engage pupils in the wider world of football.

Stuart Botham, ESFA Chair said, “On behalf of the ESFA, I am delighted to see the Association further its partnership with Pro:Direct for Schools’ Football Week 2023. Schools’ Football Week has been, and continues to be, a fantastic platform on which to truly celebrate the many and far reaching benefits of schools’ football. Working on this project alongside an organisation such as Pro:Direct, will allow the ESFA to share our passion for this campaign further than ever before. I have been delighted to see the huge increase in participation from schools across England for this 2023 campaign and we are all looking forward to seeing the activities schools put on from the 6th – 12th February and beyond”

Sam Baldock, Chief Brand Officer from Pro:Direct Sport said ‘We’re really excited to partner with The ESFA on Schools’ Football Week. We think that we can add significant value and hope to make this the most inspiring Schools’ Football Week to date. We plan to provide lots of practical guidance and tools that will help teachers, coaches and volunteers, both during Schools’ Football Week and beyond. We’ll be using our extensive contacts in the game to make sure that there will be plenty of things to get the pupils excited too! This initiative, along with our continued work with the ESFA, gives us the perfect platform to build upon our mutual ambition – to get more children, of all ages and genders, playing football.”
 

The Importance of Schools’ Football Week:

  • To share the importance of schools’ football across England 
  • To show proof of the mental and physical health benefits of schools’ football 
  • To share stories and experiences to engage and inspire players and pupils  
  • To heighten the profile of the English Schools’ FA as National Governing Body for schools’ football in England
  • To elevate and promote participation numbers for schools’ football
  • To showcase the talent and dedication shown by schools in England to support football as part of the curriculum