Requests for support towards the development of a new Equality Advisory Group are being issued to the football public by the Essex County FA’s John Manning, who hopes to build on the prestige of the Association’s Equality Standard Foundation Level award to encourage “football for all” by the end of April.
Following in the footsteps of the London and Birmingham associations, who have both established similar groups, John aims to re-brand the previous Race Equality Advisory Group to encompass issues surrounding gender, age, sexual orientation and disability as well as race. The aim will be to hold around three meetings per year and the location of each meeting will depending on where the members of the group come from.
“The need for the group was originally identified during an Equality Audit we undertook of all the service provision we delivered,” John explained. “This highlighted areas of under-representation within our work here and a group was established to assist us in looking at ways of addressing this. However, it soon became apparent that the focus of the group was far too narrow and there was a need to widen its remit.”
Continued involvement with groups like Essex Pride and Kick It Out has been important to the ECFA, especially since Manning was appointed in 2008 with a specific inclusion role. Since his arrival, Essex became one of only six counties nationwide to collect the Foundation Level of the much sought-after Equality Standard award but John doesn’t intend to stop there, instead focussing on what this group can achieve in 2010.
He added: “I’m still in the process of speaking with key stakeholders, including Kick It Out and the Essex County Council, about the direction of this group. However, I hope we’d be in a position to hold our first meeting around April time. Anyone with comments or suggestions of who would be good to include on the panel are welcomed and our first task ties-in with the next level of the Equality Standard application. This will be to assist and advise in the content and structure of our Equality Action Plan.”
Whereas before the ECFA mainly sought members from within football, John believes it is crucial to maintain a wider grasp of some complex issues. He continued: “This time we’re not just looking at the football family to recruit members. We’re seeking anyone with experience or knowledge of developing policies or programmes to provide and promote equality for all because good work is taking place across the County.”
“I’ve seen how football can be used to deliver a number of extrinsic benefits and values to those involved. For example, in Harlow there is a disability group and a football-based social inclusion project, both of which are breaking down barriers to participation. We pride ourselves on providing an open and accessible service to all but there are still ways we can be more effective in the work we do and the reach that we have. I think it’s fair to say we can’t resolve issues of inequality in the game but we can provide structures that take positive actions to promote the encouragement of football for all.”
If you’d like to know more about the proposed Equality Advisory Group or details on how to propose yourself as a member, contact John Manning at the Essex County Football Association on (01245) 393095 or E-Mail john.manning@essexfa.com. Further information on inclusion work at the ECFA can also be found at www.disabilityfootballessex.btik.com.