FC United of Manchester

Community andEducation work report

September 2007 – September 2008

FC United of Manchester, The Manifesto:Who We Are and What We Mean (2005)

‘We have ambitious andlong term plans. Aboveall we want to be seenas a good example ofhow a club can be runin the interests of itsmembers and be ofbenefit to its local

communities. However,we are a new club andwill require patience in

order to reach our goals’

contentsIntroduction 4

Encouraging the Youth - Youth United Day 1st March 2008 5

Football Coaching in the Community 7

Social Inclusion 13

Healthy Eating Work in Schools 19

Summary and Plans for the Future 21

Acknowledgements 22

03

CONTENTS

The 2007-08 football season saw FC Unitedcontinue its success on the pitch, winningpromotion to the Unibond Premier Leagueand the Unibond President’s Cup. It also

saw a qualitative improvement in the scaleand scope of the club’s Community and

Education work. This report summarisesthe club’s achievements in this important

aspect of the club’s activities.

introduction

05

ENCOURAGING THE YOUTH – YOUTH UNITED DAY

The club’s manifesto quoted above alsostates that, ‘The club will encourage younglocal participation – playing and supporting –whenever possible.’ Youth United Day iscentral to our commitment to that pledgemade when our club was founded and hasbecome an important part of the FC Unitedcalendar. It is a day when the club throwsopen its doors to young people by offeringfree tickets, staging additional activities toappeal to children and young people andproactively encouraging organisations thatwork with young people to support this event.

The result this season was an additional1,000 spectators on top of the normal homegate. The club is indebted to the continuedsupport of Bethesda Church who hostedthe face painting, banner making and theMaD theatre group and also of theCooperative Membership who funded freefair trade snacks, information about healthyeating and healthy cooking demonstrationsand food tasting. Other partners makingsignificant contributions to the success of

the event included MANCAT (now TheManchester College), Bury Smoke Free,Northerncare, C-21 advertising agency,CAFRASS Project for young asylumseekers and refugees and RossendaleUnited Junior FC, who kindly providedinflatable goals. Above all, the efforts ofcountless volunteers whose support makesour club so special should be recognisedand applauded.

Youth United Day has enabled the club toengage with countless organisations acrossGreater Manchester (see overleaf), allattracted by our desire to improve youthinvolvement in sport and health.Organisations that brought young people toYouth United Day are listed in the box. Thenumber of organisations we work with is atestament to the dedication of ourvolunteers and the initiative of the manymembers who have got their local juniorfootball club, youth club, school orcommunity organisation involved withour club.

Encouraging the Youth –Youth United Day1st March 2008

Prestwich Arts College

Broad Oak High School in Bury

Mosses Centre in Bury

Chesham Fold Tenants & ResidentsAssociation

East Bury Junior Football Club

Bury Juniors FC

Bury Council Looked After Children Team

Bury Independent Advocacy Service

Tottington United Junior FC

Radcliffe Town Junior FC

Eagle’s Wing

Walshaw Sports Junior FC

Bury Church Alliance

Dads r Us in Bury

Elton & Walshaw Junior FC

Park Life Youth Club in Bury

Brandlesholme Junior FC

St. Thomas Primary School in Bury

Six Town Housing Association

Early Break Drugs & Alcohol YouthSupport Group

Groundwork Bury

Asian Business Development Associationof Bury

Shuttle Centre Youth Club in Ramsbottom

Haslingden High School

Skelmersdale Father and Child Group

Piers Home Children’s Home

New Mills Junior FC

Dr. Barnado’s

Manchester Youth Services in Moss Side

Delamere Rangers Junior FC

Crab Lane Junior FC

Oswald Junior FC Girls’ Team

Moston Active Drama

Manchester Youth Offending Team

Manchester Somali Male Project

Manchester City Centre Project

Crossacres Pupil Referral Unit

Manchester Groundworks Trust

Manchester Wood Street Mission

Manchester Gay Youth Service

Manchester International FC

Woodhouse Park Junior FC

Chadderton Park Junior FC

Green Hill Junior FC

Oldham Council Looked After Children Team

Pakistani Community Centre in Oldham

St. Gregory’s Primary School in Rochdale

Pennine Juniors FC

Middleton Colts Junior FC

Bridge Colts Junior FC

Spring Hill School

Meadwat Juniors Junior FC

Woodbank Junior FC

Heywood Rangers Junior FC

Boothstown Juniors FC

Park Wydden Junior FC

Ordsall Juniors FC

Beechfield Junior FC

Richmond Rovers Junior FC

Reddish Phoenix Junior FC

Together Trust

Stockport Refugee Support Group

Stamford High School

Leigh County Primary School in Hyde

Tameside Water Adventure Centre

Tameside Council Children’s Services

Ashton All Stars

Westhoughton Rangers JFC

Hesketh Fletcher School

Ladybridge Junior FC

North Trafford College

Trafford FC

Trafford Council Family Team

Trafford Athletic Club

06

ENCOURAGING THE YOUTH – YOUTH UNITED DAY

07

FOOTBALL COACHING IN THE COMMUNITY

Football Coaching in theCommunityThis year has seen FC United coaches working with children and young people all overGreater Manchester. From Salford to Ashton-under-Lyne, from Bury to Collyhurst, ourcommunity coaching team has been bringing properly organised football coaching sessionsto youngsters who would not normally access this activity.

A number of principles underpin our coaching in the community programme:

1. Our coaching schemes are free to the children and young people taking part.

2. We prioritise areas of relative social deprivation which do not have as much organisedfootball as more affluent areas.

3. We seek to work with, not replace junior football clubs already working in the area.

4. We seek to involve all youngsters irrespective of their footballing ability.

5. We seek to train and support volunteers to work with children in their local communities.

6. Our manager and players are involved in coaching schemes.

7. Youngsters taking part in our schemes are welcomed to our matches with free tickets andaccess to the manager and team before or after the game.

Funding from Children in Need has played a crucial role in expanding our coaching in thecommunity programme this year. It has funded the following four projects:

1. COACHING SCHEME WITH MOSTON JUNIORS

This has been a truly excellent scheme run in conjunction with a successful junior football clubthat shares our values. An average of 40 children have attended training sessions every week.The training has been largely delivered by FC United volunteers. The emphasis has been onhaving fun, learning skills and building confidence without the pressures of preparing teamsfor competitive matches. A number of children who are involved with Moston Juniors havecome along to sessions. There have also been children who have come along to oursessions and have gone on to become involved in a Moston Juniors team.

Colin McLaren, secretary and treasurer of Moston Juniors commented, ‘You can tell it hasbeen a good project because the kids have stuck by it. Parents have a sense that their kids arebeing developed. The project has allowed new coaches to develop without the pressure ofhaving to organise matches, pick teams, deal with defeat and so on. And we have practicallybuilt a new Under 10’s team out of it!’

2. COACHING SCHEME WITH ORDSALL FC

Organising a football team in an area of high social deprivation is not easy which is exactlywhat attracted FC to work in Ordsall. This scheme ran for three months and led to thecreation of an open age team and an under 12’s team. The under 12’s team hassubsequently experienced difficulties but there are hopeful signs that it can be resurrected.A particularly pleasing result of the scheme is that a looked after young person whovolunteered to help run the team is now studying a Football in the Community course atPendleton College and helps out selling programmes at FC United games.

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FOOTBALL COACHING IN THE COMMUNITY

“You can tell it has been agood project because the kidshave stuck by it. Parentshave a sense that their kidsare being developed.”

3. SALFORD SCHOOLS TOURNAMENT

FC United were very pleased to be approached by theCommunity Wardens at Great Places Housing Trust aboutorganising a football tournament for six primary schools in Salford.The idea was to send FC United players into six schools to work with Year 6 pupils who hadearned a well deserved break after taking their SAT’s exams. Our players coached teamswhich then took part in a tournament. The six participating schools were Seedley, St. James’,Langworthy Road, St. Luke’s, Lark Hill and Tootal Drive. A teacher at one school commented,‘I just wanted to say that the way your player, Jake Edwards, engaged with our pupils wasabsolutely brilliant. The children were thrilled to be coached by a real live football player andJake really went out of his way to make them all feel special and involved.’

4. NEWTON HEATH FOOTBALL SCHOOL

Newton Heath will always retain a special place in the hearts of United fans as the birthplaceof our traditions. To mark this important relationship, club manager Karl Marginson and clubcaptain, David Chadwick, led a two day football school this summer at the Ten Acre LaneFacility in Newton Heath. It is hoped that we will be able to attract more funding to make thisan annual event and expand it in future years.

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FOOTBALL COACHING IN THE COMMUNITY

“The way your player, Jake Edwards,engaged with our pupils was absolutelybrilliant. The children were thrilled to becoached by a real live football player andJake really went out of his way to makethem all feel special and involved.”

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FOOTBALL COACHING IN THE COMMUNITY

SCHOOL HOLIDAY FOOTBALL SCHEMES

FC United were delighted to have delivered school holiday football schemes with a number ofdifferent partners over last summer. The club hopes to build on the track record weestablished this summer to develop more extensive schemes in the near future.

These schemes all demonstrate the club’s growing ability to access a variety of fundingsources to enable us to organise coaching in the community

One youth worker subsequently contacted the club in order to say, ‘The group really enjoyedthe work and your coaches were excellent- very young-people friendly.’ This type of responsewas not uncommon.

The coaching team comprised of our manager, Karl Marginson, players, and members of theclub who have been put through their FA Level OneCoaching Badge by the club. The coachesthemselves found that the response of young peopleto being coached by a representative of FC Unitedwas extremely positive.

The schemes and the their partners included;

1. The Mosses Centre in Bury. Our coachingsessions formed part of a playscheme which ranfor three weeks at the start of the summerholidays.

2. Guinness Northern Counties Housing Association Summer Activities scheme inCheetham Hill. This coaching was delivered by a team of players, members and stafffrom the Housing Association led by Karl Marginson. Local junior football club, AbrahamMoss Warriors assisted with the launching of the scheme and several of their players camealong to the training sessions.

3. Whitemoss Youth Club in Blackley. These indoor training sessions have been verypopular and we are continuing them into the autumn.

4. Cedar Park Youth Club in Ashton-under-Lyne. Our coaching sessions ran throughoutthe last week of the summer holidays and attracted children from the local Polishcommunity among others.

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FOOTBALL COACHING IN THE COMMUNITY

5. Harpurhey. We worked together with the Manchester Sports Development Team to deliversessions in Carisbrook Street. Manchester Sports Development welcomed our involvementas they felt it would help to attract more youngsters to the sessions.

6. Collyhurst. These sessions were in fact started in June and we hope to continue them intothe autumn. They have attracted very large numbers of youngsters and have beenorganised in conjunction with National Children’s Homes Foundations and ManchesterSports Development Team. Collyhurst is a socially deprived area which has seen little in theway of organised football in the past.

TRAINING VOLUNTEERS

The Children in Need Funding has enabled us to put a number of our volunteers through theirFA Level One Coaching Badge. This means that we can now call on the services of a groupof coaches who will provide coaching under the FC United of Manchester banner. Some doso on an entirely voluntary basis. Others mix voluntary work with paid coaching. Our group ofvolunteers is continuously expanding and we are particularly keen to train and recruit coacheswho live in socially deprived communities and or are from ethnic minority communities inGreater Manchester so we can develop the capacity to coach youngsters in these areas.

“Our group of volunteers is continuously expanding and weare particularly keen to train and recruit coaches who livein socially deprived communities and or are from ethnicminority communities in Greater Manchester so we candevelop the capacity to coach youngsters in these areas.”

13

SOCIAL INCLUSION

There are few experiences that make youfeel more included in a community thanstanding in a crowd cheering on your localfootball team.

Unfortunately, the price of tickets for mostfootball matches has meant that largesections of our society are denied thisexperience.

FC United is all about bringing thatexperience back into the lives of everybodywho wants it. Most clubs offer free tickets toorganisations working with disadvantagedpeople. Our club also welcomes in newpeople with free tickets but this approach isbacked by a policy of keeping ticket priceslow and accessible to all and by a proactivecampaign to engage with sections ofsociety in danger of social exclusion.

NORTHERNCARE

Northerncare Limited has been a crucialpartner in this regard. Northerncare Limitedoperate a network of children’s homesacross the North West of England andbeyond. They were early sponsors of the

club. From our second season onwardsthey have helped the club reach out tochildren in care and their carers in twomain ways.

First of all they have paid for free tickets forchildren in care, their foster carers orresidential care home workers. The freetickets are available to any match andchildren and their carers can come as oftenas they want.

Secondly, they have helped us to organisetournaments for children living in carehomes. Five a side teams comprising ofchildren and carers from Northerncarehomes and also other residential homes inthe North West have contested thetournament and come along to watch agame afterwards.

The club is very grateful for this support, notleast because it has helped us to developways of working with other organisationsworking with looked after children and careleavers. Northerncare and FC United arecommitted to developing this relationshipand hope to make further announcementsin the future.

Social Inclusion

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SOCIAL INCLUSION

THE MANCHESTER COLLEGE (FORMERLY KNOWN AS MANCAT)

FC United is very proud of its special relationship with the Manchester College. The twoorganisations work together to enter joint football teams into various youth competitions. Weare also partners in social inclusion work.

Together, we have developed a programme called Setting Targets, Achieving Goals. Aimed atYear 9 students (aged 13-14) the programme involves a day of football training and careersadvice at the College’s Nicholls Street campus. The sessions are delivered by Karl Marginsonand a teacher specialising in teaching teenagers with behavioural problems.

The idea is that youngsters improve their footballing skills and learn about the lives of FCUnited players who have had to develop their careers outside of football whilst continuing toplay at a semi-professional level. The youngsters get a chance to sample college life, take alook at the courses on offer at the college and set themselves some targets to achieve inschool so they are able to access the college course of their choice. Learning mentors fromschool who accompany the youngsters to the sessions, can monitor the progress that theymake towards the targets they have agreed and reward them by bringing them to FC Unitedgames as guests of the club. The idea is to help young people find their direction in life andmake use of the educational opportunities open to them.

Sessions have now been delivered to a number of groups and the hope is to expand theprogramme next year.

“We have developed a programme calledSetting Targets, Achieving Goals... theidea is to help young people find theirdirection in life and make use of theeducational opportunities open to them.”

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SOCIAL INCLUSION

TRAILBLAZERS

The Trailblazer programme is an ambitious project aimed at young people in Manchester whoare involved in anti social behaviour. The idea is that by targeting these young people, theprogramme can achieve a significant reduction in anti-social behaviour across the city.

FC United were delighted to be asked to support the project.

A limited number of youngsters were targeted. They were invited to a training session run byKarl Marginson and taken to a match. After the game they met Karl again and some of theplayers. They were then visited over a period of a few weeks. They received mentoring fromKarl and other FC United staff and a number of other football training sessions wereorganised so that they could attend them.

Not all the young people on the scheme really engaged with it. In some cases the difficultiesthe young people were in were probably beyond anything the club could do for them.However, for others the relationship they built up with the club made them feel a bit specialand laid the basis for positive mentoring work to take place.

The experience of this project has encouraged the club to look further into what we can do interms of targeted interventions with young people experiencing serious difficulties.

“The Trailblazer programme is an ambitiousproject aimed at young people in Manchester whoare involved in anti social behaviour. The idea isthat by targeting these young people, theprogramme can achieve a significant reduction inanti-social behaviour across the city.”

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SOCIAL INCLUSION

WORK WITH YOUNG REFUGEES AND UNACCOMPANIED YOUNGASYLUM SEEKERS

The club has started to organise training sessions with this group of young people who havefaced extraordinary challenges in their young lives. Further funding has been secured whichwill expand this aspect of our community work next year. The club hopes that this will enableus to act as a powerful agent of community cohesion in our multicultural city. Some of theyoungsters we have worked with are very impressive people as the following text testifies.

Imdad Javadi

I have been in Manchester for about two years and live in a Manchester City Council shared hostel. I arrivedfrom Afghanistan as a young boy on my own and was looked after by Social Services. Ever since I came toManchester I have loved football. In Afghanistan there was always fighting and wars so I didn’t have theopportunities that you have here in England.

I went to see FC United recently as part of Youth United Day. A few of us met outside Primark,. I got there firstand was ringing everyone asking them to hurry as I didn’t want to be late. Finally we all got the bus to Bury. Iwas wondering where we going as I’ve never been to Bury before. It felt like a long long way as I had drank afew cans of Red Bull whilst I was waiting and need to get off quick.

I enjoyed FC United very much and I loved the fans as they shout so loud and sing great songs. The matchwas very exiting. They really do not want FC United to lose. I was jumping and shouting as well and giving thereferee the benefit of my experience as I manage a football team myself.

I used to play with a football team based at the City Centre Project and we entered the Refugee World Cup in2006 /2007. Last year I suffered a serious injury that has for the moment halted me playing football. I go to thehospital every week for physio. So I will just have to wait and see if I improve. This makes me sad sometimesas well as worrying if I will be allowed stay in Manchester as I have a good health care here. I just try tokeep busy.

We used to have a kick about in the park at the weekends and I had to watch others play instead .I noticedthat they were not playing as a team, certain remarks were made that I considered racist, and players werenot passing the ball to certain people. I did not like this.

I decided to speak with them and ask them if they would like to join a team where I could be the Manager butthey had to work together. When I had 15 friends I made them clasp their hands together before a match as asign of unity and respect. We named our team OBID UNITED, this means ‘hope’ in Farsi.

My team is made up of 16 –22 year olds and we play every week in Ardwick and train in Hulme Park on aSunday. We play other teams in Stoke, Birmingham and Leeds, its like we have our very own league. We aremostly on benefits or maintenance payments from Social Services so we find these trips expensive. We geton well and help each other. On a Sunday we all put in what we can afford to pay the £ 24 for the pitch atArdwick. We play in an old Manchester United kit from 2 years ago and this gets washed on a rota so oneman gets all the dirty kit to wash. I take my turn of course. The kit is a bit old now though as it has been in 15different washing machines.

What we would love it get sponsorship for OBID UNITED so we can pay for the ground at Ardwick and maybeget some goal nets.

I believe there will be another Youth United Day at FC and I will take my team along with me next time.I wished I had asked them to come this time.

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SOCIAL INCLUSION

SUPPORTING JUNIOR FOOTBALL CLUBS

FC United recognises the valuable work that junior football clubs do across GreaterManchester. These football clubs only exist because of the remarkable dedication of theirvolunteer organisers and coaches. As well as provide opportunities to play football in acompetitive environment, these clubs also bring communities together.

In order to support junior football clubs, FC United has developed the Cashback Scheme.Under this scheme, the junior football clubs can sell tickets to an FC United game and makethe trip to the match an outing that brings children, parents, coaches and carers together. Thejunior football clubs also keep half of the revenue generated by the tickets they sell so theycan earn money to go towards club finances.

A number of clubs have availed themselves of this opportunity including;

• Ladybridge JFC• Westhoughton Rangers JFC• Droylsden Youth Centre• Boothstown Juniors• Beechfield Juniors• Woodhouse Park JFC• Jigsaw Bury• Richmond Rovers JFC• Chadderton Park JFC• Pennine Juniors• Bridge Colts JFC• Heywood Rangers JFC• New Mills JFC

“In order to support junior football clubs,FC United has developed the Cashback Scheme.Under this scheme, the junior football clubscan sell tickets to an FC United game and makethe trip to the match an outing that bringschildren, parents, coaches and carers together.”

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HEALTHY EATING WORK IN SCHOOLS

The club was delighted to be asked this year to do somework in primary schools in Bury. In a project funded by BuryCouncil, Karl Marginson, assisted by a school teacher, wentinto 15 different primary schools in Bury to deliver innovativehealthy eating programmes. Karl and his colleague usespecially prepared materials including three large tarpaulin sheets depicting the eat-well platewhich lend themselves to a number of active games involving decisions about healthy food.

The format of the day is:

• Assembly on who are FC United? This involves pupils helping stage a play which explainshow fans adopted a co-operative solution to problems arising from an increasingly distantprivate ownership of their club.

• Two hour session for one class split into the following activities;

1. games based on classifying food to achieve a balanced diet using the eat-well plate.

2. Warm up and stretching exercises used by FC United players.

3. Team building games which encourage pupils to come to the conclusion that co-operative solutions can be effective.

4. Football-based activities accessible to pupils of all abilities.

5. creative activities using materials sponsored by the Co-operative Group

• Two hour session for a second group.

Healthy Eating Workin Schools

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HEALTHY EATING WORK IN SCHOOLS

Feedback from this work has been extremely positive;

We are confident that the quality of the sessions will ensure that we will be delivering thesesessions in many more schools next year. Already schools are asking us back and schools fromoutside Bury are asking us to come to their schools.

We are also finding schools interested in bringing their pupils along to matches following our visit.

“I thought it was great. I liked itwhen we were having the race of

putting the food in the rightplace. I learned about healthy

food, football, exercise andstretching.”

Year 3 pupil, St. Luke’s CofEPrimary School, Bury.

“I think that it was a very goodafternoon. I liked the football and

I learned to work as a team.”Year 6 Pupil, Ribble Drive Primary

School, Whitefield.

“I liked everything that we didtoday. The games we played

helped us to learn that it’s goodto play as a team. FC United are

sooooo cool!”Year 5 pupil, St. Mary’s Primary School,

Hawkshaw.

“It was great. I liked the footballand the relay races. I learned alot more stuff about FC United.”

Year 6 pupil, St. Mary’s RC PrimarySchool, Radcliffe.

“I thought it was brilliant fun andwould LOVE to do it again. I liked

the football most and that welearned as well as had fun.

I learned a little bit about whatmakes a good group.”

Year 6 pupil, Park View Primary School,Prestwich.

“You are the best outside agencyto have come in and work with

the kids in this school.”A Specialist Teaching Assistant at a

Bury Primary School.

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SUMMARY AND PLANS FOR THE FUTURE

Summary and Plans forthe FutureThis year has seen significant developments in our community work;

1. We have developed ways of working in schools and with young people that are robust andwe can be confident of our ability to replicate them again and again.

2. Feedback from people participating in our community work has been positive and we canbe confident that we deliver quality.

3. We have developed links with partners who have seen how we work and know that we canbe relied upon to deliver quality.

4. We have developed our capacity by building a network of volunteers and of freelancerswho are members of the club and professionals in their field.

Above all, this year, we have become increasingly aware of our ability as a club to engageand inspire young people. The story of our club and the energy, enthusiasm and dynamismof its members make us an organisation that young people want to get involved with.

We hope that the next year will see further, equally significant developments.

We have a number of grant applications at draft stage. If some of these grant applications aresuccessful, we will have a full-time community team working for the club by spring next year.

This team will be able to undertake increasingly large scale projects with local Councils andother partners. The areas we want to focus on are;

• Working with schools to improve youngsters’ attitudes to education.

• Engaging young people in danger of social exclusion in recreational football projects.

• Supporting junior football clubs and working with them to organise recreational footballschemes in the evenings and during school holidays.

• Working in schools to encourage children and young people to make healthy eatingchoices and become more active in their communities.

• Working in our communities to encourage community cohesion.

• Working with youngsters who have been involved in anti-social behaviour or drug andalcohol abuse and want to turn their lives around.

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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

AcknowledgementsThere are too many members of our club who have contributed to our community andeducation work over the last year to allow us to acknowledge individuals.

Their efforts in turn have depended on all those volunteers, supporters and members whohave contributed to the club’s success on the pitch and given the community and educationteam the basis on which to work.

All we can do, therefore, is to acknowledge the way in which this club has energised andmotivated people to do great things, mostly without financial reward. Between us, we havelaid the foundations for a community club who can confidently look forward to doing greatthings for young people in Greater Manchester.

FC United of Manchester, Hope Mill, 113 Pollard Street, Manchester M4 7JA.