Interim England Manager Gareth Southgate has already paid a visit to the country’s first Parklife grassroots football hub ahead of its official launch in Sheffield on Wednesday.
The site has been funded by The FA, Sheffield City Council and the Department for Culture Media and Sport in partnership with Sport England. A second pilot hub to the north of the city has also opened with third to follow next year.
And Southgate was left impressed by what he saw, with the hub to serve as a focal point for grassroots football in the local area and offer greater access to player and coach development opportunities.
“It’s crucial that grassroots facilities match young player’s ambitions and the Parklife programme certainly offers that,” he told FATV.
“I’m looking forward to seeing facilities such as this replicated up and down the country. England players of generations to come will be able to say they got their start in footballing at hubs such as these.”
Sports Minister Tracey Crouch and Sport England Chairman Nick Bitel will join FA Chief Executive Martin Glenn to officially hail the start of The FA’s strategy to improve grassroots football facilities across England’s towns and cities on Wednesday.
The FA, alongside the Department for Culture Media and Sport (DCMS), the Premier League and local partners are set to invest £200m in the project over the next five years.
Parklife is an example of The FA’s commitment to football for all, through significant investment in pitches, facilities and participation programmes.
This is aligned to The FA’s key strategic objective to ensure that every child that wants to play football has access to a qualified coach and also its commitment to support the recruitment and development of referees and volunteers to ensure a high quality playing experience.
And Glenn added: “Make no mistake; these hubs are the start of something big. The Sheffield centres mark the beginning of the end of a story all-too-familiar to the grassroots footballer of poor pitches, woefully inadequate changing facilities and a battle against the elements to get fixtures completed each winter.”
To hear more of what Gareth Southgate had to say and view a selection of videos that tell the story of the Parklife Football Hubs Programme visit FATV.
