The FA Young Leadership Camp 2008 will this week train 100 teenagers in a number of different disciplines which will enable them to provide football leadership to an FA Charter Standard club in their local area.
Grassroots football relies heavily on the 400,000 volunteers that help run the game at a local level and these teenagers will ultimately enrich this already impressive pool.
The FA Young Leadership Camp was borne out of several ideas to provide lessons across football for young volunteers coming into the game. This year's intake were selected via regional events organised by County FAs.
Now in its third year, the five day Camp concerns itself with a wealth of football topics, from coaching and refereeing to football science and child protection - regardless of current involvement or interest levels, this Camp aims to satisfy everyone's hunger.
An appetite for the game was certainly on display when TheFA.com visited the Camp on Tuesday to get a flavour of the week's activities. The Young Leaders tried their hand at futsal, refereeing and coaching, as well as being asked to produce a short news reel in a media training workshop.
The Camp successfully couples practical sessions with classroom-based learning and the participants are asked to lead the sessions as much as possible.
With a large number of Leaders already having coached a club in their area, Tuesday's coaching sessions were understandably met with interest and excitement. Though the participants were largely left to their own devices, Julie Chipchase, a Regional Coach Development Manager, was on-hand to provide her expertise, offering advice on certain drills.
For many, the refereeing workshop was their first taste of officiating. Ed Stone, The FA's Regional Refereeing Manager, took participants through their paces, introducing them to positioning, the Laws of the Game and the correct signals an Assitant Referee must make during a game.
Futsal was also a relatively new experience for the majority of Leaders, but after a few short drills they all became accustomed to the smaller, heavier ball and began to relish the small-sided activity.
With the amount of football coverage prevalent in today's media, it was appropriate that the Camp should demonstrate how a news story is created and reported on and the practical workshop allowed budding reporters to create and report on a ficticious story of their choice.
Over the course of the week the Young Leaders will also experience, amongst other activities, Skills Coaching for 5-11-year-olds, dealing with pitch injuries, goalkeeping and disability football.
Camp Director, Nick Levett, believes all the elements combine well to broaden the participants' skill set:
"This week is about improving the Leaders, both in football and in life in general.
"The main thing for me," he explained, "is that each and every one of these teenagers leaves here on Friday with a better knowledge of the game and a desire to pass this knowledge on to players in their own communities. If they enjoy the experience at the same time, then it'll be a very beneficial week."
It is essential that the Young Leaders are nurtured and encouraged to continue their involvement in the game once the Camp finishes. It is for this reason that all participants have committed to volunteering for at least 25 hours in an FA Charter Standard club after the event to make use of their new skills and knowledge.
Furthermore, as well as attending this week, four Young Leaders will be selected to go to Cape Town, South Africa in October to support The FA's International Placement programme and help support and run coaching sessions for children in Africa.
Click here to read an interview with one of this year's Young Leaders