We're very proud to be the first national governing body in English sport to introduce a regional code of governance, which sets a higher precedent than the current gold standard for sport and aims to provide support and guidance to those running the grassroots game up and down the country.
It means each County FA can assess their current practices against the highest standard of corporate governance in football, supporting their development and ensuring they have the structures, functional operations and decision-making processes in place to offer the best possible service to the game at a local level.
Developed by a working group, which included representatives from County FAs, our executive and youth councils and Sport England, it takes elements from Tier 3 of the Sport England code of governance - the current gold standard - adapting and elevating them further to work specifically for football at every level of a County FA.
The code outlines key requirements underpinned by five key principles: structure; people; communication; standards and conduct; and policies and processes.
A number of County FAs have already committed to embedding the code since its inception and we are working closely with the rest of the County FA network to ensure they are also able to work towards it in the future.
As the national sport that millions of people play and support across the country, it is important that we and the CFAs serve and lead the game as effectively as possible. This new regional code of governance will support that by ensuring County FAs are best placed to deliver football as well as represent and support the communities they serve.
We look forward to working in partnership with the County FAs in the coming months and years as they adopt this code and set a new standard for sport in this country.
