NEW FA GUIDEANCE
Following confirmation that, from Monday 29th March, as part of the next stage of the Government’s roadmap out of national lockdown, outdoor sports facilities can open and organised outdoor football can take place, Essex County FA wanted to provide an update on the return of the grassroots game.
After liaison with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, The FA has today published updated guidance, based on the latest Government advice available, which applies to all outdoor youth and adult football and futsal, including all formats of the game.
This guidance will be updated as we move through the different steps of the Government’s roadmap out of lockdown, and relevant documents will be uploaded to the dedicated Coronavirus Guidance page on the Essex FA website. Separate guidance will be developed for clubs and leagues at Steps 3-6 of the National League System and Tiers 3-6 of the Women’s Football Pyramid.
The key aspects of the grassroots guidance relating to the return of outdoor grassroots football are summarised below:
Travel
The Government guidance on travel is that the ‘stay at home’ rule will end on Monday 29th March, but many restrictions will remain in place. As organised sport can resume, all participants may travel to games but should avoid travel at the busiest times and routes, as well as minimising any unnecessary journeys where possible. All participants must follow the government’s guidance on safer travel.
Changing rooms
Changing rooms cannot be used as part of step one in the roadmap out of lockdown and must remain shut. Toilets will be allowed to open, 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after training and/or matches. All government guidance on hygiene and social distancing measures must be followed.
Spectators
No spectators are allowed at grassroots football as part of step one of the Government’s roadmap. One parent or guardian per child is permitted, where clubs and facilities can safely accommodate this and following all appropriate guidance.
Indoor football
Indoor sport is not currently allowed. This is planned to return no earlier than the 12th April for U18s and 17th May for adults, as part of steps two and three of the Government’s roadmap, apart from disability football, which is currently allowed to take place indoors.
Financial Support
Looking ahead to the 2021/22 season the FA have confirmed, in conjunction with funding from Sport England, there will be financial support provided to County FAs to provide discounted 2021/22 season affiliation. This is welcome news to help support the game to return and Essex FA are now considering how this can be maximised and implemented and will communicate further in due course.
The FA’s ‘Return to Football Fund’, made possible with Sport England funding from the National Lottery, will provide £2.1 million targeted at supporting people in low participation groups to start playing again. It will also fund initiatives aimed at bringing new players into the game and cover the cost of adapting to Covid-19 rules.
In addition to this, alongside partners at The Football Foundation, The FA also recently announced two other new funds to provide further financial support to clubs over the longer term. The £14 million Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund is providing six-year tapered grants to improve the quality of grass pitches, whilst the Small Grants fund is available to help clubs pay for essential equipment and machinery they need to start playing again. Clubs can apply for up to £25k to refurbish their changing rooms, pay for grass pitch drainage, new goalposts, pitch maintenance equipment and portable floodlights.
For more information about the funds and how to apply, please visit the Football Foundation website or contact your local Football Development Officer.
As we prepare for the resumption of the grassroots game, it is extremely important that clubs, players, coaches, match officials, league officials, volunteers, parents, carers, and facility providers continue to strictly follow both the UK Government's latest guidance on Covid-19 and respective bespoke guidance documents from The FA, and particularly with reference to the requirement for Covid-19 officers to be named and risk assessments to be carried out. Any incidents of non-compliance should be reported to Essex County FA via email.
We would like to reiterate our thanks to the football community once again for their hard work, resilience and understanding during such an incredibly challenging period for both the game and wider society. A full index of guidance documents and ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ can be accessed via the dedicated Coronavirus Update page on our website.
8/09/2020
COVID 19 – Impact to League fixtures
Travel Quarantine
If your team is impacted by player(s) returning from travel and not being able to play due to requirement to quarantine. Advise your age group officer as soon as possible if it will impact your ability to fulfil a fixture. Provide the names of Player(s) who are quarantined, Dates they are unavailable and any evidence of this they may be able to provide.
Normal minimum player numbers for a match will apply as per Rule 20(b) - The minimum number of Players that will constitute a Team for a Competition at 11 v 11 format: 7 Players
Positive Test Result Quarantine
If your team is impacted by a player(s) having a confirmed positive test that results in the whole team being required to quarantine. Please advise your age group officer as soon as possible. Your teams fixtures for the remaining period of the quarantine period will be postponed. Names of impacted players, Dates of quarantine period and any evidence that can be provided would be required.
2020/21 Fixture Holiday Dates
As agreed at AGM, the league is taking a different approach to implement the 6 Fixture holiday dates that are allocated this season. The following three dates will be mandatory for league fixture breaks:-
Christmas Holiday – 27th December 2020 and 3rd January 2021
Easter Holiday – 4th April 2021
For the remaining three fixture holidays, teams will now have the option to select the date they wish to block. This will provide more flexibility during school holidays, which differ greatly across schools.
October Half Term – Fulltime default date is 25th October, teams can alternatively select from 18th October or 1st November
February Half Term - Fulltime default date is 14th February, teams can alternatively select from 7th February or 21st February
May Half Term – Fulltime default date is 30th May, teams can alternatively select to take an extra week at Easter 28th March or 11th April
The default dates have been added to Full Time for all league fixture holidays. If your team managers wish to change to one of the alternative dates, please contact the appropriate Age Group Officer, making sure to give
4 weeks notice, so that fixtures can be re-arranged in plenty of time.
Age group officer contact details:-
u15 paulhart.cyfl@gmail.com
u16 graeme.cyfl@gmail.com
u17 justintrencher.cyfl@gmail.com
u18 stuartpaterson.cyfl@gmail.com
Following confirmation that, from Monday 29th March, as part of the next stage of the Government’s roadmap out of national lockdown, outdoor sports facilities can open and organised outdoor football can take place, Essex County FA wanted to provide an update on the return of the grassroots game.
After liaison with the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, The FA has today published updated guidance, based on the latest Government advice available, which applies to all outdoor youth and adult football and futsal, including all formats of the game.
This guidance will be updated as we move through the different steps of the Government’s roadmap out of lockdown, and relevant documents will be uploaded to the dedicated Coronavirus Guidance page on the Essex FA website. Separate guidance will be developed for clubs and leagues at Steps 3-6 of the National League System and Tiers 3-6 of the Women’s Football Pyramid.
The key aspects of the grassroots guidance relating to the return of outdoor grassroots football are summarised below:
Travel
The Government guidance on travel is that the ‘stay at home’ rule will end on Monday 29th March, but many restrictions will remain in place. As organised sport can resume, all participants may travel to games but should avoid travel at the busiest times and routes, as well as minimising any unnecessary journeys where possible. All participants must follow the government’s guidance on safer travel.
Changing rooms
Changing rooms cannot be used as part of step one in the roadmap out of lockdown and must remain shut. Toilets will be allowed to open, 30 minutes before and 30 minutes after training and/or matches. All government guidance on hygiene and social distancing measures must be followed.
Spectators
No spectators are allowed at grassroots football as part of step one of the Government’s roadmap. One parent or guardian per child is permitted, where clubs and facilities can safely accommodate this and following all appropriate guidance.
Indoor football
Indoor sport is not currently allowed. This is planned to return no earlier than the 12th April for U18s and 17th May for adults, as part of steps two and three of the Government’s roadmap, apart from disability football, which is currently allowed to take place indoors.
Financial Support
Looking ahead to the 2021/22 season the FA have confirmed, in conjunction with funding from Sport England, there will be financial support provided to County FAs to provide discounted 2021/22 season affiliation. This is welcome news to help support the game to return and Essex FA are now considering how this can be maximised and implemented and will communicate further in due course.
The FA’s ‘Return to Football Fund’, made possible with Sport England funding from the National Lottery, will provide £2.1 million targeted at supporting people in low participation groups to start playing again. It will also fund initiatives aimed at bringing new players into the game and cover the cost of adapting to Covid-19 rules.
In addition to this, alongside partners at The Football Foundation, The FA also recently announced two other new funds to provide further financial support to clubs over the longer term. The £14 million Grass Pitch Maintenance Fund is providing six-year tapered grants to improve the quality of grass pitches, whilst the Small Grants fund is available to help clubs pay for essential equipment and machinery they need to start playing again. Clubs can apply for up to £25k to refurbish their changing rooms, pay for grass pitch drainage, new goalposts, pitch maintenance equipment and portable floodlights.
For more information about the funds and how to apply, please visit the Football Foundation website or contact your local Football Development Officer.
As we prepare for the resumption of the grassroots game, it is extremely important that clubs, players, coaches, match officials, league officials, volunteers, parents, carers, and facility providers continue to strictly follow both the UK Government's latest guidance on Covid-19 and respective bespoke guidance documents from The FA, and particularly with reference to the requirement for Covid-19 officers to be named and risk assessments to be carried out. Any incidents of non-compliance should be reported to Essex County FA via email.
We would like to reiterate our thanks to the football community once again for their hard work, resilience and understanding during such an incredibly challenging period for both the game and wider society. A full index of guidance documents and ‘Frequently Asked Questions’ can be accessed via the dedicated Coronavirus Update page on our website.
8/09/2020
COVID 19 – Impact to League fixtures
Travel Quarantine
If your team is impacted by player(s) returning from travel and not being able to play due to requirement to quarantine. Advise your age group officer as soon as possible if it will impact your ability to fulfil a fixture. Provide the names of Player(s) who are quarantined, Dates they are unavailable and any evidence of this they may be able to provide.
Normal minimum player numbers for a match will apply as per Rule 20(b) - The minimum number of Players that will constitute a Team for a Competition at 11 v 11 format: 7 Players
Positive Test Result Quarantine
If your team is impacted by a player(s) having a confirmed positive test that results in the whole team being required to quarantine. Please advise your age group officer as soon as possible. Your teams fixtures for the remaining period of the quarantine period will be postponed. Names of impacted players, Dates of quarantine period and any evidence that can be provided would be required.
2020/21 Fixture Holiday Dates
As agreed at AGM, the league is taking a different approach to implement the 6 Fixture holiday dates that are allocated this season. The following three dates will be mandatory for league fixture breaks:-
Christmas Holiday – 27th December 2020 and 3rd January 2021
Easter Holiday – 4th April 2021
For the remaining three fixture holidays, teams will now have the option to select the date they wish to block. This will provide more flexibility during school holidays, which differ greatly across schools.
October Half Term – Fulltime default date is 25th October, teams can alternatively select from 18th October or 1st November
February Half Term - Fulltime default date is 14th February, teams can alternatively select from 7th February or 21st February
May Half Term – Fulltime default date is 30th May, teams can alternatively select to take an extra week at Easter 28th March or 11th April
The default dates have been added to Full Time for all league fixture holidays. If your team managers wish to change to one of the alternative dates, please contact the appropriate Age Group Officer, making sure to give
4 weeks notice, so that fixtures can be re-arranged in plenty of time.
Age group officer contact details:-
u15 paulhart.cyfl@gmail.com
u16 graeme.cyfl@gmail.com
u17 justintrencher.cyfl@gmail.com
u18 stuartpaterson.cyfl@gmail.com
3/09/2018
Please be advised as this season we are using the whole game system for registration. You will exchange squad lists prior to games as you would have registration cards in previous seasons.
instructions to print are below:
Via your club whole game, under player registration
You can select your team in the filters
Click the little boxes next to the players names or select all- being careful only your players are visible.
This then makes the drop down menu appear ( where you would have confirmed consent etc)
The option of squad list will be there.
From that option a pdf will begin downloading which you should be able to print.
Please be advised as this season we are using the whole game system for registration. You will exchange squad lists prior to games as you would have registration cards in previous seasons.
instructions to print are below:
Via your club whole game, under player registration
You can select your team in the filters
Click the little boxes next to the players names or select all- being careful only your players are visible.
This then makes the drop down menu appear ( where you would have confirmed consent etc)
The option of squad list will be there.
From that option a pdf will begin downloading which you should be able to print.
