Northolt School Helps Create ' Lionesses of The Future'

As it launches National Girls Football programme

A Northolt primary school hosted the national launch for FA Shooting stars programme for over 1,200 schools across England.

The programme aims to inspire girls to get active and learn the fundamentals of football.

Willow Tree Primary school was selected for the launch due to their positive ethos towards PE and school sport, ensuring all young people at the school have the opportunities to be physically active and healthy, not just the sporty children.

The children at the school impressed during the pilot of the ‘Guardians of the Galaxy’ after-school club last year and when Disney and the FA visited the school for a filming day in September for their new on-line teacher resource website https://girlsfootballinschools.org

The school is passionate about the power of PE/sport and regularly provides opportunities through the FA and the Youth Sport Trust for pupils to watch live England games at Wembley for free.

Willow Tree also hosts the School Sport Partnership which supports schools across the London Borough of Ealing to deliver high quality PE, School sport and physical activity.

A group of girls from Year 3 were selected to be involved in practical sessions with Clare Daniels (Women’s FA National Development Manager) and Karen Carney (ex-England and Chelsea player) overseen by many high profile guests including Ali Oliver (CEO, Youth Sport Trust) and Donna McIvor (National Development Manager, The FA) reporters from the national press were present iincluding ITV London, ESPN and Sky Sports News.

England legend Karen Carney added: “It’s great to see initiatives like this launching and becoming more established in schools across the country, something I didn’t have as a kid growing up.

“Football provides you with so many benefits – from teamwork and building friendships to physical literacy and confidence, and this programme will really help instil that into the girls who take part.

“The more girls we can get participating and fall in love with football, the better and who knows, this programme may even unearth Lionesses of the future.

It was a busy week of girls Football as the school is also the host site for 1 out of 100 FA girls school football partnerships in the country. As a result of this unique collaboration with the FA and the Youth Sport Trust, the school is hosting Active Play Through Storytelling inspired by Disney’ training for teachers from across Ealing.

This is followed on Friday by the Willow Tree School Sport Partnership hosting its Year 5/6 girls Football competition. Finally on Saturday, a group of girls from the school have been given free tickets to attend the England V Germany women’s Football match at Wembley, courtesy of the partnership working again with the FA and the Youth Sport Trust.

12th November 2019