Firstly, we are delighted to announce that the Winston Churchill School in Woking has been recognised as the leading Specialist Sports College in the country after being awarded the prestigious FA National Charter Standard Schools Award, in the Specialist Sports College category, which highlights the school’s exceptional achievements in using football as a means to delivering high quality PE and Sport to young people.
Among a whole host of other projects that the school has been involved in, Winston Churchill has been identified for their terrific contribution to aiding development in Africa. In 2007, 12 of the school’s most outstanding pupils came through a vigorous selection process to be given the opportunity to go to Kenya, where they delivered coaching and organised football festivals for their Kenyan counterparts.
With the school now pushing over 80 pupils a year through the FA’s JFO courses, and with their school sports partnership now encompassing 62 primary schools, Winston Churchill School continues to operate in a league of their own for developing young leaders and organisers. This award is just the latest in a long list of honours that the school has won, recognising its outstanding achievements.
The FA recognised the school’s efforts by presenting the subject leader for Physical Education, Richie Emerson, with this award on the pitch at Wembley Stadium at half-time during the recent international fixture between England and Estonia in front of 90,000 spectators.
The second recent outstanding success has come from Merton-based, adult football club Westside FC, who have been identified as the South-East regions leading Charter Standard Adult Club, scooping the award at the recent 2007 Charter Standard South-East Regional Awards. Westside FC, having already been recognised for their outstanding contribution to football in Surrey after winning the 2007 Charter Standard Adult Club of the year award for the second year running, impressed the other Regional Football Development Officers on a number of fronts, particularly with the continued efforts the club puts into player development opportunities, which this year has seen the club build on previous visits abroad to Romania and France, with a summer tour to Senegal in West Africa.
With a developing youth section at the club, and strong links being built with local schools, the recent success and progress that the club has experienced looks set to continue for many years to come, which will only be of benefit to the club’s local community.
Both of the awards detailed above have been thoroughly deserved and the Surrey County FA would again like to express their appreciation of the continued effort and hard-work of all of those involved with delivering football at Winston Churchill School and Westside FC.