Last month, Burnley FC Men’s First Team players visited three of Burnley FC in the Community’s programmes.
To kick off the visits, Josh Laurent, Bashir Humphreys, and Jaidon Anthony visited our Limitless Clarets Schools Project at The Leisure Box, where they met students from Pendle Vale Community High School.
The Limitless Clarets School Project provides a comprehensive service, supporting young people with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities both in and out of school through workshops and interventions.
In celebration of International Sign Languages Day, the students taught the players a variety of well-known Burnley FC phrases, including “Up the Clarets” and “Come on Burnley,” in British Sign Language.
Youth Engagement Manager, Lewis Hickie, shared, “The players went above and beyond for our young people, fully engaging in the session focused on International Sign Language Day. We taught them a variety of signs, and we hope to see some of these used in celebrations on the pitch one day!”
Our next visit saw Zian Flemming, Jeremy Sarmiento, Vaclav Hladký, and John Egan visit Cherryfold Primary School to see Burnley FC in the Community’s STEM programme ‘All SySTEMS Go’.
The goal of this programme is to introduce young children to STEM, raise their aspirations, and encourage them to pursue careers in STEM as they grow older. It is kindly funded by ReStart Consultancy, Michael Bailey Associates, and Safran Nacelles, Burnley.
Headteacher of Cherryfold Primary School, Mrs. Morreta, told us, “As a primary school with around 65% free school meals and with 23 languages other than English being spoken, it was wonderful to see fun, learning, and football bringing our community school even closer together. It’s this kind of shared experience that brings such happiness to our children.”
One of the students, Louis, told us, “The robots were amazing, and it was great fun watching the players race them. Everyone cheered when Vaclav won!”
The final visit took place at Nelson and Colne College, where Owen Dodgson, Shurandy Sambo, Etienne Green, and Andreas Hountondji met Burnley FC in the Community’s Shadow Youth Team, Post-16 Girls, Netball, and Cricket Academy students.
Burnley FC in the Community’s Shadow Youth Team and Post-16 Girls programmes are delivered in partnership with the Nelson and Colne College Group.
These programmes give talented young players between the ages of 16 and 18 the chance to combine academic studies with practical football experience.
The players first met our Shadow Youth Team during their fixture’s half-time. Afterwards, they headed to the sports hall to meet both our Shadow Youth Players and our Post-16 Girls Team. Everyone was then divided into two teams, competing in various activities such as quizzes and reaction tests.
Football Development Manager, Nathan Mottram, said, “It was fantastic having four of the new players visit our Shadow Youth Team and Post-16 players. They truly demonstrated to our young footballers what can be achieved and the places you can reach with ambition and dedication. We really appreciate them coming down.”
Burnley FC in the Community would like to extend a huge thank you to Burnley FC for being a part of our programmes and providing our participants with unforgettable experiences.