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Premier League Inspires Winner Presentation by Lucy Tearle in association with Watford Football Club Community Sports and Education Trust. A curriculum based programme aimed at young people aged 11-25 years old.

"Goal: To inspire children and young people to develop the personal skills and positive attitudes to succeed in life." WFC CSE Trust

A group of Year 9 students were selected to take part in Watford Football Club’s Premier League Enterprise Programme to inspire students. The students split into 2 teams that explored everything about Watford FC and what goes on behind the scenes.  Back in September they visited the stadium in Vicarage Road where they explored all aspects from the ticket office, merchandise store, sensory room, press conference ticket office etc.

Each week during the sessions the students learned about different roles, customer service and complaints, finance and money. They role modelled different scenarios. Students were all well engaged and displayed great team working and communication skills. They supported one another in some challenging areas outside their comfort zones and built more and more confidence and resilience as they learned.

The Premier League Inspires Challenge 2021/2022 - Both teams were given a social action task: “Playing our part in protecting our planet”. They had to create a social action project to help address environmental sustainability linking it to sport, football club, school.

All the students set out and discussed ideas and possibilities for the best way they could show this to make a difference. The teams researched and planned out ideas. Other faculties within SJL were approached by the students to bring their ideas to life.

Group A – decided to recycle some of the old, deflated footballs from our PE department and use them as plant pots to make hanging baskets, old football boots being reused as bird feeders. Students connected with our Eco- Garden at SJL. They were able to create their ideas with support from Mrs Helen Brading –Miles who gave our students ideas about what plants would be suitable for the time of year and attract wildlife. This group decided to make a video campaign and documented this. They decided to go one step further and sell their creations to raise money for the community by supporting the local Mencap in Harpenden. Students presented this recently to them at the Mencap charity shop in Grove Road, Harpenden – they were absolutely delighted and appreciated the students’ kindness in caring and thinking of them as a charity that they would like to support. Well done to our students for this Achievement, Care and Excellence that we at SJL pride ourselves in.

Group B - wanted to concentrate on plastic and reduction of plastic by bringing awareness about recycling and using recycling bins. They decided to do a short video advertisement with a catchy tagline which the Judges loved!

All students received their certificates for their participation and commitment to tackle climate change.

27 local schools had taken part in the Challenge. A total of 38 football clubs are involved. Including top clubs such as Chelsea, Arsenal, West Brom and many more…

Final entries were submitted recently to Lucy Tearle – Watford FC Community Projects Manager. It was quite a difficult choice for judges to decide on an overall winner especially with 7 video campaign entries, and all the hard work put in from so many different schools across the region.

Team A were finally announced as the winners with their creative and community focused idea. The Judges were really impressed with their innovation. A presentation was given to them at SJL.

The Team now will go on to a Development Day at Watford FC taking place 29 March where they expand their idea further. They will pick up their team trophy from Lucy officially then. Wishing the Team all the best!

They will then compete in the Grand Virtual Finale in the summer and face other winners nationally to compete for individual prizes. SJL Team will represent Watford FC along with the other top clubs.

A massive heartfelt “thank you” from all the students involved in making this so successful at SJL, to Lucy and to the Eco Garden, Media Faculty, PE and DT Faculty for supporting our students.

"In this Watford Inspires programme I have learnt teamwork skills and how things run behind the scenes in a football stadium. The first thing we did was go to a football stadium and got a tour which was amazing as it was the first time I went to a premier league stadium. Overall this experience has been amazing and I would love to do it again."

Daniel Year 9