Ability Counts

Disability

 

Somerset FA offers a thriving and continually developing opportunities and a playing pathway for young players, adults both male and female with a disability. Whether it is as a player, a coach, a referee or supporting the game as an administrator or volunteer, there is an opportunity for all.

There are a number of opportunities available to get involved in disability football and to find out more information, please see below:

Disability Coaching

The FA, currently are in the process of redesigning all of the previous Disability Coaching Courses so that the content is up to date and relevant to todays game granting more thorough support for any coaches looking to get into the disability game. 

Updates will be posted here soon once we have received further information around these new exciting courses. In the meantime, coaches and volunteers can currently access the online Introduction to Disability Football module via the link below;

Disability Football Courses

The FA National Elite Disability Player Pathway

Somerset FA is dedicated to supporting all levels of disability football, actively seeking and supporting talented players with a disability within the county to access regional and national opportunities.  As a player, if you want to strive to be the best within the game then there is a structured pathway to aid your development.

As part of the commitment from The FA and County FAs to continually improve the opportunities for disabled players, 13 Regional Talent Hubs have been put in place across the Country. These Talent Hubs will give young footballers  aged 7-11 years and 12-16 years who have cerebral palsy, hearing impairments or are partially sighted the opportunity to progress into a talent development programme, the FA Player Pathway and possibly into the elite England Impairment Specific squads.

For more information on our local FA Regional Disability Talent Hubs, please contact Nick Hawkins using the details on this page. 


Disability Football Within Education

Somerset FA works closely with special schools in the area together with mainstream schools to support players with a disability.  In partnership with Somerset Schools FA, we run our Inclusive Schools League from March – June of each academic year and a central venue to provide them competitive opportunities that schools/students wouldn’t normally be able to take up.

Somerset FA also work closely with FE/HE providers in the county to offer opportunities to all students with a disability the opportunity to access football through links to local football clubs and England Disability Football Recreational Centres. 

Impairment Specific Football

Currently within Somerset we have three impairment specific football clubs. 

We have a Powerchair Football Club in Frome Falcons who currently play within the South West Powerchair Football League and train every two weeks within Frome on a Saturday morning. The club is for players from 5 years old all the way up to 60+. To find out a bit more information around Powerchair Football;


Our second impairment specific football clubs Bristol City Frame Football Club. The club is for children with Cerebal Palsy who have to use a walking frame and train on a Saturday in the South Bristol area and is one of Bristol City’s partnership clubs run through the Robins Foundation.


And lastly our third impairment specific club is Bristol City Cerebal Palsy FC. The clubs is also for U18s (three age groups of U12, U14 and U18) and train currently once a week in the South Bristol area. 


 

Get In Touch

Nick Hawkins

Football Development Officer - Disability

Nick.Hawkins@somersetfa.com

01458 832 359 Option 3

07591 950 260