Following several successful years of delivering a male College Flexi League, there was increased demand for a flexible football offer for female students. 

Open to further and higher education, we have ten organisations who have expressed an interest in playing in regular monthly festivals across South Yorkshire.  

Feedback from students was that they wanted a fun and flexible offer which gave them an opportunity to try different formats of the game such as 5-a-side, Futsal and walking football. 

"I've never played football before"

"It doesn't have to be 11v11"

"Really enjoyed the fun and friendly environment"

As 2022 is the UEFA Women's Tournament year in England, we were pleased to run our first festival in January at St George's Park, Graves.  Leon Dearns (SHCFA, Adult Football Development Officer) was pleased with the launch;

"We've had a lot of interest for the festivals but we know many organisations struggle with access to transport and staff support.  However I'm really pleased that we were able to get our first event up and running.  It was great to see students who had never played football before give it a go.  That's what this is all about - we want people to come and give it a go and see if they enjoy it".

The FE/HE Festivals are in place to provide a sporting opportunity for girls and women within education to have fun, get fit, and socialise.  There is often a drop-out of female at 16 years old but we want to bridge the gap by continuing to give females a regular opportunity.

Alongside this, there are also plenty of opportunities to get involved in 'recreational' football activity as well as playing for a competitive team.

For more information about Female Festivals contact Leon Dearns

find more playing opportunities here