With children now returning back to school for the new academic year, Cumberland FA has announced that its hugely popular Junior PAN Disability Football sessions, which take place in Carlisle, Workington and Whitehaven on a weekly basis, are getting back underway after a summer break.
On Wednesday afternoons (5-6pm), Workington Reds host a session at Workington Academy, before Carlisle Reivers (5:30-6:30pm) and Whitehaven AFC (6-7pm) run sessions on Thursdays at Central Fields in Carlisle and Coach Road in Whitehaven respectively.
A fourth session is led by Cumbria Frame Football, with further information available by emailing [email protected], whilst further sessions are set to launch in Distington, Penrith, Cockermouth and Egremont later this academic year.
Perfect for young people with disabilities, these sessions provide a great opportunity for children to learn new skills, make friends and have fun – all in a safe and supportive environment run by qualified coaches.
Earlier this year, all of the centres competed at Cumberland FA’s annual Charter Standard Festival in Penrith, which is the first time the festival has hosted a PAN Disability competition.
Roman Todd, who has volunteered as a coach at these sessions since they began and has since completed his FA Level 1 in Coaching Football qualification, said: “Becoming a coach has made me fall in love with football again and I hope I can inspire others.”
A mother of one of the participants, Claire, added: “I would like to thank Cumberland FA and everyone who helps for running these sessions. As a parent it is wonderful to see how everyone encourages each other; it’s a pleasure to watch the enjoyment the kids get out of it.”
Ray Sempill, Cumberland FA Football Development Officer, said: “These centres have become very popular and we are delighted that Cockermouth JFC are going to be running a centre this year. We hope that this inspires more Charter Standard clubs to launch a disability section of their own.
“We are launching a festival programme in early 2019 for all centres to come together and play, like they did at our Charter Standard Festival. We also hope to have a Junior Ability Counts League running very soon for those who would like a competitive edge.”
For further information about any of these sessions, please contact Ray Sempill on [email protected] or 01900 511800 #204
