We have been nominated in the ‘Referee Development’ category of the County FA Recognition Awards 2024 for our work in smoothing the referee youth-to-adult transition within grassroots football.

The Youth-to-Adult Transition Programme is designed for referees who are looking to progress into the open-age game from youth football. It is open to referees aged 16 years and over, and the objective is to provide a streamlined approach in nurturing and offering guidance to young referees. Positive feedback for this programme has resulted in shortlisting for the award. There was also a nomination in the ‘Facility Development’ category for the Parsloes Park project.

The transition lasts for around six to twelve months (depending on the referee), delving into the intricacies of adult football and equipping them with the necessary skills to adapt and thrive. The programme is significant because it ensures a consistent standard set across Essex refereeing, aiming to amplify the expectations required to referee in this age group.

A 68% retention rate of referees re-registering for season 2024/25 (at present) is a testament to the expansion of the referee cohort in Essex, and Essex County FA Referee Development Officer, Lukas Wood, believes this figure is only going to rise: “It's great to hear that our Youth-to-Adult Transition Programme has been shortlisted for a County FA Recognition Award.”

“The programme was re-launched at the start of season 2023/24, which saw a large number of match officials aged between 16 and 21 years old starting their journey into the open-age game. Since the re-launch, we’ve seen a high retention rate - with some of the referees now progressing through the Referee Progression Pathway - and we’ve also seen a transition of some of these into our Essex CORE [Centre of Refereeing Excellence] Programme.”

This is a huge achievement for the department, demonstrating how essential development is to the long-term vision of retaining and promoting referee growth through various stages during their journey. The category winners will be announced at Wembley Stadium connected by EE on Thursday 7th November 2024, recognizing and endorsing the best projects, products and services delivered by County FAs over the past season whilst sharing best practice and learnings.

The FA’s Head of Operations for Grassroots Football, Tim Foster added: “I’d like to congratulate the Essex County FA in making the final shortlist for the Facility Development and Referee Development categories.”

“We’ve had some outstanding submissions this year, once again highlighting the crucial role County FAs play in their local communities, ensuring accessible opportunities across all football formats and creating a fun and safe environment for all. We look forward to celebrating the achievements of our County FAs at Wembley Stadium in November and thanking everyone involved for their efforts across the season.”

Find out more about refereeing Essex football by browsing the 'Referees' menu above, interacting with @EssexCountyFA and @EssexReferees on X and by searching for the ‘EssexFootball’ and ‘EssexReferees’ pages on Facebook.