Niamh and Hazel Haworth – PLKicks Football

Meet Niamh and Hazel Haworth, regular attendees of our Premier League Kicks Garstang Football sessions. In partnership with The Premier League Charitable Fund, Fleetwood Town Community Trust deliver over eight kicks programmes spread across five different venues within Fleetwood and Wyre targeting children between the ages 8-18.

PL kicks aims to use the power of football and other sports to connect with young people in some of the most deprived regions across the UK. The youth outreach programme began over ten years ago, with the aim to create safer, stronger, and more respectful communities through the development of young people’s potential, whilst providing access to facilities, coaching and mentoring.

Niamh (aged 9) and Hazel (aged 10) both live with their parents and (their Guinea Pig, Phillip) near Lancaster. Both have faced significant challenges over the past year; Hazel stated that she “missed her friends and family during COVID19 but enjoyed staying connected with people online” whereas Niamh mentioned how she suffers with asthma and “didn’t like much exercise because it felt like hard work and it made me wheezy” yet nurses continue to encourage exercise.

Going on to talk about what Premier League Kicks has done for them, Hazel suggested “PL Kicks has helped me make friends and get fitter, plus my uncles play football so I can now impress them with my moves” she then went on to say, “The coaches at PL Kicks are really friendly and I would suggest it to anyone over the age of five.” Also documenting her time at Kicks, Niamh stated “I enjoy going because it doesn’t feel like hard work to exercise, even when I’m tired after a busy day at school. I enjoy seeing my friends there too.” She also had special praise for one of our coaches mentioning “I like Corey because he is fun, he doesn’t shout and teaches me new tricks.”

Niamh and Hazel’s parents also shared the impact of PL Kicks from their perspective as they highlighted “I’m so glad we found out about the Kicks sessions. The Coaches are friendly, encouraging and create a great atmosphere where everyone feels welcome. The girls look forward to going each week, whatever the weather. It’s a great way of them keeping fit and learning a new skill which we might not been able to afford otherwise.”

If your child is aged between 8 and 12 years old, then why not bring them down to our Garstang PL Kicks session, every Wednesday 6.30-7.30pm at Garstang Community Academy. All our PL Kicks sessions are FREE and for more information on other venues/times, contact community@fleetwoodtownfc.com.