Oxford United in the Community has appointed a new management team to help expand the impact of its growing Premier League Primary Stars programme.
Robert Huff has joined as manager and James Gilmore has been made assistant manager. They will spearhead the development of the offering and ensure the charity delivers the programme in more schools in Oxfordshire.
Premier League Primary Stars uses the appeal of the Premier League and professional football clubs to inspire children to learn, be active and develop important life skills. The programme is available to every primary school in England and Wales, and it aims to inspire girls and boys aged 5-11 in the classroom, on the playground and on the sports field.
Oxford United in the Community delivers Premier League Primary Stars programmes in multiple primary schools in the county. It plans to partner with more schools via the programme to help the charity achieve its overall aim of achieving a positive impact across the community.
The first phase of expansion will focus on delivery in Oxford and Banbury. The charity selected Banbury as the first ‘town spoke’ in the charity’s ‘hub and spoke’ vision to create partnerships in towns across Oxfordshire to deliver increased positive social impact. The local Banbury partnership is with Easington Sports FC and the charity will use ESFC’s local knowledge and networks to help focus the expansion in Banbury.
Chris Lowes, Head of Oxford United in the Community, said: “Robert and James will help take our Premier League Primary Stars programme to the next level.
“The programme is a key part of the charity’s work to inspire positive change in primary school children and help them develop key skills for life. This is an exciting time for the charity as we collectively work on delivering our new vision to inspire people county wide to live happier and healthier lives in better connected communities using the power of football.”
Robert has more than ten years of coaching experience and was previously a PE co-ordinator and behaviour mentor in a primary school. James has been a member of the charity team since 2016 and is a qualified UEFA B coach.
Robert said: “The positive impact Oxford United in the Community delivers is inspiring and really attracted me to the charity. I am pleased to have joined the team and I am looking forward to helping grow the Premier League Primary Stars provision. It is an excellent programme and provides a wonderful opportunity for us to deliver positive impact in primary schools across the whole county.”
A range of activities are delivered via the programme including the physical delivery of PE lessons within the National Curriculum, extra-curricular clubs, PSHE workshops, Literacy and Numeracy support. Plus, assemblies focusing on values and behaviours in the playground.
To learn more about the Premier League Primary Stars programmes please visit here.
To express an interest in the PLPS programme please contact our team at [email protected]