COMMERCIAL Director, Fleur Robinson, was delighted to host the inaugural ‘Inspiring your Future’ event for 100 sixth form female students on Wednesday 28 February 2018.
Held at the Pirelli Stadium, the event took place in the lead up to International Women’s Day, which is being celebrated on Thursday 8th March 2018.
Fleur Robinson’s original idea was to bring together a group of local businesses and stakeholders to inspire the students to focus on their personal development, as they begin to think about further education, work and their future.
The football club welcomed students from: The de ferrers Academy, Pingle Academy, John Taylor High School, Paulet High School, Abbot Beyne School, Burton Albion Community Trust Girls Football and Education Team, Burton & South Derbyshire College and The Blessed Robert Sutton Catholic Sports College.
A highlight of the event was an inspirational talk from 28-year-old England and Olympic level football player Sophie Bradley-Auckland. She shared her fascinating career path and personal experiences, including the tough times working through a serious knee injury, and magical moments along the way.
The event was kindly sponsored by the Professional Footballers’ Association, Staffordshire University and The Football Association.
Alan Irwin, of the Professional Footballers’ Association said: “The Professional Footballers Association was absolutely delighted to support the Inspiring Your Future event and for our union to join the celebrations in the lead up to International Women’s Day. This was a wonderful opportunity to demonstrate the power of sport in promoting gender equality and opportunity for all young people to follow their dreams and ambitions and be successful in whatever career they pursue in life.”
Baroness Sue Campbell, Head of Women’s Football at The Football Association, added: “This was a great opportunity for the students to seek out information and build their knowledge as part of the day. I am delighted that one of our England Ladies footballing legends shared her journey with the group.
“Football is at heart of the community in many towns and cities across the country and this event at Burton Albion is a great example of this.”
The students took part in four interactive workshops held by experts including making the right choices around finance, how to make a positive impact and keeping active through sport to support mental wellbeing.
To close the event local business people participated in a live networking session with the students who put in to practice their new found skills, with the aim to further boost their confidence.
Fleur, who is Commercial Director at Burton Albion, a Council Member of The Football Association and an ambassador for BTEC, was delighted to have created and hosted the event.
She said: “In today’s busy world I believe strongly that if young people develop their softer skills, such as communicating with confidence and learning how to become work or further education ready, they will be better prepared to make the right choices in life.
“Sophie was a truly inspirational speaker as she has achieved so much, at such a young age, and continues to strive to be the best in all aspects of her life, in her job, as a mother and of course playing football!
“International Women's Day is a great opportunity to celebrate and make a positive difference for women and I am delighted that we have been able to unite these 100 young women to focus on their future. There was a great atmosphere in the room and I believe the girls left the event with new skills and confidence to follow their dreams.”
International Women’s Day celebrates the social, economic, cultural and political achievements for women. It also marks a call for action for accelerating gender parity. International Women’s Day has been celebrated for over a century, with the first run by the suffragettes in 1911.
A huge thank you to the following organisations who have volunteered their time to this event:
Burton Albion Community Trust, the English Football League Trust, FCM Associates Ltd, KC Jones training & development, Positive Impact Communication & Training, Burton & District Chamber of Commerce and Johnson’s Marketing.