The National Referee Development Programme is an initiative which is committed to training, retaining and developing enthusiastic, committed referees with support and coaching in a safe and constructive learning environment. Each County Football Association, under the leadership of the Referee Development Officer, manage the programme, in co-operation with key volunteers on each of the Leagues.

The East Kent Youth Football League, Kent Girls and Ladies Football League, Medway Messenger Youth Football League and the North Kent Youth Football League have all committed to improving referee development, with a primary focus on assisting in the mentoring of Level 9 Trainee Referees, who are looking to complete Module 4 of the Basic Referee Course. In addition, each League has compiled individual referee development plans, which include training, development opportunities, as well as increasing the percentage coverage of League appointed referees and holding their own Basic Referee Courses.

As part of the Partner League structure, and in co-operation with the Leagues, Referee Development Officer Nick Dunn has created a unique Incentive Scheme, to help reward the work undertaken.

“The work that these Leagues, Clubs, and volunteers, undertake as part of developing referees is invaluable, and deserves recognition. The National Referee Development Programme does not currently allow recognition of the work undertaken, and with this in mind, we have looked to develop our own Incentive Scheme in Kent. These Leagues have committed to assisting in a holistic development programme for all of their Match Officials, from mentoring trainees, to in-service training for more experience referees”.

In addition to these new Partner Leagues, 3 Leagues have also been successful in gaining funding from Sport England, for League Appointment Officers, with the primary focus of increasing the number of matches covered by a qualified referee. The East Kent Youth Football League, Kent Girls and Ladies Football League and the Medway Messenger Youth Football League were all successful in gaining £2,500 each.

“Again, this is a fantastic achievement for these Leagues, and shows how pro-active they have been towards referee development. We are looking to have 100% coverage of fixtures with a qualified referee, and these Leagues were identified as those with low coverage. With these new posts, we hope to build upon the current panel of Match Officials, thus increasing the number of games covered by a qualified referee”.

If you would like further details on National Referee Development Programme, or the Kent FA Partner League Incentive Scheme, see the documents attached to the bottom of this page.

For further information on refereeing in Kent, please contact Referee Development Officer, Nick Dunn – Nick.Dunn@KentFA.com