WE NEED YOUR VOICE......
PLEASE READ ON......
These are exciting times for all involved in schools rugby in England. With RWC 2015 with all its attendant publicity approaching fast, we have a gold-plated ‘once in a lifetime’ opportunity to promote and develop the playing of both the boys’ and the girls’ game in schools across the country. The All Schools programme, aiming over the next 4 years to embed Rugby Union in 700 schools new to the game is the hallmark vehicle to drive this growth, but there is much more: primary and secondary schools development programmes, on-line curriculum resources and the newly-launched Leadership Awards, dedicated coach and referee training for schools personnel, and all this added to the range of support and resources available to schools from the RFU’s now vastly expanded ‘field force’, RDOs, CRCs, etc., etc.
There’s no escaping the fact, however, that for all this excitement, we are facing some serious challenges largely concerning the public perception of our game, and ultimately the success of our efforts to maximise the opportunities offered by RWC 2015 will to a significant depend on how effectively we respond to these challenges. The emphasis on heavy collision in the professional game as portrayed on television and the recent debate surrounding the debilitating long-term effects of concussion have given rise in certain quarters to questions about the appropriateness of rugby as the sport for all in schools –the Headmaster of a leading rugby-playing school reported recently that he and a number of fellow Headmasters are now increasingly under pressure to allow young boys not to play rugby.
In response to these challenges, and always holding on to its determination to be seen as child-centred in all that it does, the RFU has over the past few years been endeavouring to develop its youth rugby regulations and has been examining the way the game is organised for, delivered to, and played by young people up to the age of 18 in both clubs and schools. Additionally, it has been working to produce an integrated competitions framework across the whole schools/youth spectrum, this to provide all with appropriate competitive opportunities while avoiding undue demands being made of young players. At a series of Roadshows held across the country during the last three months of 2013, club-based stakeholders have already shared their thoughts on how the youth game should be shaped over the coming years, and an interesting concensus has emerged in respect of both principle and practice.
As yet, however, and for all the opportunities offered by the Roadshows to which schools representatives were invited, the schools voice has barely been heard on these matters. It is vitally important that the key decisions that will be made shortly concerning the mini, junior and youth game as played in both clubs and schools are based on the widest possible consultative process, and therefore it is crucial that the views of those engaged from week to week delivering rugby in a curricular context in schools be heard. Without schools involvement, this consultation process would be fundamentally flawed!
To make this possible, the ERFSU and the RFU Education Development Department working together are calling a one-day conference on May 11th next in the Midlands and we would urge as many colleagues as possible representing all aspects of the schools game to attend and contribute vigorously to the debate. In advance of the meeting and to inform what will take place, briefing papers setting out the day’s programme, the RFU’s rationale for change and development, and some options regarding playing formats and competition structures will be circulated – those intending to be with us should therefore register their intention with Megan Thomas at Twickenham (). Historically the Schools Union has played a dynamic role in the development of our great game. It is vital that we continue so to do!