Wheelchair football at South London Special League
Sharon Brokenshire has been working in the area of community sport for over a decade and, in 2004, she set up the South London Special League. Five years later, the league is bigger than ever.
How would you describe the work you do?
We enable all people at all levels of the game, whatever their ability to access the game of football. Through football, we can not only enable people to play, but to improve their lives.
Over the last two years, we have enabled thousands of people to access the game at whatever level they are able to play. We play small-sided football as it enables someone to play a much more immediate type of game and does not require a huge level of fitness.
We’ve taken on board the FA’s Respect campaign, and we have celebrated fair play from day one. We work together to make sure everyone can play at a level they enjoy.
Football is the vehicle, it’s not the end product. We want to see more people playing football, but it’s the vehicle to improve their lives. Through that they build self-esteem, build their aspirations and build their breadth of experience.
How did you first get involved in the work you do?
I used to work in special education schools and loved doing project work with the kids. I was head of PE at a school, and I thought “these kids get completely excluded from the national game.”
In 2000, we received a grant for a special needs tournament and it was fantastic.
In 2004 I received a grant from the Football Foundation. In five years, we’ve gone from strength to strength.
In five years we’ve gone from one league meeting a couple of times a term to twelve different divisions.
How have Kick It Out helped you?
The Kick It Out campaign has supported our work for a long time, with funding and with advice.
I think that Kick It Out and the One Game, One Community scheme have done a huge job in bringing our community together, and I think that London is better than anywhere else in the country when it comes to being together.
We know we have differences but we want to share those differences and celebrate those differences.
In five years time where do you see yourself and your organisation?
I want to get sustainability, I want to feel that in five years time I could stand back and be a trustee and the project would still continue. I want it to be sustainable.
If I turned away from it now, I feel it might lose its motivation, I have a great team, but we need more sustainability, we need to feel like we’re not always scraping for funding. We want to feel secure and part of the community.
What advice would you give to anyone looking to replicate the work you do?
It was hard to begin with, because I had to believe in it, and the SLSL had no money. There were times when I didn’t have enough to pay myself. Just like any other business, you’ve got to believe in it, and keep thinking ‘next month will be better’.
I had to stand on my own two feet and make the project work by what you believe in. In 2007, we won the best grassroots football project in the country from UEFA. I believe in grassroots opportunities for sport, and I don’t think we should ever lose sight of that.
For more information on the South London Special League, please visit sl-sl.co.uk
