INSPIRING A GENERATION

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1 INSPIRING A GENERATION

2 The Rugby Football League is committed to growing and supporting the girls and women s game. This Framework brings together all the ways that women are involved in Rugby League as volunteers, administrators, coaches, supporters and most importantly as players. The Framework is the basis for a game-wide campaign which builds on the commitment and dedication of club, school and college volunteers, and will take the sport to the home World Cup in This new, focused and funded campaign for girl s and women s Rugby League is made possible by support from Sport England, community clubs and volunteers, professional clubs and Foundations and the Rugby Football League s many partners. Campaigning for girls and women s Rugby League is already showing strong results and I encourage all partners to get in touch with the Participation, Development and Performance team. There s never been a better time to get involved. RALPH RIMMER, INTERIM CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER, THE RUGBY FOOTBALL LEAGUE These are exciting times for the women s game and it is vital that the energy and enthusiasm shown by players, coaches, volunteers and supporters is allowed to blossom and grow. A proper framework within which they can develop is exactly what is needed, and even at this early stage the signs are that the Rugby Football League s vision and support structure for women and girls is heading in the right direction. ANGELA POWERS, SKY SPORTS AND FOUNDER HER LEAGUE

3 CAMPAIGNING FOR GIRLS AND WOMEN S RUGBY LEAGUE The Rugby Football League will support new, free, marketing and promotion activity by all community clubs wishing to grow or start girls teams, aligned to Sport England s awardwinning, national This Girl Can campaign. On behalf of the sport, the Rugby Football League will work with other sports - in particular team sports such as football - that have significantly increased female participation and learn from them. The Rugby Football League will also work with partners to maximise the potential of the female fanbase. We know that 42% of ticket buyers to Rugby League events are women a better gender ratio than many major sports. This means more female decision makers are familiar with and respect the sport. The sport has significant opportunities at major events from Magic Weekend to the Challenge Cup weekend to make the case for women s Rugby League with its passionate fan base. COMMITMENT: To provide free campaigning and marketing assets to clubs and partners across the sport to support the recruitment of new players and the increased profile and commerciality of the sport.

4 MORE PARTICIPANTS The number of women playing Rugby League is historically small - in particular in the club setting. But this is changing. The sport is committed to growing the number of female participants by 5% year on year by This includes girls and women playing all formats of Rugby League including Touch Rugby League; Tag Rugby League and full contact Rugby League. Our commitment covers all education and club settings. In secondary schools we will build on the growth of girls teams in recent years in the flagship Champion Schools competition and work with partner schools, and schools new to the sport, to increase the number of girls teams entering the competition. Further work is underway to align schools activity to growth in clubs to ensure that as many girls as possible have a meaningful exit route from the Champion Schools competition. We have developed a new College competition for girls aged In addition, the first female player has joined the TASS (Talented Athlete Scholarship Scheme) programme and we will work with partners to grow this opportunity for the most talented players. Starting with schools and Sky Try As a sport we will build on considerable success at the youngest age groups where we see very encouraging signs - through the sport s children s participation programme Sky Try and great primary aged Rugby League in community clubs. Sky Try is delivered by leading Rugby League Foundations in schools and at primary age there are large numbers of girls playing the game. We need more of them to stay in the sport, whether in full-contact or Tag or Touch Rugby League. Sky Try is also introducing more very young girls to the sport outside of club Rugby League. Some will go onto to join a community club; others will play schools Rugby League and still more will become the supporters, volunteers and fans of the future. COMMITMENT: To grow the number of girls and women playing the version of Rugby League that is right for them by 5% year on year from

5 NEW PATHWAY - FROM REGIONAL AND NATIONAL HUBS TO THE ENGLAND WOMEN S TEAM A new single pathway will include new Development Hubs (in 2018) in the North West, Central Yorkshire and West Yorkshire for girls at 14 and at 16. These regional hubs will feed into a National Hub (2019) providing a dedicated England coaching environment for talented players (U16s). The Rugby Football League will fund the Women s Super League founder clubs to grow the number of players and teams at community clubs (12, 14, 16 age groups). COMMITMENT: To deliver high quality regional Development Hubs and a National Hub. To support growth in the community game with additional teams, and resilience in existing teams.

6 COMMUNITY CLUBS COMMUNITY CLUB PRIMARY RUGBY LEAGUE COMMUNITY CLUBS (16+) OTHER SECONDARY SCHOOLS DELIVERY WOMEN S GIRLS TALENT HUBS OTHER PRIMARY SCHOOLS DELIVERY COLLEGE - CLUB PARTNERSHIP PRIMARY RUGBY LEAGUE AGE RANGE

7 ENGLAND WOMEN TO WIN IN 2021 The Rugby League World Cup 2021 will be held in England and the women s tournament will be played alongside the men s. The tournament, associated festivals and community activities present a unique opportunity to inspire a generation and deliver a step-change in participation in girls and women s Rugby League. As a non-olympic and non-commonwealth Games sport, Rugby League is ineligible for UK Sport funding. Some of the Sport England investment in the sport is utilised in support of the national team programme. As now, the England Women s squad will be drawn from community Rugby League including the Women s Super League, with adaptions made to development and training opportunities given that players are in fulltime education or work. The England Women s programme is now part of the new England Performance Unit under the direction of the Rugby Football League s Rugby Director Kevin Sinfield MBE, supported by a multi-disciplinary team. COMMITMENT: To put the England Women s team in the best position possible to win at RLWC2021.

8 THE WOMEN S SUPER LEAGUE THE FRAMEWORK The Women s Super League is a new elite competition at the top of the grassroots game. All players are community players. The Women s Super League was soft launched in 2017 and the inaugural winners were Bradford Bulls Women following an outstanding Grand Final against Featherstone Rovers Ladies held on Super League Grand Final Day in front of an enthusiastic crowd at the Regional Arena, Manchester. There are x12 Founder Clubs of the Women s Super League all committed to working together to inspire a generation and to grow the grassroots game for every girl and woman who wants to play. The Founder Clubs of the Women s Super League: Bradford Bulls; Castleford Tigers; Featherstone Rovers; Huddersfield Giants; Hull FC; Hull KR; Leeds Rhinos; St Helens; Wakefield Trinity; Widnes Vikings; Wigan Warriors; York City Knights. The Women s Super League competition 2018 will feature seven elite teams, and all Founder Clubs will play in the WSL by the ways that girls and women can get involved in the sport. Further support will ensure that the Women s Championship competition remains a vibrant, exciting and high-quality competition. Underpinning the competition tiers is the Merit League, a flexible and more informal competition offer for teams who are developing or starting out in the sport. COMMITMENT: To grow the Women s Super League competition to a x12 team commercial competition by To support all tiers of competition in the women s game to ensure players have a competitive playing offer that s right for them. To work with media partners to increase the coverage of Women s Rugby League by 100% including the first ever televised Women s Super League fixture and regular streamed content. Women s sport in generally is poorly covered by mainstream sports media and makes up just 7% of all sports media coverage in the UK. The Women s Super League has already increased media interest in women s Rugby League but there is a considerable way to go. The new tier builds on and supports the commitment of community clubs to grow the women s game by harnessing the power of professional club brands to inspire participation, to raise the profile and increase the reach of the sport. The Rugby Football League will work with campaigning partners including Sport England and Women in Sport to drive the agenda for greater coverage of women s sport including Rugby League. Women s Super League teams share some of the marketing and coaching support available at the pro-club. Women s Super League teams are also actively involved in the supporting and growing the girls and women s pathway in their area. Women s Super League is already driving up standards of play which will put the sport in the right place for England Women to win in As well as engaging more media, it also represents a fantastic new opportunity for more partners and sponsors to demonstrate their commitment to equity and diversity and outstanding Rugby League. England Rugby League International Lois Forsell is the first-ever Women s Rugby League ambassador, supported by the Rugby Football League, and a programme of activities will see her promoting all

9 MORE FEMALE COACHES. AND MORE SUPPORT FOR COACHES OF GIRLS AND WOMEN S RUGBY LEAGUE The Rugby Football League and our partners UK Coaching will extend the successful Reach into Coaching project which last year enabled 20 women involved in informal coaching of children s Rugby League, or who were new to coaching, to gain a Level 1 (or 2) qualification. Coach development support will be offered to clubs already growing or looking to grow girls teams, particularly at age 14. Coach development support will reflect some of the specific requirements of coaching in the women s game and a flexible and evidence-based approach will inform the programme and investment. In addition, the Rugby Football League has launched Coach Support: Girls a fund for coaching course places for coaches intending to grow girls Rugby League at clubs in areas of significant socio-economic deprivation. COMMITMENT: To double the Reach into Coaching programme from 2018 onwards. To support club coaches and encourage the best coaches to deliver to girls and women. To ensure that socio-economic deprivation is not a barrier to starting coaching.

10 MORE FEMALE MATCH OFFICIALS Match Officials are vital to the sport; without them there is no Rugby League grassroots or professional. There are a small and growing number of female Match Officials who are progressing through the sport and have the potential to reach the highest level. The Rugby Football League is working with regional Referee Societies to step up the recruitment of young women and to provide a supportive and positive development environment for young women aged 14+ who take up this opportunity. COMMITMENT: To both grow the number of female Match Officials by 5% year on year, and to support those Match Officials who wish to make a part-time or full-time career in officiating.

11 SUPPORT WOMEN ACROSS THE SPORT Rugby League is a male dominated sport - however increasing numbers of women work and volunteer in the sport at all levels. On behalf of the sport, the Rugby Football League is supporting the successful Her League campaign to grow a new and informal network for women involved in Rugby League at any level. Her League, founded by leading national sports journalist Angela Powers, has celebrated women in Rugby League over many years and provides a natural home for women to network and support one another in playing, working and volunteering. The gender balance at the Rugby Football League is good and the entire workforce and Board are committed to helping to drive this network forward. The Her League mutual network will support women in sharing ideas and opportunities, as well as any challenges or concerns. It is hoped that the network will be championed by senior women across Rugby League, sports media and other sports and offer a positive space for all women in the sport. COMMITMENT: To help promote the Her League network to women across community clubs, professional clubs, education and other settings including women in Rugby League in the Forces, teaching and the Police Service.

12 REPORTING ON PROGRESS On behalf of the sport, the Rugby Football League will report on progress against the commitments in this Framework every quarter. Monitoring and evaluation will include extensive new surveys with players and coaches ensuring a full feedback loop with the most important people in the sport; as well as insight into the impact of interventions and campaigning on registrations, retention, profile, reach, commercialisation, contribution to the talent pathway, numbers of active coaches and teachers supporting the female game. Reporting on progress will be public and shared with funding and delivery partners, all clubs and Foundations, direct to players and coaches, our fellow sports, the Rugby Football League Board, Council and Community Board, the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Rugby League and the media. CONTACT INFORMATION For playing opportunities please contact: players@rfl.co.uk