Five years ago, any person in Oxfordshire living with a physical disability who wanted to play football in an appropriate and secure environment faced a four-hour round trip to do so.
For many kids, the only opportunity to play, therefore, was as the sole child with a disability in their local football team – often a challenging situation.
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When learning about this lack of opportunity, I was determined to make a difference.
With help from Cerebral Palsy Sport and support of the Summertown Stars FC committee, we advertised and recruited for Oxfordshire’s first physical disability football team.
Our first session had just four players.
Now, we have a squad of 17 fantastic youngsters aged four upwards who attend fortnightly sessions on the artificial turf at St Philip and St James primary school in north Oxford.
Our players are unbelievably passionate about football and give every session their all. Sessions are free, and we even provide kit thanks to our sponsors Chris Lewis Group – Fire and Security who generously support the team.
Summertown Stars FC Warriors is primarily a chance for kids living with a physical disability to train and play with friends. We welcome anyone who wants to give football a go. It’s important to remember, though, that our players can be just as sporty and competitive as those without disabilities.
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This was evident when our frame football team won the National Frame Football Tournament at St George’s Park – home of the England football squads. We also compete in the Berks, Bucks and Oxon Inclusion League, and several of our players are on the England Para Football pathway.
(Image: Fortitude Communications) Beyond achievements on the pitch, the community aspect of our club really shines through.
While the kids are playing football, parents get the chance to chat to others facing similar challenges while their siblings can join in with sessions, help with coaching or support on the sidelines.
It’s a genuine joy to see everyone each fortnight.
That joy was translated to the team itself recently when Oxford United in the Community, the football club’s official charity, kindly donated its Guard of Honour package to our players in recognition of the progress made in recent years.
We had a truly amazing day (last month’s game against Burnley).
Many of our players support their local team so it was an opportunity for them to meet their heroes, be pitch side and take in the pre-match atmosphere and watch the game in the company of our fantastic volunteer coaches and some of the U’s younger players.
It was also pleasing to learn about the growth of Oxford United in the Community’s own inclusion football sessions with Abingdon and Witney College which further support the provision of disability sport in Oxfordshire through funded weekly sessions.
Football creates communities, and we’re a community determined to offer sporting opportunities to kids with physical disabilities. Anyone living with a physical disability who would like to try football can contact disability@summertownstars.org.
Sarah Griffiths, volunteer and founder of Summertown Stars FC Warriors
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About the author
Andy is the Trade and Tourism reporter for the Oxford Mail and you can sign up to his newsletters for free here.
He joined the team more than 20 years ago and he covers community news across Oxfordshire.
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