Nottingham Vipers

Aim

Support Nottingham Vipers female ice hockey team survive, rebuild and grow as we begin our independence.

Who are we?

The Nottingham Vipers are a female ice hockey team playing in Women’s National Ice Hockey League Division 1 (“WNIHL1”), the second tier of female ice hockey in the UK.

The Vipers cater for all standards of player from new starters through to advanced level. During the team’s long and renowned history, it has provided an environment for women and girls to play competitive ice hockey. Some choose to do this as part of their recreational activities, whilst for others it may form part of a pathway to elite level, female ice hockey. 

Our youngest players for games can be just 14 years of age and there is no upper age limit. We also train players below the playing age as part of their development. As little ago as 2019, the Vipers were crowned WNIHL1 League champions. Yet our enthusiastic coaching and management team know that participation and improvement are the most important aspects of each season’s journey. 

Why are we crowdfunding?

We need to raise funds because we became an independent organisation recently. We are starting out without any funds in hand. Prior to this we were part of a bigger, mixed gender club. But due to the energy and cost of living crisis, training sessions for the female programme had already been cut and concerns over commitment to the 2023/24 women’s season was growing.

As a separate entity for the first time in our history, we will be spending funds raised to assist in the provision of weekly female ice hockey training for the 2023/24 season. Our coaches and managers are unpaid volunteers and our players pay-to-play, but we will still fall short of the total funds needed to operate for next season. Funds raised may therefore also be put toward game ice time, referees’ costs and training equipment.

Community impact

Nottingham is a major centre for ice hockey in the UK. It hosts a men’s professional Elite League team, an amateur junior club for all ages up to 18, a vibrant university ice hockey scene, and numerous learn to play programmes run by the National Ice Centre. As a result, there is a constant stream of new entrant fans wanting to pursue the sport, and existing players moving to the area, looking to play. 

It is recognised that females of all ages are less likely to participate in sporting activity than their male counterparts. The risk of drop-out for female ice hockey players in mixed gender teams significantly increases from age 13 onwards. A substantial number choose to switch to the female-only teams of the Women’s National Ice Hockey League sometime between the ages of 14 and 18. Once of adult age, it is unusual for a female player to be offered a place in theNational Ice Hockey League, which is substantially comprised of male players.

Without the Nottingham Vipers ice hockey programme and its place in WNIHL1, the pathway for female players in the area will either ground to a halt completely, or at best be significantly limited in what is on offer.

How you can play your part

There are four simple ways to help us reach our target, and make this project a reality.

1. Make a pledge. Don’t delay if you’re going to support us because momentum is key to our success!

2. Spread the word. Share our project on your social media pages and tell the world to get behind us! The more people we reach, the more support we will get.

3. Offer rewards. Get involved if you are a local business by donating things we can offer to our supporters. We will give you a shout out!

4. Fundraise for us. If you want to run your own fundraiser – maybe a sponsored activity or similar – use the 'contact project' button at the top of our page to let us know. Setting up your own page only takes a few minutes and you won’t need any bank details. Just a fun idea!

This project successfully funded on 27th July 2023