WWFC Covid Recovery Fundraiser #MakeUsRoar

Aim

Help WWFC raise £12k and come back roaring in 21/22, so we continue to provide amazing football experiences for all our players & supporters

Woburn & Wavendon Football Club

Woburn & Wavendon Football Club (formerly Woburn Lions and Woburn Lionesses) was founded in 1976 and is one of the oldest and largest clubs in the area.

Non profit-making and 100% volunteer run, Woburn & Wavendon F.C. is an F.A. Charter Standard Community Club. Accredited with Community Club status means the club is among the country’s best; proven to be well run, sustainable and places child protection, quality coaching and safety as paramount. 

Most of all, The Lions & Lionesses are ALL ABOUT HAVING FUN. We aim to help all our players develop their full footballing potential, make friends and enjoy loads of smiles along the way.

WWFC Crowdfunding FAQ: http://bit.ly/wwfc-faq

What does WWFC offer?

• WWFC support 550 boys and girls of all abilities playing for 44 teams from age 5 to adult, ran by 95+ qualified volunteer coaches from FA Level 1 to UEFA B.
• Playing matches in 5 leagues, across 3 counties from MKDDL to Beds FA Girls, watched and supported by over 1,000 parents.
• We provide weekly Goalability football sessions for pan-disability children.
• We're also officially sanctioned as an FA Wildcats Centre, providing a pathway for almost 200 girls into the club's football teams in the last 2 years.
• As part of the FA’s Pitch Improvement Programme, our team of volunteers manage and provide ground care for 21 pitches on 9 different sites.
• And... we run two of the largest grassroots football tournaments in South East England every year:
  • 300 boys, mixed and girls teams took part in 18/19.
  • With teams from all over the the UK and Europe.
  • Supported by over 11,000 spectators.
  • Organised and run entirely by volunteers.

The importance of WWFC in the community

WWFC operates in a mixed rural and urbanised area. Our playing locations are mainly located in and around rural villages in Central Bedfordshire and North Buckinghamshire. Here grassroots football is one of the few regular participation sports available. However just over 20% of our membership is from BME groups, especially derived from urbanised Milton Keynes. The Club operates a policy of "participation first" whereby low income families can be offered reduced membership subscriptions, and many youngsters without the means to attend sessions are given assistance.

WWFC is so proud to be the focus for regular healthy community engagement for not only hundreds of boys and girls of all abilities and backgrounds, but also for thousands of multi-generational families, carers and friends. The club provides a unique focus for fun and friendship through football, and especially provides opportunities for community engagement and support. A great example is WWFC's community involvement in Remembrance Weekend - we are one of the biggest supporters of Poppies4kits in the UK, and our ongoing support of Stonewall's Rainbow Laces Campaign for inclusivity in sport.

How was the club doing pre-covid?

WWFC was in an exceptionally good position prior to COVID. We had developed an operating model that has been able to grow the Club year on year, with more members enjoying more participation at more sites than ever before and 100% volunteer run. All teams have been provided with new training and playing kit, receive regular pro-coaching, train on 3G floodlit pitches in winter months, and all for one of the most reasonable member subscription fees around.

Above all, the Club has gained and retained the highest level of FA Charter Standard accreditation for grassroots clubs - Community Club. This means that our systems and processes for operating are spot on. Financially secure for many years, this has meant the Club has been able to focus on long term development and improvement plans as well as continuing and building upon the valuable community initiatives we already have in place.

Why are we raising money?

COVID has seen the decimation of two consecutive football seasons. This has had a significant impact on revenue generated from three main areas:

• Club Tournaments
• Sponsorship
• Subscriptions

Our club run four of the largest and most successful football tournaments in the country. Our boys and girls events have traditionally not only delivered masses of fun, friendship and football every year, they have also provided a very important income stream.

Cancelling our tournaments has cost the club approximately £30k in revenue over the last two seasons, which combined with reduced sponsorship of around £5k makes it imperative that we try to raise money to safeguard current and future community initiatives.

Their loss, combined with reduced subscription income, means that these highly valued yet costly community initiatives may have to be reduced or stopped at a time when they are needed most.

Initiatives such as:

• GoalAbility, pan-disability sessions.
• Wildcats, introducing girls to all the fun and friendship of football.
• Under 6 Cubs, sessions to get boys and girls introduced to grassroots football.
• Club Referee Scheme, subsidised courses enabling older players to progress into refereeing.
• WWFC Pitch Improvement, investment in improving the condition and robustness of all our playing surfaces.

All of these initiatives rely upon income surpluses the Club generates, and with the loss of so many income streams, each and every initiative may have to suffer.

Equally impacted are the Club's longer term plans to improve sustainability and the delivery of football locally. In the next two years the Club is set to take control of significant new playing venues in Wavendon. This requires substantial investment in basic equipment such as goals and storage containers. Again, lost income as a result of COVID will impact our ability to deliver.

These facilities are not only important for our existing members, they are also vital for those moving to the new housing developments in Wavendon. We already have more than 50 boys & girls waiting to join/form new WWFC teams. Your support will help deliver the new facilities and equipment we need to drive our community forward again post COVID.

WWFC needs to be a catalyst for healthy community engagement and participation for the fastest growing area in the fastest growing city in the UK. The impact of COVID means this mission is even more important.

How does crowdfunding work?

We have set a target of £12,000 to be raised over 4 weeks. So please share our page far and wide on all your social media - we need our 'crowd' to be huge. Even the smallest of pledges will help #MakeUsRoar!

Even better, if we reach £3,000 from your pledges and donations, Sport England will pledge up to 50% (£6,000) on top of that. If we're successful with our application that would leave us with only a further £3,000 of our £12,000 total to raise. How good is that?

Have a good look at our pledge levels, as there really is something for everyone, with varied rewards at each level from a simple thank you, all the way up to our WWFC Oligarch Trophy! Along with the rewards gifted to us by generous local businesses and our wonderful club sponsors, we have a number of branded products we're also offering as rewards:

Don't delay, pledge today! The more money we raise, the more football we can provide, not just for our current players, but for all future Lions & Lionesses. We are a valued part of the local sporting community and hope that you can contribute towards our fundraising efforts; and help...

UPDATE: Tom Cruise helps make our mission possible!

This month, Mission Impossible 7 came to town, filming at an undisclosed location right next to one of our pitches (shh)! It turns out Hollywood blockbuster films require a LOT of space. So when they politely asked us if we could relocate our matches, we had to oblige. Not only did the production make a donation to the local Parish Council to help us find a temporary playing location, they were also kind enough to get none other than Tom Cruise himself to sign a few of our shirts!

Check out the rewards to get your hands on one and don't delay, as this page will self destruct in 5, 4, 3...

#MakeUsRoar

This project successfully funded on 4th June 2021