Fylde Rugby Community Foundation: Breaking Football's Stronghold
In the coastal communities of Fylde, Wyre, and Blackpool, where football traditionally reigns supreme, the Fylde Rugby Community Foundation is carving out space for women's and girls' rugby. Based at Woodlands Memorial Ground in Lytham St Annes, they're diversifying the sporting landscape in North West England.
The Foundation, launched in March 2020, has been significantly bolstered by nearly £70,000 of National Lottery funding since 2020, distributed through Sport England and The National Lottery Community Fund. This substantial support has enabled diverse initiatives, with particular focus on making rugby accessible to girls and young women.
Their impact hasn't gone unnoticed. In September 2024, the Foundation was honoured as Winners of the Fylde Sports Awards 2024 in the 'Contribution to Active Communities' category. The Foundation benefits from distinguished leadership, with Sir Bill Beaumont CBE DL, Chairman of World Rugby, serving as Honorary President.
At the heart of their women's rugby development is their school outreach programme. In a region where young female athletes might instinctively gravitate towards football, the Foundation offers a compelling alternative. Some schools now host after-school rugby sessions regularly attended by 15 to 20 girls.
"There was a need for funding. Girls were struggling to play basically. This funding enabled us to go and deliver taster sessions in schools, which then feeds into our girls' rugby side that we're setting up," explains Phil Mills, Foundation Director.
The Foundation's growing girls' rugby programme received nearly £10,000 in 2022 specifically to deliver rugby taster sessions in schools and provide weekly sports activities to young girls from disadvantaged backgrounds.
Mills recognises the broader momentum: "Women's sport is experiencing a real boom. I think just from it being more accessible in the media and there are more opportunities to get involved."
As England hosts the Women's Rugby World Cup this summer, we're witnessing the culmination of three decades of National Lottery support that has transformed women and girls' rugby from the grassroots up.
This grassroots work demonstrates how over the last 30 years, by investing over £6 billion into more than 90,000 grassroots clubs and organisations, The National Lottery has been game-changing for women and girls' sport, creating foundations for women's rugby growth even in football-centric communities.
The National Lottery raises £30 million for good causes every week, with a significant portion helping to level the playing field for women and girls in sport across the UK.
