What are the benefits of being in the School of Excellence?
Coaches
Each referee in the School of Excellence is assigned a Referee Coach from the School of Excellence Staff that provides support, encouragement and advice throughout the season.
Luton Town
School of Excellence Referees are appointed to referee Luton Town youth matches in addition to the matches they referee on local leagues. These matches are played in an environment where no criticism or abuse is tolerated and this creates an excellent development opportunity where referees can try new things without fair of criticism. Each match is observed by a Referee Coach who provides feedback to the officials on how they can develop.
Meetings
Meetings are held monthly at which the School of Excellence referees can share match incidents and discuss refereeing issues. Guest speakers are also invited and this season the School of Excellence has been fortunate to train with former FIFA Assistant Referee Mike Tingey, listen to The FA's Head of National Referee Development Ian Blanchard and learn from Bedfordshire's own Premier League and FIFA Assistant Referee, Simon Beck.
Fitness
This season we have introduced education on diet and fitness and offered the referees a training opportunity once a month under the guidance of the School of Excellence Fitness Coordinator and Luton based Football League Referee, Graham Horwood.
Tournaments and Trips
We provide as many opportunities as possible for referees to represent the School of Excellence and the county at tournaments in Bedfordshire, nationally and internationally.
In 2008 opportunities were provided to referee at Kenilworth Road in Luton Town's own youth tournament. We also took two large groups to Butlins in May, one to Bognor Regis and another to Skegness.
We also sent 6 officials to Italy, courtesy of AVC Sports, all expenses paid for a week in the mountains refereeing at a training camp with Stevenage, Chelsea and teams from Europe and America.
2009 sees a repeat of the Butlins trips, this time to Minehead instead of Bognor, and also has provided the opportunity for Russell Endacott to attend the Dallas Cup in America as a representative of The Football Association.
Social Events
Each year we have a number of social events as a group. Our Christmas Meal has been a great success and this season saw a Secret Santa exchange of gifts that was great fun. We also have a quiz where we try to provide prizes for those most knowledgable about football.
Our end of season social event this year will provide the opportunity for referees to show off their ball skills in a 7 aside game before a meal and a quiz/karaoke event.
What is expected of a School of Excellence Referee?
There are a lot of positives to being in School of Excellence and as such, much is expected of them.
All School of Excellence referees sign a contract outlining the behaviours and attitudes that they must display at all times. Poor behaviour is not tolerated at any time, whether on School of Excellence duty or not.
Attendance at meetings is compulsory and referees are expected at all times to be positive, receptive to constructive criticism and take advantage of all opportunities to develop their skills.
All School of Excellence members must complete self assessments for every game in which they officiate within 48 hours so that their coach can identify any issues and monitor their progress.
How do you get selected to join the School of Excellence?
Interest in the School of Excellence is high and we have limited places - currently there are 26 referees in the School of Excellence. Therefore we undertake a process of identification and eventual selection of the most promising referees.
Identification can be through your attitude and enthusiasm which may be noted by the Referee Development Officer or through feedback to the RDO by other referees/assessors/mentors/ clubs/leagues etc.
All those considered to have the potential are invited to an Open Evening with their families in June or July where further information is provided. Those wishing to be considered then put themselves forward for a selection interview from which those who are deemed to be the most committed and able to progress are offered places.
School of Excellence places are under constant review and those who do not meet the requirements are asked to leave. This is not a commitment to be undertaken lightly.
Who is in the School of Excellence?
At the moment the School of Excellence consists of the following referees:
Adam Ryan
Alex Rayment
Ben Crawley
Blayne Robinson
Ian Wright
Jason Dass
Jeff Aldous
John Durnford
Lee Haywood
Lewis Fowler
Mark Stevens
Matt Burton
Matthew McCarthy
Nathan Davis
Pete Nemeth
Robbie Hyde
Russell Endacott
Sam Brown
Sam Lewis
Sam Montford
Stuart Pater
Tom Danaher
Tom Jiggins
Tom Ratheram
Tom Spicer
Yasmin Moore
Does the School of Excellence work?
The School of Excellence does not guarantee success. Equally not being part of the School of Excellence does not mean you cannot progress.
However we now have two former School of Excellence referees operating at Level 3, both in their early 20s. This season two of our referees have received nominations to The Football Association for promotion to Level 4. Four referees were promoted to Level 5 in March 2009 and a further four to Level 7. Twenty four of the School of Excellence referees were recognised with County Cup Final appointments.
For further information on the School of Excellence or to express your interest in becoming a School of Excellence referee, please contact Chris Checketts on refereeing@bedfordshirefa.com.