A new football steward training academy is set to launch in London after the Mayor of London and the Premier League announced a £1.2 million partnership aimed at improving matchday safety while creating new employment opportunities across the capital. The new Premier League Stewarding Academy will begin this summer and will be delivered by Capital City College, offering training, recognised qualifications and career pathways for both existing stewards and Londoners looking to enter the spectator safety sector.
The Premier League Stewarding Academyis being jointly funded by the Mayor of London and the Premier League and is intended to address growing demand for trained stewards at football grounds and other live events.
According to the announcement, London’s football industry currently relies on around 5,000 active stewards working across multiple venues, while requiring approximately 1,500 new recruits every year. The programme aims to help meet that demand by supporting 1,500 Londoners to gain spectator safety qualifications and helping 1,000 people move into employment within the sector.
Capital City College, London’s largest further education college, will provide the training for the Premier League Stewarding Academy, focusing on practical skills, professional confidence and industry qualifications designed for stewarding and spectator safety roles.
The academy will initially focus on London but has been designed with the potential to become a wider model for steward recruitment, training and career development across football.
The programme also reflects the approach used by the Mayor’s existing Skills Academies, which have supported more than 24,000 Londoners into work paying at least the London Living Wage.
Alongside training, the partnership will also focus on creating safe and welcoming environments for supporters attending football matches. Planned work includes measures aimed at tackling discrimination and improving the experience for fans across London’s stadiums.
Environmental sustainability also forms part of the partnership. The Mayor and the Premier League say they intend to support clubs in moving towards net-zero carbon emissions by encouraging more sustainable practices.
London is currently home to six Premier League clubs: Arsenal, Brentford, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur. The longer-term ambition is for the partnership to extend across all of the capital’s professional football clubs.
The initiative also delivers on the Mayor’s manifesto commitment to work with the Premier League and the English Football League to improve training and career opportunities for people working within football.
The Premier League says its contribution forms part of wider investment in training and employment across the UK. During the 2023/24 season, the competition supported 104,500 full-time equivalent jobs, while league-funded community programmes have also delivered employability projects for young people.
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