My name is Charlie Garrod. I have always had a huge love and passion for football whether it's playing, coaching or volunteering. I currently play for Mossley Hill Ladies who are in Tier 6. I am at the Steven Gerrard Academy studying a Level 3 BTEC. I am a volunteer coach at Liverpool Feds WFC. I also attended the FA Leadership Academy 2023. Alongside this, I am also a part of Liverpool County FA Youth Council and FA Regional Youth Network for the 23/24 season. All of this has shaped me into the person I am today.

My football journey began at the age of 4. Over the years my love for the sport has only grown stronger as I could have easily given up due to all the setbacks I have faced. Now playing at a high level of football I continue to live out my passion and dedication to further develop my skills and confidence.

At the age of 14, I began volunteering as a coach for Liverpool Feds WFC. This experience helped me to develop myself as a coach and from this I was able to get a fully funded place on the UEFA C Licence course. I always take every opportunity that comes so that I can further grow my confidence and leadership skills.

During this time I grew a relationship with my local County FA who were there to help and support me as a young person. From this, I became a member of their Youth Council where I was able to share my passion for football with others whilst making a positive change in our local football community. I then joined the FA Regional Youth Network for the 23/24 season. This has allowed me to further develop and share these changes within the wider community across England.

Last year I took part in the FA Leadership Academy 2023 which is a 12-month learning and development programme for Youth leaders aged 16-24. It involves taking part in personal development workshops to help you learn the skills to be able to deliver a project to make a positive impact in your local community. Through my own coaching experiences, I noticed that there was a gap between local Grassroots Football and Weetabix Wildcats so this is what I decided my project would be focused on. My project “Funcats Festival” set out to encourage girls ages 5-11 to join Wildcats programmes whilst also bringing in girls of all abilities to develop their skills via round-robin stations which led to matches to end the day. The 2 camps I ran were supported by the LCFA staff and various volunteers who helped the day run smoothly and safely. I also had Ex Liverpool women's player Natasha Dowie come down for a Q&A and presentation with medals and certificates for all the girls involved. Following on from the success of the 2 camps I want to keep growing and getting more girls involved.

How are you involved in football? Could you get more involved in your local County FA? What changes would you like to make within your local community?