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| 1. ACTION REQUIRED Age Grade Registration prize winners and new Prize Draw! Congratulations to the winners of our Age Grade Registration competition! We are now pleased to announce the Age Grade Girls Registration Prize Draw. Prizes include the opportunity to win a training session with an England Red Rose player and £2,000 club kit vouchers, meaning there are five opportunities to win! Honda Volunteer of the Year – Nominations now open! The Honda Volunteer of the Year Awards 2024 recognise volunteers for their achievements over the past 12 months. We want to celebrate all the volunteers who help make rugby happen, whether on the pitch or behind the scenes, and hear about those who make your club or organisation great. |
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| 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Club and CB Support and Webinars The RFU provides various ‘off field club support’ services – many of which are free. Find out how to access support on everything from Legal matters to insurance, as well as the wide range of upcoming webinars, in this section. Get Involved with touch to Twickenham After a successful first year in 2023, we are delighted to launch Touch to Twickenham in 2024. With 48 events around the country for U14 and U18 mixed-gendered school and college teams, Touch to Twickenham aims to get more schools and young people engaged with rugby and presents a fantastic opportunity for clubs to link with, and support, their local schools. Your chance to play at Twickenham with Play Together, Stay Together The Twickenham Takeover Day is returning in 2024! Once again eight community teams will have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play at the home of England Rugby. Find out how to enter in this section. |
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| 3. FOR AWARENESS Aggravation of Sanctions for all Match Official Abuse (MOA) cases from 1 January 2024 The RFU Head of Judiciary, Richard Whittam KC, has issued guidance to all disciplinary panels that any instance of Match Official Abuse (MOA) will be subject to mandatory aggravation of any sanction by a set number of weeks depending on the level of the offence. The additional weeks will be applied to every level of the adult game. Getting ready for Adult Player Registration Over the next few months, we will be sharing information to help your clubs and players get ready for Adult Player Registration. Further guidance will be shared in February’s Community Game Update. Clubs can start to get ready for Adult Player Registration by making sure that their current registered players have a verified email address and up-to-date personal details on the Game Management System (GMS). The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) 2024 Prohibited List The WADA 2024 Prohibited List came into effect on 1 January 2024. The Prohibited List details what substances and methods are banned in sport and applies to all players regardless of the level at which they play. Community News – monthly round up In case you missed them, check out some of the top community rugby stories over the last month from the England Rugby website. READ ONLINE > |
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RFU Community Game Update December
| COMMUNITY GAME UPDATE TUESDAY 12 DECEMBER READ ONLINE > |
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| 1. ACTION REQUIRED Age Grade Registration – Beat the 45 day deadline! With over 160,000 Age Grade players registered, it’s been a great start to the season. However, with the season starting in September, most unregistered Age-Grade players are now beyond the 45 day deadline and their club is now operating outside of the regulations. Access help with registration and discover incentives in this piece. Your chance to play at Twickenham with Play Together, Stay Together The Twickenham Takeover Day is returning in 2024! Once again eight community teams will have the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to play at the home of England Rugby. Find out how to enter in this section. |
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| 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Want to be a part of the Governance and Representation Review Group? Earlier this year, the RFU Council agreed to form a Governance and Representation Review group to review the RFU’s Governance structure. We are now inviting expressions of interest from the wider community to be a part of the group. Have you accessed our Grant Search Tool yet? Our free to use grant search facility allows you to search through the thousands of grants and loans that could help your club. Honda Volunteer Hospitality registrations for Guinness Six Nations As part of the Honda Volunteer Recognition Programme, club volunteers who already have match tickets to one of England’s Six Nations home fixtures can register for up to four tickets each for pre-match hospitality. Find out more in this section. Represent your Premiership Club at the Gallagher Premiership Final 2024 Premiership Rugby are giving sixteen young fans the chance to become part of the match day build-up as flag-bearers when the two finalists run out centre-stage. Register your interest in this section. |
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| 3. FOR AWARENESS The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) 2024 Prohibited List The WADA 2024 Prohibited List comes into effect on 1 January 2024. The Prohibited List details what substances and methods are banned in sport and applies to all players regardless of the level at which they play. RFU Annual Report 2022/23 Last week the RFU published its Annual Report for 2022/23. Read the key summary and highlights in this piece. DCMS Evaluation of Sport Survival Package The Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) has published an independent evaluation report into the Sport Survival Package initiated during the pandemic. The report highlights the significant investment that Rugby Union secured from this fund. Safeguarding Bulletin December’s Safeguarding Bulletin includes details of how the Safeguarding Team is following up with clubs following the club safeguarding audit, the DBS Update Service going live, a reminder on how to share concerns, and what’s to come in 2024. Coming Soon – England Rugby Advanced Coaching Workshop 2024/25 The England Rugby Advanced Coaching Workshop webinar will be going live for booking from 19 January. The completion of this webinar is essential to be able to book onto Part 1 of the England Rugby Advanced Coaching Award – Developing Advanced Coaching Practice. Thank you for joining our Adult Player Registration engagement sessions We would like to thank everyone who signed up to take part in the Adult Player Registration online engagement sessions held throughout October. Find out more about what happened at the sessions in this section. Heartfelt thanks from the Injured Players Foundation The IPF team have been reflecting on the year and want to say a massive THANK YOU for all the support you, your clubs and players have given us throughout 2023. Community News – monthly round up In case you missed them, check out some of the top community rugby stories over the last month from the England Rugby website. READ ONLINE > |
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RFU Community Game Update 14 November
| COMMUNITY GAME UPDATE TUESDAY 14 NOVEMBER 2023 READ ONLINE > |
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| 1. ACTION REQUIRED Age Grade Registration – Beat the 45 day deadline! With over 155,000 Age Grade players registered, it’s been a great start to the season. However, with the season starting in September, most unregistered Age-Grade players are now beyond the 45 day deadline and their club is now operating outside of the regulations. Access help with registration and discover incentives in this piece. Don’t forget to enter the Papa Johns Men’s Community Cup! The entry window for any 1st team playing in RFU Leagues from Regional 1 down to Counties 5 closes on 24 November – don’t miss your chance for cup glory and enter your team now! |
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| 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Volunteer Recruitment Project Applications are now open for a £500 grant to support the recruitment of more volunteers. Read more and find out how to apply. Boost your social media with #PlayTogetherStayTogether We’re giving community clubs the chance to win a Digital Promotional Pack to help you get more players back on the pitch. Find out how to enter the competition in this section. Regulation 7 Review – share your feedback! A review group has been set up to review the Payment Regulations. This group will look at the regulations themselves as well as the Payment Thresholds for each league, currently set out in RFU Regulation 7. Give your thoughts on the process through a short survey in this section. Upcoming Club Support Webinars The RFU Club Support team have a number of upcoming webinars to support clubs across a huge range of topics. Find out more information about each webinar and sign up! Have you used the Club Health Check yet? As part of our wider ‘Flourishing Rugby Communities’ strategy to help clubs ensure they are healthy both now and in the future, we have created an online self-assessment health check tool. Discover more and access the tool. |
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| 3. FOR AWARENESS Thank you from the RFU Safeguarding team! A huge thank you from the RFU Safeguarding Team to all clubs that were required to complete the annual Club Safeguarding Audit by the deadline. For more information and any questions, visit this section. Community News – monthly round up In case you missed them, check out some of the top community rugby stories over the last month from the England Rugby website. READ ONLINE > |
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RFU Community Game Update October 2023
| Community Game Update |
| 1.ACTION REQUIRED Community Rugby Support Fund 2023/24 The Community Rugby Support Fund for 2023/24 is now live! The purpose of this fund is to support voting member clubs, CBs and referee societies who are in greatest financial need and the window to make a claim closes on 7 November. Love Rugby – our new campaign for girls rugby Love Rugby is a new campaign to give girls a voice and raise visibility that rugby union is a game where girls belong. Find out more about the campaign. #PlayTogetherStayTogether – 2023/24 Season Play Together, Stay Together is back for the new season and we want you to get involved! Remind yourself of the campaign goals and find out how to get involved in this section. 135K and counting! Keep registering your Age Grade players Over 135,000 Age Grade players are now registered for 2023/24 – an increase of 35,000 since the last Community Game Update! Check out the support on offer to help get your players registered! 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Have your say on the next steps of Adult Registration Ahead of the start of Adult Registration next season, the RFU is seeking the views of players and those involved in player/team selection on the proposed next steps in the implementation of Adult Registration. Inclusion & Diversity Survey, Toolkit & Policy Guidance Check out the latest Inclusion & Diversity updates, including taking part in a survey, a new I&D toolkit to help the community game and more guidance on the Gender Participation Policy. Reduce your club’s running costs with the RFU Buying Group The RFU Buying Group is a service to support RFU Clubs in significantly reducing their running costs and helping your club to access the best value services from a broad range of approved suppliers. Find out more in this piece. Upcoming Club Support Webinars The RFU Club Support team have a number of upcoming webinars to support clubs across a huge range of topics. Find out more information about each webinar and sign up! Have you used the Club Health Check yet? As part of our wider ‘Flourishing Rugby Communities’ strategy to help clubs ensure they are healthy both now and in the future, we have created an online self-assessment health check tool. Discover more and access the tool. 3. FOR AWARENESS RFU Pregnancy and Match Official Guidance This guidance document outlines points to consider in relation to match officials who are pregnant or have recently given birth. Removing barriers to match officiating benefits the whole game – check out the guidance now. GMS – Email verification & inputting fixtures With the season underway, it’s a great time to make sure that individuals have a unique, verified email address on GMS and that your fixtures are being inputted on the system. Player Welfare resources Read the latest updates from the RugbySafe programme, from the updated HEADCASE toolkit to the case studies recently covered in the media. DBS Update Service All staff and volunteers that require a DBS check will now be prompted to join the DBS Update Service. Find out more about the process and how it works in this section. Community News – monthly round up In case you missed them, check out some of the top community rugby stories over the last month from the England Rugby website. Read Online |
Community Game Update 12th September
| Community Game Update Tuesday 12 September |
| 1.ACTION REQUIRED 100k and counting! Register your Age Grade players today Over 100,000 Age Grade players are now registered for 2023/24. Don’t forget to register the Age Grade players at your club. Find guides and assistance here. Age Grade Rugby Regulations 2023/24 Check out the changes to Age Grade Regulations for 2023/24 and remind yourself of the regulations and guidance around Playing Out of Age Grade in this section. 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Adult Registration – Next Steps Consultation – October 2023 Ahead of the start of Adult Registration next season, the RFU is seeking the views of players and those involved in player/team selection on the proposed next steps in the implementation of Adult Registration. Men’s Papa Johns Community Cup Webinars Based on club feedback last season, a number of changes have been made to the Men’s Papa John’s Community Cup for the 2023/24 season. Sign up to the club webinars here to find out more. There’s still time to register to host an Allianz Inner Warrior Camp! Allianz Inner Warrior Camps are an easy and fun way to welcome new women or players returning to the game. You pick the date and time between 14 – 29 October and we will provide you with support and resources to help you promote and run your camp. Make the most of RWC 2023! With 40 more matches being shown on ITV between now and 28 October, the Rugby World Cup is a great opportunity to recruit new players, retain existing members and boost revenue. Community Rugby Injury Surveillance & Prevention Programme (CRISP) Run in conjunction with the University of Bath, the CRISP Project collects injury data from across the community game. In order for it to be a success, we always need clubs and teams to get involved. 3. FOR AWARENESS Honda Volunteer of the Year 2023 Winners Announced A remarkable group of rugby volunteers were celebrated and rewarded at the Honda Volunteer of the Year awards at Twickenham Stadium last Friday. Read more in this section. Safeguarding update As the season begins, we want to ensure that clubs are all set from a safeguarding perspective to create a safe and fun environment for children during the 2023/24 season. HEADCASE Following the publication of the Government’s UK Concussion Guidelines for Grassroots Sport, the HEADCASE resources have been updated and given a new look to align with these guidelines. Find them here. Community News – monthly round up In case you missed them, check out some of the top community rugby stories over the last month from the England Rugby website. Read Online |
RFU Community Game Update
| Tuesday 15 August Stay up to date with news about the community game by following @RFU |
| Community Game Update Read Online |
| 1. ACTION REQUIRED Regulation Changes for the 2023/24 Season Ahead of the start of the season, view the full rules and regulations or check out the executive summary of the key regulation changes for the 2023/24 season. Visit the RFU’s Tackle Height Hub ahead of the new season To support players, coaches, referees, volunteers and CBs with tackle height changes ahead of the start 2023/24 season, a comprehensive range of resources are available on the England Rugby Tackle Height Hub. 45,000 and counting! Register your Age Grade players today It’s great to see over 45,000 Age-Grade players registered ahead of the new season. Registering players now is a great way to get the admin out of the way before the season. Find out more information and support available in this section. Age Grade Regulations 23/24 & Summer Framework 2023 View the permitted activity for August 2023, as per the Summer Activity Guide, as well as the new Age Grade Regulation 15. 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Entry to the Papa Johns Women’s Community Cup Closes on 20 August As in previous seasons, there will be two Cup competitions (plus two waterfall Plate competitions) in the Papa Johns Women’s Community Cup – enter your team now in this section! Register to host an Allianz Inner Warrior Camp in October! This seasons Allianz Inner Warrior windows are 14 – 29 October 2023 and 6 – 21 January 2024. You pick the date and time and we will support you with organising and promoting your camp. Find out more in this piece. Community Rugby Injury Surveillance & Prevention Programme (CRISP) and New Proactive Reporting Find out how to get involved with the CRISP Project this season, as well as new proactive reporting functionality coming to the game. 3. FOR AWARENESS RFU Arranged Insurance cover As we approach the start of the season it is worthwhile checking your Insurance Protection. Details of the cover provided by the RFU’s insurance for the community game can be found in this piece. Women’s Competitions Advisory Group We are pleased to introduce the Women’s Competitions Advisory Group (WCAG) – a new collective comprised of current players, coaches and volunteers from the game. Meet the members in this section. Community News – Monthly round up In case you missed them, check out some of the top community rugby stories over the last month from the England Rugby website. Read Online |
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RFU Community Game Update July
| Tuesday 11 July Stay up to date with news about the community game by following @RFU on Twitter here. |
| Community Game Update Read Online |
| 1. ACTION REQUIRED Make the most of RWC 2023! The countdown to the Rugby World Cup 2023 is on and the excitement is building! To help you make the most of this opportunity, check out the RFU RWC Activation guides to help you use the tournament to recruit new players, retain existing squad members, and boost revenue. Age Grade Registration 2023/24 is now open Age Grade Registration for 2023/24 opened on 3rd July. Register Age Grade Players at your club and win tickets to England v Wales! Tickets to England v Fiji are also up for grabs for U17s and U18s players from 2022/23 and U18s players from 2020/21 and 2021/22 as they take control of their rugby record. Find out more in this piece. Have you visited the RFU’s Tackle Height Hub yet? To support players, coaches, referees, volunteers and CBs with tackle height changes ahead of the 2023/24 season, a comprehensive range of resources are being produced. Find out about the latest updates on the Tackle Height Hub in this section. Age Grade Summer Framework & Regulations – July 2023 We are pleased to confirm the permitted activity for July 2023, as per the Summer Activity Guide. Check it out in this section. 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Training Courses 2023/24 Season – Book now Approximately 20,000 places are available for coaches and referees on Kids First Tag Rugby, Kids First Contact Rugby, England Rugby Coaching and Refereeing Awards and Principles of Scrummaging. Find out how to book in this section. Women and Girls Toolkits Over the coming months, we will be providing brand new resources covering different health and welfare issues impacting female rugby athletes. The first of these Women and Girls toolkits; Menstrual Health was launched on 3rd July and can be found in this piece. U12 Girls Club Start-Up Scheme 2023/23 As part of the RWC 2025 Impact programme, we are about to launch the second year of the U12 Girls Club Start-Up Scheme as we head into the 2023/24 season that gives clubs a kit package and £500 to support or start their team. Applications are now live and close on 31st July 2023. The Community Rugby Injury Surveillance & Prevention Programme (CRISP) needs you The CRISP Project is critical to gaining better understanding and providing data in order to compare and assess trends in injury risk across different playing populations and levels of the game. We need clubs and teams from across the game to get involved and help improve the welfare of players. Be part of the UNIon – opportunity for female University students In partnership with Neal Training, as part of RWC25 Impact, the RFU are delivering a Female Leadership Academy programme under the name of UNIon. University students between the ages of 18-25 will develop their leadership skills and empower them in the rugby landscape. Honda Volunteer Hospitality registrations for Summer Series Club volunteers can register for up to four tickets each for pre-match hospitality in the British Airways Fan Village at Twickenham as part of the Honda Volunteer Recognition Programme. This programme recognises the thousands of volunteers who are an integral part of the sport. Find out how to register for your tickets in this section. 3. FOR AWARENESS Travel Funding Policy The Community Game Board (CGB) have reviewed travel grants ahead of the 2023-24 season. Read more about the policy in this piece. Managing Rugby Pitches In Drought Conditions Good club/facility management is essential during dry weather periods. Find out how to support, educate and communicate with your members as your club or organisation pulls together to help reduce the impacts of restricted water availability. Read Online |
Community Game Update 13th June
| Community Game Update Read Online |
| 1. ACTION REQUIRED RFU 2023 Hybrid Annual General Meeting (AGM) The RFU will hold its 2023 Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Friday 16 June 2023 at 18:00. Find out how to attend and vote in this piece. GMS Updates: Changes, Support & More Find out about updates to GMS, the season switch-over, support trainers, the GMS pre-season checklist and upcoming GMS webinars. Age Grade Registration 2023/24 – Opens 3rd July From Monday 3 July, parents, players and clubs will be able to start registering age grade players for the new season. Find out more information and support available in this section. Age Grade Regulations 2023/24 & Summer Framework 2023 View the permitted activity for June 2023, as per the Summer Activity Guide, as well as the new Age Grade Regulation 15. Have you visited the RFU’s Tackle Height Hub yet? To support players, coaches, referees, volunteers and CBs with tackle height changes ahead of the 2023/24 season, a comprehensive range of resources are being produced. Find out about the latest updates on the Tackle Height Hub in this section. 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Honda Volunteer Hospitality registrations for Summer Series As part of the Honda Volunteer Recognition Programme, club volunteers who have match tickets to one of England Men’s Summer Series home fixtures can register for up to four tickets each for pre-match hospitality. Review your waste collection costs One particular area that has seen price hikes in recent months is waste collection. To support clubs in keeping their costs as low as possible, we’ve teamed up with a procurement group to help combat financial pressures. Find out more in this piece. 3. FOR AWARENESS 2023/24 League Structures and fixtures update The Men’s RFU Leagues have been finalised and the Women’s RFU Leagues are going through the final checks and will be published soon. The fixtures for the Men’s leagues for 2023/24 have now been published and can be viewed on the England Rugby website and on GMS. 2023 GMS Club Safeguarding Audit will go live on 3rd July The Safeguarding Audit is an annual, mandatory requirement for all clubs who offer Age Grade activities, or who wish to have 17-year olds playing up into the adult game (Reg 21.1.6). Find out more in this section. Community club recipes for success As part of our #PlayTogetherStayTogether campaign, we’ve created a number of resources to help clubs who may be thinking about providing some form of Touch Rugby, from one-off events to regular sessions, over the summer. #GrassrootsBeauts There have been some brilliant efforts submitted for the #GrassrootsBeauts segment on ITV’s Premiership Highlights show this season, check out some of the best in this compilation. Read Online |
RFU Community Game Update 16 May
| Community Game Update Read Online |
| 1. ACTION REQUIRED Deadline to upload fixtures – just a few days left! The deadline for uploading club arranged fixtures via the Team Management module on the Game Management System is nearly upon us. Only fixtures uploaded by 26 May 2023 can be attributed towards a club’s new international ticket entitlement. Have you visited the RFU’s Tackle Height Hub yet? A comprehensive range of online resources, guidance documents, training videos and face-to-face training opportunities are being created by the RFU and can be found on the RFU Tackle Height Hub. Age Grade Regulations 23/24 & Summer Framework 2023 Find out more about Regulation 15 for 2023/24 and the Summer Age Grade Framework for 2023 in this piece. Regulation 9 – Pitch-side Emergency First Aid and Immediate Care Standards Following on from the implementation of the pitch-side emergency first aid and immediate care standards in the age grade game in the 2022-23 season, these standards will now be introduced across the adult community game from the start of the 2023/24 season. 2. ACTION IF OF INTEREST Join our nationwide network of Tackle Champions Tackle Champions will play a key role in developing a community of coaches able to inspire a culture of the highest quality tackle technique and decision making in players. Find out more in this piece. Platform 4 Rugby User Groups – register your interest Platform 4 Rugby’s user groups for the upcoming season are the perfect opportunity for collaborative working to help shape our Game Management System and other digital platforms. We are looking for volunteers with different levels of knowledge and experience. Find out how to register your interest in getting involved. National Volunteers’ Week – 1-7 June Volunteers’ Week is being celebrated between Wednesday 1st and Tuesday 7th June. It provides a great opportunity to recognise the contribution volunteers make and to say thank you! 3. FOR AWARENESS Papa Johns Community Cup Round Up The Papa Johns Community Cup came to a close on 7th May, with 29 thrilling finals having taken place over two weekends at Twickenham, StoneX Stadium, Sixways Stadium and The Darlington Arena. Read about the finals and watch some of the brilliant stories from the teams in this piece. UK Concussion Guidelines for Grassroots Sport The RFU welcomes the launch of the Government’s UK Concussion Guidelines for Grassroots Sport; guidelines the RFU has been involved in developing. Read more about the guidelines in this article. Community club recipes for success In July 2022, a study was undertaken to establish what has contributed to operating successful community clubs. Read about the findings in this piece. Game Management System (GMS) maintenance In preparation for the start of the 23/24 season, the Game Management System (GMS) will be taken offline in mid-June to allow for a short period for system maintenance to be conducted. Read Online |
