On Wednesday 10th May 2023, Colchester United Community Foundation took over the JobServe Community Stadium.
Community Day 2023 provided the opportunity for participants across a range of community programmes delivered by the Foundation to play on the turf of the Colchester United stadium.
Head of Community Rick Goldsbrough shared: “To provide participants on our community programmes the opportunity to experience playing on the pitch at the JobServe Community Stadium, is a joy to organise and be apart of. To see so many smiles from participants from all our community departments (Education, Health & Inclusion, Wellbeing and Participation) makes all the hard work our workforce puts in to make our Stadium Day possible worth it, and we’ve created memories that will last a lifetime!”.
Over the course of the day, over 500 participants took part in activities on the pitch ranging from:
- Premier League Primary Stars Primary School Football Festival (5-8yrs)
- Premier League Primary Stars SEN Sports Festival (8-12yrs)
- Thurstable College A Team Fixture vs Chelsea (Post 16)
- Thurstable College B Team Fixture vs Millwall (Post 16)
- Skills Centre Football Programme (5-11yrs)
- Boys Development Centre (U12-U16)
- Girls Development Centre/ETC (U7-U16)
- Premier League Kicks (8-16 yrs)
- Walking Football (50+)
Archie, the Thurstable College programme Captain detailed his experience of the day: “The opportunity to represent Colchester United on the JobServe Community Stadium pitch summed up a great season for the college programme. This opportunity added to our professionalism in preparation to the match and made us even more proud to represent the club in competitive fixtures vs Cheslea and Millwall.”
Lillian, a player on the Girls Development Centre programme commented on how Stadium Day impacted her: “It was really cool to have all the girls playing together and for our mums to watch us in the stands of a professional stadium like a real footballer.”
Trevor, from the Community Foundation Walking Football Team, couldn’t have enjoyed the experience enough noting; “What a lovely experience it was to play walking football on the JobServe Community Stadium pitch. It was a pleasure to put our skills to the test with all my team mates on what was a great occasion. Thank you to Ed and the Community Foundation for all your hard work and providing these opportunities for us.”
Thank you to the all the participants, parents, guardians, carers, families and school staff for attending and a big thank you to the club for supporting us in making this day possible.