Wycombe Wanderers FC (WWFC), Wycombe Wanderers Sports & Education Trust (WWSET), the charitable arm of the club, Wycombe Wanderers Trust (WWT), part owners of WWFC and Buckinghamshire Adult Learning have recently teamed up to deliver numerous training workshops to employees in order to educate on a number of important topics.
In October Buckinghamshire Adult Learning staff led two education sessions at Adams Park stadium for WWFC and WWSET employees plus WWT board members focused on equality, diversity and inclusion issues. The workshops, which were attended by 23 club, trust and WWSET representatives, explained numerous pertinent points concerned with equality issues including recognition of discriminatory behaviours and how to create a welcoming and inclusive environment for all.
Following the equality training, WWSET’s Premier League Kicks Manager Clare Bassett then visited Buckinghamshire Adult Learning’s headquarters in both Aylesbury and Wycombe at the end of November to deliver training to 21 of their staff members around understanding of LGBTQ+ inclusion and ways in which to tackle discrimination.
The training delivered by Clare was instigated following a two-year partnership agreement announced in December 2020 between the Premier League and national LGBT+ charity, Stonewall, as part of both organisations commitment to championing a culture of ED&I. Following the launch of the partnership, the Premier League and Stonewall developed a bespoke training package for the staff of football club charitable arms that aimed to build stronger communities, free from homophobic, biphobic and transphobic (HBT) bullying and language.
The training course, which Clare attended on behalf of WWSET, sought to equip attendees with the knowledge, tools and confidence required to train others in their organisation plus their wider community on how to tackle HBT bullying and language.
Following the training delivered to Buckinghamshire Adult Learning employees, Teresa Meredith, Buckinghamshire Adult Learning’s Skills Manager and Safeguarding Lead, had this to say:
“The training delivered by Clare was extremely thought-provoking and following it everyone was very focussed and keen to discuss what we can do as an educational community to be more welcoming and inclusive of the LGBTQIA+ community. The training sessions have really put LGBTQ+ EDI back on the agenda for us and the training was the perfect foundation on which we can now build.”
Clare herself added:
“It’s so important that everybody continues to have conversations around EDI matters, and by expanding these conversations and sharing our learning with other organisations like Buckinghamshire Adult Learning it can only be beneficial for the communities we serve. I would like to thank all those who took part for their engagement and thought-provoking questions and comments.”
In addition to all the great work explained above, everybody from the club is also looking forward to welcoming Buckinghamshire Adult Learning back to Adams Park in early 2022 when they will be delivering some further training for us all in the area of mental health.
