As the Northampton Town Football & Education programme year comes to an end in what has been the most challenging year for the programme, our second year FEP scholars have now completed their time with us and will now move on to a variety of different pathways as they continue their journeys both on and off the pitch.
It has been an incredibly challenging time for the boys and girls due to the pandemic, but all second year scholars have now completed their academic qualification whilst still managing to continue their footballing development. They have juggled Covid protocols, bubble groups, periods of isolation and Zoom sessions, but they have stood up to the challenge and not let it hold them back.
There have been many successes to come from the second year group. Over 60% of the group are going on to Higher Education to do a range of different courses, with the rest of our scholars moving on to apprenticeships and employment opportunities. On the pitch, several of the second year scholars are already back in pre-season training for their local clubs and a number of the boys are signed for clubs at Step 3-6 of the football pyramid, as they look to continue to progress up the pyramid and build on their time with the FEP.
Finally, a huge mention must go to our 2021 FEP Student of the Year winners, which were announced last week. This award recognises students who show exceptional levels of ability, attitude, leadership skills and desire to show excellence on and off the pitch. The award is normally presented at the Football Club's End of Year Presentation but due to restrictions, this was presented at our own awards presentation conducted in the stands at Sixfields Stadium last Thursday. This year, we had joint winners from both sides of the programme. The 2021 FEP Students of the Year were Lewis Crosbie and Emma Weir-Smith. Well done to both!
All the staff on the programme would like to wish the departing scholars all the very best and we hope to see plenty more successes from them in the future!! The FEP class of ’21 was Aaron Asare, Halle Blackwell, Lewis Crosbie, Josh Forman, Will Glennon, Zack Green, Dominik Kulaga, Kelisha McAllister, Trent Oakes, Jacob Peaks, Charlie Pearson, Brooke Rozee, Tom Simmons, Ben Smith, Alex Vaughan, Tom Walton and Emma Weir-Smith.