Can you help Charley become the best she can be and realise her dream of becoming an England Rugby Rose of the future?

Charley came home from school at the age of 7 with a little flyer all about tag rugby. “mum I met a lovely man called Andy today who told me I was good enough to become a future star”. “Can you take me to Lakenham Hewett Rugby club, so I can play more?” Now my initial reaction was Girls Rugby! - Absolutely not! It’s a boy’s sport and too rough for girls but my husband {being a former rugby player} convinced me to go and have a look at what it was all about. It worked because being so welcomed into that club and watching the enjoyment on her face whilst she learnt the basics was enough for me to sign her up.

Charley fell in love with the sport and with her dad by her side giving her hints and tips flourished through the mini’s sections until it was time to move up to an all-girls team.

This was not such an easy progression as girl’s rugby was still not a popular sport with her age group, so numbers were low. Charley went all out to advocate for her club and recruit more players, promoting it in school and events around the county. She attended other rugby clubs to offer her time to play where their numbers were low all in the name of getting game time for those girls who like her really wanted to learn and play. She established strong links with Lakenham’s Ladies team, got involved in coaching the minis teams and enrolled onto several RFU courses to further improve her knowledge of the game.

Charley has since gone from strength to strength. She has trialled and been selected twice for the Counties U15s rugby team, twice for the U18s County team and this year as her 17th Birthday fell the day before the Ladies county team trials she was able {with dispensation from the RFU} to trial for them and was successful in selection.

So, what has happened since……….

At the end of July this year Charley answered an advert on a youth rugby page looking for a Prop {her preferred position} to join Gloucester - Hartpury RFC. She replied to the ad and almost immediately got a response from the head of the team. It transpired that the advert was for the Ladies team, Charley is not yet 18 so unable to take that team position however they were so impressed by what charley has achieved so far, they invited her to do a last-minute trial for their junior rugby academy with a view of crossing into the ladies’ team as prop when she turns 18.

This offer required a lot of consideration as to attend Hartpury College Charley would have to restart her A levels and become a resident of the college which would cost a significant amount of money to fund. But, the opportunity offered overruled these questions and a visit was arranged.

On the 21st August 2018 we travelled 5 hours to get to Hartpury. We were given the opportunity to meet with the head of A Levels to convince them to allow Charley to restart her A Levels with them. Charley interviewed well and with very positive results from her 1st year A Level studies agreed to offer her a place.

Then onto the rugby trial….

She had 2 hours to demonstrate her abilities during the Ladies training session and She nailed it! All of that dedication she has put in over the years has paid off as the following day Charley received her offer to become part of their youth rugby programme:

“HI Charley,

We would be very happy to have you in our Tier one of the junior academy. I have Cc in Scott who is our S&C coach, and he will be in touch over the next few days with your program you need to follow before coming and starting here full time on Monday 10th September.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks LJ Lewis

Head Coach U18s Girls Rugby Academy |Hartpury College | Gloucester | GL19 3BE”

What is Hartpury sports Academy?

Hartpury is proud to be the number one sports college in the UK. As the UK’s most successful sports college, they’re skilled at helping elite athletes to combine their study and their sport. If you have an exceptional talent, Hartpury will help you find the optimal balance to achieve sporting and academic excellence and open doors to a career beyond your sport.

So why are we asking for help?

The A level course is free apart from a £75 annual visits charge. The Academy of sport for her training is a minimal admin payment of £60, The annual gym requirement is £100, and her kit costs are £90 per kit {2 required} plus rugby boots, training kits & trainers. The residential costs are £5200 per year.

Due to Charley’s age she is not eligible to apply for a student loan and as both me and her dad work we do not meet the income requirements for a full government grant. We have applied for a discretionary fund to get a small payment to reduce the accommodation costs but as we are such late applicants there is no guarantee there is anything available in the kitty. Potential sponsorship opportunities through the college take effect from year 2 based on performance so again this is not an option as yet.

We are looking for individuals and companies to help sponsor a Norfolk girls dream in getting to Twickenham and becoming a future Red Rose in International Rugby.

As a family we will be working all the hours available to support her with this but without sponsorship we cannot guarantee that will be enough.

Any funds raised will go towards meeting the above costs and associated travel expenses.

You will be able to follow Charley’s journey through regular social media updates and when the season gets underway tickets will be available to watch the games that she plays.

Thank you for taking the time to read. Please share Charley’s story to help get the support that she needs.