After many months of partnership work with North Lanarkshire Leisure and North Lanarkshire Council, Gartcairn Football Academy were delighted to be able to officially open their new portable changing rooms which were awarded by The Scottish Football Partnership on 25th June, 2019. This fantastic, well organised Quality-Mark club who operate out of the grounds at Airdrie Leisure Centre are embedded within the local community and have an excellent working relationship with both NLL and NLC who helped support the changing room project.
The Academy was formed in 2007 for young children with the ethos of giving every child who wanted to play football the chance to participate with a no trials policy – focussing more on enjoyment and taking part. In 2015, they decided to set up a Junior team – the first in the area for over 100 years – and currently operate teams from the 2008 age-group for both boys and girls through to their adult sections. In January last year, the club also created an autism section, working closely with both the Scottish FA and Hope for Autism. It’s hard to imagine that when the Academy was formed in 2007 there were barely enough players for one team and it now boasts well over 450 members across adult, youth and girls’ sections.
The huge number of volunteer coaches at this truly progressive sports club offer training and match play seven days a week and the new changing facilities will massively benefit the extensive number of players at the Academy. Here you can see some pictures of the young players from the official opening evening with representatives of the Academy and North Lanarkshire Council and Leisure.
