Completing an Expression of Interest form will be the first step to become an FA Qualified Referee. This will allow Northumberland FA to support candidates link with appropriate leagues quicker than before, to help that first initial step from Course to Pitch be more supported.

 Removing the previous ‘First Come, First Serve’ model of booking onto the course, will also allow Northumberland FA to prioritise places on courses to those who intend, and are able, to referee affiliated football matches, and identify those with both the potential and intention to progress in the refereeing pathway.

If you wish to become an FA Referee, please complete the Expression of Interest Form. When course places become available, you will be contacted to book onto available dates, with priority given based on information provided in the EoI Form.

FA Referee Course Expression of Interest Form

Why Become a Referee (based upon NFA Referee Survey):

• Stay involved with the game.
• Earn extra income.
• Give back to the game.
• Progress through The FA Referee Pathway.
• Stay active.
• Socialising with other referees and participants.
• Personal development.
• Gain and develop key employability skills.

What you need to complete before submitting the EoI Form:

•  Complete The FA Laws of the Game free online module.
• You will needs a safeguarding qualification. If you have another role in football eg a coach you may already hold a FA Safeguarding Children or FA Safeguarding for All . online course. If you do not have one of these, the FA Safeguarding for All is free and can be completed online.
• Have a saved screen-shot of your FA My Account ‘Learning’ tab showing your Safeguarding qualification & Guide to the Laws of the Game to upload onto the EoI form. Log-in to your FA My Account, then select the ‘Learning’ tab option. This will display all your FA qualifications attached to your FA Number (FAN).

Once you have completed the EoI we will contact you when places are available on the next referee course, which will be held in person.

When offered a place and booked onto the course:

• If you are over 16, you will need to complete an FA DBS application (unless you already have one which is connected to your FA Number). To receive the guidance to start or renew your FA DBS, please contact safeguarding@northumberlandfa.com.

For anyone aged under 16, you will need their parent/carer to create a FA Account for them if you don’t already have one. Instructions on how to do this, along with other help guides for FA Accounts, are available on The FA Grassroots Technology Support site. For any FA Account issues, please raise a ticket via this site.

For context on the change, Northumberland FA now has more registered referees than ever before. In 2023/24 more referees continued from 2022/23 season than ever before too. However, competitions and clubs still report challenges during the football season in appointing referees to all their matches. This is partly due to the continued growth of the game, meaning simply that there are more matches than ever before that require a referee, along with social changes, impacting availability.

It is also partly due to an increase in the number of people completing the FA Referee Course who do not want to referee affiliated football matches but want to obtain the qualification for other reasons. Although there is a place for this, Northumberland FA’s priority is to retain and recruit referees that will support and service the development of the game. This was an issue that came out in Northumberland FA’s ‘Shape Your Game’ consultation events.

Northumberland FA staff, with support from Voice FC, NFA Football Advisory Board, and NFA Inclusion Advisory Board, are continuing to develop plans that will support the continued growth of refereeing, and ongoing support and development for referees.

FA Referee Course Expression of Interest Form