The League Governance Code draws on standards developed by first Sport England and UK Sport through their Code for Sport Governance, and The Football Association’s County FA Code of Governance, adapting them for use in grassroots football Leagues.

The code is built around the five key pillars of good governance, including the Management Committee, People, Communication, Standards & Conduct and Policies & Procedures.

These five sections create a foundation whereby any League should be able to adapt to internal changes, evolve to meet external challenges, create long-term financial sustainability, and identify, recruit, train and hand responsibility over to successive generations of volunteers. 

There is no deadline for Leagues to adopt the Code.

It is a voluntary exercise, and Leagues can work through the criteria in their own time to achieve full adoption. The County FA has committed to supporting Leagues with the adoption of the Code and will work with each League to provide individual tailored support through the tools which have been created to track and assess applications. 

Alastair Kay, Head of Governance at Berks & Bucks FA, said “This is the first bespoke code of governance designed for grassroots football Leagues in the Country, and will, we hope, set a benchmark with Berks & Bucks sanctioned Leagues recognised as national leaders. It builds on the existing good work being done in each League and raise their performance to meet the industry standards for good governance across volunteer sporting organisations.”

The BBFA League Governance Code can be accessed below:
View the League Governance Code

For more information about League Governance in grassroots football, please contact Alastair Kay, Head of Governance, via email.