The Board met on 26 April and set out below are the main discussion points.
The Board had a long discussion on the offer received to purchase Wembley Stadium.
With the 2018 FIFA Men’s World Cup only a couple of months away, Gareth Southgate and Dan Ashworth (Technical Director) presented to the Board on the preparations in place. Robert Sullivan (Strategy & Communications Director) updated the Board on the off-field preparations, including the base camp for the squad, the media centre and discussions with the relevant authorities regarding the security of players, staff and fans.
The Board approved The FA’s Diversity and Inclusion Plan which was presented by Rachel Brace (People Director) and James MacDougall (Head of Corporate Affairs and Inclusion). The plan sets out the programme of activities which The FA will undertake over the period 2018-2021 across five key strands:
(i) The culture of The FA as an organisation
(ii) The diversity of our elite set up and workforce
(iii) The diversity of the grassroots game
(iv) Our partnership with inclusion programmes across English football
(v) Reporting and sanctioning discriminatory behaviour.
As is good corporate governance practice and a requirement of the Sports Governance Code, the Board has gone through a review of its effectiveness and we had a report back from the external company which facilitated this exercise. The review has identified a number of areas where the Board’s effectiveness could be improved and we will now work on implementing the recommendations. The Group Audit Committee has also been through a similar review and we will do the same with the other Board committees.
Quintain, which own the land adjacent to the stadium, has submitted a planning application to replace the two pedways which lead up to the main concourse with stepped access. The Board has reviewed this proposal to ensure that accessibility and safety are equivalent or improved when compared with the existing pedway and has engaged with the Sports Ground Safety Authority and crowd management specialists.
The General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) come into effect on 25 May 2018 and the Board reviewed The FA’s readiness for this. This has involved a significant volume of work including updates to IT systems, ensuring that privacy notices and consent forms are compliant and rolling out a training programme for staff. The Board took comfort that the programme of activities has effectively prepared us for the new law.
The Board continues to have regular updates on our safeguarding activities which cover the case management statistics, the Clive Sheldon QC led independent review, The FA’s work with victims and survivors and progress within County FAs towards the Safeguarding Operating Standard.
Andy Ambler (Professional Game Relations Director) updated the Board on discussions with the Premier League and EFL on the mid-season break as was debated by the Council in April.
