Former England Women’s international Anita Asante teams up with Faversham Strike Force to support ‘This Mum Can’ campaign to get mothers into volunteer coaching

A former England Women’s international has teamed up with a grassroots club to encourage more mothers into volunteer coaching.

Anita Asante, who made 71 appearances for the Lionesses, playing in defence and midfield during her career which spanned from 2003 to 2022, used to manage Bristol City Women.

She’s backing the “This Mum Can” campaign with Faversham Strike Force.

It comes as figures show 83 per cent of mothers weren't involved in their children’s sports clubs.

Strike Force’s development officer Lee Suter said: “We believe that football and sport should be for everyone and we’re committed to breaking down barriers in coaching by making it accessible, especially for mums who might not have considered it before.

“We’re dedicated to fostering a welcoming and supportive community for mums and female coaches and are really proud of the mums who, over the last few months, have started their coaching journey with us.”

New research by sports charity UK Coaching revealed the proportion of female volunteer coaches fell by 10 per cent between 2022 and 2024 but that over a third of mums who aren’t currently involved in their children’s sports clubs want to give coaching a try.

UK Coaching provides resources and advice to support women, taking their first steps into volunteer coaching.

The drop in coaches, however, comes despite a massive increase in the number of people watching female sports with the Women’s Euros to start next month and the Women’s Rugby World Cup this August.

UK Coaching’s coaching lead Emily Handyside said: “The recent decline in the number of female volunteer coaches is a worrying trend.

“But this research shows that there’s clearly a huge pool of mums out there who want to coach if those barriers can be