West Ham United Academy sides were welcomed to take part in workshops concerning wellbeing, bullying and harassment earlier this month.
As part of the Club’s wider commitment to producing not just good footballers, but good people, the U23s and U18s squads were invited to participate in a sexual harassment and bullying workshop in March.
The session was run by the LimeCulture Community Interest Group, a national sexual violence and safeguarding organisation who specialise in working in professional environments to ensure the safety and welfare of children and adults alike.
The workshop was the latest in a number of sessions held for the benefit of the Academy sides, who have also had seminars with the Crown Prosecution Service and participated in lessons on safe boundaries and physical self-defence throughout the season.
Academy player care officer Evan Hall was delighted with how the workshops were received by the U23s and U18s, highlighting the importance of discussing such topics with players during their developmental years.
“Our U18s and U23s have been participating in these intensive and engaging workshops all season, and they are very important at this age for these players,” Hall said. “It is vital that we, as a Club, continue to educate all our young players in the Academy on how an individual’s behaviour can affect themselves and others.
“We have a great group of lads at the Academy of Football and these workshops, generally speaking, are about upholding that positive behaviour and reinforcing the positive characteristics that we prioritise in our players.”
U18s captain Michael Forbes echoed Hall’s sentiments and noted why such workshops were essential during a young player’s formative years.
“These workshops have shown us all that any actions a person undertakes can have more serious consequences and impacts than first considered. The way you behave towards other people really matters.
“As young players, we all hold a dream of playing first team football and being full-time professionals. Equally as important to our ability on the pitch is our conduct off of it, and I’m glad the Club have put on these workshops for us.”
