Smoke free sidelines

Smokefree sidelines will be introduced at Central Venue from Saturday 12th January 2019. Longridge Town Juniors are fully supportive of the scheme and ask that all parents respect the leagues decision and co-operate fully.

As a club, we are actively working towards bringing the scheme into the club and to enforce the initiative at all the clubs home grounds. We ask if you can respect our decision and support the scheme in the interim.

The Mid Lancs Colts have sent the following press release.

"Smokefree sidelines is aimed at Sports clubs and Leagues with the ambition to support all adults involved in sport and physical activity to understand their responsibility as positive role models.

The Mid Lancs Colts Junior Football League is all about promoting a league as a healthy and inclusive place, where the well-being if all, but particularly children and young people is a priority.

The Mid lancs Colts Junior Football League will work in association with the Lancashire Care NHS Foundation Trust Quit Squad on the Smokefree Sports Initiative with the vision to see the next generation of children born and raised in a place free from tobacco, where smoking is unusual. A key ambition of this work is to de-normalise smoking for children; children copy behaviour that they see. The initiative will also be supported by the Lancashire FA and will be promoted accordingly.

Smokefree sidelines means that members and visitors to the Central Venue are asked to refrain from smoking or vaping on the sidelines and in sight of children at fixtures.

Vaping is included in the Smokefree sidelines initiative to help guard against youth uptake of vaping. Vaping is not recommended for young people. In the UK, protection is in place via prohibitions on the sale of cigarettes to under 18's.

It is anticipated that parents will recognise what the initiative is trying to achieve and adhere to the rule. The campaign will give parents the opportunity to report smoking or vaping on the sidelines or in the view of children, to League Committee Members."