The FA has continued to strengthen the landscape of girls’ and women’s football across England. A key part of this evolution has been the introduction of Emerging Talent Centres (ETCs), which replaced the former FA Advanced Coaching Centres.

Swindon Town FC Community Foundation remains proud to hold the FA Emerging Talent Centre licence for Wiltshire, and the programme continues to go from strength to strength. The ETC plays a vital role in expanding opportunities for girls across the county to access high-quality, elite-level coaching within a professional and supportive environment.

Working in close partnership with the Wiltshire County FA, we have established a strong and sustainable framework that improves inclusivity and accessibility for girls in Wiltshire who aspire to reach the highest levels of the game.

In practical terms, the ETC provides players with regular opportunities to compete against some of the highest-calibre talent from across the country, showcase their abilities in front of national scouts, and progress confidently along the England talent pathway. We are proud of the ETC’s impact to date and its position as a key stepping stone in the development of future players.

Our Emerging Talent Centre is free to play and operates at the U10, U12, U14 and U16 age bands. These squads take part in weekly training sessions including Strength & Conditioning sessions and play a minimum of 10 matches across the season across half-term periods against ETC’s, JPL squads and boys teams.

The squads compete in an Elite Development Programme (EDP) involving other clubs including Birmingham City, Plymouth Argyle and Peterborough United. During the 2025 – 26 season our U14 and U16 age bands were crowned the winners of their respective EDP finals.

Following the end of the ETC season, our players at U12, U14 and U16 are offered opportunities to attend International tours to the Barcelona Girls Cup, Barcelona Copa Jordi and the Dana Cup for the first time in 2026. These tours offer a unique opportunity for our players to bond as a team and make memories for life. Our latest triumph came in 2026 where our U16 girls finished 3^rd in the U17 category of the Barcelona Copa Jordi, bringing home a trophy.

We currently have 61 girls participating in this programme within the centre, all of whom are given the opportunity to develop within a structured environment, under the guidance of high quality Swindon Town Foundation qualified coaches, using the latest coaching methods. Trials for these squads take place during June.

Girls are able to continue to represent their local clubs as well as attending the Emerging Talent Centre.