Scottish Women’s Football has pledged its support to the Equality Network by signing The Scottish LGBT Sports Charter at Hampden Park. The charter has five principles for those delivering sport in Scotland, with the key goal of making sport more LGBT inclusive.
Speaking after conducting the SSE Scottish Women’s Cup 1st Round draw, Scott Cuthbertson, Development Manager of Equality Network, said, “We want Scotland to be a country where everyone can take part, enjoy and succeed in sport at all levels whatever their sexual orientation or gender identity.
“We know through our research that lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people can still face barriers to sport, this charter is about working together to take visible steps to remove these barriers.”
Lorna Cameron, Interim Executive Officer of Scottish Women’s Football, said, “We have always worked to be supportive of the Scottish LGBT Charter principles, but it was important for us to become a signatory. We want everyone to know we stand by these principles and that we’re actively working to make the Scottish Women’s game as inclusive as possible.
“We’ve been in discussions with Equality Network for a while now so we’re delighted to invite them to Hampden Park today to officially pledge our support to providing an inclusive environment within Scottish Women’s Football but also to assist with the 1st round draw of the SSE Scottish Women’s Cup.
“We’re aiming to have a theme for each draw this year” said Lorna. “We want to take these opportunities to show our members that SWF is working to represent them and the game in a positive manner. It’s also a great way for us to support meaningful campaigns and organisations in our own unique way.”
Scott echoed these thoughts by saying, “We were delighted to be here today and to help with the SSE Scottish Women’s Cup draw. It’s a fantastic competition and an amazing chance for us to promote Equality Network to this audience. We’d like to thank SWF for their support and we wish all the teams involved the very best.”
The draw for the 1st Round of the SSE Scottish Women’s Cup can be watched back now below or via YouTube directly by clicking here. Ties are to be played on Sunday 27th May with the 2nd Round draw, which SWPL teams are entered, will be conducted the week commencing 28th May.