WESTBURY youth Football Club’s groundsman and coach, Pete Smart, has won a prestigious Points of Light award for his work in youth football.
Introduced by the government in April, Points of Light awards recognises outstanding individual volunteers – people who are making a change in their community.
Pete’s award was presented for his tireless work for Westbury Youth football. As well as painting over 5,000 miles of lines for football pitches – enough to stretch from Westbury to Beijing in China – he is now training the grandchildren of people he coached when he was younger.
Pete was nominated for the award by Paul Humphrey in recognition of the 20 years Pete has been involved with Westbury Youth and the 50 years he has been involved in youth football.
Pete’s unpaid work at Redland Lane provides the boys and girls of Westbury Youth, as well as all visiting teams, with one of, if not the best playing surface for grassroots football in Wiltshire.
Paul Bryant from Westbury Youth FC said, “Pete can be seen up Redland Lane up to four times a week including the early hours every Saturday and Sunday mornings getting the pitches ready for the children to play their matches or carry out training. All the pitches are marked out and prepared to a very high standard each and every week and everyone at the club is indebted to him for his efforts. On top of all that, Pete plans, marks and prepares all the small sided pitches you see your children play on. Every so often, a club or organisation has a ‘one in a million’ and as a club, we are exceptionally lucky to have him.”
The Points of Light award scheme has been developed in partnership with the hugely successful Points of Light programme in America, which was established by President George H W Bush, and has since recognised over 5,000 individuals and has the support of President Barack Obama. Points of Light winners are found by a network of volunteers, including National Citizen Service graduates and members of the Step up to Serve coalition. However, if members of the public would like to make a nomination they can write to the Prime Minister.
In establishing the scheme in Britain, Prime Minister David Cameron said, “We should do more as a country to recognise volunteering. In America they have Points of Light. President George H W Bush spoke about 1,000 Points of Light shining out in difficult times. Britain is going to have its own Points of Light scheme.”
