Morgan to assist England bid

Charlton Community Trust chief executive Jason Morgan has been invited by the London 2018 World Cup bid team to assist with elements of England's application to host the competition.

Jason Morgan and Charlton Community Trust coaches during one of their visits to help deprived townships in South Africa

The Addicks have already submitted proposals for The Valley and the club's Sparrows Lane training ground to be used by countries as training venues, in the event that England is awarded the global football tournament.

And now the man who started Charlton's award-winning community operation in 1992 with just a bag of footballs and a telephone is set to play a pivotal role in the bid.

"I've played a key role in getting the community departments of all the 14 professional clubs in London to work together under the London United concept to support the bid," explained Morgan, who now manages an organisation that has 39 full-time and 140 part-time coaches and comes into contact with around 7,500 people every week.

"In total, these clubs engage with some 50,000 young people per week on community programmes, and as the legacy issue of the World Cup will become increasingly important to the success of the bid, we can help to demonstrate the positive aspects of the work clubs do and the way they affect young people's lives."

Former Addicks defender and current community trustee Paul Elliott is also heavily involved with England's World Cup bid, and Morgan added: "I believe the bid is gathering momentum, and the involvement of key individuals such as Paul makes our chances of hosting the tournament in 2018 more positive."

Morgan and Elliott recently met the head of legacy and chief operating officers from the bid team to discuss what London 2018 could learn from the trust's project in South Africa.

Since 2002, the trust has been working in deprived townships in South Africa, using the power of football to break down barriers between the police and young people, and deliver health, citizenship and education messages.

Said Morgan: "We have been in South Africa for seven years, and we have spoken with the FA about how we can be further involved, especially around the tournament in 2010."

Find out more about the trust's work at www.cact.org.uk, or click here for more details of its project in South Africa.