Crime chief is soccer board’s new signing
SHE has helped to tackle youth offending, gang crime and knife culture in Scotland for more than a decade.
Now Karyn McCluskey, director of a specialist police unit set up to reduce violence across Scotland, has been appointed to the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) board.
She will tackle violence and anti-social behaviour at football matches – a problem the Scottish Government has already attempted to curb by the introduction of measures such as a ban on sectarian chanting among fans.
Miss McCluskey, who heads the Scottish Violence Reduction Unit (VRU), has been handed an unpaid, non-executive director role on the SPFL board. She was involved in setting up the VRU, which is now part of Police Scotland, as a Strathclyde Police initiative to combat youth offending within Glasgow.
Miss McCluskey, who originally trained as a nurse, will be the first figure from outside football to sit on the SPFL board, joining eight others.
‘I work with hundreds of children, many of whom love playing and watching football; their lives are often shaped by what they see on the pitch,’ she said.
‘I want them to be able to go to watch a game and, win or lose, know that sport is a great thing to take part in and watch. So I have accepted this role on their behalf.
‘My wish is that we allow them to remain children as long as possible, free from racism, sexism and violence in every area of their lives. I hope we can enable them to enjoy becoming the next players and supporters of football clubs over the coming decades.’
Admitting she had no expert knowledge of the game, she added: ‘What I do know about is changing behaviour for the better.
‘I’ve worked in reducing all forms of violence across Scotland for nearly 11 years. Football has been transformed from where it was decades ago, thanks to everyone’s efforts.’