get involved

Refereeing is a great way to give something back to the game you love, while also helping to widen participation in the sport. Whether your aspirations are to referee your local Under 9s on a Sunday morning or progress to officiating at Twickenham, the RFRU aims to ensure you get the support you need every step of the way. You can start your journey by taking one of the two entry level run by the RFU.

from the chairman

Welcome to the website of the Rugby Football Referees Union (RFRU). The RFRU is a National Constituent Body of the Rugby Football Union (RFU) and the CB specifically for Match Officials. Its members are the Referee Societies and associated Federations within England. Each member elects annually one Representative to sit on the RFRU Council which will normally meet at least once a year, coinciding with the RFRU Annual General Meeting.

As a member of the RFRU, each of the Societies (but not the Federations) is eligible to apply to become a full voting member of the RFU with all the privileges and benefits that brings.

The RFRU is established by the Companies Act 2006 as a Private Company Limited by Guarantee and its Articles of Association list the Object for which the Union is established as being "to promote, foster and assist the RFU in the government and management of refereeing within England by:

- Encouraging the representation and promotion of refereeing
- Recruitment and retention of match officials
- Establishing the further training and development of match officials
- Providing and appointing match officials to the Game through its members
- Promoting the Game as a whole
- Complying with the rules & regulations of the RFU and World Rugby
- Making rules & regulations concerning the operation of the Union, including disciplinary procedures that may be taken against members
- Disciplining members where permitted (by the rules) and referring members to be disciplined by RFU where so required
- Offering any appropriate support to Rugby Clubs and other bodies within the Game
- Obtaining funding for the activities of the Union
- Doing all such other things as the Board think fit to further the interests of the Union"

The RFRU is managed and operated by a Board comprising five defined Officers - Chair, Vice Chair, Treasurer, Secretary and RFU Council Representative- and up to four Elected Directors. All of the Board members are volunteers. Biographies for the Officers and Directors can be found on the website.

Also on the Board is one member of RFU Council appointed as their representative.

We also benefit from the involvement of professional staff from the RFU Game Development Department, with whom we work most closely. It is through this route that our strategic decisions are enacted by the professional staff.

We link very closely with the Game Development sub Committee who report directly to the Community Game Board. The key work in recent times has been ensuring that all the Governance requirements of a CB are in place and also working towards the implementation of the key recommendations of the Match Official Blueprint.