FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
frequently asked questions:
NB: This is a new section which will be populated as FAQs are answered.
PLaying regulationS:
Q. Are school players permitted to play up?
A. RFU Regulation 15.3 defines what is and what is not permitted, and the process involved.
Q. Are girls permitted to play mixed rugby from Under 12 and above?
A. RFU Regulation does not allow for mixed contact rugby from Under 12 and above, non-contact rugby is permitted.
Q. Are current pupils allowed to play against past pupils?
A. This will require to have permissions in place prior to the game taking place, both the following RFU Regulations apply:
RFU Regulation 15.3
RFU Regulation 15.6
ticketing:
Schools and Award Holders may apply for international tickets for the Autumn Internationals and the Guinness 6 Nations.
The process is as follows:
The school will need to ensure that it has an International Ticket Contact on their GMS record.
For the Autumn Internationals:
At the end of April the International Ticket Contacts are downloaded from GMS.
During the second week in May the International Ticket contacts and Award Holders are asked to activate their account, and are provided with the timeline.
Tickets are available to purchase, normally the following week and the window is open for two weeks.
For the Guinness 6 Nations:
At the end of August the International Ticket Contacts are downloaded from GMS.
During the first week in September the International Ticket contacts and Award Holders are asked to activate their account, and are provided with the timeline.
Tickets are available to purchase, normally the following week and the window is open for two weeks.
The ticketing window for the 2025 Guinness 6 Nations closed on 25 September 2024.
GMS:
The RFU’s Game Management System (GMS), is the online database which links individual records to RFU organisations - Clubs, Schools, Referee Societies etc..
To update the school’s contact details a school member will have to link their current GMS Record - or create one, and link this to the School’s account.
Please follow the process in the linked video to achieve this.
insurance:
The RFU’s liability insurance does not cover Schools. The School will no doubt have their own liability insurance, and any claim (if it materialises) will be a matter for their insurers. Further detail on insurance cover for Schools, Colleges and Universities is available on the RFU / Howden Insurance Centre via the following link.
Personal Accident Insurance is available to players in schools, although the scope of this policy only extends to permanent disabling or catastrophic injury.
GENDER PARTICIPATION
On 29 July 2022, the Rugby Football Union (RFU) Council voted in favour of adopting a new Gender Participation Policy following extensive stakeholder consultation and a thorough review of all available scientific evidence.
The review and consultation concluded that detailed peer reviewed research provides evidence that there are physical differences between those people whose sex originally recorded as male and those as female at birth, and advantages in strength, stamina and physique brought about by testosterone and male puberty are significant and retained even after testosterone suppression.
This science provides the basis of the new gender participation policy that concludes the inclusion of trans people originally recorded male at birth in female contact rugby cannot be balanced against considerations of safety and fairness.