News & Events

John White is returning to Southend United as a Community Officer and BTEC Coach for our Community & Educational Trust.

Former club captain White made a mammoth 288 appearances for Blues, but after initially departing at the end of the 2021/22 season, he’s back just 15 months later in a very different role.

The 37-year-old was a big part of Blues’ promotion at Wembley in 2015, a season where he played 45 of 46 games in the regular season. Spending nine seasons at Roots Hall, White is seen as a true legend by everyone at the club.

He will be using those experiences to full effect in his new roles as he looks to further enhance and raise awareness of the great work SUCET do in the community.

Explaining the varying parts of his new job, White said: “The main part of the role for me is Community Officer, which is office-based.

“It’s helping with logistics organising the after-school clubs and the soccer schools, making sure people are in the right place and the right time and that the level of programme that we provide is of a really high standard. It also involves trying to get different funding and things in the background.

“The second part is the BTEC Football Manager side, where I’ll be looking to use the experiences I’ve had as a player over the years and taking that into the management/coaching of one of the BTEC college football teams.

“We train 2-3 times a week and with matches every week as well, it’s great for lads who love their football, but the educational side has to come first.”

On returning to his second home, White added: “Coming back here’s been brilliant. I’ve only been back just over a week, but it feels like being home.

“I was away for just over a year, but coming back seeing so many faces that I know and that I can chat to and reminisce with, it’s been a great start. I want to bring the club closer to the community and try and put some smiles on faces.”

Dale Spiby, SUCET CEO commented: “We are delighted to welcome a club legend back to the club in the role of Community Officer. John is already proving to be a real asset and will no doubt put his leadership skills to use in the coming weeks as he begins to inspire our community coaches, and improve the skills of our college students.

“I’m really excited to see John flourish in the coming months and years, and know he will be a real success in his role.”