Miss Sheffield: Skydiving for charity and fighting sexism in football show Abbey Halliwell is no stereotype

Aged 25, Abbey is a sports therapist at Sheffield United working with the Academy and the women’s first team.

She went to York St John’s University to do Sports Therapy and is now at Hallam University doing a degree in Physiotherapy.

Oh yes, and she’s fluent in Spanish after her family moved there for 10 years.

Clearly a young woman with drive and determination - a far cry from the long-outdated beauty queen stereotype.

And no surprise considering her background. Her family lived in Rojales, about 30 minutes from Alicante, after a chance meeting on holiday in Spain.

They were outside a cafe where an estate agent was talking about holiday homes.

“Things escalated and we took the plunge to move out there,” says Abbey. Not your average upbringing and the prospect of moving back to England aged 17 seemed daunting. Happily for Abbey, it led her to beauty pageants.

“Having not gone to school here, we didn’t really know anyone and didn’t have much to do,” says Abbey, one of two girls.

“My mum saw an advert on Facebook for Miss England and put me in it to get me out of my shell and meet new people.

“I got to the final in 2016, I was 18.”

To get there, she first competed in Miss Leeds which led to Miss England where she placed in the top 10 - a massive achievement for a shy and not so confident 18-year-old girl.

“Being involved just helped me so much and from there I then competed in Miss West Yorkshire where I was placed second runner up and was the highest place teen and won a place in the Teen Supermodel England finals,” she said.

The success continued. She was Miss Intercontinental UK 2020 and she’s now Miss Sheffield, preparing to compete in the final of Miss Great Britain in October.

This is a competition which has come a long way. Now, contestants have platforms and skydive.

Abbey‘s platform - or mission she wants to make possible - is pitching equality, raising awareness of sexism in football and trying to bring equality into the football industry.

“As a woman studying and working in football this platform is something very important to me and it is my aim to try and encourage more females and girls to get involved in football within the different roles available,” she says.

“I’ve always loved football, and was brought up with it by my dad.

“When we moved to Spain there were no girls teams but I still liked it and wanted to work in it so when I got into modelling I thought it would be a good way to promote the platform of women working in football and playing football.”

An experience in Liverpool made her mind up. She was a volunteer physio for Tadcaster Albion when the team’s goalkeeper got injured.

“I was dealing with him when I started to get verbal abuse, saying ‘Get off the pitch you Yorkshire tart’,” she says.

“I laughed it off but it made me determined to promote an environment where women would not be put off.”

An earlier game changer was the 2002 film Bend It Like Beckham where Parminder Nagra and Keira Knightley challenge stereotypes.

“It changed things, made people talk,” she says.

But the move to Spain put paid to her playing days as there were no teams or facilities for women so Abbey went down the physio route.

Her role models include TV presenters Gabby Logan and Alex Scott. “I always used to see Gabby Logan on TV and she was good. Now Alex Scott is doing well, it’s great to see,” she says.

Born near York, her taste in football teams is more dubious, supporting Leeds United.

“It doesn’t go down well in Sheffield,” she admits.

“I’ve got a soft spot for the Sheffield teams and there is so much now about women’s football it is great.

“When you're looking online it is all about playing but not a lot about other roles and I wanted to promote that. Maybe people want to work in the game but don’t necessarily want to play, whether that’s coaching, physio or conditioning.

“There’s a lot more to the game than just kicking a ball.

“Now when I watch a game on TV I’m looking at what female staff are involved and it is good to see more and more doing it.”

The final of Miss GB will put her up against 50 other women after she won Miss Sheffield in January.

“It was online interviews and the final was on Zoom. We had pre-recorded videos for each element, there was no catwalk,” she says.

“I wanted to show you can be a woman, be glamorous, have your hair and make-up done, but still be involved in football. I wanted to emphasise that.”

Her photos prove it as she is pictured with football boots slung over her shoulder and a ball under her arm. There are other more conventional gown and swimwear shots.

“I pick the outfits and what to wear. They influence the poses and how you want to look, I’m in control of that,” she says.

“The stereotype is the catwalk side and that will be back for the Miss GB show but during the pandemic it was interviews with judges who wanted to know more about me, what I’m about and will you be a good representative.”

She did a skydive for charity which she enjoyed and is happy to talk about her work. “It’s not just walking about in great dresses,” she says.

“There’s a lot of hard work prior to that point, doing the research around your platform, looking at the stats.

“I did a skydive, others did book clubs or coffee mornings - a lot goes on behind the scenes that models are not necessarily associated with.

“I don’t really look at other models, it was more my mum wanting to help me do something I enjoyed doing.

“Through that I’ve met people from different areas, different backgrounds and everyone is really friendly. There’s a modelling community where everyone supports each other.”

Again, bucking the stereotypes of backstabbing and bad-mouthing at pageants. “I was worried about it before going into it,” she says. “I wondered, will I like it? But everyone came across as nice and easy to get on with.”

Back in Sheffield, she’s a fan of the Ecclesall Road area and says: “It’s a nice city. When I was in Spain me and my sister were always excited to come home and go to Meadowhall.

“It’s a vibrant place, I like Kelham Island and I’m proud to represent the city.

“If friends come, I try and get them to the football or out on Devonshire Street in the city centre.

“There’s a nice feel to the area, it has the feelgood factor.”

She’d love to win the Miss GB title and qualify for an international event. “In some exotic country,” she says wistfully. Other than that, it’s hard work.

“I’ll keep working hard at my career, make my way up in football, at Sheffield United and keep representing the city, making it proud,” she says.

“I'll be pushing my platform and working in women’s football, it is a great thing to have behind me.”