Since 2001, the Mental Health Foundation has been leading Mental Health Awareness Week – bringing together the UK to focus on getting good mental health. Each May, millions of people from every part of society take part. They include people in schools and further education; private, public, and charity sectors; families and individuals. ‘Movement: Moving more for our mental health’ is the theme of Mental Health Awareness Week 2024.
At Watford FC’s Community Sports and Education Trust, movement and mental health are two very important themes to their ongoing charitable work within Hertfordshire and London. That is through programmes that provide safe and accessible opportunities for physical activity, which is well-reported to improve individuals’ general mental wellbeing – this includes the various football courses delivered to youngsters, as well as projects such as the adult weight management courses in Shape Up. Then there are the projects targeted at improving the mental health of individuals and their communities, these include:

• Positive Minds – a 10-week wellbeing programme combining classroom and practical-based activities to engage Year 6 students in the topic of mental health. Contact: taylor.morrison@watfordfc.com. See below feedback from a teacher at Parkgate Junior School:
  

  “(I) absolutely believe this should be delivered to all pupils in Year 6 to support the changes they are going through to ensure the children understand how to cope when transitioning into secondary school.”

• Man On! – a sports-based mental wellbeing programme designed to support men aged 18 years and over, with their mental health through physical activity and facilitated conversations with qualified staff and fellow attendees. Sessions are run in Watford, Rickmansworth, and Harrow. Contact: taylor.morrison@watfordfc.com
• Youth Link – a social prescribing service which creates connections and links Children and Young People, from the ages of 10 to 24 years old, to access sustained activity to improve their physical and mental wellbeing. Contact: ines.pereira@watfordfc.com
• Empower – a six-month project that aims to improve young people’s mental health using physical activity. Empower is suited for young people between the age of nine–12 years old with a mild to moderate mental health diagnosis or individuals who show poor mental wellbeing. Contact: caoimhe.walker@watfordfc.com Click below to watch a video filmed at a recent Empower graduation event.

Mental health initiatives recently completed across the Trust’s many other programmes include Premier League Inspires in which secondary school pupils were empowered to build their own campaign around mental wellbeing – pupils from Sacred Heart Language College even represented Watford FC on the national stage at Wembley Stadium, after building mental health workshops and tournaments for their peers. You can read more about this by clicking HERE.
Another project delivered by the Trust, Premier League Primary Stars, hosted two tournaments at Meriden Community Centre and Cedars Youth and Community Centre, for local primary schoolchildren. The tournaments included mental health workshops with movement activities and a paper-based exercise entitled ‘My voice matters’. Congratulations to the tournament’s two winners – St Josephs (Cedars Youth and Community Centre), and Yorke Mead (Meriden Community Centre).
To find out more about the Trust by looking through our official website, follow us on social media by searching @WFCTrust, or email community@watfordfc.com