Last Friday the sun was shining in Pollok and it was a fitting end to the first block of GoFitba delivered to 20 local schoolchildren by the incredible people at Pollok United Soccer Academy. The celebration event was attended by Aileen Campbell, MSP and Humza Yousaf, MSP for Glasgow Pollok, as well as parents and teachers of the children from Mosspark and Our Lady of the Rosary Primary schools, who saw the youngsters receive their medals and certificates for successfully completing 12 weeks of the GoFitba programme.
The children thoroughly enjoyed their time on the project – playing football, learning how to stay active and discovering the benefits of a healthier lifestyle through diet and nutrition and enjoying a healthy meal with their friends each Friday.
Pollok United Soccer Academy, a Legacy level Scottish FA club, were a fantastic delivery partner of the GoFitba Project and all credit must go to Andy, Janie, Anne and the rest of the team at PUSA who continually go beyond their footballing duties to positively influence the lives of the children in their local community.
Aileen Campbell, MSP, a valued supporter of the initiative said: “The GoFitba project is a great opportunity for children to learn about the importance of health, nutrition and physical activity whilst having fun at the same time – it’s great to see so many children and football clubs involved. The Scottish Government is committed to helping communities across Scotland to have healthy lifestyles and get more active. Projects like this demonstrate the power of football and other sports to help achieve this.”
Andy Elliott, lead project coach at Pollok United commented: “We were delighted to work in association with The Scottish Football Partnership Trust on this project, which will see our club welcome a total of 40 local school children over two 12 week project blocks this year. We are always looking for new ways to engage with the local community and the GoFitba project is a fantastic way to showcase what we can offer to young members of our community at our excellent facilities here at Dennis Donnelly Park. Participation in sport can bring a lifetime of benefits and we look forward to working with the children initially from Mosspark Primary and Our Lady of the Rosary to Get Fit, Get Healthy and Have Fun.”
Stuart McCaffrey, Chief Operating Officer at the SFPT added: “GoFitba is a project which we have worked hard to develop over the past 18 months and it is fantastic to be funding its delivery at Pollok United Soccer Academy in conjunction with the UEFA Foundation for Children and The Kilpatrick Fraser Charitable Trust. The sport of football when used positively can act as a significant tool for personal and community development and we are excited to see our project develop and grow in partnership with Pollok United – a grassroots organisation truly at the heart of the community.”
