Annan Athletic F.C. will invest the funding from the SFP’s Community Initiative award to increase the club’s provision of community engagement under the banner “Inspiring Active Lives” to young children aged between 2 and 4 currently enrolled in childcare facilities in the local area. The club’s mascot “Galapanda” will be the figurehead for this exciting new initiative which will see free introductory sessions delivered to the 12 council-run nursery schools in and around Annan. Each of the 35 children in these nurseries will receive a block of four one hour weekly sessions and from this the club hope to target free physical activity to a maximum of 420 pre-school children. A second project will see the club involve those parents or guardians who unfortunately don’t have the means to fund engagement in physical exercise and from this, the club aims to create sustainable, community-based activity for these adults to maximise the likelihood of them continuing to participate in sports and lead a healthier lifestyle. Free introductory sessions will be delivered within the current Annan Athletic Community Programme portfolio and will involve each adult participating in physical activity/literacy within an enjoyable environment. Henry McClelland, the club’s Chairman said “One of the main objectives of Annan Athletic F.C. is to ensure that, as a community club, the facilities on offer at Galabank are utilised by the community to its full capacity and we are keen to engage with groups such as these young children in nurseries as well as helping more vulnerable people have the opportunity to develop not only new physical skills but those including resilience and motivation to overcome challenges through hard work.”