The Scottish Football Partnership is pleased to announce an exciting new Community Initiative which will see £420,000 made available to the professional game. It is well known already that the 42 professional clubs in Scotland carry out invaluable community work and this new investment will further assist in linking these clubs to their local communities. Adults and children alike stand to gain from the focussed efforts of the individual clubs and this financial boost can only help foster greater community and social development where the wider community will always be the winner. The project will be strengthened further thanks to the support of the Scottish F.A.’s Regional Development Managers who will work alongside clubs during the application process. Stuart McCaffrey of The Scottish Football Partnership said “We are excited about what this scheme will deliver and recognise the positive impact that football can have in Scotland. This initiative can only help strengthen the role of professional football clubs at the heart of their communities”
All 42 professional clubs are therefore invited to apply for an award of up to a maximum of £10,000 each from this fund, based on 75% of the project’s overall expenditure through the following objectives.
- Football Development
Engaging and supporting the local community through football, e.g. allowing children and adults to experience what could be their first steps into a football environment with the emphasis placed on participation, fun and enjoyment.
- Health
Initiatives to support physical and mental wellbeing, e.g. helping all participants to keep active, fighting childhood and adolescent obesity and engaging in activities for the elderly.
- Disability
Providing positive activities for those in the local area with a disability and their families/ carers.
- Community and Social Development
Innovative programmes to support and encourage greater social and community inclusion for ethnic minorities, the unemployed, the homeless and the most vulnerable members of the community.
- Schools and Education
Encouraging participation, education and healthy lifestyles through football by engaging with local schools and other educational establishments.
SPFL Players (pictured below) Kenny Miller (Rangers F.C.), Peter MacDonald (Greenock Morton F.C.); Jason Naismith (St. Mirren F.C.) and Albion Rovers Manager, Darren Young were on hand to launch the initiative with former Scotland Internationalist Miller quoted as saying “Football has an influential position in Scottish culture to help change lives for the better”.
