Football clubs jump for joy as Kinder + Sport Programme gets over 41,000 children active in the UK and Ireland

Football clubs across country are joining together to celebrate the success of the Kinder + Sport programme, a national initiative delivered by Ferrero and The Football League Trust.

The programme is designed to get children active, promote nutritional education and build awareness of the importance of a balanced diet and active lifestyle.  Since the start of the school year, football clubs throughout the UK have been teaming up with primary schools in their area to deliver the + Sport Move and Learn Project to 9-10 year olds, with each session combining 45 minutes of classroom based learning and 45 minutes of physical activity over a 6 week period. The project will reach more than 21,000 children over the 2014/15 school year. To support the programme, club players have acted as ambassadors and participating schools have had the chance to meet players and be involved in match day activities such as half time penalty shoot outs. 

Alongside this, Ferrero has partnered with The Football League as the official sponsor of the Kinder + Sport Kids’ Cup and Kinder + Sport Girls’ Cup, national tournaments for junior footballers across the country which have got a further 20,000 children active and recently culminated in exciting finals at Wembley stadium.

The celebration of a successful year for Kinder + Sport in the UK  is marked by the unveiling of the Kinder + Sport Jump for Joy project, created to encourage children and adults to experience the “Joy of Moving” by capturing their very own jump for joy. 

Players, mascots, fans and children from Kinder + Sport clubs across the UK have been sharing pictures of their jumps, which have all now been combined together into a mosaic of images in the shape of the Kinder + Sport logo.  The mosaic is revealed today at the Kinder + Sport Pavilion at Expo in Milan as part of the celebrations for Expo UK National Day.

 The Jumps for Joy mosaic can be viewed online

Charlie Cayton, Director of Corporate Affairs and Communications at Ferrero, says: “Celebrating the joy of moving is at the very heart of the Kinder + Sport philosophy. That’s why, as this academic year draws to a close, we want to recognise the hard work and commitment of The Football League Trust and our partners and clubs across the UK and Ireland. Thanks to their dedication, the programme has reached over 41,000 children with over 190,000 hours of activity delivered. We look forward to continuing to work with them and to growing the programme by bringing more clubs on board at the start of the new school year in September.”

Mike Evans, General Manager of The Football League Trust, adds: “We have been working with Ferrero for almost 2 years now to inspire children to lead active lifestyles through the Kinder + Sport programme. We have been overwhelmed by the positive response we have had from the clubs, schools and kids themselves to the initiative. We see it as vitally important that companies such as Ferrero value the health and wellbeing of our future generations, and we’re delighted to be building on the initial success of the project and to continue to grow it next year.”

Notes to editors – About the Kinder + Sport Move and Learn Project

designed to get children active, promote nutritional education and build awareness of the importance of a balanced diet and active lifestyle.

The + Sport Move and Learn Project is a national, school-based, educational programme for children aged 9-10, delivered through football clubs across the UK and Ireland.  Over the course of six 90 minute weekly sessions, children will learn about the body, nutrition, the importance of exercise and food groups and take part in a practical session of football, handball and dodgeball. The content has been developed by nutritional, educational and sporting experts in line with the Government’s Eatwell plate and the National Curriculum for PSHE and Science.

The + Sport Move and Learn Project is delivered in schools across the country in partnership with the Community Trusts of several top football clubs across the UK and The Republic of Ireland. These include Watford FC; Blackburn Rovers; Coventry City; Charlton Athletic; Derby County; Middlesbrough FC; Sheffield United; and Plymouth Argyle.  In Scotland the programme is run in partnership with the Scottish Professional Football League Trust and Rangers and Celtic. The Football Association Ireland has also launched a pilot programme in the Cork area where Ferrero is a major employer, producing 40% of the world’s supply of tic tacs at its Cork factory.