We use the power of football to improve the health and wellbeing of our local communities.
We aim to support people to adopt healthy lifestyles, to access the support they need, enhance the quality of life for people living with long term conditions, and help people to recover.
There are four main strands to our approach;
- Supporting public health prevention campaigns, and deliver screening and testing programmes. We understand that we can reach people directly that are often reluctant to access NHS services. Some of our CCOs are delivering the NHS Health Check and blood pressure testing. Our On Your Side campaign with our partners Mind is helping to raise awareness of mental health and to improve the approach to mental health in football.
2. Empowering people to make long term sustainable lifestyle changes. Our Joy of Moving programme reaches more than 70,000 children each year with health education lessons in schools. Children learn about the importance of a balanced diet and active lifestyle in a fun and engaging way.
3. Supporting people living with, or at risk of, long term conditions. Our FIT FANS programme reaches men and women whose weight is posing a risk to their health. The 12 week programme helps them to lose weight, improve their diet, become more active and reduce their blood pressure.
4. Tackling local health inequalities by creating an appropriate social prescribing offer. Our Extra Time Hubs are helping bring people together in their retirement years, who may be lonely or isolated, to make connections and become more active.
We work across all age groups and sections of the community. We aim to help people to start well, live well and age well.
We know that some people living in the communities surrounding EFL clubs are more likely to have poor health, to be living with multiple conditions and to die prematurely from preventable causes. We work with partners including NHS England, local authorities and several leading health charities to address the sometimes stark health inequalities.
Across our network CCOs are helping people to recover from cancer, support people living with a diagnosis of dementia, and help people to become free of substance misuse.
Our network is an increasingly significant factor in improving public health.
Find out more about our Health and Wellbeing projects:
Every Player Counts
Every Player Counts supports people of all ages living with disabilities and long term conditions to enjoy football.
Extra Time Hubs
Our Extra Time Hubs are the start of a national social movement of people in their retirement years, a ‘shared interest community’ where people meet on a weekly basis to socialise and do the things they enjoy.
FIT Fans
Our FIT FANS programme supports adults who are overweight to make lifestyle changes and to reduce their risk of poor health.
Joy of Moving
Our Joy of Moving programme gives over 70,000 primary school children each year the chance to enjoy fun physical activity and to learn about the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.
MIND
Our game changing charity partnership with Mind is helping us to harness the power of football to raise awareness of mental health, improve the approach to mental health in sport and raise funds to deliver life changing national and local support for people who need it most.
