Working hard to build resilience and promote positive mental health
Albion in the Community (AITC) is supporting World Mental Health Day.
Much of the charity’s work throughout the year helps people of all ages build resilience and improve their emotional wellbeing – including important work with students at dozens of local schools.
AITC has also recently launched a leadership course for young participants at its free Premier League Kicks weekly football sessions. The Top Bins course aims to build emotional resilience and sees AITC’s coaches using the Five Ways to Wellbeing approach to teach participants important life skills and promote positive mental health; if an initial pilot proves successful, Top Bins will then be rolled out to other Premier League Kicks participants throughout Sussex.
The charity’s further education team also offers nationally-accredited courses in mental health and understanding children and young people’s mental health – courses which are completed by a growing number of people each year, including many who work within AITC.
There are also a number of regular football sessions delivered by AITC which are designed to provide local adults who may be experiencing challenges with mental health with a suitable environment in which to get active, boost their emotional wellbeing and expand their support network.
These sessions take place in Brighton and Hove, Eastbourne and Worthing, while AITC also provides additional support to adults with long-term mental health challenges as part of its Albion Goals employability and football programme.
Players from the charity’s mental wellbeing sessions are heading to Walton-on-Thames for a tournament celebrating World Mental Health Day, and Paul Williams, the charity’s head of community programmes, was keen to highlight the charity’s commitment to promoting positive mental health among all its participants.
He said, “Almost everything we do at Albion in the Community involves encouraging people to be active and we know how important regular physical activity is in terms of mental wellbeing.
“Having the chance to get active in a friendly, welcoming and supportive environment can have a hugely-positive impact on people’s lives and just being part of a team provides many of our participants with a vital support network, introducing them to other people who may be facing similar challenges, or who have shared experiences.
“Sport has huge potential to improve people’s lives and at Albion in the Community we consider ourselves very fortunate to be in a position where we can use football to help people improve their physical and emotional wellbeing and to support them when they most need it.”
For more information on AITC’s football sessions or mental health-related qualifications, email: info@bhafcfoundation.org.uk.