A programme to use the power of football to help support people
experiencing poor mental wellbeing, using the connection to
professional football, has been enhanced by funding from the
Scottish Government.
The Changing Room - Extra Time has been awarded £100,000. The
new programme builds on The Changing Room, an existing support
service which uses football to bring men together to tackle
mental health.
It will be delivered by SAMH (Scottish Association for Mental
Health) in partnership with the SPFL Trust and associated
community trusts at Aberdeen (AFC Community Trust), Rangers
(Rangers Charity Foundation), Heart of Midlothian (Big Hearts)
and Hibernian (Hibernian Community Foundation) football clubs.
The Extra Time initiative will provide an opportunity for
people to explore specific areas that often challenge them
including how they view themselves, think and feel – all of
which impacts on their mental wellbeing.
Mental Wellbeing Minister , who launched the initiative at Pittodrie, home of
Aberdeen FC, said:
“Mental wellbeing has never been more important especially as
we continue to deal with the ongoing pandemic and I am pleased
to see this programme grow and develop.
“Although the focus is on four of our biggest clubs, which are
all situated in urban areas, there is significant reach within
those clubs across wider Scotland. My message is simple, we
shouldn’t be afraid to talk about how we are feeling. This is
an excellent way to combine football to improve mental
wellbeing.”
Billy Watson, Chief Executive at SAMH said:
“We’re delighted that the Scottish Government is funding The
Changing Room – Extra Time, which will provide people with an
opportunity to focus on resilience and self-care by exploring
areas that often challenge them. It can be a struggle for many
of us to talk about how we feel, and football is a really
powerful way of bringing them together and encouraging them to
open up.
“The Changing Room pilot projects have shown the difference the
right support can make. Extra Time is a result of the value of
this unique form of support being recognised not only by our
pilot partners, but now also the Scottish Government and our
new football club partners. Together, we’ve designed this
expanded programme to fit the needs of people across the
country, and we look forward to starting the next chapter of
The Changing Room.”
Aberdeen FC Community Trust chief executive Liz Bowie said:
“We’re absolutely delighted that The Changing Room Extra Time
is coming to Pittodrie, because this programme has a track
record of success in supporting men to improve their mental
health. We are sure that the Red Army will get right behind the
project.”
SPFL Trust operations manager Fiona Taylor said:
“Football has an extraordinary power to inspire people to make
changes for the better. We’ve seen this with other programmes
such as Football Fans in Training, and the pilot of The
Changing Room at Easter Road and Tynecastle.
“The Changing Room Extra Time brings together the expertise of
SAMH and our brilliant community trust partners to deliver
something which we know people are looking for; interaction,
safe spaces and friendship. What better place to provide this,
than in the sanctuary of a club’s changing room?”
Background
The Changing Room, which is funded by Movember and supported by
the Scottish Professional Football League Trust (SPFL Trust),
was first created in 2018 at Hibernian Football Club, and
rolled out to Heart of Midlothian Football Club later that
year.
Aimed at men in their middle years, the Changing Room is a
12-week programme which uses football to bring men together to
tackle mental health.
Extra Time aims to give people the opportunity to speak in more
depth about their mental wellbeing and to come together to
explore areas which are giving them particular challenges or
concerns.
In 2020, SAMH announced that Movember would be providing
funding to scale up The Changing Room to clubs across Scotland.
Additional community trusts or clubs have signed up to take
part alongside Heart of Midlothian (Big Hearts) and Hibernian
(Hibernian Community Foundation). They are: Aberdeen, Albion
Rovers, Alloa, Annan Athletic, Clyde, Cowdenbeath, Dundee,
Dunfermline, East Fife, Falkirk, Livingston, Montrose, Morton,
Peterhead, Queens Park, Rangers, Ross Country, and St Mirren.
