North Yorkshire Sport and the North Yorkshire County Council Stronger Communities team have developed a programme called 'Club as the Hub' to help tackle loneliness and isolation amongst North Yorkshire residents.
North Yorkshire Sport has committed to work with one 'Hub' sports club in each district, per year, and support them to become aware of the needs and requirements of their ageing members and potential members.
The programme looks at specific considerations clubs should be aware of to ensure they are accessible to the whole of their local community. This may include training and support to
deliver accessible/adapted sports, dementia and bereavement awareness and generic club development support to make the club a focal point for best practice and a knowledge hub for other local clubs.
There were six Club as the Hub clubs established in 2016-17 with participants benefiting from a range of training workshops such as Dementia Friends, Warm and Well Fuel Poverty, Trips and Falls and Mental Health First Aid.
- ALL 6 CLUBS HAVE BEEN DIRECTED TO THEIR RESPECTIVE DISTRICT DEMENTIA ACTION ALLIANCE
- 9 PEOPLE ATTENDED THE WARM & WELL FUEL POVERTY WORKSHOP
- THE SPORTING MEMORIES NETWORK TUTOR TRAINING (DELIVERING MONTHLY SESSIONS IN HARROGATE, 15-20 REGULAR ATTENDEES AND MONTHLY SESSIONS IN HUSTHWAITE, 10-15 REGULAR ATTENDEES)
- 17 PEOPLE ATTENDED A MENTAL HEALTH FIRST AID COURSE WHICH INCLUDED 4 PEOPLE FROM THE RICHMONDSHIRE CLUB AS THE HUBS
Working with Harrogate Town FC (HTFC), North Yorkshire Sport’s key focus areas were to make match days more accessible and to provide accessible facilities to host non-traditional sessions such as coffee mornings and Sporting Memories reminiscence.
A Dementia Friends workshop was hosted and Sporting Memories tutor training was arranged with extended partners including HTFC staff, East Riding County FA, York City FC Foundation staff, local charity Over the Rainbow and local volunteers. Eight people attended the Sporting Memories training which has enabled the delivery of monthly sessions in Harrogate, with 15-20 regular attendees.
Being involved with the North Yorkshire Sport, Club as the Hub programme has supported the Clubs drive to be a friendly, accessible venue for the whole Harrogate & District community.
Staff have attended Dementia Friends workshops to raise awareness of older peoples considerations on match day and Sporting Memory training to enable specific sessions to be delivered at the clubs facilities.These resources have raised the confidence of staff being able to cater for this specific demographic group of the local community. It is vital that we continue this work to grow other appropriate programmes including Walking Football and other social inclusion programmes such as the “Think with your Feet” work targeting people with anxiety, who are lonely and face daily issues around every day tasks.
GARRY PLANT, MANAGING DIRECTOR, HARROGATE TOWN FC.
The Club as the Hub process has also benefited the club by creating new networks of non-traditional partners. HTFC have registered on the Dementia Action Alliance directory of accessible resources and display the Alzheimer’s Society logo on hoarding signs and on staff pin badges.