7 EFL Club Charities unite to help over 55's improve their Health and Wellbeing!
- Marc Lewis
- Mar 11
- 2 min read
Updated: Mar 12
Thanks to the EFL in the Community Catalyst Fund, Bristol Rovers Community Trust will deliver the REACT programme and support over 60's across the local community.
Supported by robust evidence from a large NIHR-funded trial, the REACT (REtirement in ACTion) programme offers a group-based exercise approach that demonstrably improves mobility and promotes independent living.
The REACT programme was developed in response to a pressing and growing public health challenge: the decline in physical function and independence among older adults. According to the Office for National Statistics, one in five people in the UK are currently aged 65 or over, and by 2050 this will rise to one in four.
The programme combines exercise, education and social activities that are designed for older adults who are beginning to show age-related mobility decline. Through a cost-effective real world intervention, older adults will develop positive physical activity behaviours and habits and form lasting social connections.
This new funding from EFL in the Community will scale up the REACT programme and utilise the power of football to reach adults who would otherwise not engage in the programme.
Wigan Athletic Community Trust, Bolton Wanderers in the Community, Bristol City Robins Foundation, Bristol Rovers Community Trust, QPR in the Community, Stevenage FC Foundation and Watford FC’s Community Sports and Education Trust will be the first seven EFL Club Charities to deliver the programme, enhancing their already impactfu lwork across their local communities.
Bristol Rovers Community Trust, CEO Adam Tutton, added:
“The Trust are delighted to be able to deliver the REACT programme and continue to support the community in Bristol. Through the REACT programme, we will be able to help improve the quality of life of some of our older adults within the borough and have a meaningful impact on people’s lives.”
EFL in the Community’s Director of Community, Debbie Cook, said:
“EFL Clubs are atthe heart of their communities and the charities associated with our Clubs are changinglives together 365 days a year. We were delighted to announce this funding during the EFL’s Week of Action. It aims totackle some of the key challenges facing our country and highlights that our Clubs arewell placed to reach out to the people of their communities and engage with them in away that many organisations cannot.”
Professor Afroditi Stathi, Chief Investigator of REACT at the University of Birmingham, added:
"I am excited that REACT will now be delivered through EFL in the Community,bringing this evidence-based programme into spaces where men, in particular, feel astrong sense of belonging - their football clubs. This expansion means more people can stay mobile, independent, and sociallyconnected, while strengthening the community spirit that football represents."
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