Partners and Friends
Both alongside our programmes and as facilities available for booking, we aim to provide the community with spaces that they can use to interact with others and be inspired.
Situated along the Welsh border, Shropshire is a rural county with a widespread community. As of the 2021 census carried out by the Office of National Statistics, it was determined that 57.2% of Shropshire’s population lived in rural areas, often separated from services commonly available in local towns. This can lead to an increase in social isolation, especially for older adults, who could go without regular interaction.
Another factor linked to rural communities is the reduced support available for children. Since the introduction of free school meals for eligible families, there are currently 6034 pupils in Shropshire who qualify for these meals. This number continues to grow, therefore outside of school these families often rely on support from local authorities to keep their children fit and healthy throughout the holidays.
Through our facilities we have been able to build strong connections with local businesses and services which have helped us to grow the stadium into a hub for the community. Through these connections we have been able to offer pitches for homeless people to play, have utilised our outdoor gym facilities to provide refugees with mentored gym support, and have transformed our function spaces into weekly support hubs with local care services.
Upon successful delivery of the Holiday Activity and Food (HAF) programme, across the 2022/23 season we saw 1034 participants take part in Christmas, Easter and Summer holiday activities with 70,312 amount of meals distributed over this time. In addition to our delivery in Shrewsbury, we have also been able to expand this offering across Shropshire with hubs at both Ludlow and Much Wenlock.
As the charity of a professional football club, we are also proud to be able to offer a range of pitches and amenities to allow all ages to enjoy the beautiful game through pitch bookings, festivals and tournaments.
We want to provide opportunities to help individuals achieve their goals and realise their potential, but we can only do this with your support.