First Year in Summary
Recently, Gateshead Football Club Foundation turned one year old.
Despite the challenges that have been posed, the last 12 months have been very rewarding.
Below, we guide you through our involvement in the local community over the last year.
During our launch week, we paid a visit to the wonderful volunteers at Gateshead Foodbank.
We held a collection at the International Stadium before a home fixture against Alfreton, and were delighted to have raised 330kg of food for people in crisis. See the YouTube video of the fantastic work the Gateshead Foodbank do.
We were also thrilled to meet representatives from If U Care Share, Symone and Abbey.
After partnering with the local mental health charity, we later took part in the ‘Inside Out’ campaign, which encourages people to speak out more regularly.
Several trustees and first-team players were welcomed by Inspired Support near the end of the week, who support people with Autism Spectrum Conditions (ASC) and learning disabilities. Following an intense but ebullient FIFA tournament and an intriguing Q&A session, a competitive crossbar challenge was held during half-time of a men's fixture.
At the start of 2020, just under 200kg was raised in another collection for Gateshead Foodbank.
Although other proposed donation dates were put on hold, we frequently kept in touch with the organisation and promoted different methods of assisting.
Throughout the first lockdown period due to the COVID-19 outbreak, Community Officer, Ben Clark, recorded a plethora of constant video updates.
At the Foundation, we believe staying connected is vital, so we tried to incorporate the community as much as possible by starting conversations on past Heed memories and more.
As well as piecing together quizzes on social media and regular zoom sessions, Ben showed us how to keep active with regular sports drills.
Additionally, we created our Heed At Home phone service, which helped bring smiles onto faces during tough times by simply talking.
Our phone line remains open, so please click here you’d like to chat to us.
Near the end of the lockdown, the Best of Bensham linked up with us and we donated supplies, alongside coaching free sessions at Saltwell Park for a month to children in the area.
Ben and Community Activator, Luke Brown, launched our summer soccer sessions with Felling Magpies during this time, which were also filled with excitement.
Furthermore, we were delighted to be a part of Gateshead FC Ladies‘ trials in August, before we announced the return of our walking football sessions at Cleveland Hall.
The slow-paced sessions for both males and females are a great way of maintaining fitness while also having fun, so we can’t wait to see more enjoyment in the future.
Most recently, all of the club supported the incredible efforts of many to provide free school meals to those in need in the October half-term, by providing supplies and volunteers.
We saw the whole borough pull together in heartwarming fashion, which was truly tremendous.
Finally, we’ve started working in schools around Gateshead, and we are hopeful of expanding the volume of work in the New Year.
From all of us at Gateshead FC Foundation, we’d like to say a big thank you to all the staff, players, supporters, partners and the whole community for backing us during the last year.
We can’t wait to see what the future holds!
To donate to Gateshead Football Club Foundation, click here.
