Bromley FC Community Trust, proudly supported by The Glades Bromley, were delighted to join forces with fellow professional football club Community Organisations from across London as part of an event organised by London United.

90 people, including football legends Anton Ferdinand and Matt Jarvis gathered at West Ham United’s London Stadium on Monday 2 September to celebrate and strengthen the relationship between Club Community Organisations (CCOs), the NHS and others such as City Councils.

The event aimed to spark conversation and ignite future partnership opportunities for CCOs to collaborate with service providers to help achieve best possible population health for all across London and beyond.

With guests including Caroline Clarke, Regional Director for the NHS in London and Pedro Delgado, Vice President of Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI), as well as representatives from city councils, health providers and the 17 London CCOs; discussions looked ahead to future innovation and aspirational prevention to some of society’s most serious health problems.

Jeff Hutton, Chief Executive of Bromley FC Community Trust, said: “Having only just recently joined London United we are already seeing the great benefits of being part of a collective of fellow professional football clubs Community Organisations who are all trying to achieve the same thing for their respective communities. Monday was a great opportunity to engage with other CCOs and health care providers to explore new innovative ways to deliver improved health and wellbeing outcomes for our local community.”

In a welcoming address, Joe Lyons, Chief Executive of West Ham United Foundation, reflected on his own Foundation’s partnership with the NHS which began in 2015 with a programme aimed at tackling high rates of Type 2 Diabetes and cardiovascular disease. Joe reflected that the Foundation’s work addressing health needs in east London has evolved enormously since then.

With London United’s cohort spanning the breadth of London, collaboration with health providers has now progressed across a range of programmes including the likes of the Advantage Mentoring scheme which piloted in North East London through West Ham United, Arsenal and Leyton Orient – supporting the mental health of young people.

At the core of the event football and sport were the hook to bring the guests together, and a friendly 9-a-side football match followed at the nearby Bobby Moore Academy. In a closely contested match the Health United team managed by Anton Ferdinand came out on top with a 5-4 victory against Matt Jarvis’ London United. Bromley FC Community Trust we’re proudly represented on pitch by Head of Women & Girls Andrea Ellis and our Lead Women & Girls Coach Aurelie Laidouni.

Whilst post-match discussions reflected on the action on the pitch, thoughtful conversations and optimism for future relationships remained at the core of the day.

Joe Lyons, Chief Executive of West Ham United Foundation, said: “Our connections with colleagues today within the NHS only continue to strengthen. Coming together as a collaborative network, building greater relationships and growing a trusted partnership takes time and energy – something we saw in abundance throughout the event. The job is to now focus on core programming and impactful preventative provisions that really work – we will now look forward to develop new, innovative and aspirational prevention solutions to some of society’s most serious health problems – London United and London NHS is a true collaboration.”

Pedro Delgado, Vice President of Institute for Healthcare Improvement, said: “The match between London United and Health United was testament to the potential of football to build bridges across individuals and organisations in service of best possible health for all. Improving population health with and for communities will take an ever increasing set of active stakeholders collaborating to co-create innovative solutions, and to continuously learn, iterate and improve over time. We’re excited about what’s ahead!”

The professional football club Community Organisations that form London United are: Arsenal F.C., Barnet F.C., Brentford F.C., Bromley F.C., Charlton Athletic F.C., Chelsea F.C., Crystal Palace F.C., Dagenham and Redbridge F.C., Fulham F.C., Leyton Orient F.C., Millwall F.C., Queens Park Rangers F.C., Sutton United F.C., Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Watford F.C., West Ham United F.C., and AFC Wimbledon.

Freddie Hudson, Chair of London United and Head of Arsenal in the Community, said: “London United clubs have worked in partnership for over 10 years to support communities across our city. The collaboration with the NHS during that time has been essential in driving better health outcomes through our projects, and we’re excited about deepening this relationship.”

About London United

London United is formed of the 17 London based Professional Football Club Community Organisations (CCOs), associated with the Premier League, English Football League and National League.

The CCOs come together to share knowledge and best practice, work with London-wide organisations to understand how football clubs and sport can help to address prevalent issues and deliver city-wide programmes to improve Londoners’ lives.

The professional football club Community Organisations that form London United are: Arsenal F.C., Barnet F.C., Brentford F.C., Bromley F.C., Charlton Athletic F.C., Chelsea F.C., Crystal Palace F.C., Dagenham and Redbridge F.C., Fulham F.C., Leyton Orient F.C., Millwall F.C., Queens Park Rangers F.C., Sutton United F.C., Tottenham Hotspur F.C., Watford F.C., West Ham United F.C., and AFC Wimbledon.

Further information

Website: www.londonunited.org.uk
Contact: enquiries@londonunited.org.uk