Vulnerable residents provided with summer of support from Wigan Athletic

Funding from the National Lottery Community Fund has seen Wigan Athletic Community Trust provide help to the most needy across the borough..

Having received a grant of £28,709 towards their COVID-19 response in June, staff from the club’s official charity were busy over the summer responding to the needs of the community.

The money allowed Latics to support older residents for three months and has seen them make over 130 household food deliveries and 50 large food drops to food banks. This takes the total number of deliveries to over 950 since the end of March when lockdown was first introduced.

Through making the deliveries, the trust has been connecting communities by working closely with a range of community and voluntary organisations. These include the Brick, Wigan Council, Daffodil Dreams, the Bridge at Leigh and Wigan Borough Armed Forces HQ to deliver emergency food parcels.

Gill Burchall, keyworker for the armed forces said the support has been and continues to be very welcome.

She said: “Wigan Athletic Community Trust have supported the HQ by using their own vans to deliver food parcels to the shielded, vulnerable and emergency deliveries across the borough.

“The importance of the support provided by the Community Trust to the community during the lockdown has been invaluable and paramount.

“We are very proud to have had such a caring community organisation support us and the community through this unpresented time in our lives, offering reassurance, support with shopping and reducing social isolation that the more vulnerable in our borough have had to live with when shielding from this pandemic.”

As well as deliveries, phone calls to ensure the welfare of older Latics supporters and residents have continued with nearly 700 now made by staff and over 150 goody bags sent out. Indivduals have also been kept active at home through different exercises, games and resources.

Head of Community at Wigan Athletic Tom Flower said: “The COVID-19 pandemic has had such an impact on many lives and for some older people in the community it has meant they have become even more isolated.

“Thanks to the grant from the National Lottery Community Fund, it means we have been able to continue working alongside our partners in the community and help hundreds of older people who are most in need of support.

"I would urge any community group or organisation within the Wigan borough, who would benefit from our support during the current pandemic, to contact us.”

The funding followed the announcement earlier in the year that the National Lottery had awarded the community trust a grant of £392,457 for its Pathway 2 Participation mentoring programme for children and young people.

Working in partnership with Wigan Council, the funding has enabled trust coaches to provide one-to-one support to Looked After Children at Wigan Youth Zone on a daily basis with up to 20 youngsters a day enjoying sports sessions.

Graham Doubleday, service manager for Wigan Council’s Targeted Youth Service said: “The council approached Wigan Athletic Community Trust as a key partner to deliver this offer and the support we received was amazing from day one.”

“Staff were all really passionate and committed to the offer and they provided a varied range of quality sporting activities to a high standard that engaged and stimulated the young people.

“As a result of this partnership work young people reported it was a safe place for them and that they looked forward to the sessions.”

Following an ease in restrictions, the Pathway 2 Participation programme is now providing participants with a number of outdoor activities and one-to-one mentoring support.

If your community group or organisation requires help or support during the current pandemic then contact Wigan Athletic Community Trust’s community development manager by emailing [email protected] or calling 01942 318090.