Hartlepool United Community Sports Foundation have kickstarted a new dementia and Alzheimer’s project for fans, supported by the Premier League Fans Fund.

The Premier League Fans Fund provides grants to support football clubs at all levels of the game to strengthen connections between them, their fans, and local communities. The fund supports a range of fan-focused and fan-led projects, helping to foster a sense of belonging through meaningful engagement.

Hartlepool United Community Sports Foundation (HUCSF) will use the reach and appeal of Hartlepool United to run a dementia/Alzheimer’s project that will run for 48 weeks, two hours per session. The hub will be based in the Centenary Lounge at the Suit Direct Stadium, every Tuesday between 10am to 12pm. Activities will range from chair exercises, arts & craft, board games, quizzes, karaoke, and reminiscence history of Hartlepool United. Each month alternative provisions will be made available to cater for other people’s needs; crown green bowls, snooker/pool, and a walking group to help more active members.

Premier League funding supports projects that respond to local need, and which aim to improve the matchday environment for fans, address community impact, build upon a club’s heritage and engage underrepresented fan groups (disability, ethnicity, LGBTQ+, women and girls).

Delivery is often themed around tackling inequalities to create community cohesion, covering areas like equality, diversity, inclusion, mental health and wellbeing, physical health, providing education and training opportunities, supporting employability and sustainability. 

Funding is flexible to empower professional football clubs, and their community organizations, to develop fan-focused and fan-led projects that respond directly to the needs of their local community.

The Premier League Fans Fund is administered through the Premier League Charitable Fund. To find out more about the Premier League Fans Fund, please visit www.premierleague.com/plcf.

For more information about Hartlepool United Community Sports Foundation’s project, please email hucsf@hartlepoolunited.co.uk.