Putteridge High School Drop-in Session
On Wednesday 22nd November Luton Town FC Community Trust Community Coach, Aiden Knowles, delivered a men’s mental health and wellbeing day at Putteridge High School, allowing students to attend drop-in sessions to explore what mental health can mean, and what support networks are available to them.
Putteridge High School is one of the schools that employ a full-time member of staff through the Community Trust, allowing us to have a greater impact on their pupils and broaden the type of work we can carry out in the school.
During the planning stages of the event, students had the opportunity to create a portrait of themselves and write down their emotions, feelings, achievements and future goals, allowing them to think a bit more about their own mental health.
During the event itself Aiden worked with other school staff to organise drop-in sessions for the students. As an ice breaker, the students were asked to first talk about their favourite sports team and players. This allowed students to build their confidence levels, feel supported and to gradually come out of their comfort zone before moving on to other topics.
Aiden then delivered a presentation to demonstrate factors that may impact the mental health of the students; including stress of exams, struggling to form friendships, or settling into school life. We then shared several resources and videos, outlining what support is available to individuals if they are suffering with their mental health.
The day was a real success and has led to participants becoming more confident in sharing their experiences with their designated safe person. We have also been able to signpost several of the pupils to our Premier League Kicks programme, which allows young people the opportunity to take part in free football sessions across the town, as well as attending workshops from local support services and undertake training and employment opportunities.
Following on from this event last week, this week has been an exciting one for students at Putteridge High School, with Rob Edwards and Ross Barkley turning up to officially open their new 3G football facility. They took the time to speak to students and sign autographs, making for an extremely memorable experience for the young people.
Social club visitors
We were delighted to host a few of our Social Club members at the home fixture against Crystal Palace recently. Predominately aimed at over 50s, we have been running the social club for several years, providing a safe space for people from the town to meet, enjoy a cup of tea, a slice of cake and each other’s company. The group took a short break recently whilst the stadium renovations were taking place but is now back and running every Wednesday morning from 10am to 12pm.
Community Trust staff love to get involved too, especially when it comes to a game of bingo or dominoes! The group thoroughly enjoyed the match, particularly as they were lucky enough to witness the historical moment the Hatters secured their first home victory in the Premier League.
Social Club member, Mary, thoroughly enjoyed her day.
She said: “I’ve lived in Luton my whole life but this was my first ever trip to the football. I loved it! It was such a great atmosphere and a day I’ll remember forever. The Social Club is very important to me. I’ve made some great friends and really look forward to my Wednesday mornings.”
The social club runs every Wednesday 10am-12pm and is completely free. Entry is through the main entrance on Maple Road East.
For further information please contact community@lutontown.co.uk or call 01582 561622.