Half-time display went down well with Ricoh Crowd...
Participants of the Coventry City’s Sky Blues in the Community Down’s syndrome football sessions demonstrated some of their skills during the half-time break at the recent game against Notts County at the Ricoh Arena, as part of the Kick It Out anti-discrimination campaign.
The Down’s syndrome group forms part of the wider ‘Learning to Play’ project, funded over three years by Comic Relief’s Sport for Change programme.
Learning to Play aims to increase health and independent living skills for people with learning disabilities and Down’s syndrome, with five sessions delivered each week at various venues across Coventry.
Sky Blues in the Community works with organisations including Grapevine, Henley College, Hereward College and Coventry City Council’s One Body One Life programme to recruit participants and deliver workshops to equip people with new life-skills, whilst improving health and well-being.
The project has just concluded its first year of delivery having worked with 99 individuals, offering five sessions each week throughout the year. The project has achieved some fantastic results with 73% of participants believing the project has improved their health, and 86% saying that they have become more active as a result of their involvement in the scheme.
Joint Head of Sky Blues in the Community David Busst said: "It has been a great first year for the Learning to Play project, and the event at half-time on Saturday was a fitting way to celebrate all that has been achieved by the participants and the project over the last 12 months.
"The reception the players got from the crowd was amazing and we now want to drive the scheme forward, increasing the awareness of the scheme. We want more people to benefit from an excellent project and the fantastic services and support available through all of the partner organisations."
If you would like to find out more about the Learning to Play project or to join any of the sessions, please contact Craig White on 024 7678 6313 or email craig.white@ccfc.co.uk