CELTIC FC Foundation is delighted to launch a new strand to their Football for Good Fund aimed at tackling the ever increasing mental health and well-being issues faced by many of us, especially during the current pandemic.

Both St Roch’s FC and Glasgow’s Golden Generation will receive £5,000 each, with the donations going towards both organisation’s existing services that strive to improve mental health and well-being in our local communities.

The COVID-19 pandemic has had far-reaching implications on the mental health and well-being of people all over the country. Levels of loneliness, depression, harmful alcohol and drug use, self-harm and suicidal thoughts are all expected to rise throughout this difficult period.

Celtic FC Foundation recognises the importance and severity of the current mental health crisis and is committed to helping those who are struggling at this time.

A £5,000 donation has been made to St Roch’s – a community-based football club in the North East of Glasgow, who work within some of the most disadvantaged areas in Glasgow, such as Garngad, Germiston, Provanmill and Blackhill.

The club also has strong links to Celtic Football Club, particularly through the Garngad side’s most celebrated figure and Celtic’s all-time top goal scorer, Jimmy McGrory, after whom their stadium is named.

The donation will help to continue and expand St Roch’s ‘Roch Talk’ project, which is a support group for all ages that has been running for just over a year and has already achieved great success in providing people with a safe, non-judgemental space to attend on a weekly basis.

Celtic FC Foundation’s other partner, Glasgow’s Golden Generation, will also receive a £5,000 donation. The charity assists over-55s through four core services: day care centres, befriending, welfare advice and over 100 weekly clubs. All four of these services focus on early intervention to decrease loneliness and isolation in older adults.

The Foundation’s donation will go towards the organisation’s Befriending Service, which aims to support older adults over the age of 55 to reduce loneliness and isolation and is available across Glasgow.

All clients receive regular telephone befriending sessions and video befriending has been introduced, coinciding with the tablet distribution project aiming to connect older adults through digital interaction.

It is estimated that by January 2021, GGG will have made 20,000 befriending calls and offering a crucial lifeline to those behind closed doors.

Stephen Mullen, President of St Roch’s, said: “The donation will help us take Roch Talk to the next level, allowing us to open up the club an extra few nights a week which means we can deliver more sessions and hopefully attract more participants.

“We can’t thank the Foundation enough for the support they give us. We simply wouldn’t be able to do the things we do here without their incredible generosity.”

Richard Donald from Glasgow’s Golden Generation, said: “On behalf of everyone at GGG I would like to express a huge thanks to Celtic FC Foundation.  They have held our hand all the way by supporting us since the start of Covid-19 and contributed significantly to our emergency response and initiatives.

“The Foundation initially offered funding for emergency food parcels, as well as gifts, shared contacts for additional donations and now funding towards our crucial Befriending Service.

“The opportunity to work alongside the Celtic FC Foundation has also provided terrific communication opportunities and awareness to the public of our services, this has also been crucial and helped us support more older people during these times.

“Loneliness, isolation, and mental health issues are a major concern across Glasgow with demand for our service escalating to crisis levels.  With the support of the Celtic FC Foundation and a current funding total of £35,000 we move forward with confidence that we can meet growing demand and support those older people in our Glasgow community.”

Celtic FC Foundation Chief Executive, Tony Hamilton, said: ““Mental Health is a big focus for people everywhere right now. We’re very keen to increase our own presence and in the meantime we’re delighted that we can support two of the organisations in our communities who are already delivering in this area.

“Loneliness, isolation and other mental health challenges that people face every day can’t be overlooked; and if there’s something that we can do on our own, or in partnership, then that’s what we will do.”

Celtic FC Foundation carries out its own projects in this area, namely, the hugely successful You’ll Never Talk Alone project. The project strives to tackle the growing issue of loneliness and has been personally supported by Celtic manager, Neil Lennon.

You’ll Never Talk Alone will re-launch in January, with a new Covid-19 friendly approach.

We are also due to implement a new strand to our CashBack delivery for young offenders. This will see the Foundation bring in our own Psychologist/Trauma Specialist who will work with our young people on a one to one counselling basis.

For more information on any of our projects, get in touch with us  at [email protected] or call us on 0141 551 4321.