Young people promoting positive mental wellbeing through the Premier League Inspires Challenge

Young people representing Newcastle United Foundation joined hundreds from across England and Wales in this year’s Premier League Inspires Challenge celebration, a national event that uses football to empower 11–to-18-year-olds through life skills, mentoring, and social action.

The Challenge is one element of the Premier League Inspires programme, which supports 11–to-18-year-olds who may be at risk of not reaching their potential as they move through the education system and into early adulthood. The Premier League, through its Foundation, currently funds 54 football club charities to run Premier League Inspires sessions in secondary schools on a weekly basis.

This season, young people have been tasked with a social action project to come up with ways in which they would support young people’s mental wellbeing in their communities. Earlier this season, Newcastle United Foundation representatives came together to share their project ideas with more than 40 students from across North Tyneside, Newcastle, Northumberland and Gateshead attending a regional event at St. James’ Park.

Young people enjoyed a stadium tour and mental health and wellbeing workshop before working with Newcastle United Foundation staff to create their own social action projects they could implement in their schools. After presenting all projects to a judging panel, Break the Silence – a campaign created by students from Emmanuel College in Gateshead – were named the overall winners.

Dan Stones, Premier League Inspires Coordinator at Newcastle United Foundation, said: “We’re incredibly proud of the young people from Emmanuel College whose Break the Silence project was a thoughtful, creative and genuinely impactful response to this year’s Premier League Inspires Challenge.

“From tackling stigma and common misconceptions around mental health, to encouraging students and teachers to come forward and not suffer in silence, they showed real compassion, leadership and maturity in the way they approached such an important issue.

“The group developed targeted questionnaires to better understand the experiences of their peers, used those insights to shape further support within school, and even created practical tutor-time activities to make conversations around mental wellbeing more engaging and accessible.

“Their Send a Smile initiative has also helped spread positive affirmations, kindness and a stronger sense of community across the school. On top of that, the way they presented their ideas demonstrated the communication, confidence, organisation and influencing skills that Premier League Inspires is designed to develop, and they should be incredibly proud of representing Newcastle United Foundation at the national event.”

The focus on mental wellbeing aligns closely with the Premier League’s Inside Matters initiative, which highlights the League’s and clubs’ ongoing commitment to raising awareness of the topic and encouraging fans to check in on the wellbeing of others.

The Foundation’s Premier League Inspires Challenge team also explored the positive work the Foundation is already doing to support mental wellbeing, including the Be A Game Changer mental health awareness campaign, encouraging Newcastle United supporters to start a conversation about their wellbeing.

Having won their local heat, Newcastle United Foundation participants joined hundreds of young people at the Premier League Inspires Challenge celebration event at Everton’s Hill Dickinson stadium at the end of April.

Premier League Foundation Chief Executive, Alex White, said: “The Premier League Inspires Challenge gives young people a powerful platform to discuss and take steps to improve young people’s mental well-being within their communities. This year’s theme encourages participants to champion positive mental well-being, break down stigma and create supportive environments where everyone feels able to thrive.

“By taking part in Premier League Inspires, young people can strengthen their confidence and build valuable skills - from communication and planning to teamwork and resilience - as they design meaningful social action projects that promote healthier, happier communities.”

Alongside the participant-focused activities, mental health specialists and representatives from across the sport and charity sectors came together for a round table event. The discussion focused on the role of football club charities in supporting young people’s mental health and wellbeing and was delivered by the Premier League and Premier League Foundation in partnership with Comic Relief.

The three-year partnership with Comic Relief is using the power of football to put children and young people aged five-to-18 at the heart of a nationwide push for better mental health by giving them access to practical wellbeing tools, education resources and essential life skills, while tackling stigma head-on.

Newcastle United Foundation began its Premier League Inspires delivery in Newcastle United Foundation began its Premier League Inspires delivery in 2019 and since then has supported around 2,600 young people through more than 3,300 sessions in 22 local schools.

Nationally, more than 40,000 young people from across England and Wales have received more than 135,000 hours of targeted support through Premier League Inspires to date.

To find out more about Premier League Inspires, please visit: www.premierleague.com

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