Using football cultures as a vehicle to improve mental health in men: the case of the Redcar and cleveland boot room

Abstract

This paper sets out to appraise (from the perspective of members) the impact of a localized, football-based mental health intervention. Commissioned in late 2015, the ‘Redcar and Cleveland Boot Room (BR)’ was implemented in response to mass redundancy in the local area, coupled with regional suicide rates in men that exceed the national average. Interactive discussions with BR members revealed that: (a) the language of football and shared identity were important for initiating and sustaining engagement in the BR; (b) peer-support and mentoring combined with member-led activities were active ingredients of the BR and (c) that the BR was an effective vehicle for building mental health resilience. This evaluation adds to the evidence base on the value of football as a context to engage adult males in community-based interventions targeting mental health resilience.

Keywords:

• Football
• mental health
• men’s health
• community-based intervention
• qualitative study

Acknowledgments

This manuscript is based on an evaluation report published by the North of England Mental Health Development Unit which was co-authored by Kevin Dixon and Darren Flynn, in 2016. The manuscript is titled: North East Community Mental Health Resilience through football project: Pilot Project Evaluation Report.

We would like to take this opportunity to acknowledge Brian Rowcroft (lead co-ordinator of the Redcar and Cleveland Boot Room Project) and Claire Streeter (Middlesbrough FC Football Foundation) for providing access to the Boot Room project as well as practical support for the research. We would like to extend our thanks to the steering group for this project which consists of representatives from the following organizations: NEMHDU, Middlesbrough FC Football Foundation, Public Health England, If You Care Share, Time to Change, Mind and Local Authorities. Most importantly, we would like to thank the members of the Boot Room for agreeing to take part in open, honest and thought provoking discussions.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.