WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY

WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY

Mind is the Official Charity Partner for the EFL.

Today marks World Mental Health Day - a day for global mental health education, awareness and advocacy against social stigma.

To help raise awareness around mental health the EFL and its charity partner Mind have been turning heads at King’s Cross station as part of a live exhibit highlighting the role football can play in tackling mental health problems.

The exhibition, which will remain open throughout World Mental Health Day, is open to anyone passing through who would like to know more about Mind and their charity partnership with EFL or has any questions regarding mental health.

The partnership between the EFL and Mind highlights that every year dozens of managers, hundreds of footballers, and hundreds of thousands of club supporters will be living with a mental health problem, many of them feeling unable to reach out for support.

Kings Cross station, the location of the exhibit, will see millions of football fans pass through its barriers this season, with train travel remaining the second most popular mode of travel for supporters. The statistic is that 1 in 4 people will experience mental health problems; EFL’s own research shows that 1 in 4 fans rely on train travel to attend away fixtures in the Sky Bet Championship, or Sky Bet League One and League Two.

The activity comes as part of a football season in which EFL and Mind announced they'd joined forces in a pioneering partnership that will seek to use the power of football to improve the nation’s mental health. Throughout the current 2018/19 football campaign, the players of all 72 EFL clubs from the Sky Bet Championship through to League Two are wearing the Mind logo on the back of their matchday shirts, the first time that player names have incorporated a charity logo.  

Debbie Jevans, Interim Chair of the EFL said: “Every day throughout the year the EFL, through its 72 Clubs and their support staff ensure players improve and maintain their physical health.

“The focus on mental health should be no different and every year 1 in 4 of us will experience a mental health problem. With 1 in 4 EFL supporters using train travel to attend matches we chose Kings Cross Station to highlight the need to raise awareness of the challenges around mental health and the work the EFL and its charity partner, Mind will be doing to offer help and support those in need.”

Paul Farmer, CEO of Mind, added: “We all have mental health just as we have physical health and both are equally important to look after. Whether you’re a star striker or season ticket-holder you shouldn’t have to live in fear about opening up and getting support for either your physical or mental health.

“We’re delighted to have joined with the EFL to create the On Your Side charity partnership to make sure that no one has to tackle a mental health problem alone. Today, on World Mental Health Day, and all days, Mind and the EFL are On Your Side.”

Supporters can find out more by visiting EFL.com.

WORLD MENTAL HEALTH DAY

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