Prince William has heard about the support provided to local communities by football clubs as he began a week of engagements in Scotland.
William visited The Spartans FC and Community Association in Edinburgh on May 21st where the focus was on mental health and helping others.
The Earl of Strathearn, as he is known in Scotland, met volunteers from the club who helped deliver tens of thousands of food parcels to people in the local community throughout the pandemic.
He also heard about ongoing support for the Mentally Healthy Football declaration in Scotland. William launched the declaration last year, inviting football organisations, associations and clubs across the UK to make a commitment to developing a mentally healthy culture at all levels of the game. William spoke to members of the Scottish Football Association Board and Mental Health Advisory Panel about their initiatives linked to the scheme including e-learning programmes.
There was also the chance for a kickabout as William was joined by former Scotland international, Steven Thompson, for a drill with grassroots players from Scotland’s Mental Health Football and Wellbeing League which was set up in association with the Scottish Football Association to tackle the stigmas around mental health and offer support.
Pitch-side, William took part in a video call with representatives from the four home teams in the UK to hear about their involvement in mental health work in the game.
The visit to the Spartans was the first visit in a busy week in Scotland for the prince. William has also been named Lord High Commissioner to the General Assembly for the Church of Scotland. He was meant to take up the role in 2020 until the Assembly was suspended because of the coronavirus pandemic. During his week in Scotland, the prince will hear about the work done by the Church of Scotland to support people over the past year.
In the middle of his Scottish week, he will be joined by the Countess of Strathearn. They will carry out visits across Scotland including their first joint trip to the Orkneys and a special day at St. Andrew’s University, where they first met.
