A little more than ten years after it was established, Motherwell Football Club Community Trust has published a Social Return on Investment report which shows the true value of its work to the local community.
Created by UEFA, European football’s governing body, the model was created to provide National Associations with a tool to understand the value of football participation at all levels.
From grassroots and community football clubs to national and government levels, the report aims to provide tangible evidence of how football can serve to improve the lives of those living within Scottish society.
The model sees experts from educational institutions across Europe assist with the research into the benefits of grassroots participation, including the University of Birmingham and Malmo University.
The report’s findings have highlighted the excellent work the Trust has done and what it has contributed to the local community and people. In 2021, a year disrupted by lockdowns, restricted numbers and travel, the Trust brought benefits of £13.64m to the local community.
The figure is broken down into three sub sections:
- £8,560,000 economic impact of social benefits
- £387,074 direct contributions to the economy
- £4,692,000 healthcare savings from football participation
“At Motherwell we are consistently trying to assist our community and the people in our area in any way we can” Chief Executive Alan Burrows said.
“These findings show the local community is benefitting from the work the Trust does and I think it shows what an excellent job Dawn and the Community Trust staff do.
“It is excellent to see how the Motherwell FC Community Trust is also helping our local community through the power of football.
“I am very proud of what they have achieved and who they have helped, in what has been a challenging two years for everyone.”
Motherwell is renowned in Scottish football for its community focus and as a fan-owned club the work is central to all departments.
“Football plays a major role in supporting local communities but it can be difficult to place a monetary value on that contribution,” Dawn Middleton General Manager of the Community Trust said.
“Working with partners at UEFA and the Scottish Football Association we are proud to be launching this report which shows the contribution of Motherwell FC Community Trust to our local community in 2021.
“We hope that the findings will help us to grow our work with our partners and face the challenges of the current economic situation.”
To read the full report, click here.
