Cerebral Palsy United FC is part of the Steve Morgan Foundation family of charities and this year marks their 10th anniversary.
2024 is certainly a year worth celebrating for the charity following their success at our 2024 Awards event where Ben Meadows, who has been with the charity since it began, won Volunteer of the Year for his dedication and outstanding contributions to its programmes.
10 years of Cerebral Palsy United FC
Since the beginning, Cerebral Palsy United FC has existed to respond to a need in the region which provides opportunities for people of all ages with CP to play football. That need grew and the charity now operates six centres across the North West. The club currently has 168 players registered, with over 150 of them active every week.
A combination of the charity’s youth committee, trustees, club committee and players will be steering the 10th anniversary celebrations over the next 12 months. Plans so far include a big party (of course!), a Santa Run, a family day and various celebratory events for different age groups.
Today, Cerebral Palsy United FC is more than just a football club and its activities span beyond the pitch. It has become a community hub for people with CP and their families. Due to the need for CP specific football opportunities, people travel from around the region to be a part of it. As a direct response to the needs of this community, Cerebral Palsy United FC runs additional support programmes with the aim of removing the barriers for people with CP to access football and help them to become the best they can be.
Support programmes
Community engagement programme – Cerebral Palsy United FC provides support and links in with other organisations to promote inclusive opportunities. They also work with universities to give students a platform to gain practical experience of working with people with CP, covering things like sports physiotherapy, sports and exercise sciences and coaching. Working with universities also helps the sustainability within their volunteer workforce and is a beneficial model all round.
Futures programme – This centres around educating and mentoring young people and providing opportunities for them to develop life skills. It is for young adults with or without CP who want to learn about and be involved with other aspects of football, such as refereeing, coaching, media and marketing and just generally helping out and offering their time to support the running of the club. The programme provides wider education opportunities and mentoring experience for players and other young leaders aged 14+, who initially assist with developing younger members. Often they go on to become volunteer coaches for the charity.
Family engagement programme – An informal programme which brings families together. Every Saturday the charity runs an all-day breakfast club (supported by Warburtons) in its community room, which provides an organic network of peer support for parents/carers of children with CP where they can share experiences and get advice from older players with CP who have experienced the challenges themselves.
The charity also has informal arrangements in place with local leisure centres so that parents and families can use the facilities while their child with CP trains/plays football, offering a little respite. More formal projects within this programme have included the promotion of healthy lifestyles and inclusive football camps for family and friends to attend alongside CP United players.
Emotional & social development programme (AKA Extras) – The Extras programme addresses an area of need due to lack of access, opportunities and some societal barriers:
Physical development support provides access to sports therapists and student physios, but also the charity works with MMU and the Institute of Sport as part of their outreach programme to engage young people with CP who are considering a university pathway. This work educates players about their bodies and their physical capabilities and is really helping to foster a life-long appreciation for looking after themselves and their bodies.
Emotional/social development provides off-the-pitch support through therapeutic approaches and trauma-informed practices to help develop the ‘wider person’ and support mental health and wellbeing. The charity signposts people to the right places, where needed, as well as hold their own outdoor trips/activities and wilderness therapeutic practices delivered by outdoor wellbeing specialists. Not only does this offer a bit of respite, but also provides the opportunity for children and adults to socialise outside of football and develop their friendship and social circles.
Steve Morgan Foundation support
SMF initially provided funding for elements of the Extras programme to get members out and about during Covid times (when the charity couldn’t deliver impact through football). This emergency funding helped players to stay connected and connect with nature (when it was possible to go out) to help with emotional/social wellbeing and development.
SMF funding over the last four years, along with the most recent £10,000 prize received as a result of the SMF award win, has helped the club to survive and maintain its provision, despite the challenges its faced during that time. The funding also now helps with the charity’s running costs and provides a safety net to move forwards and sustain itself.
Ben Meadows – Volunteer of the Year
Ben has been with Cerebral Palsy United FC from the beginning, initially as a player and then part of first Futures Group at age 14. 10 years later, he is an integral part of the charity and sits on the committee as well as runs the Liverpool Centre as Lead Coach, coaches on Saturdays in Manchester and continues to play.
He is also involved in the delivery of several of the support programmes and leads the community engagement programme in Liverpool, looking after, organising and mentoring the student physios from Liverpool University who support the centre he runs.
A very well-deserved winner of this award category!
The future of Cerebral Palsy United FC
Michelle Wilcock, Head Coach and Programmes Manager, said:
“It’s been a difficult time since Covid hit and this continues with the cost of living crises – without the funding from the Steve Morgan Foundation, I’m not sure the charity would have survived, and for that we are truly grateful.
Over the next five years we hope to not only survive this difficult climate, but also to grow our volunteer workforce, build upon our links with universities and provide more opportunities for everyone across the region and beyond who want to play football. We’d love to keep developing our fixture program too for our players who it is appropriate for to play competitively.”
To find out more about Cerebral Palsy United FC or to get involved, visit their website here.