£10m and counting: investing in communities

Three staff members. One office. A million ideas.

From the start, embedding the club’s community ethos into the operations of BFCitC was key. The partnership between club, charity and the town had to be an authentic one and so club directors Barry Kilby and Brian Nelson became Trustees, with Brian Nelson appointed as the Chair of Trustees in the summer of 2015.

Players are great supporters of the Community projects, with Chris Wood and Jack Cork (top) attending the opening of the Whitehough Outdoor Centre

With the guarantee of a suitable working environment for the rapidly growing charity to deliver its crucial work, the decision also ensured close joint-working with club staff.

The club’s Premier League status in recent seasons has allowed Burnley FC in the Community to access in the region of £3.5m of this from the Premier League, via the bank of funds it has set aside to support non-profit work being delivered on behalf of clubs across the country.

So where has this money been invested?

Based on a model of identifying a social issue specific to the local area and offering a viable solution to combat it, the charity’s broad portfolio of projects now tackle, as a snapshot; chronic loneliness, unemployment, mental health issues, poor academic attainment, anti-social behaviour, youth crime and physical and health inequalities.

The 100-strong team of local staff – made up of sport coaches, teachers, mentors, employability advisors, project managers, youth workers, health practitioners, marketeers, financiers and administrators – deliver their work in 88 primary, secondary and special needs schools and colleges, in community centres, at the Turf Moor stadium and at the portfolio of facilities the charity now operates.

The Turf Sleepout raised funds for local charities

Over the course of the last 12 months alone, via Burnley FC in the Community, almost £50k in funds has also been distributed by the club to other local charities and smaller non-profit groups in the town including Pendleside Hospice, Jane’s Place, Emmaus Burnley and the Barry Kilby Prostate Cancer Appeal.

What’s next?

The exciting new development has received a collective investment of around £4.5m to date, with circa £1m of this funding secured from the Premier League and FA Facilities Fund.

BFCitC was named as Community Club of the Year for the fourth year in a row at the 2018 Northwest Football Awards

In January 2019, the Schools’ Mental Wellbeing Project will launch. Seven full-time mental health workers will be posted in schools across Burnley and Pendle to offer sustained support to young people across the region. For this project, there is a collective investment of over £600,000 over the next three years – with £250k grant funding coming into the charity via the Premier League and PFA Community Fund.

Finally, a word from Burnley FC and Burnley FC in the Community

“The entire team have the 100% support of myself, the board, the manager, the players and all club staff and I extend my thanks to BFCitC’s Chair of Trustees, Brian Nelson and Neil Hart – who leads the charity on a day-to-day basis – for the hard work being delivered every day from Turf Moor. Long may the excellent work continue.”

“It’s been quite a journey so far and, without doubt, the support of our many partners and the stand-out staff we have had over the past five years has been the catalyst in propelling us to where we are today.” For a comprehensive understanding of BFCitC’s work, you can read project and activity information in detail via the charity’s bumper 2018 Impact Report here.