West Brom: Sky Bet EFL Building Foundations Fund helps the Albion Foundation to break down barriers | OneFootball

Ajay Gill spoke to Football League World about the impact of their work and the grant received from the Sky Bet EFL Building Foundations Fund.

The Albion Foundation has received a £10,000 grant from the Sky Bet EFL Building Foundations Fund to support the development of West Brom's four pan adult disability teams.

This money will be used to provide high-quality coaching for those in the local community who are part of the foundation.

Not only will this funding be used to maximise the quality of the coaching, but it will also help to provide regular coaching sessions and the necessary football equipment needed for individuals with disabilities to thrive, including balls, bibs and cones.

The impact of West Brom's pan adult disability teams

The teams have had a "profound impact" on participants and their families.

Not only does this initiative help participants' physical health, but it also aids their mental health.

A lot of people within these teams often spend a lot of time at home, but the creation of these teams has made a real difference for them.

Ajay Gill, who oversees these teams as the Albion Foundation’s disability manager, spoke about this impact.

He told FLW: "Yeah absolutely, I've noticed a significant increase of improvements (in mental health) as I mentioned previously.

"A lot of the adults who we would engage with, this is the only interaction some of them get throughout their week. 90% of the time, they would either stay indoors or stay in their rooms.

"Coming out on a Wednesday evening to be part of our social hub for an hour and a half, they then do interactive activities there and then go across to another site to do their footballing sessions.

"I've had parents and carers say: 'I never thought my child would be able to make friends and they've got X amount of friends and they've taken that away from the session, so they're connecting on video games, they're connecting on social media.

"Some of the families have been able to connect and they're doing things as a family and they're doing things as friends. They're going out to bowling and things like that."

Going on to speak about the improved physical health of young people and adults in the area and the effect that a local leisure centre has had on that, Gill continued: "Looking at weight gain and obesity levels within Sandwell, that's reduced in a lot of the young people and adults. They're staying active.

"We've got a really good partnership with one of our local leisure centres, where they allow individuals with a disability to access the site free of charge during certain hours.

"That has snowballed and it's put people in a mindset of keeping fit and keeping healthy, because ultimately it will benefit them when they do their activities and play football."

Sky Bet EFL Building Foundations Fund making a life-changing impact in the West Brom area

The £10,000 grant provided by the Sky Bet EFL Building Foundations Fund has increased the number of lives that the Albion Foundation has been able to improve, with the cost of the programmes able to be cut because of this injection of cash.

The cost of the programmes have been able to be cut due to the fact that this money has been able to help with the costs of staffing and venue hiring, opening the door to those who may be in a poorer financial situation.

"I think it's massive," Gill added, when asked about the value of this extra funding.

"Again, with the cost of living crisis and some of these people out of employment or living on benefits, they've got to manage their finances to live.

"This initiative we've got on offer and the support you (Sky Bet) have given us, it's just chopped down those barriers and allowed people to access a service where they will be able to socialise for their well-being and their mental health, and make new friends.

"Ultimately, it's also helped to support us to grow our provision as well. We've been able to reach a wider target audience, we've been able to subsidise the cost of the programme significantly, which has allowed us to meet new people and have people access our activities on more of a regular basis.

"It's been invaluable, it's been great the support you've shown us by allowing us to have those funds to purchase adaptive equipment and things like that for some of the individuals who take part in our activities."

The Albion Foundation’s disability manager also added how this money has been and will be used to provide opportunities for life for those participating.

"It closes off our pathway. We've got an under-8s programme and that's pan disability also," Gill said.

"So in terms of longevity and individuals from the ages of eight years old, they know they've got something from the rest of their lives with us. So that initiative is here, and it's here for the long term and it's here for a purpose.

"I've been at the foundation for 12 years and I've seen individuals from eight years old go right the way through to the adult group, which is our pan adult session.

"I can't speak highly enough of the initiative. It's the perfect opportunity for us to continue to grow with the funds you guys (Sky Bet) have been able to support us with.

"I think the initiative is so valuable to us and the local community, and the people who access that. I think it even goes beyond that - their families, their siblings.

"Even going down to lecturers at schools and colleges, they're able to signpost young people and adults to our services."

The Albion Foundation is already going the extra mile to ensure their weekly sessions go ahead as frequently as possible, with their social hub allowing them to go ahead regardless of poor weather conditions.

Their last session of the year is set to take place on December 18th, before they return in January, ready to make a difference in the local community again.

In the future though, Gill is keen to put on another weekly session for the pan adult disability teams, which would allow participants to spend a higher percentage of their time socialising with others and building bonds.