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Football has been a constant in Elliot's recovery journey for the past 10 years, helping him stay active, make friends and develop new skills.

Ex-service user Elliot joined a specialist football programme run by North London NHS Foundation Trust’s Islington occupational therapy teams in partnership with Arsenal in the Community after telling his clinician that he wanted to get involved in something football-based.

The twice-weekly sessions support people in Islington living with long-term, severe mental health conditions, providing a welcoming and consistent environment where participants can enjoy being active while building relationships with others.

Over the past decade, Elliot has represented the group at friendlies and tournaments, developed new skills through an apprenticeship and built lasting relationships with staff and fellow participants.

To mark World Mental Health Day, Elliot was invited onto the pitch at Emirates Stadium to present Arsenal's Player of the Month award to Riccardo Calafiori (pictured).

Speaking to Arsenal for their match day booklet, Elliot said:

“I told [my clinician] I wanted to get involved in something football-based, and they found this programme for me. I came down one week and I’ve been committed ever since.

“We have sessions twice a week and I make sure I get to both as often as I can. The football is a huge part of that, firstly from a health perspective, but also socially. Seeing people and making new friends is a big part of the appeal for me.”

Reflecting on what the programme has meant to him, Elliot added:

“[The programme is] somewhere I’m proud to be involved.

“I’ve worked hard to be here, engaged in everything that’s been offered to me and made the most of every opportunity. It’s been a great 10 years and hopefully the next 10 years will be just as good.”

Elliot was joined on the pitch by one of our occupational therapists Meera Kumar.

"The purpose of the occupational therapy sports sessions is evidence based practice in exercise. No experience needed, it's perfectly fine for participants to exert as little or as much and it's rewarding to see such motivation and dedication.”

Meera explains how she enjoys supporting the wellbeing of our service users by being involved with the group on the pitch as well;

“I really enjoy facilitating football with the coaches and playing as part of the group. Our players are passionate about the game, supportive and encouraging of each other. It's the only sport that really gets my heart rate up, red in the face and sweat pouring. I feel physically and mentally resilient after playing."

We encourage improved mental health with physical exercise and sport through our partnership with Arsenal in the Community, which aims to encourage vulnerable and young people to achieve their potential, improve their wellbeing and together build stronger, safer and more inclusive communities.

Pictured: Elliot (second from left), Meera and members of the group at the Emirates Stadium.

Adam Henry, Sport, Health and Wellbeing Manager at Arsenal, spoke about the programme:

“As a football club we’re highly committed to supporting our communities, we understand that they have a relationship with Arsenal, they see the stadium in their borough and have a natural connection to the club and therefore we can probably encourage them to engage in activities they might not otherwise do through another provider.

“So they’re connected to Arsenal, they feel a sense of belonging. We’re going to utilise that to actually help them on their journey.”

Find out more about our occupational therapy teams