As part of our ongoing partnership with the Toolstation Western Football League, last Saturday (4th February 2023) we visited Marlborough Park for Ilfracombe Town’s home fixture against Cornwall club Helston Athletic. As with our visit to Newton Abbot-based Buckland Athletic back in October, we provided the North Devon club with posters to go in the changing rooms signposting players to our support services, as well as completing a bucket collection in the game’s second half to help raise money for the work we do.

The Bluebirds provided a warm welcome on a cold day for Devon Mind’s Marketing & Fundraising Manager Andre Pusey and the Toolstation League’s Communications Manager Ian Nockolds, reminding fans in attendance at the start of the game and before the second half about the campaign to raise awareness of mental health amongst local football clubs across Devon. Fans and staff gave generously, donating a total of £147.77 for Devon Mind, which included some of the proceeds from the club’s first-half “50:50” raffle.

After the game, which ended in a hard-fought 0–0 draw, Andre commented:

“We’re really grateful to club secretary Tony Alcock, chairman Matthew Hayne, and everyone else at Ilfracombe Town for helping us spread the word and raise some money as part of our campaign partnering with the Toolstation Western League. The impact of support from local community organisations and sports clubs cannot be understated for helping us reach people who may need help with their mental health!”

Devon Mind will continue working closely with the Toolstation League and its member clubs to find new opportunities for raising awareness of mental health across the county. Recently, we delivered a tweaked version of our First Steps seminar for staff from numerous clubs within the league, which has also led to further training commitments by other clubs in Devon.

About the partnership

Founded in 1892, the Western Football League (sponsored by Toolstation) consists of a Premier Division and a Division One, which sit at levels 9 and 10 of the English football league pyramid, respectively. The league currently consists of 42 teams over its two divisions, although only three are located in Devon: Premier Division clubs Barnstaple Town, Buckland Athletic, and Ilfracombe Town.

The South West Peninsula Football League (sponsored by Kitchen Kit) was founded much more recently, in 2007, consisting of two Premier Divisions (East and West), both of which sit at level 10 of the pyramid and feed into the Western League. 37 teams compete in the league — 19 in Premier East and 18 in Premier West — with all but one of those in Premier East located in Plymouth or Devon.