The West Ham United Foundation and Ripple Suicide Prevention recently brought people together at The Foundry on World Suicide Prevention Day for the third edition of the WHUF x Ripple Cup.
With a record-breaking 28 teams taking part, more than 220
players came together for a day of football, fundraising and important
conversations around suicide prevention, with an incredible £50,000 raised for
The Foundation and Ripple.
Taking place on Thursday 10th September, the tournament was
the biggest edition yet, with The Foundry providing the backdrop as players,
supporters, Foundation Ambassadors, sponsors and partners came together to
stand behind an important message: you are not alone and help is
available.
For Alice Hendy MBE, founder of Ripple Suicide Prevention –
providing technology that intercepts harmful online searches and signposts
to free mental health support - the tournament has always been about much more
than football, as she explained during the day.
“The world is tough, life is tough, we've got so many
things going on around us where it's having a negative impact on people and we
need an outlet.”
Alice continued: “We need to know how to have the difficult
conversations, we need to know where to get support and we need to know that
most importantly there's always a solution to whatever it is you're going
through and it isn't suicide.”
With connection and support at the heart of the event, WHU
Foundation CEO Joseph Lyons highlighted the power of football to reach people
and open up crucial conversations.
“Everyone’s impacted by mental health,” he said. “What
we’re now realising is by using the platform of football, the local football clubs,
initiatives like the Premier League’s Together Against Suicide campaign,
positive role models to talk about it, and growing awareness, it makes it
easier for people to talk.”
Reflecting on the cause, West Ham United Ambassador James
Collins stated:
“I think it's good to talk and if you've got something on your mind,
then you need to share it and days like this where people come together at
the Foundation are fantastic for that.”
A surprise appearance came from former Premier League
referee Dermot Gallagher, who took charge of several matches and commented on
the importance of awareness.
He said: “The tournament today is all about getting people
together, it's about the cause, it's about talking to each other, raising
awareness and just making sure that anybody who is in that position knows that
there's help available for them.”
West Ham United Ambassador Matt Jarvis, who has been
involved in the event since the first edition, echoed the value of breaking
down barriers:
“It’s all about encouraging people to have that first
conversation, because ultimately, it will save lives and if you can get people
talking through playing football, there’s nothing better than that.”
Away from the football, attendees Ryan and Ross from
Finwell Team 33 described the value of simply being alongside one another.
“There's a lot of power in that shoulder-to-shoulder thing
where you start off just having a conversation and that conversation breeds
familiarity, familiarity breeds trust,” they shared.
“This is why we're here, to spread that message that if you
notice your mate, your friend, your colleague, your family member isn't how
they usually are, ask that question.”
The event featured fantastic support from Shawbrook and HTB
who returned as gold sponsors, in addition to new silver sponsor,
Cheffins, and Anderson Wilde & Harris, Kuits, Align Property Finance and
Kavannaghs as bronze sponsors.
In a fiercely competitive field of 28 teams, the final
standings concluded with Allica Bank lifting the cup, MIMHC FC claiming the
plate and Shawbrook Bank winning the shield.
Speaking about the day Sarah Bush, Head of Residential at Cheffins, said: “We
were delighted to be a silver sponsor of the third WHUF x Ripple Cup. Both
organisations do really important work in raising awareness of mental health
and suicide prevention within the community, so it was a privilege to support
the event.
“As a business, we are committed to supporting the mental
health and wellbeing of the next generation, so it was fantastic to take a team
to the West Ham United Foundation, enjoy such a fun and memorable event, and at
the same time contribute to something that will have a lasting impact.”
To find out more about the charity initiatives which Cheffins takes part in, please visit - https://www.cheffins.co.uk/about/charitable-work.htm