Cumberland FA are delighted to team up with the British Heart Foundation (BHF) to raise awareness of their fantastic work, raise funds for their lifesaving research and promote the interactive, online CPR training course, RevivR, across the Cumberland grassroots football community. 

Beginning now, the partnership will initially span the 2023-24 season and will see Cumberland FA provide health information linked to the heart and circulatory system and known risk factors throughout the season.

Cumberland Clubs, Teams, Match Officials, and Individuals can also get involved in fundraising and support the grassroots football community into action to better improve their health.

CLICK HERE TO Learn CPR in 15 minutes for free with RevivR

Ben Snowdon, Cumberland FA CEO, said: “Cumberland FA are pleased to announce the start of our partnership with The British Heart Foundation. 

"Recent events, including the loss of our chairman, have brought into perspective how precious life can be. 

"Our hope is that by working with The BHF we can assist them in raising awareness of the work that they undertake including their ground-breaking scientific research, their heart helpline, which provides information to help those living with heart and circulatory diseases to get the guidance, support and access to the services they need and, most importantly, educating people so that they feel more able to help that person in their hour of need in the hope that they may get more time with the ones they love." 

As part of the partnership, Cumberland Clubs who are at the hub of their communities will have the opportunity to get involved by selling pin badges or housing collection boxes within their club houses (“Buy a pint for a loved one” donations) and / or become a hub for BHF charity shop donations collection.

These are just some of the ideas where there are potentially huge gains for the BHF with little additional work from the Club’s themselves. During the cost-of-living crisis we’re keen to offer our support to this vital charity without over burdening our Clubs. If everyone can do a little, it can go a long way to support the 7.6 million UK sufferers.

Following the launch of the partnership, we will be communicating with Clubs to move forward in time for the new season.

At the beginning of the new 2023-24 season, a weekend of action will take place to promote the partnership and give Leagues, Clubs and Referees the chance to get involved – by completing either the BHF RevivR CPR training or the England Football Cardiac Arrest module and raising awareness of the importance of how to save a life in grassroots football and beyond. 

As part of the partnership Cumberland FA and the BHF have set up a Just Giving page to enable the grassroots football community (and beyond) across Cumberland to join in the partnership through raising funds their own way supporting this fantastic cause, together. This provides an opportunity for anyone raising funds via Just Giving to feed into the Cumberland FA and BHF running total.

To kick off the fundraising Cumberland FA donated all collections from the recent County Cup Finals to the Just Giving page with just over £240 donated so far! Match officials involved in the Cumberland Cup, Women’s County Cup and a number of the Youth County Cup Finals also donated their match fees to the total.

Cumberland FA would like to thank everyone for donating to this fantastic cause.

There will also be ‘spot prizes’ for any Clubs, organisations or individuals contributing to donations on the page (this will be random and not based on the amount raised).

This exciting partnership brings the Cumberland FA community together offering a unique opportunity to support a fantastic cause whilst raising awareness of important health matters and vital funds. 

Defibrillators 

Many Clubs across the County now have a dedicated Defibrillator at or near their venue. You can view the locations of these here.

Through the partnership with the BHF all Club Defibrillators will be linked to The Circuit ensuring that the ambulance service is synchronised and they’re available on the network for use within the community. This is an important aspect of the partnership as only 1 in 10 people survive an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in the UK. The BHF is aiming to triple survival rates in the UK by 2030 and this partnership can help to save local lives in a unique way. (More details to follow)

Meanwhile, organisations in England are being invited to bid for a share of £1 million of government funding to buy defibrillators for community spaces. An estimated 1,000 new defibrillators are to be provided by the fund.

FIND OUT MORE HERE

This BHF partnership information will be housed on this page on the Cumberland FA website.

Emma Dickinson, Fundraising Manager at the British Heart Foundation (BHF) said: “We are honoured that Cumberland FA have chosen to support the British Heart Foundation and help fund the scientific breakthroughs of tomorrow.

“For more than 60 years, the British Heart Foundation has funded research that has turned ideas that once seemed like 'science fiction' into treatments and cures that save lives every day. But millions of people are still waiting for the next breakthrough.

It is only thanks to the generous support of local communities, clubs and associations like Cumberland FA that we can keep research going and discover the treatments and cures of the future.”