LooseHeadz, the charity aiming to place a mental health lead in every rugby club around the world, is partnering with Jersey Rugby Club to raise awareness and funds.
Former Jersey Reds player Guy Thompson, who is a LooseHeadz ambassador, has arranged for the charity to come to the island to work with the club and its players.
“There has been a huge shift in how the sporting world views mental health and I am thrilled that the work by LooseHeadz is playing a part in that change and we know has already saved lives. Jersey is a fantastic place to live, work and play rugby but we shouldn’t ignore that people are still struggling. I hope Islanders, who have already been so generous to the rugby community, will help us raise much needed funds so LooseHeadz can continue its mission to place a mental health lead into every rugby club around the world and provide them with the tools they need to help #TackleTheStigma,” said Mr Thomson.
Ben Cohen (pictured), part of the winning 2003 England World Cup team, will be the keynote speaker for the evening, which will be hosted by Rory Lawson, who was part of 2007 Scotland World Cup team.
Ben Cohen is a well-known campaigner for better mental health care in rugby and through The Ben Cohen StandUp Foundation, Inc. has been raising awareness of the long-term, damaging effects of bullying. He has also been involved in efforts to make rugby more accessible to players who are hard of hearing having become clinically deaf during his career. Since retiring in 2011, Ben Cohen has taken on a number of reality TV challenges including Strictly Come Dancing, The Chase and The Real Full Monty.
Rory Lawson was a scrum half for Scotland and England, winning 31 caps for Scotland. Since retiring in 2013, he has become a leadership consultant as well as a broadcaster and MC. Jo Plinston, head of partnership and events at Titan Wealth, said bringing together the company’s partnerships with LooseHeadz and the 2003 England World Cup team was a great way of introducing the Titan Wealth brand to the Jersey community.
“We want to make a difference to the communities within which we operate, a value that we share with Ravenscroft. Our sporting partnerships all have a charity link as we want to ensure that we can help others. Bringing LooseHeadz and Ben to Jersey allows us to share awareness of mental health, raise funds for the charity’s work and celebrate the rebrand of Ravenscroft to Titan Wealth. We hope as many people as possible will join us for the event and be motivated by Ben’s story, the work of LooseHeadz and their shared passion for change.”
Rob Shotton, co-founder of LooseHeadz, said the charity was now working with more than 1,000 clubs in 20 different countries.
“The success of LooseHeadz in such a short space of time demonstrates the level of need there is for a focus on mental health within the rugby community. That need isn’t at any one level, whether you are a professional or playing at grassroots level, LooseHeadz wants to help. When we launched, we said if we saved one life then it would have been worth it but we know that dozens of men and women have been given the support they needed to not make that final decision,” he said.
“But it would be impossible for us to have the impact we are without support and we are delighted that Titan Wealth has come on board and is helping us share the #TackleTheStigma message. We look forward to coming to Jersey in May.”
A fundraising dinner has been arranged for 22nd May. More information can be found here.
