Supporting Mental Wellbeing within Clubs and Groups
We want to support sports clubs and groups to become confident and open about having a conversation about mental health.
One in four of us will experience a mental health problem in any given year and it’s almost certain that there will be participants within your clubs and groups that may be struggling with mental health problems.
We’re asking you to get your participants, coaches, volunteers, parents, fans and local community talking about mental health so that your organisation becomes somewhere that encourages kindness and concern for others. Somewhere where there is no stigma attached to talking about your mental health.
Mental Health Awareness Week
Mental Health Awareness Week (MHAW) is an annual event in the UK which seeks to help raise awareness of mental health and promoting mental wellbeing. This year, MHAW runs from 11 to 17 May 2026.
Take a look at these resources from the Mental Health Foundation below:
Ideas for your club:
- Identify a Mental Health Champion or small working group within your club/ organisation to start to develop a plan of action your organisation is committed to working towards to provide a safe and supportive environment for anyone who may be experiencing mental health difficulties.
- Take a look at the Mind Mental Health and Physical Activity Toolkit for guidance, tools, templates and good practice case studies to help organisations provide an inclusive and welcoming environment for people experiencing mental health problems to be physically active.
- Sign up to the Mental Health Awareness for Sport and Physical Activity online course from UK Coaching and Mind. This course will help you to gain the knowledge, skills and confidence to better understand and support people living with mental health problems, and create a positive environment that ensures they enjoy the benefits of being active and keep coming back for more. Note: We often have free codes available for clubs to access this, just email us at hello@thinkactive.org to see if we have any available.
- Take a look at the locally based ‘It Takes Balls to Talk’ campaign which uses sporting themes to encourage people, particularly men, to talk about how they feel.
- Encourage your Junior Members to visit Kooth, an online mental wellbeing community offering free, safe and anonymous support for children and young people.
Resources
Check out the links available from the organisations below for a variety of resources that can help support mental health and wellbeing:
Action For Happiness
- 10 keys to happier living – includes tips from exercising and trying new things to choosing goals and being kind to yourself
Mind
- Goal setting – a chart for help setting goals and tracking progress
- Managing difficult problems – a space to list options and likely outcomes for issues that are causing stress or anxiety
- Food and mood diary – helps keep track of what food you eat and how it makes you feel
- Breathe box – a tool to help encourage a slower/deeper breathing technique, aiding relaxation of body and mind
Mental Health Foundation
- Top ten actions to support good mental health – simple actions that can help lift mood and ability to cope with daily life
- Ten quick actions to boost your mental health – daily habits that can help improve mood and mental wellbeing
- Eight actions to improve mental health in the long term – long-term mental health strategies to support sustainable, positive changes for wellbeing
Mental Health UK
- Ten-minute technique: full explainer – a list of quick techniques that can help reduce anxiety
- Ten-minute technique: short version – a bitesize version of the above document
- Anxiety tips: Try these five-minute techniques – more tips for combatting anxiety including breathing and distraction techniques
- Sleep hygiene – tips to help get a good night’s sleep, supporting good physical and mental health
Young Minds
- Stress bucket – a method for identifying causes of stress and anxiety, and ways to help relieve the pressure
- Mindfulness, hand breathing and grounding techniques – activities to help ground you when feeling worried or panicked
