Poor mental well-being is one of the most significant health issues both in terms of health and well-being of individuals and their families, and its wider impact on communities, the economy and employment [1]. In any given year 1 in 4 of the population will experience a mental health problem [2] and impaired mental well-being has a very high-cost impact on business and the economy [3]. Misunderstood and feared, the stigma and implications of mental health issues mean that many do not realise they have a health problem or that help can be given; many who do seek help are poorly diagnosed. Men are significantly less likely to seek support or to receive a diagnosis of stress, anxiety or depression [1]. This means that for many their condition and its consequences become significantly worse, with associated problems including alcohol, drugs, relationship breakdown, employment issues, self-harm and suicide.

These issues are more prevalent in more deprived areas, mirroring the traditional heartlands of Rugby League which developed out of the dramatic period at the end of the nineteenth Century which saw the rise of organised sport and the creation of Clubs and leagues, heavily influenced by class, finance and the place of professionalism [4].

Rugby League has a long and proud history of working closely with its local communities, with a key feature of Rugby League being its family appeal: 40 % of regular supporters are female [5] and fans of all ages attend matches and Club-related activities , often in family groups spanning the generations. Each major Club has an independent charitable Foundation which runs community-based activities with local health bodies, councils, schools and charities, providing support and activities on education, training and employment, health and well-being, heritage, social inclusion and of course sport, nutrition and physical activity. Research has shown that using sporting settings and sports clubs is an effective way of reaching local communities, particularly those who are most in need but often regarded as ‘hard to reach’, because media, fans and local people more generally are interested in the Club and the players, and see the players as role models [6–8].

Rugby League Cares (RLC) was created in 2012 to bring together the Rugby League family of charities—the Rugby League Foundation, Benevolent Fund and Heritage Trust—and acts as umbrella and coordinator for the network of local Foundations. Its mission is to enhance and enrich people’s lives through the power and positive influence of Rugby League by working with local communities to help them lead a more positive and healthy life through the delivery of high-quality sports, educational, employment, heritage and health-based activities. In 2012 alone, it worked with 600,000 people, providing services with an added value of some £6 million.

RLC, with local Foundations, therefore decided to take action to promote better mental well-being in its local communities. This Chapter looks at the experience and lessons from the first year of the 2-year project which was funded by Sport Relief.

The RLC and Sport Relief Mental Well-being Programme was set up to:

RLC successfully bid to Sport Relief¹ for £350k funding over 2 years for RLC to work with 12 local Foundations to design and deliver a range of locally focused projects. Each could select the audience(s) they wished to work with, to reflect local skills, priorities and opportunities, provided that the project was linked to the theme of ‘mental well-being’ and the target audiences were in some way at higher risk of mental ill-health. Each Foundation was to receive £10k in each of the 2 years, subject to satisfactory progress and quarterly reporting.

Nationally, RLC appointed a project manager who provided a ‘toolkit’ including project plan templates, material on evaluation, lessons from previous projects, facts about mental well-being and national contacts as well as providing one-to-one support in reviewing plans and making contacts. Although all Foundations had track records of delivering health projects, most had less experience of mental health and in addition the initial phases of the programme coincided with a significant shift of responsibilities and personnel within Health and local government organisations. RLC also commissioned the Institute for Health and Well-being at Leeds Metropolitan University to carry out an independent review of the process to identify lessons from year 1.

In addition, RLC ran a mental well-being campaign focused over one weekend (the ‘Round 27’ campaign) in collaboration with the NHS Confederation,² NHS Choices³ and Leeds Metropolitan University.