Charlton Athletic will wear a special one-off Community Day shirt when they host Sheffield United at The Valley on Saturday 7 November, with the front of the kit dedicated to the work of Charlton Athletic Community Trust (CACT).
RSK, Charlton's front-of-shirt partner, has donated its branding position for the fixture so that the CACT logo can take centre stage alongside the message "£83m generated in social impact". The shirt was unveiled this week at a launch event attended by participants from across CACT's programmes, first-team players Conor Coventry and Harvey Knibbs, and manager Nathan Jones.
The £83m is a measure of social value: the positive change that comes out of the charity's work, capturing outcomes that do not usually carry a price tag, such as improved mental wellbeing, greater confidence, reduced loneliness, safer communities and more opportunities for young people. CACT calculates it with Social Value Insight, a platform developed by the Housing Association Charitable Trust that analyses data from its community programmes, and the methodology and figure have been validated by the University of Greenwich, a long-term partner of the club and the trust.
Across south-east London and Kent, CACT's work in health, education, inclusion and community engagement ranges from helping young people steer away from crime and anti-social behaviour to supporting older residents experiencing loneliness and isolation.
Nathan Jones said: "The work CACT does, the humility they show and the people they impact is quite humbling. We try to get three points and win games, but the Community Trust changes people's lives and puts them on totally different paths."
CACT chief executive Jason Morgan MBE said: "Every day, our staff, volunteers and partners help people overcome challenges, build confidence and create positive change in their lives. That's what this figure represents."
RSK's Wayne Mumford said: "When we were approached about relinquishing our branding position for the Sheffield United fixture, we had no hesitation." Conor Coventry added: "As players, we see a lot of the work the Community Trust does, so it's great that we can dedicate a day to highlighting the difference it makes to so many people."
Supporters at the match will be able to celebrate the participants, staff, volunteers and partners behind CACT's work, and the club is encouraging fans to support the trust by becoming a Friend of CACT.
For the sport for good sector, it is a strong example of a club and its commercial partner giving up their most valuable shirt space to put an independently validated social impact figure in front of the whole stadium.
Source: Charlton Athletic FC https://www.cafc.co.uk/news/addicks-wear-special-community-day-shirt-against-sheffield-united