The Wigan based voluntary group was founded by Peter Hill over five years ago to use football as a catalyst to start conversations about men’s mental health and wellbeing. Today the ‘people first football second’ initiative runs a weekly drop-in session that averages 35 men coming together each week to play social football, as well as runs multiple events across the year. The group is supported by various unsung heroes volunteering their time and receiving the King’s Award for Voluntary Service (KAVS), the highest award given to local voluntary UK groups, is true testament to the essential work undertaken by the Place2Place community.

Commenting on Pipekit’s involvement, M.D Martyn Rowland’s said: “We were delighted to support this great cause in 2023 and it was a very easy decision for us as a business to extend that support into 2024. Seeing first-hand the difference it makes for people who participate in this group is both rewarding and inspiring and we’re delighted to be able to play a small part in the process”.

Peter Hill, founder of Place2Place adds: “Having corporate partners like Pipekit get involved in our voluntary organisation is crucial for us to drive this group forward and ensure we continue to provide the support required in the future. From a personal perspective, it also means a lot to me when companies get behind something that fundamentally was set up in my friend’s memory”.

He continues: “We are beyond grateful to see Place2Place being acknowledged in such a remarkable way with the KAVS award. Our incredible volunteers are the driving force behind this project’s success, and it’s a true privilege and honour to have their hard work recognised”.

The KAVS was created in 2002 to celebrate Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee. Equivalent to an MBE, KAVS is the highest award given to local voluntary groups in the UK. Place2Place was nominated for the KAVS by Wigan Council for the great work it does in the local Wigan area.

Since 2019 Place2Place has seen: 8000 football spaces taken up, 7341 volunteering hours completed, 800 free football sessions secured, food parcels delivered during Covid, a multitude of training courses undertaken to support the initiative, various events put on, and a 5-aside tournament launched this year that brought together 100 players from mental health teams across Greater Manchester.

Summing up the Place2Place achievements, Peter Hill said: “We may never know the true impact of our initiative, but we will continue to grow Place2Place to play a more influential role in changing how suicide is dealt with in Wigan and maybe beyond. Our next ambition involves developing a more permanent hub, where we could employ permanent staff and offer wrap around services to support mental health and wellbeing and further help prevent suicide”