In a pioneering move for community healthcare, Stockport County Community Trust (SCCT) is launching a dedicated health and care research programme at the club's Edgeley Park stadium. This ground-breaking initiative, funded by the National Institute of Health Research (NIHR) Research Delivery Network, aims to bring vital medical studies directly to the people of Stockport.
Breaking Down Barriers to Medical Research
The Stockport County Community Research Initiative was officially launched at a stakeholder event at Edgeley Park on Wednesday, November 12. The project will transform the football stadium into a satellite venue for the community to participate in NIHR-supported studies. These studies will specifically address the health challenges facing Stockport and its areas of deprivation, including Stockport Central, Brinnington, Lancashire Hill and Reddish.
Health and care research is crucial for developing new treatments and improving patient care, yet many people are unable to participate due to practical barriers like time constraints, convenience, or a simple misunderstanding of how to get involved. This innovative 12-month programme has been specifically designed to overcome these obstacles by meeting people where they are.
Football as a Force for Community Health
Activities will include engagement events on Stockport County matchdays to raise awareness and promote participation. SCCT will also collaborate with partners across the borough to extend opportunities into voluntary, community, faith, and social enterprise organisations. To drive the project forward, NIHR funding has enabled the recruitment of a full-time Stockport County Research Lead, who will work in partnership with the NIHR and the Research and Innovation department at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust.
The initiative is one of only two football club charities to receive this type of 2025/26 NIHR funding, the other being Blackburn Rovers Community Trust. It forms a key part of SCCT’s three-year health and wellbeing vision, which seeks to harness the power of football and the club's trusted position in the community to help people live healthier lives.
Voices from the Project
Eddie Owen, Head of Health and Wellbeing at Stockport County Community Trust, stated: “We’re really proud to be leading on this innovative health programme in Stockport, which perfectly aligns with our three-year health strategy to help tackle health inequalities across the borough. By working closely with the NIHR and Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, we hope to provide much-needed support to local residents, helping to detect illness early and provide practical health solutions within our local community.”
Sara Bennett, Lead Clinical Research Nurse at Stockport NHS Foundation Trust, added: “Research has the power to transform lives, but too often people face barriers that prevent them from taking part. By bringing opportunities to a place that is so central to the community, we can make research more accessible, inclusive, and relevant. Football has a unique ability to bring people together, and through this collaboration we hope to spark conversations, raise awareness, and open the door for many more residents to get involved in shaping the future of healthcare.”
Professor Andy Ustianowski, Director of NIHR North West Regional Research Delivery Network, commented: “We are excited to fund this innovative project which is a fantastic example of football as a force for good. Stockport County is a club at the heart of its community and has identified how it can play a key part in opening up opportunities for people to be part of vital health and care research. It fits ideally with our aim to take research into more everyday locations where it is easier for people to get involved.”
How to Get Involved
The SCCT project will encourage people to sign up for Be Part of Research, the NIHR’s free online service that helps individuals find and participate in relevant, local health studies. Participants will also have direct opportunities to take part in specific NIHR-supported research. The first such study is titled Creating the Youth Loneliness Scale, which aims to develop and test a new method for measuring loneliness in young people.
This community-centric approach aligns with key NIHR objectives and the government’s 10 Year Health Plan to expand research opportunities beyond traditional hospital settings and into the heart of local communities.
