This is what you need to know about a free football camp for children in Newhaven this summer

The Futsal Stars Foundation provides financial assistance to young people from economically disadvantaged backgrounds to access futsal and football coaching to help improve mental and physical health.

The free summer camp for children aged between 5-11 started on July 26 and runs every Monday-Wednesday until August 25.

Founder of the organisation, Dr Miriam Bouchiba said the camp targets young people from the BAME community and/or who receive free school meals.

She said, “The project is funded by Active Sussex and Sports England. We also have a young person’s mentor, Sky sports presenter, Ade Oladipo.

“As a healthcare professional, I am in regular contact with young people from economically disadvantaged backgrounds and there is an abundance of research that shows these individuals are more susceptible to mental health issues.

“There is also research, in equal measure, that supports the mental and physical health benefits of regular participation in football and futsal. The foundation decided to affiliate with the London Futsal Stars because of the amazing work they are already doing in the local community.

“Mental health is an increasingly big issue amongst young people, due to increased social pressures and this can manifest in a number of ways, such as anxiety, depression etc.

“Together we feel a huge responsibility to protect children as much as possible from the latter and through sport we believe we can make a change to the lives of many young people with whom we work with.”

The camp in Newhaven is the most recent project the foundation has launched.

To find out more about our work and how you can get involved contact Dr Bouchiba on [email protected] or go to https://londonfutsalstars.com/