BRCT x NHS COLLAB

In 2025, Bristol Rovers Community Trust launched a groundbreaking two-year health collaboration with Bristol NHS Group, embedding NHS clinical delivery directly into the matchday experience at Bristol Rovers FC, as well as across community groups and programmes delivered by the Trust.

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The collaboration removes traditional barriers to healthcare by delivering free clinical screenings, preventative health checks, CPR training, health education workshops and vaccination campaigns within trusted football settings. Supporters, staff and community members have already received blood pressure, cholesterol and QRISK assessments alongside structured health promotion events and signposting into NHS healthcare pathways.

In its first year, the BRCT x North Bristol NHS Trust project delivered 137 health-focused sessions and 18,000+ engagements, alongside measurable clinical findings including elevated cholesterol and cardiovascular risk detection. The model demonstrates how football clubs can facilitate and function as civic health anchors, delivering early intervention and potentially life-saving impact.

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“If that free health check event hadn’t been at Rovers that day,
I honestly don’t know where I’d be now. I felt fine, I would never have booked a check. Being at my football club made it easy to say yes - AND THANK GOD I HAVE.”
 

- MARK DAVIES
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The collaboration was co-designed by Bristol Rovers and the Club Charity, drawing on the expertise of local NHS leaders to address Bristol’s key public health challenges and respond to the needs of the local community.​