Our Community matters | Supporting XL@Football and Demelza

We’ve signed a new sponsorship deal with a local female football academy - a deal which also benefits a local children’s charity.

In August, we began a 3 year partnership with XL@Football to become their Club Sponsor supporting their senior, youth and coaching teams, and their dedicated player development pathway for players who would like to have a career in professional football.

Our first act as Club Sponsor was to donate the valuable advertising space on the front of the matchday, training and coaching kits to Demelza Hospice Care for Children, a charity that supports families who have children with a serious or terminal condition.

XL@Football is the brainchild of Stuart Grist a local businessman and the Academy’s CEO who identified the massive underinvestment in the women’s game.

He created the Academy to level the playing field (excuse the pun) by giving young girls the same opportunities that already exist in the boy’s and men’s game through providing the same technology, coaching and level of professionalism.

The club has achieved huge success in its first season, reaching the National Cup Final in the Junior Premier League (JPL) and finishing as JPL runners-up, whilst the senior team won promotion to the South East Counties Women’s Football League Division One.

Paul Whitlock, Group MD – Savings for OSB Group, said: “With our purpose being to help our customers, colleagues and communities prosper, we don’t see ourselves as a sponsor – we’re a partner to both XL@Football and Demelza.

We’ve been inspired by the valuable work they both provide and I’m delighted that we can play a part in supporting these important organisations who in turn support their local communities and the many families that rely on them.”

Stuart said: “This is an amazing and valuable sponsorship arrangement.

“Kent Reliance’s support has enabled us to treble the size of the club this year, offering more women and girls the opportunity to play football both nationally and across the south east of England. To have Kent Reliance gift their shirt sponsorship to Demelza is also a fantastic gesture.

“We could not be prouder to be jointly supporting a local charity doing such important work in our local community and we look forward to this valuable three-way sponsorship tie-up.”

Mary Haisman, Demelza’s Senior Corporate Partnerships Executive, commented: “We’re so grateful to Kent Reliance and XL@Football for supporting Demelza with this initiative. As a charity, we’re almost entirely dependent on those around us to provide the funds that keep our services going, so knowing we have support from our local community means so much to everyone at the hospice.“

We’re delighted to be making a difference in the communities we serve.