UNIVERSITY students and staff are set to take part in a 24-hour football match in aid of a mental health charity.

More than 100 footballers from the University of Chester’s Padgate campus are expected to lace up their boots for the day-long game to raise funds for charity Chasing the Stigma.

Kicking off at 3pm on Saturday, December 9, the match will then run until 3pm the following day - the second year in a row that the 24-hour kickabout has taken place.

Jake Edwards, a fitness instructor and football coach at the university, said: “Last year I was really proud to see over 100 staff and student members come together to complete the 24-hour match.

“This year we are looking to make the event even better and to raise as much money and awareness as possible for Chasing the Stigma.

“Currently in the UK, mental health problems affect one in four of us and one in 10 younger people.

“We know the benefits physical exercise has on your mental health, so what a great way of raising money and enhancing awareness of mental health.”

Liverpudlian comedian Jake Mills founded Chasing the Stigma after battling his own mental health problems, and recently set up an app called Hub of Hope - which allows users to locate the nearest services available to them.

He visited the Crab Lane campus to give a talk to students during Mental Health Awareness Week.

Dean McShane, a mental health lecturer at the Crab Lane campus, added: “We’ve been able to get a lot of our student nurses involved, a lot of our student’s union sports teams have joined in and we’ve got various members of staff taking part as well.

“The media department will be filming the match and our radio station are doing a live broadcast.

“Everyone is pulling together.

“Jake tried to end his life a few years ago and he realised that there was a lack of support for young men who were struggling to talk about their problems, and he thought it was because of the stigma attached to it.

“His work has been fantastic - the Hub of Hope is the latest part of it and it’s going to help so many people.”

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