There was a Chelsea debut this month for the club and our local community when, as part of the Pride in our Bridge campaign, Stamford Bridge hosted local residents and community organisations for our first-ever Residents Open Day.
The aim of the event was to bring our community together to celebrate the fantastic work that local organisations do, and to allow residents to connect with the services their local area has to offer.
We were joined by a dozen organisations, including mental health charities, youth clubs, supporter groups, homelessness charities, local police and more. Each pitched a stall in the Drake Suite in the West Stand to showcase their work.
Over 200 residents were invited to attend the event free of charge, which also included a complimentary stadium tour for the first 100 residents who applied to attend.
Ethan Windsor, residents relations officer at Chelsea FC, said: 'I am delighted that Chelsea Football Club has been able to bring this event to the local community as the natural next step in the Pride in our Bridge campaign. The ethos of this campaign is to bring the club, fans and the local community together, and this event did just that. I would like to thank all of the community organisations that took part for giving their time to attend this event.'
Our community was involved in the planning of this event from the outset through the Pride in our Bridge focus group. It comprised of local residents and representation from supporters’ bodies such as the Fan Advisory Board and the Chelsea Supporters’ Trust. Bringing this idea together would not have been possible without their help and support.