Today is the first day Mental Health Awareness Week, and for youth sports clubs across the UK, it’s the perfect moment to put wellbeing front and centre — not just on the pitch, but in the conversations you have, the messages you send, and the events you run. Mental health awareness week activities don’t need to be complicated or expensive; what matters is that they happen consistently and that your players and parents know you take wellbeing seriously.
Spond makes it easier to organise those conversations and activities. With built-in group messaging, event scheduling, and instant announcements, your club has everything it needs to bring mental health awareness week activities to life this May — without the admin headache.
Why Mental Health Matters in Youth Sport
Physical activity has a well-established, positive relationship with mental wellbeing. For young people, playing sport regularly can reduce anxiety, build resilience, improve sleep, and strengthen social connections. But clubs also carry responsibility — because sport doesn’t automatically protect young people from mental health struggles, and the environment you create matters enormously.
Mental Health Awareness Week is a timely reminder that health and wellbeing go hand in hand. Planning meaningful mental health awareness week activities is one of the most practical ways a club can act on that. When a young person feels safe, heard, and supported in their club, they’re more likely to stay engaged, talk about problems early, and develop the kind of emotional resilience that lasts well beyond their playing days.
Five Mental Health Awareness Week Activities Your Club Can Run This May
The good news is that meaningful mental health awareness week activities don’t require a dedicated welfare officer or a large budget. Small, consistent actions — communicated well — make a genuine difference. Here are five mental health awareness week activities your club can start this May.
1. Start the Season with a Wellbeing Check-In
Before or after a training session, take five minutes to ask players how they’re doing — not about sport, but about life. A wellbeing check-in is one of the simplest mental health awareness week activities a club can run, and for younger age groups, a simple show of hands or a “traffic light” check (green = good, amber = okay, red = struggling) gives quieter players a low-pressure way to flag that they need support.
Coaches and team managers can log the session in Spond and use the announcement feature to follow up with any resources shared on the day. It also signals to parents and players alike that your club takes mental health seriously.
2. Run a “Talk to Someone” Awareness Week
Dedicate one week in May to encouraging open conversation. Put up a prompt in your Spond group: “This week, check in on a teammate.” Share a link to resources from Young Minds or the Mental Health Foundation in your club announcements. Encourage players to name one person they’d talk to if things felt hard.
This kind of low-key, non-clinical activity is particularly effective for children’s mental health because it normalises asking for help before a crisis point is reached.
3. Organise a Wellbeing Walk or Group Activity
Sport doesn’t always mean competition. A group walk, a relaxed kickabout with no score, or a team social can create the kind of informal space where young people open up naturally. Schedule the event in Spond, collect RSVPs, and send reminders — the whole thing takes minutes to set up.
These events are among the most accessible mental health awareness week activities available to any club — no budget required, just a bit of organisation. They double as straightforward community-building moments too. Both matter.
4. Share Mental Health Tips in Your Club Feed
Throughout May, use Spond’s group messaging to share one mental health tip per week: breathing exercises, sleep hygiene for young athletes, how to spot signs that a friend might be struggling, or guidance on screen time and mood. Keep messages short, friendly, and practical.
You don’t need to be a professional to share credible, useful information — link to content from NHS Every Mind Matters, Young Minds, or the Mental Health Foundation rather than writing from scratch.
5. Create a Safe Space for Parents Too
Parents and caregivers play a huge role in a young person’s mental health, and clubs often underuse that connection. Use a Spond announcement to remind parents about the club’s welfare contact, what to do if they have a concern about their child, and how to access support if they’re struggling themselves.
A short message in May that says “we’re here, and here’s who to talk to” can be genuinely impactful for a family dealing with difficulties in private.
Using Spond to Keep It All Joined Up
Running meaningful mental health awareness week activities and communications isn’t just about the activity itself — it’s about follow-through. A wellbeing walk that nobody knows about, a check-in session that doesn’t get promoted, or a resource link buried in a thread nobody reads all lose their impact.
Spond keeps everything in one place. Events, announcements, reminders, RSVPs, and group messages all sit in a single app that parents and players already use for training schedules and match communications. That means your mental health awareness activities reach the people they’re intended for — without anyone having to chase a WhatsApp thread or dig through emails.
You can create a dedicated event for your wellbeing walk, set up a recurring reminder for your weekly mental health tip, and make sure welfare information is pinned and accessible throughout May. Whether you’re running one mental health awareness week activity or a full programme, the tools are simple and the impact on your club’s culture can be lasting.
Making This a Year-Round Commitment
Mental health awareness week activities activities above are a good starting point — but the clubs that make the biggest difference are those that embed wellbeing into how they operate all year round.
That means returning to check-ins each season, keeping welfare contacts visible in Spond, making it normal to ask “how are you really doing?”, and treating mental health tips and reminders as a standard part of club communications — not just a May campaign. The mental health awareness week activities you run this year can become the foundation of an ongoing wellbeing culture.
Spond supports all of that through its team communications and event tools. The more consistently you use them, the stronger your club culture becomes.
Start This Week with Spond
Your club can begin right now. Set up a wellbeing event, send your first mental health awareness message, or simply pin your welfare contact details in your Spond group — and let your players and parents know that this week and always, your club is paying attention. Download Spond for free and start building a healthier club culture today.
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