It’s been great to welcome the Northampton Saints Community and Foundation teams to Humber Doucy Lane this week as they launch their Ipswich hub out of the club. This is a very exciting development for both them, the club and the wider Ipswich and Suffolk community, and so we are delighted to share some more information on these initiatives below.

The Saints Community team work primarily with local primary and secondary schools to deliver rugby coaching and other complementary programmes to a wide range of students, helping bring the positive benefits and core values of rugby and the Saints to a wider audience.

Mike Hancock, Ipswich RFC Chairman commented: “We are delighted that they have appointed Josh Sharp to be the Rugby Development Officer based out of Ipswich RFC, who has this week now started work engaging with the local schools and community. Ipswich has great untapped potential to increase its base of young players and we are excited to help support Josh and the Saints to do this from the club, which aligns with the great work of our own club Rugby Academy.”

Over coming weeks Josh (far left in photo) will be speaking with many of the local primary and secondary schools to discuss the various programmes on offer to support them inside and out of the curriculum. To get in touch base with him and discuss these great opportunities in the meantime, schools can get hold of Josh via joshsharp@northamptonsaints.co.uk.

Also at the club this week was Ben Renshaw (far right), who is starting his post at the club for the Northampton Saints Foundation (www.northamptonsaintsfoundation.org). The Foundation’s work is more specialist and aims to create life changing opportunities for specific young people through working with them closely to drive positive change, using the club’s values and heritage at the core of its work. The Foundation will be delivering its Engage Programme and other initiatives into the local community, again based out of IRFC, working with local Pupil Referral Units and organisations such as the Raedwald Trust.

We are very pleased to be happy to support the great work of the Foundation by having them as a chosen charity partner of IRFC for the season ahead, so will be raising money to support their work at club events. If any local businesses are interested in supporting their work through programme or student sponsorships, please let us know and we can connect you up.

The Foundation’s important work is also being supported and backed by Suffolk Police & Crime Commissioner (PCC) Tim Passmore (pictured), who was at the club on Wednesday to meet Ben & Josh and their colleagues Jordan Letts and Ben Lawrence who will oversee the Foundation and Community offerings respectively. “I am delighted to support this innovative project between Ipswich RFC and Northampton Saints Community Foundation to help some of our young people who have not had the best opportunities in life that many of us just take for granted. The combination of the rugby playing ethos linked with good educational attainment is at the heart of this initiative and I am really looking forward to seeing the results at first hand later in the year.”

The Police and Crime Commissioner support is over three years and is specifically aimed at supporting young boys and girls who have not had the best start in life to help them keep out of trouble and make the right choices as they enter adulthood to become good fulfilled citizens they and we can all be proud of.

Both Ben and Josh and their colleagues will be regularly seen in and around the club over the seasons to come and I am sure you will all join with us in welcoming them and making them feel at home! Our Youth and Junior Rugby Academy players and coaches will be able to say hello to Josh in person this Sunday as he comes to say hello during morning training so look out for him and give him a wave!