This weekend Brighton & Hove Albion's American Express Community Stadium will be used as a training centre for COVID-19 vaccinator volunteers who'll be trained by St John Ambulance to administer the vaccine across Sussex as new NHS vaccination centres come online.
Albion chief executive and deputy chairman Paul Barber said, “We are delighted to be able to help with the national effort to get the population vaccinated by providing several of our hospitality areas for socially distanced vaccination training for local volunteers.
“We have space inside the Amex for St John Ambulance personnel to safely deliver training to approximately 200 volunteers this weekend, who are then ready to go into the community to administer the vaccine across Sussex.
“We have been committed to supporting the NHS, St John Ambulance and other key healthcare workers in any way we can throughout the pandemic and as we start to see a light at the end of the tunnel, we will do everything we possibly can to support the national effort to get there.”
St John Ambulance regional manager Trevor Moss commented, “We have a number of new and existing volunteers who will be given extensive training; they will then be ready to support the NHS in the brilliant job they are already doing.
“The newly trained volunteers will be able to administer the vaccine, as well as provide support to people as they go through the process of a vaccination. Our aim is to have trained volunteers ready to help as those centres open across the county.”
Albion have continued to support the NHS and healthcare services in their effort to tackle the global pandemic.
In April the Amex was used as a mass testing centre, with capacity to test up to 1500 people per day; while the stadium and training facility have been used by the NHS for storage and training purposes.
During the first lockdown a significant five-figure donation was made from the Albion As One fund to NHS trusts across Sussex.
At the start of the crisis the club committed 1000 match tickets for NHS staff once the pandemic is over and it is safe for fans to return to watch football.