Matt Maher: Rivals united in work to help their community

For the answer, you only need look at the work of the Albion and Wolves Foundations during the coronavirus pandemic.

“The phone has not stopped ringing,” explains Albion Foundation director Rob Lake. “It’s been full-on but that’s a good thing. The most important thing for us has been staying connected, both with each other and the people we serve.”

For Lake and his team, along with their colleagues at the Wolves Foundation and other clubs up and down the country, the pandemic has presented a unique challenge yet one which they have met head-on.

The foundations, the charitable arms of their respective clubs, are significant operations in their own right. Albion’s has 65 full-time staff and a further 90 who work part-time, delivering services to around 28,000 people each year during a combined 950,000 contact hours.

“When operating normally we are a delivery arm. Right now, we are not able to do that,” says Lake.

“The most important thing has been picking up the phone and talking to people. How can we adapt? How can we do our bit to help?”

Lake’s sentiment is echoed by Will Clowes, his counterpart at the Wolves Foundation.

“We are a community charity designed to get in front of people and help them in a variety of different ways,” he says. “The past few weeks have been about trying to diversify so we still engage with as many people as possible.

“Ultimately we are community charities. If we can’t find a way to help at a time like this, then when can we?”

With face-to-face contact out of the question, many services have moved online. Since the start of the lockdown both clubs have provided free activities, sessions and challenges to youngsters stuck at home.

Other programmes have evolved differently, with the Baggies Buddies scheme a prime example.

Launched in January as a means of giving companionship to isolated and lonely members of society, during the lockdown it has seen more than 1,900 phone calls made to those over-70, initially from foundation staff but more recently from former and current players.

“That was something of a natural progression,” explains Lake. “We were keen on getting the players involved and they were equally as keen to help out.

“I have always known we had some great players but the past few weeks have shown me we have some great people as well.

“It isn’t just the videos of the calls we’ve put online. I’ve seen Filip Krovinovic, to give just one example, spend more than 10 minutes on a call, talking to people about this, that and everything.

“They are courtesy calls, just making sure people are OK and finding out what we can do to help.”

Other initiatives have included Hawthorns Hot Meals, a scheme which will this week see 1,100 dinners – all cooked by the club’s chef and his team – delivered to children at 61 primary schools.

Food parcels have also been delivered to local hospitals and foodbanks as part of the Foundation’s direct response to the coronavirus outbreak, with the club's longest-serving player Chris Brunt among those helping out. Albion have also allowed the Halfords Lane Stand to be used as a maternity clinic.

At Wolves, meanwhile, Clowes and his staff have been tasked with co-ordinating the delivery to hospital and care workers of 21,000 items of PPE equipment provided by club’s owners Fosun.

“The owners were keen to get on the front foot when it came to tackling the virus and it has been great to be able to pass so much equipment on to the people who need it,” says Clowes.

“The delivery has been co-ordinated by ourselves and the Fosun Foundation. Molineux has effectively been turned into a big stockholding space before the items are sent out.

“These things aren’t being done to win praise. It is about doing our bit for the community at a time of crisis. We’ll do whatever we can to help.”

In an uncertain situation which is constantly evolving, flexibility has been key.

“Things are always changing and we are always facing fresh challenges and often finding different ways in which we can help,” says Clowes.

“For example, we had the Wolves at Home project which saw us make 3,000 calls to elderly season ticket holders.

“During the course of those calls you sometimes find out people are struggling to get out of the house or need help with certain things. In some instances we have had foundation staff out collecting and delivering prescriptions to elderly fans.

“The question has always been how we can use our resources most effectively. A number of staff have been redeployed and the logistics have been a real challenge at times. There have been plenty of problems to solve.

“But there has also been a huge collective goodwill. Everyone has been eager to do their bit.”

While their chief focus remains very much on the here and now, Lake and Clowes must also keep one eye on the immediate future – in particular what next week’s government review of lockdown restrictions might mean for their numerous school projects.

At the same time, there is an acceptance a return to anything like normal remains some considerable time away.

“We have to position ourselves to make sure we are in the best possible place to help when the lockdown starts to be eased,” explains Lake.

“The past few weeks have also helped us to review some of the ways we work. There are things we have started doing these past few weeks which we will continue doing. There are also things we were doing before which, in hindsight, probably weren’t as effective as we thought.”

“It is inevitable we will have to keep adapting,” agrees Clowes. “As challenging as the past few weeks have been at times, we have learned a lot too. If there is any way we can help, we will do it.”