Shawbrook and HTB back football tournament raising over £50,000

The event brought together 28 teams and nearly 300 players from the financial, mortgage, real estate and business consultancy sectors.

The proceedings will go to Ripple Suicide Prevention Charity and the West Ham United Foundation.

It was held at The Foundry, West Ham United Foundation’s community hub, on World Suicide Prevention Day.

The tournament was sponsored by Shawbrook, HTB and Cheffins, alongside Anderson Wilde & Harris, Align Property Finance and Kavanaghs.

Mark Hedley, relationship manager at Shawbrook and tournament organiser, said: “Watching nearly 300 people from across our industry come together for a cause this important was genuinely humbling.”

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He added that raising more than £50,000 was an “incredible achievement”, crediting the teams, sponsors, volunteers and supporters involved.

The funding for Ripple Suicide Prevention Charity will help develop technology designed to intercept harmful online searches relating to suicide and self-harm and direct people towards mental health support.

The charity said its technology had intercepted more than 120,000 harmful searches since 2021 and reached nearly two million people worldwide.

Alice Hendy, CEO of Ripple Suicide Prevention Charity, said: “Events like these are far more than just fundraisers, they are opportunities for people to come together and share their experiences, and normalising difficult conversations.”

Funds raised for West Ham United Foundation will go towards its health and wellbeing initiatives.

Joseph Lyons, CEO of West Ham United Foundation, said the event was an opportunity to “bring people together and highlight the importance of open conversations around mental health and wellbeing”.

Organisers said they were planning another tournament for 2027 following this year’s event.