Derry City leading the way with 'Different Together' Project

Clubs throughout the League of Ireland should follow the example of Derry City in ensuring an atmosphere of joy, excitement and inclusion for everyone on match days.

That is the opinion of the club’s Supporter Liaison Officer Karen Pyne, who recently headed the introduction of Derry City’s new Diversity & Inclusion Plan in collaboration with recently developed group Friends of Ardnashee.

It led to a very special night at the Brandywell recently for Ardnashee pupils Zara Hamill and Logan Doherty, who got to walk out as mascots alongside Derry City footballers for the game against Bohemians.

Entitled ‘Different Together’, the club is eager to ensure that all fans feel welcome and supported regardless of diversity.

Captain for the game, Cameron McJannet wore ear defenders as he walked onto the pitch alongside both pupils, a moment which symbolised both understanding and connection between the club and the school, with all parties aiming to raise awareness of neurodiversity in their local communities.

“It was very special,” Karen said. Logan and Zara are two wee dolls. I had a wee chat with them beforehand just to explain to them what was happening. I think Logan had been a few times before with his granda, but I don’t think Zara had been at all. It didn’t faze them one bit; they absolutely loved it; they loved the crowd and they loved the whole experience of it all.

“The parents as well were so, so proud of their kids. It was absolutely brilliant and they were great ambassadors, not just for the school but also the club.”

Karen now hopes that the rest of the League of Ireland will follow in Derry City’s footsteps.

“I would say the club are definitely taking the lead on it,” she continued. “We’re the first club in Ireland to do it and I think it’s a massive thing. Other clubs should follow suit now and make this a big thing across the league. It should be the new normal and we’re going to try to make it the new normal.

“Ardnashee had done a collection at a game the week before and we had five mascots from them. A youngster had also been wearing ear defenders. I had also seen children wearing ear defenders in the Brandywell before so I thought we could make something of this. I thought we could be an inclusive club and show that and show that we support neurodiversity. I approached Ardnashee and they were delighted to come on board with us and it evolved from there. It was all done within a week; the mascots were sorted and we drafted the diversity and inclusion policy to be taken to the board for approval.”

‘Confidence and belief’

The project could not have come at a more opportune time for Friends of Ardnashee, a recently formed group keen to create memories, experiences and inclusion for their kids right across society.

Building relationships with individual and groups across the city and beyond is key for the development of the children in the present and in years to come.

Chairperson of Friends of Ardnashee, and teaching assistant Aine Harnett has been delighted to discover that people everywhere are willing to help.

“What we have found is that generally people just don’t know what they don’t know and once they hear what our message is, they are so welcoming,” she explained.

“When we’re inviting people to get to know our children and get to know the traits of their disabilities, the first questions they always ask are ‘What can we do?’ and ‘How can we help?’ and ‘What changes can we make?’

‘Different Together’ with Derry City, has an inclusion policy and that’s going to mean long-lasting change. It doesn’t cost anything, but what it will mean is that it’s out there now, and for parents of a child with additional needs, such as myself, I would think this is something my son can experience because I know now that Derry has consideration and knowledge and awareness of children with disabilities and how to accommodate them.”

Last Friday at the Brandywell was a night that Zara, Logan and Aine herself will never forget, even if she found herself more nervous that the children.

“It was lovely,” she acknowledged. “I think our pupils are anxious about attending events in the community, sometimes due to the nature of their disability of their sensory challenges so it’s really good for them to see the children that they know and have friendships with doing this because this will then give them the confidence and belief that they can do it as well and it could be them some day.

“I was supporting them in the tunnel as well, but they didn’t need it. I found it nerve-wrecking to walk out, but it didn’t faze them two. Usually that type of experience wouldn’t be something that our children have much practise in. For some it was their first experience and it was a big first step for Zara to do that. She was more than ready.

“She was a wee bit nervous until she knew that Cameron McJannet was going to be wearing ear defenders as well, but we made her a wee visual story to tell her and that’s why it’s so lovely; you can see Zara looking up at Cameron in one of the photos and she’s holding her ear defenders and she’s looking at him and he’s wearing his. The look on her face is ‘You’re wearing what I’m wearing’. I think that was beautiful.”

Aine now has her work cut out for her planning future trips to the Brandywell, with Logan and Zara’s experiences making them celebrities in their own right.

“They are all dying to go,” she laughed. “I was speaking to Karen and we are going to try to have spaces for the mascots and just let the children know when it’s coming up to their turn and let them experience that as well. Logan is a celebrity now, and so is Zara. They have been telling them all their stories, and the children, rather than being nervous about it, they are getting their names on the list. They have me tortured fining out when their matches are.

“I think it’s a big statement from Derry City. Their commitment to inclusion and to form that collaboration with us, a newly set up charity, the amount of knowledge that they stand to gain from that, and from us the amount of awareness given their following that we can get out there; it’s a great partnership and the real winners there are the children.”

Outreach programmes

Friends of Ardnashee are keen to continue working with outreach programmes throughout the community and has called on anyone interested to please get in touch as every experience can be so important for the kids.

“Fulton’s Pumpkin Patch have been fab with us,” she explained. “Last year we bought pumpkins so the children could experience a pumpkin patch on site. Fulton’s actually came down this year and they created for us our own pumpkin patch by planting seeds. The Fire Brigade, Green Watch on the Northland Road have been coming down to water the pumpkins.

“The children are all going down to see them and three of them have said to me ‘I’m going to be a fire person’, which is amazing. They are coming on site and the children are seeing what they do, seeing the realities of the job and they are asking what they need to do to become a fire person. It’s just so lovely.

“What it’s showing the children is that these day-to-day jobs that people have, these are their hopes and dreams for the future. These people are so welcoming and showing our children that there is life after school and that there’s a community there who will be there for them.”

“We are so keen to work with people on outreach projects. We would like to invite you in, get to know the children, have them ask questions to get to know you, and then continue that relationship then out in the community whenever it’s the right time to do that.

“Derry City Football Club have been down a few times and that led to this so it’s a nice, natural course for the children then to go out into the community, so anyone who would like to get in touch, please do.”

For more information or to get involved with Friends of Ardnashee, please contact friendsofasc@hotmail.com