Hansard

I welcome the debate and congratulate Margaret Mitchell on securing it. Hamilton Academical FC is more than deserving of having the invaluable contribution that it makes to the community in Hamilton and throughout South Lanarkshire recognised by our having the debate.

Margaret Mitchell’s motion identifies the wide array of organisations that benefit from the club’s support. They range from self-help groups, through partnership organisations with local and national Government agencies, to charities that the club has established to support a need that has been identified. There are also private companies with facilities based in the club’s stadium that deliver employment services and other commercial enterprises that serve the wider community.

The club’s support for the campaign against the Scottish Government’s decision to permit an incinerator to be built only a short distance from the community of Whitehill, beside which the club resides, was a welcome boost to the people who have been badly let down by that decision.

All in all, Hamilton Academical is a credit to the town, regardless of whether it is proving successful on the field of play. As the local constituency MSP, I state with confidence that, although the club might not be the biggest, it is certainly among the best community-based football clubs.

Unlike at Hampden, there may be no roar to greet the team on match days. Unlike at Wembley, there may be no huge arc to replace the old twin towers of the former stadium. There may be no sliding roof such as that at the Millennium stadium in Cardiff. However, any visitor to New Douglas Park or any viewer who follows a game that is being broadcast on television cannot fail to recognise the stadium’s own iconic feature. I speak of course about the iconic red bus, which is a permanent fixture behind the goals. The bus is used by several community groups and is now a recognisable feature in the stadium. More important, it is a major aspect of the club’s community trust.

The Hamilton Academical FC Community Trust allows the club to engage with many charities and local organisations and the facility provides a suitable venue to host events. That means that the local and wider community can use the stadium, and it allows ever-increasing partnership working to develop between the club and the community. The trust was created to recognise the important role that the club has in the local and wider community. A vital component of its work is to use football as the platform on which to build a close association and working relationship with many organisations across the local and wider community.

Being the only Scottish Professional Football League-registered club in South Lanarkshire makes Hamilton Academical uniquely placed to make the link between senior football and people who are in need. Children and young people are among those who can be most impacted by the effects of addiction, abuse or poverty. Unfortunately, such things exist in the community in which the club is based. It is good to know that the Accies recognise that they can use their position in the community to work with South Lanarkshire Council, the police and others to support the disadvantaged and the vulnerable through initiatives that support the community as a whole. Hamilton Accies have earned recognition for that, and I commend Margaret Mitchell for allowing us to praise the club’s merits.