Time to Talk: 8:56 Foundation are supporting men's mental health through cricket

More than 4,000 men in this country take their own lives each year, with approximately three quarters of all registered suicides having been carried out by men. According to the Centre for Policy Research on Men and Boys, as of 2023, more than 90,000 men had lost their lives to suicide across England and Wales this century – that’s enough men to fill Lord’s cricket ground to capacity three times over.

The 8:56 Foundation was set up to honour the memory of Lee Calton who took his own life in April, 2021, aged 37. The name 8:56 stems from the train time that Lee and his friends would take out of Kings Lynn Station on a Saturday morning to go and watch football and, in fitting fashion, it is through sport and camaraderie that 8:56 Foundation is both honouring Lee’s memory and spreading awareness of suicide and men’s mental health.

“What we found quite quickly was people wanted more practical help,” says Lee’s good friend Richard Watson, who co-founded 8:56 Foundation back in September, 2021. “We set up a wellbeing pathway focusing on social activities, reducing the risk of isolation and loneliness to try and break down that stigma.

“We also fund talking therapy and have funded over 3,000 sessions of talking therapy counseling for men in our area.”

Due to Lee’s love of sport, Watson and 8:56 founded two sports groups linked to the charity – a running group and a cricket team. After being invited to play a fund-raising match against local club Grimston on the day of King Charles’ coronation that was supposed to be a one-off, they decided to make their cricket matches a more regular thing.

“We’ve had a range of players,” Watson tells The Cricket Paper. “We’ve had East Anglian Premier League players in the same side as casual cricketers who might play one or two games a season. It’s a social piece, getting people together and having a game of cricket, but the other part of it is about raising awareness for men’s mental health.

“Raising awareness in terms of where people can get some help and things like checking on your teammates. If you see someone who seems a bit subdued, you might want to talk to them, or you might want to reach out to someone who hasn’t played for a couple of weeks to check if they’re okay and doing alright. In sport, the dressing room can be a lonely place at times.”

The fund-raising games have been a success, with many clubs wanting to make their 8:56 matches an annual event. The side have played about 50 games in the last three years, across Norfolk, Cambridgeshire and Lincolnshire, and last year they decided to take things further and set up what they call the Wear it Green Weekend where they encourage players from clubs across Norfolk to wear luminous green socks in support of the charity and men’s mental health awareness.

“We wanted to specify one weekend where we focus on raising awareness across the county. We contacted Norfolk Cricket Foundation (NCF), knowing that they’re positive around mental health, and asked how we can work together to try and promote this. Lewis Denmark from the NCF has been brilliant.

“We found that people really wanted to get involved. We thought if we could get rid of 20 pairs of socks and get a couple of clubs involved that would be a great start. We sold about 500 pairs! We were overwhelmed by it all and the sense of community spirit.”

Since that first weekend, Wear it Green has spread both nationally and internationally, with Devon-based club Whitchurch ordering a large batch of socks and Norfolk CCC wicketkeeper, Charlie Hood, getting his Adelaide grade club Unley involved with the initiative over the winter.

“It’s to help break down that stigma that it’s weak to talk or you can’t open up,” says Watson. “If we can wear a daft pair of green socks at the weekend someone can have a chat with you and listen. We want to make sure people know that there’s somewhere to go.

“We want to keep that awareness up in people’s minds. With what happened to Graham Thorpe, cricket is acutely aware of what suicide means to the game. Everything that came from that, with the Thorpey headbands last year, it was amazing to see.”

This year’s Wear it Green Weekend is taking place on June 6 and 7, with greatly appreciated support from the NCF and Norfolk CCC. Players will be sporting green socks and green laces and if you and/or your club want to get involved you can order your socks and laces from 856foundation.bigcartel.com and post online with the hashtag #WearItGreen.

For more information on the 8:56 Foundation and to find out where to access men’s mental health resources or get involved with the charity, visit 856foundation.org.uk.