Derby County Football Club and Community Trust are delighted to announce six player ambassadors for across the 2020/21 season.

Players opt in to support a number of themes across society which link into the Community Trust’s varied delivery programmes across communities in Derby and Derbyshire.

This year we will have two player ambassadors per theme:

• Health and Wellbeing – Duane Holmes and Jason Knight
• Schools and Education – Kelle Roos and Martyn Waghorn
• Equality, Diversity and Social Inclusion – Curtis Davies and Graeme Shinnie

Players will be allocated player appearances based on their interests along with the rest of the squad to support important projects and initiatives.

Simon Carnall, Head of Community at Derby County Community Trust, said,

“It’s fantastic for us to name our six player ambassadors for the season, covering a range of areas of our delivery.

“Since the start of the pandemic and the launch of the Stay Safe. Stay Fit. Stay Connected. programme, we have seen players lend their support in a huge number of ways.

“Clearly the way in which we interact with our participants is differently this year, as is the way we can utilise players’ voices and expertise.

“We’ve already had some really successful virtual appearances covering topics including Black History Month and our Tackling Loneliness project, so I have no doubt that we’ll continue to work with the team to deliver some brilliant opportunities for our participants.”

Along with new initiatives which have been set up in response to the pandemic, including the Pride Park donation hub which has been heavily backed by the team since its inception, a huge range of the Community Trust’s project shave continued throughout this year, adapting to meet changing needs and restrictions.

Player ambassadors are an important link between the football club and Community Trust and form part of the PFA framework which recognises the community impact of the football club.