Mansfield Town’s Football In The Community initiative has received a cheque for £5,000 from Mansfield-based education recruitment company Teachers UK, which has supported the project since 2014.

Louise Hamby, from the company based at i-Centre, said: “We continue to support Football In The Community because of the valuable role it plays in our area.

“They are an inspiration and are able to offer hundreds of children a variety of opportunities.

“Through our work with Football In The Community we have been lucky to turn dreams into reality for many local schoolchildren who have enjoyed meeting players on match days and becoming the club’s mascot for the day.”

Teachers UK will continue to sponsor autumn, spring and summer mascot competitions for children nominated by their schools and will sponsor this year’s Primary Schools John Radford Cup.

The company will sponsor the Mansfield Town Football In The Community Primary School football kit.

Andrew Rogers, operations manager of Teachers UK, said “We are dedicated to giving back to the community we work in, and supporting Football In The Community helps us to do that in an exciting way.

The children they work with have fun and learn new skills with dedicated staff from Football In The Community, who inspire and encourage young people to develop a love of sport and exercise, no matter what their abilities.”

Jordan Ferrer, from Mansfield Town FC, said: “The money donated will help to provide fantastic opportunities for local children, as well as the full mascot day prizes that Teachers UK sponsor throughout the year.”

Pictured are Jordan Ferrer, of Mansfield Town FC Football In The Community (centre), with Teachers UK’s operations manager, Andrew Rogers, and Louise Hamby and Stags mascots Sally and Sammy The Stag.