A SWINDON-BASED mortgage expert donated football kit to a club he played in when he was a child.

Chris Blackwell of TED Mortgages gave blue-and-white uniforms to the young players in the Wroughton Youth Football Club's under-8s Wolves team.

The 28-year-old grew up in the village, went to school there and became a member of the club from the age of five.

He's now the co-director of a successful mortgage firm based near Coate which he manages with founder Tom Brennan.

Chris said: "Football was very important to me when I was a child so it was very natural to get in touch and support a club which helps youngsters in the way it helped me.

"I stayed playing with the club until I was a teenager when I moved into playing rugby."

The support given to Chris by the club was not just about enjoying football and fitness.

The team helped him when his father David passed away suddenly when Chris was just eight.

He added: “Losing my dad at a young age was devastating for me, my brother John and for my mum Diane.

"Playing for the club with all of my close friends and having the focus of football helped me through at the time.”

Wroughton Youth Football Club has a long and celebrated history which goes back more than a century.

Today, the club has 18 teams which compete in local leagues from the under-sevens to the under-17s.

Will Lambourne is the coach of the Under-8s Wolves team. He thanked Chris and the team for the kind kit donation.

Will said: “It’s wonderful to receive support from a local business which cares and I cannot thank them enough.

"It’s a great help to us and helps to reduce the financial burden on parents who send their children to the club.”

Chris added: “It means a lot to me to be in a position to give back to an organisation which gave so much to me.”

TED Mortgages is a specialist, independent, fee-free, certified mortgage brokers that aims to work with their customers through ant approach that is tailored to each person’s circumstances.

To find out more, visit www.tedmortgages.co.uk.