Roberta Moore told West Ham TV of her pride in seeing her father Bobby’s legacy live on in the Moore Family Foundation.
Launched three years ago in memory of the late, great West Ham United and England captain, who died 24 years ago today, the Foundation – a registered charity – is providing life-changing opportunities to thousands of Year 6 students in Newham, Tower Hamlets, Barking & Dagenham, Thurrock, Brentwood and Basildon.
Roberta explained how, working in conjunction with the West Ham United Foundation, mentors support pupils with literacy and numeracy, while also accompanying them on unforgettable matchday visits to London Stadium.
“I’m really proud that we have come as far as we have since the Foundation started, which was in 2014,” Roberta told West Ham TV. “With the help of the Club and the fantastic team of mentors which we’ve got, we’ve so far reached more than 16,000 children in Year 6 across the boroughs think we work with.
“I believe 11,000 children have now been to our Healthy Lifestyle workshops and the number is up to around 1,320 vulnerable children who have received one-on-one mentoring in the key academic subjects, so their literacy and numeracy skills have really increased, which has a knock-on effect to their attainment levels and their confidence. It’s brilliant and I’m really proud of that.
“For me, I want Dad’s legacy to continue and we tried to build into the core of the programme the values that I and everyone else recognises in Dad – self-discipline, kindness and working hard. We’re trying to put those messages across to the children we engage with and are trying to give a positive message to them to help them to achieve their potential.”
I’m really proud that we have come as far as we have since the Foundation started, which was in 2014
Roberta Moore
Roberta and her family have retained close links with the Club her father represented 646 times between 1958 and 1974, playing a central role in the closing of the Boleyn Ground and the opening of the Hammers’ new home on Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.
The legendary No6 turned out the Boleyn Ground lights for the final time in May last year, before Bobby’s grandson Freddie opened the new Bobby Moore Stand at London Stadium in August.
“I take great comfort from the close relationship my family retains with the Club,” Roberta confirmed. “My son Freddie opened the Bobby Moore Stand here at London Stadium last summer, which was really special, because my children did not get to meet my Dad. For them to be able to connect on a very personal level is really important to me.
“I love being involved with the Club. It has a real family feel and it’s always really special as we receive such a warm welcome.
“The Club have been brilliant and working alongside the Club, they have been amazing in helping us deliver the Foundation scheme into so many schools. We couldn’t have done it without the Club.”
Meanwhile, a new generation of football fans – and ordinary television viewers – were brought into the lives of the Moore family by the recently-aired acclaimed ITV drama Tina and Bobby.
In the three-part series, actors Lorne MacFadyen and Michelle Keegan took on the roles of Roberta’s parents, taking viewers through the defender’s rise from East End boy to national icon.
Charting his ascension to the role of West Ham’s FA Cup and European Cup Winners’ Cup and England’s 1966 FIFA World Cup-winning captain, Tina and Bobby was enjoyed by more than five million viewers.
“I really enjoyed it,” Roberta confirmed. “It was surreal for me to see my family life played out on screen, but I thought Lorne and Michelle did a great job of playing my Dad and Mum and they obviously paid a lot of information to the detail of the costumes, the soundtrack and I loved all that stuff.
“It was a bit odd to watch it, but I loved it. I don’t go on Twitter much, but I did go on there during the show and I saw it was trending and it has opened up Dad’s life to a whole new audience and that makes it very special.”