Better futures through sport

"Street League is making me mentally and physically happier. It’s making me get out of bed every day to learn things that I wouldn’t have known if I wasn’t here," said Adam from Birmingham.

Street League’s vision is a society in which all young people have the opportunity of secure employment and a brighter future. Street League changes the lives of young people who live in or on the edges of poverty in communities across England and Scotland by:

• Supporting school pupils at risk of future unemployment
• Supporting unemployed young people to find high quality and sustainable employment, training and education
• Supporting young workers through apprenticeships to learn and progress, tackling in-work poverty

Sport is at the heart of all of Street League’s programmes, giving young people the self-belief, sense of belonging, and skills they need to thrive.

Players of People’s Postcode Lottery have raised over £4 million for the charity, enabling Street League to continue supporting young people during the pandemic and reaching the young people who need their support the most. Support from players is giving young people hope at a time when unemployment is at a record high and young people are being disproportionately hit by the pandemic.

Having adapted to delivering programmes virtually almost overnight when the lockdown was announced, Street League gave 2,357 young people in an incredible 923 postcode sectors across England and Scotland somewhere to turn in 2020. Through online fitness challenges, sports sessions, qualification and skills workshops, one-to-one support, and referrals to other organisations (like food banks), Street League was a lifeline to young people. Street League ran 2,263 sessions and meetings on Zoom and was able to give young people access to online support through tablets and reliable WiFi thanks to the invaluable support of players of People’s Postcode Lottery.

One of the young people that players have supported is Pav from Leeds.

She shares, "Street League was brilliant for me, especially when playing football but also securing a job at Tesco. They helped me gain confidence, knowledge and understanding of the workplace and now provide excellent support to me whilst in my job. Working as a keyworker throughout this pandemic has been another challenge that I have overcome and I wouldn’t have been able to do this before attending Street League."

Today, one in four young people aren’t in work, education or training, and in deprived communities, this number is even higher. With players’ support, Street League is expanding its work, giving more young people the skills, confidence, and self-belief they need for a brighter future.