Prevention not cure

Last week I had the opportunity to visit three of the projects funded by the Team England Footballers Charity Outreach Programme. They were awarded their grants to support the football related activities they deliver in their communities, without which, I feel the youth of today in some areas would have no chance for a positive future.

Our first stop was the Smethwick Pakistani Muslim Association. Their objective was simple; find out what the young people want and provide them with an opportunity to do it. Every day over the school holidays the project workers have arrived at the community centre ready to respond to the young people’s needs. On this occasion it was football for the boys and netball for the girls. The Association have recently secured a grant to renovate and use a new centre as a new venue for the increasing number of young people who use the facilities each day. Not only is this providing the young people with somewhere safe to go, but by transforming a local iconic building which has been entirely run down and abused for several years. The inter-community is rife in the area, and it was clear to see how sport broke down barriers.

On from Birmingham to Sheffield’s Operation Dark night! The project provides football sessions and tournaments to small communities in Sheffield that have few other amenities. Although the concept was roughly the same the feel was entirely different. The kids were much younger and completely naive to the troubles in their local area. The prospect of being able nutmeg their coach or score a goal was all they were interested in. One was only about seven and the bib was down below his knees, but the ability to wear the three lions paid for by the England players kept a smile on his face!

On the road again to Manchester where the Eastside Community Development Team had spotted and supported a local dad offering training sessions to youths in a gang and drug related area. In hearing one of their rival league teams had received funding from the TEFCOP the year before, the team had put forward a compelling case for funding. On our arrival there, the team showed impeccable behaviour and respect for one another. The only aspect that gave away the deprivation of the area was the backdrop.

Humbled by my experiences, I left the next morning with the utmost pride in the work of the charity and contribution of the England football team to make a difference. Without the contribution of these three projects to their local communities, most of the young people involved would be stuck at home with no stimulating activities or worse causing trouble on the streets. The question I was left unable to answer is why the projects had to operate on shoestring budgets and depend on the generosity of volunteers to deliver? I guess the difficulty in funding preventative activities is proving it has made a difference; the ‘what if’ factor. What if there wasn’t funding available? What if no one volunteered? Although not tangible that there would be less crime or anti-social behaviour, the personal stories of each individual would more than elude to where they would be without these projects.

So what next? Well in terms of the TEFCOP, we will work to ensure that the projects we work with have all the tools required to sustain their activities for years to come and positively impact on many more lives. As for me, it’s time to look at my local area and see what I can do.