Street League delivers structured sport and education programmes to disadvantaged young people across the United Kingdom. Most participants are not in education, employment or training. The organisation works with a range of ‘hard to reach’ groups to tackle issues such as homelessness, addiction, crime and unemployment. Street League uses football to engage with participants and build their confidence, improve their health, extend their social networks and develop their employability skills.

Since being founded in 2001, Street League has expanded out of London and now operates around the northeast of England and throughout greater Glasgow. The organisation’s goal is to move every participant into a sustainable form of further education, traineeship, apprenticeship or employment.

Drug and alcohol abuse, homelessness and crime are some of the most difficult issues faced by British society today. These problems tend to be interrelated and are often linked to unemployment and a poor quality of life. The matter is so pervasive that a separate classification, NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training) was created for young people aged 16-24; approximately 10% of young people fall into this category in the United Kingdom. Being classified as NEET is itself a major predictor of later unemployment, low income or benefit dependence, depression and poor physical health. The cycle is difficult to escape: of those who end up in prison, 40% will re-offend within the first three months of being released.

Initially, young people can attend Street League’s weekly Free-Flow Sessions, which offer participants the opportunity to sample Street League’s programme. The sessions also allow the organisation to assess and select the candidates they feel will benefit the most from a full programme.

Through the Street Sports programme, Street League players train weekly and take part in regular match days and football tournaments against other teams from the area. These match days are an effective way of engaging participants from across the UK and encouraging interaction between Street League members from various project zones. The regular sessions and tournaments provide consistency to what are often chaotic lives. Football training takes place weekly, in the same place, at the same time and with the same coach in order to build structure into lifestyles which might otherwise lack direction or purpose.

Interspersed throughout the football activities, coaches deliver a variety of workshops, including CV writing and interview skills, to prepare the young people with the necessary skills to progress. Through football, young people develop a number of key transferable skills that help them prepare for independent living. They gain confidence, build social networks and improve their general fitness.

Street League’s in-house progressions team works closely with the coaching staff to ensure the positive development of all participants throughout the programme. Progressions workers conduct one-toone consultations with all participants to encourage them to establish a set of achievable goals. Using this as a base, progressions workers strive to secure a positive destination in education, training or employment for each individual. Football serves not only as a motivating force, but also as way to develop and affirm players’ social skills and employability.

Street League also offers selected participants the opportunity to progress within the organisation itself using an apprenticeship initiative. All current Street League apprentices have come through one of the organisation’s programmes and wish to pursue a career in coaching. Working under one of Street League’s UEFA qualified coaches for a period of six months, the young apprentices often go on to complete a higher level coaching certificate and become full-time coaches.

Street League courses are regularly organised in association with local colleges to offer participants the opportunity to work toward an Open College Network accreditation. The courses are primarily aimed at encouraging participants to set realistic goals and to transfer the skills they learn on the pitch into skills that will make them more attractive to potential employers.

Street League operates in and around some of the most deprived areas in the United Kingdom. By using football as an innovative approach to engaging young people and reintegrating them into society, the organisation retains 68% of participants who have previously had difficulties in sustaining mainstream education. Three-quarters of individuals with a history of criminal activity avoided crime while working with Street League, and over half of those who took part in Street League programmes reduced their drug use while working with the organisation.

For the vast majority of young people who are referred to Street League, football not only draws them in, but also helps sustain their participation and development. Through the beautiful game, Street League enables young people to move from disadvantaged positions on the outskirts of society and into productive, fulfilling education and employment opportunities.

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