Boxing Futures is a non-contact boxing charity that aims to bridge the gap between young
people and the wider community from which they commonly feel excluded.
If we want our young people within the criminal justice system and disadvantaged communities to re-establish themselves as positive and vibrant members of our society, then we must provide them with opportunities that are currently difficult to access.
We aim to make an immediate impact on the lives of disenfranchised people, working predominantly with 16-25-year olds, however both older and younger age groups are also engaged. Our goal is to improve not only physical health, but mental health and wellbeing through sport, whilst building empowering relationships and developing core soft skills.
Through our programmes we aim to use service user’s improved well-being, new-found motivation, confidence and core skills as a springboard into re-engagement with education, volunteering, employment and importantly their wider community.
On establishing the charity, our initial aim was to assist young people within the criminal justice system and those from disadvantaged communities, who were also at risk of becoming involved in criminal activity, to re-establish themselves as positive and vibrant members of society. However, as the charity has grown, we have been able to provide our services to a wider audience beyond our original scope.
It has become clear that many service users face mental health, well-being issues and trauma emanating from previous experiences. This has guided Boxing Futures to focussing a significant amount of its efforts working with partners and funders that operate within the field of mental health and has helped shape our organisational aims and strategic priorities. For example, one priority is to establish ourselves as a lead provider able to improve mental well-being through reducing factors such as, loneliness and isolation, (a factor which has a significant detrimental effect on a person’s well-being). To achieve this, we have set precedents to include; developing volunteer and peer roles, to collaborate with others and form partnerships, to strengthen local communities and importantly to provide clear pathways to participation.
Our Service Users
Our service users tend to be the hardest to reach and engage, having been left out of mainstream society, with many not having the skill set or motivation to create goals to provide direction to their lives. They experience a wide range of disadvantage to include isolation; loneliness; family breakdown; disability and or living in deprivation, with the majority experiencing more than one of these issues and with all these factors negatively impacting their mental health and well-being.
We work with a diverse range of service users, falling within the following categories:
- Entering and or leaving the Youth Justice System
- Schools and community
- Homelessness
- Refugee status
- NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training)
- Substance misuse and related health issues
- Mental health & wellbeing
- Inclusion (disabilities)
- Loneliness & Isolation
Our core programmes offer bespoke boxing and non-contact boxing programmes that cater for the needs of a diverse group of service partners, such as schools and general community youth provisions. Each programme is based upon the Boxercise model, whereby service users gain either their Bronze, Silver or Gold Boxercise award over a period of 12 to 24 weeks, depending on the programme they are on or services they engage with.
Boxing Futures further enable service users to grow through core skill development, where they can enhance a range of soft skills such as timekeeping, communication and teamwork all of which can be evidenced on a C.V and referenced through Boxing Futures Staff. Service users have the opportunity of volunteering with Boxing Futures, creating new positive peer associations with similar interests of improving fitness and other pro social outcomes. Our service(s) provide structured activity, motivation, confidence, increased social connections, whilst improving physical health and mental wellbeing.