Sport brings group together
At Dame Kelly Holmes Trust we work with a variety of young people with different stories and from different backgrounds, building communication and teamwork skills and a sense of community amongst the group. Our recently launched Get on Track in north Kent is no exception – our athlete mentors, Commonwealth Gold medallist fencer, Claire Bennett and former GB Champion boxer, Hannah Beharry have seen how the power of sport has connected a group of refugees in what has been a fantastic start to the programme.
Funded by Virtual School Kent (VSK) and delivered by our local delivery partner Swale Community Leisure, the programme has got off to a fantastic start with 26 young people referred onto the programme.
Sam Perrin who leads the Post 16 NEET (not in education, employment or training) and Employability Team at VSK said: “The Get on Track programme has been a fantastic reengagement programme for some of our most vulnerable young people for whom predominantly English is not their first language. Using sport as a universal language they have fully embraced the programme, and I have watched them interact with their peers and the athletes, and seen their confidence grow. In addition, due to the commitment and passion of our athletes and local delivery partners we have also seen several of the young people gain access to additional sporting opportunities of which they would not have had without this programme.”
Get on Track programmes offer young people a Champion in their Corner: world-class athlete mentors who use their experiences from elite sport to help them apply the knowledge to their own lives. Working with Hannah and Claire, the young people will explore improving confidence, self-esteem, resilience and employability prospects over this 20-session programme.
Football and Cricket bringing the group together
The power of sport has been evident throughout the opening sessions
It has always been said that sport has the power to bring people together, no matter age, race, religion or background – and for this group of young people which sees a plethora of nationalities present from countries such as Sudan, Cameroon, Pakistan, Afghanistan and more – that adage is ringing true.
What’s even more powerful is that some of the young people on the programme, speak little or limited English but sport, and the Dame Kelly Holmes Trust programme, are bringing them together as a group.
Cricket and football have been the sport of choice so far, and alongside Claire, Hannah and Ben Ryder, Community Partnership Manager at Swale Community Leisure the group are developing a close bond so early into the programme.
Ben said:
“Swale Community Leisure has been delivering programmes for the last decade in collaboration with Dame Kelly Holmes Trust, and this particular programme is unique in many ways and it stands as a testament to the unifying power of sport. The athletes involved have adapted the usual delivery to a more sport-based approach, which has proven effective, as these young people keep returning for more. I am eagerly anticipating the progress that the participants will make, as they have already taken significant strides forward.”
Many positive outcomes so early into the programme
The Get on Track programme is designed to build confidence, resilience and self-esteem, as well as focusing on becoming physically and mentally healthier, and the group in Kent is already seeing positive change.
Mustafa arrived from Cameroon two weeks prior to the programme. French is his native language, and he speaks very little English. But thanks to Claire being fluent in French, she was able to have a conversation with him, which he later explained was his first conversation with someone since he’d arrived in the UK.
Another young person, Hassan is a talented cricketer and following an active session, we have sourced a local cricket club for him to go and train with the possibility of joining the team for the upcoming season. Furthermore, VSK are also hoping to support funding cricket equipment.
We’re looking forward to sharing more on how this group of young people is developing over the course of this programme!