The Sport for Development Coalition is well-placed to support the aims of the Government's Levelling Up White Paper. Here Gary Laybourne, CEO of Coach Core, explains how his organisation will contribute:
"Coach Core is a social mobility charity that uses the power of sport and apprenticeships to create life-changing pathways for young people across the UK. We firmly believe we have a central role to play in helping those that struggle to find long-term education and/or employment by supporting the Levelling Up Missions that seek to tangibly improve living standards (Mission 1 in the White Paper) and skills (Mission 6) for those that need this most. Through our intervention, and through the local coaching and physical activity the apprentices will provide, we also feel Coach Core can adopt an important position in elevating the health and wellbeing (Missions 7 and 8) of the communities this agenda seeks to impact.
"Charities have a significant role to play in the successful implementation of the Levelling Up agenda. Coach Core uses the funding it receives to instigate change across multiple strands of society, such as employment, physical activity, educational attainment (Mission 5) and reducing anti-social behaviour (Mission 11). These interventions result in extensive cross-department social value, but also underlines the point that charities have significant experience in accurately evaluating and evidencing their work, something we understand to be integral to the first two recommendations of the Kruger report.
"Since 2012, Coach Core’s operational model is to convene the best training providers and employers locally, whilst providing the national identity and infrastructure in each programme. Due to this ethos, we wholeheartedly welcome the recommendation on supporting a collaborative network approach, as we can demonstrate the success of this methodology.
"In 2021, Coach Core launched its three-year strategy to grow our operations to more UK areas, offering more qualifications to more young people than ever before. Our role is to be the convening body that guides and supports local employers, governing bodies, and youth services to place apprenticeships at the heart of their workforce plans whilst also creating happier, healthier communities through the coaching they provide."
Read more at coachcore.org.uk
