Awards & Grants

The JRF team are excited to announce they have been awarded a 3-year Grant from the Hyde Charitable Trust to deliver the ‘JRF in the Community’ Project.

The Sport for development project aims to build community engagement and increase sports participation by delivering a range of fun, accessible, and exciting activities including multi-sports, team games, and fitness sessions.

There will be Personal and social development training incorporating careers workshops, life-skills, and financial literacy sessions, as well as volunteering and training opportunities to enhance skills, qualifications, and career prospects.

Mentoring and progression pathways will engage the most marginalised and isolated in the local community, to develop confidence and enhance self-esteem through creative endeavours and, ‘Find your Voice’ media sessions.

The ‘JRF in the Community’ project caters for the entire Brent community to encourage everyone to participate in and enjoy community sports activities, as well as the wraparound services offered through the programme.

Julie Costley, Hyde’s Successful Places, Projects and Partnership Manager said:

“We’re delighted to be supporting the ‘JRF in the Community’ project. At Hyde we can see first-hand the vital role that organisations such as JRF play – both to young people and adults.

“The pandemic caused a lot of disruption to communities, impacting on everything from activity levels to people’s self-confidence. This funding is going to help develop more opportunities for people across Brent to engage with sport, training and physical activity.

“We’re looking forward to engaging even more with communities in Brent and helping inspire people to achieve their goals.”

To ensure there are no barriers to participation, there will be a range of open mixed sessions, girls, and women only sessions, and inclusive sports, games, and activity sessions including trips and excursions for children and young people with physical and learning disabilities.

Otis Roberts, CEO of the Foundation said; “We are thrilled to have been chosen to receive this grant from the Hyde Charitable Trust. For several years Hyde have supported us to deliver sports and recreational activities for the children and young people of Brent. This 3-year grant will help us to engage all Brent residents to create a positive and inclusive community where everyone can enjoy the benefits of sport and lead healthier and happier lives.”

JRF are delighted to announce a second year of funding from Back to Movement by Track Academy, to deliver the ‘Golf in the Community’ and ‘Youth Zone’ projects for the benefit of children and young people in Brent.

Due to the success and popularity of both projects that were launched in early 2022, JRF have been awarded the grant funding to continue the initiatives.

Back to Movement continues in 2023, with an extended programme designed for the local Brent community and surrounding boroughs to contribute to, not only recover from Covid-19, but to also help bring back the bond in communities across London.

Track Academy in collaboration with Sport England (Together Fund) and National Lottery (Community Fund) continues to go back to basics by, getting people and communities back into movement. The aim with this programme is to continue encouraging the community to come together and work together, to get active again by rebuilding hope, reconnect and looking forward to the future.

JRF’s ‘Golf in the Community’ project will provide urban golf for local children and young people – helping them to keep active and healthy, and offering a new sport for them to try. Sessions will be delivered twice weekly – one from Bridgestone Arena, NW10, the other through community outreach in local schools, parks and green spaces.

Young participants will also have the opportunity to take part in trips to a professional Golf Club, with the support of JRF’s Golf Partners.

The ‘Youth Zone’ is an inclusive and accessible club held each week on a Friday evening for young people to connect socially. In addition to multi-sports, games, and exercise, the club provides creative activities including music and media, as well as mentoring and careers workshops for older participants considering progression pathways.

Martene Carroll, Business Development Manager for JRF said; “We are so grateful to Track Academy, Sport England, and the National Lottery Community Fund for their continued support through these grants. Enabling us to deliver a second year of ‘Golf in the Community’ and the ‘Youth Zone’ will not only help us to engage more young people, but it will allow us to have a deeper and more sustainable impact on those who have previously taken part in the activities.”

Back to Movement project coordinator Grace Veys says: “The programme has helped many organisations expand their services and reach more people over the course of 2022. We are glad that we are able to continue the project for another year. The project motivates thousands of Brent residents and other boroughs to leave the house again after Covid-19, meet new people, learn new skills and have a brighter look at the future. We are glad to be stripping away financial and accessibility barriers, creating safe spaces for participants, improving quality of life, increasing self-esteem and confidence, and most importantly healing after grief.”

If you would like more information regarding these projects please contact info@jasonrobertsfoundation.org with the subject header either ‘Golf in the Community’ or ‘Youth Zone’.

April 2023 

On Monday 3^rd April JRF opened its doors at Bridgestone Arena, NW10 8LW, the ‘home’ of the Foundation since its launch in 2007, for an Easter Half Term Holiday programme for children and young people of Brent. 

Thanks to funding from Young Brent Foundation’s One Flow One Brent (OFOB) and Hyde Housing partnership, the Easter holiday programme will help to keep young people safe, connected, occupied, and active during the two week break from school. 

With a broad range of sports and activities on offer including Tennis, Football, Boxing, Dance, Golf, Basketball, and Teqball to name a few, as well as creative and personal development workshops, and opportunities for children to try out new sports, there is bound to be something for everyone.  

JRF offer an open access programme of activities to ensure everyone can take part and no-one is excluded.  

Thanks to funding through Brent Council You Decide Neighbourhood Community Infrastructure Levy (NCIL), activities for children and young people with physical and learning disabilities are being integrated alongside mainstream delivery through JRF’s ‘Inclusive Communities’ project, and incorporate a Buddy System, creating an ethos where everyone can take part equally, helping to break down barriers to participation so the children feel less marginalised and excluded. 

The half term programmes help to ensure children and young people have a safe place to go during the long summer holidays, where they can take part in sports and fun, affordable activities. JRF strive to give children opportunities to keep fit, active, and healthy whilst having the opportunity to socialise with their friends and make new ones, and enjoy new experiences through trips and excursions. 

Otis Roberts CEO at the Foundation said: ‘We are delighted to be able to offer Brent youth a space to be active and healthy during the school holidays. Sport is a great tool for engagement giving children a variety of activities to try out, whilst interacting and making friends. We are thankful to Young Brent Foundation, OFOB, and Hyde Housing for their continued support, and we look forward to our ongoing partnership.” 

With the spring sun shining brightly this is sure to be a fun and exciting Easter EGGtravanganza! 

For enquiries regarding the half term programme contact info@jasonrobertsfoundation.org with the subject ‘Easter 2023’. 

For enquiries regarding the Inclusive Communities project contact info@jasonrobertsfoundation.org with the subject ‘Inclusive Communities’. 

Follow the Jason Roberts Foundation social media channels @JasonRobertsFdn to keep up to date with all the news, ongoing activities, and new initiatives being delivered. 

March 2023

JRF are pleased to announce a new Sports Programme specifically for girls – ‘This Girl Can’ an outreach programme to reframe sport and physical activity for girls, to tackle adolescent and teenage disengagement.

The project funded by Hyde Housing Association Ltd. Will involve relatable role models to expand the image of what ‘sporty’ looks like, and aims to offer activities that are exciting and appealing, to encourage more girls to take part.

The 6-month ‘This Girl Can’ project has been informed by the findings and recommendations from the Women in Sport’s 2022 Report, funded by Sport England “Reframing Sport for Teenage Girls: Tackling Teenage Disengagement” Published in March 2022. https://womeninsport.org/research-and-advice/our-publications/

JRF has consulted with their existing female participants, Youth Volunteers, and Coaches to understand their motivation for playing sport and participating in activities that are on offer, and conversely, what barriers thet face that stops them from playing sport.

Using the information learnt, and a better understanding of teenage girls’ lives and their relationship with sport and physical activity, as well as the wider issues they face, JRF will offer targeted sports and physical activity sessions for girls that pose no judgement, give girls a voice and a choice, and encourage girls to build sport and exercise into their existing habits.

If you are interested in joining the programme please email info@jasonrobertsfoundation.org with the subject header: This Girl Can.

January 2023

In their continued bid to provide a wraparound service to support young people on their career pathways, the JRF Team were delighted to be awarded funding by the LHC Community Benefit Fund, in association with Locality.

The grant is to support JRF’s ‘Positive Futures’ project working with 16 – 25-year-olds to equip them with the information, resources, skills, and self-belief they need to enter the world of work, and to understand and manage their money, to plan for their future financial independence.

To a backdrop of multi-sports the young participants will attend a series of Life Coaching workshops involving practical money management sessions, healthy meals on a budget, as well as techniques to enhance their physical and mental health, self-confidence, and resilience.

The Career Coaching workshops will involve using CVs and LinkedIn to showcase skills, advice on how to create a positive impression, information about self-employment or starting a business, and preparing for interviews.

Martene Carroll, Business Development Manager said; “The overall message we hope to convey to our participants through the Positive Futures project, is for them to understand the importance of aiming high in their everyday lives, and for them to recognize how being proactive can help them to reach their future goals.”

If you are between 16 – 25-years of age and wish to participate on this programme please email martene@jasonrobertsfoundation.org