Go! London – the biggest community sport fund in the capital – invests nearly £5 million in its first year into London’s community sports sector.
A further £2m to be invested in community sport projects across London from September 2024.
Inaugural Go! London Forum to bring together young people and sector organisations for a day of hands-on learning.
In September 2024, applications will open for a further £2m of funding for London community sports projects, as part of the £19.5m Go! London fund – the biggest community sport fund in the capital.
Since launching last year, Go! London has invested almost £5m in over 130 grassroots sport and physical activity organisations. By December 2026, this initiative will provide over 60,000 underserved young Londoners with opportunities to engage in activities like cycling, skating, yoga, and cheerleading.
Go! London is a five-year, £19.5m partnership between the Mayor of London, London Marathon Foundation and Sport England, with strategic guidance from London Marathon Events and London Sport. Go! London supports community sport and physical activity initiatives, as well as investing directly in the next generation of leaders in the sector by supporting young social entrepreneurs.
The announcement comes as the first Go! London Forum took place yesterday at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, welcoming up to 400 attendees – half of whom are young people – for a day of active learning with industry professionals, partners and key organisations.
Young people from underserved boroughs, as well as young entrepreneurs supported by the Go! London fund, were able to access skills development workshops and introductions to key industry partners including the NBA, NFL and Sweaty Betty.
Venues across Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, including London Stadium, Copper Box Arena and London Marathon Community Track, hosted young people and sector partners for a day of networking, skills development, and engagement with leading sporting brands and leagues.
The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “Sport can make an immense difference to the lives of young people, which is why I joined forces last year with our Go! London partners to create the biggest community sport fund in the capital.
“We have made huge strides in reducing the barriers to sport and physical activity, supporting thousands of underserved young Londoners to improve their physical, mental and emotional wellbeing. This new £2m funding will enable us to go even further in our efforts to build a better, fairer London for all.”
Lisa Dodd-Mayne, Executive Director, Sport England, said: “We’re delighted to be a Go! London partner. Sport and activity can transform lives; it builds resilience, confidence, and boosts mental health. We want all young people – regardless of their background, bank balance or postcode – to have the chance to enjoy the incredible benefits of sport and activity.”
Nick Bitel, CEO of the London Marathon Group, said: “The Go! London fund is the biggest community sport investment fund in London and in its first year of funding will engage and inspire more than 50,000 young Londoners. We look forward to supporting many more impactful community sport initiatives with the next funding phase of £2 million announced today. The London Marathon Foundation works to inspire, increase and champion participation and diversity in physical activity, and we are proud to be a founder funder of Go! London.”
Ben Cooper, Head of School Engagement at London Marathon Events, said: “It’s great to see the inaugural Go! London Forum bringing together partner organisations, young people and young entrepreneurs. The Access grants from the Go! London fund are developing and opening up schools and sports facilities to community groups and inspiring more young Londoners to enjoy an active life and all the benefits that brings.”
Emily Robinson, CEO at London Sport, said: “It’s been a fantastic year working with partners on this unique collaboration, improving the lives of thousands of young Londoners through the physical, mental and social benefits of an active life.
“This week, we were proud to welcome the first cohort of Go! London Young Entrepreneurs to the Forum – it is exciting to see their sporting social enterprises in action.”
Ed Fane, Head of Venues, LLDC, said: “As this summer of Olympic and Paralympic sport gets underway, what better place to host this incredible partnership, than the iconic venues that inspired a generation during London 2012? LLDC is privileged to support, and host Go! London and welcome the next generation of leaders in the sector.”
For Go! London partners, the Forum offered a platform to directly engage with the sector and to work with other funders and prospective partners to improve sporting opportunities for young Londoners from underserved backgrounds. The forum brought together sector leaders to explore learnings from Go! London and outline the direction of travel for the fund.
The event piloted an active learning conference format, with attendees spending the day trying out new things and developing skills by ‘doing’. Specific active learning zones consisted of customised activations to engage the attendees, including workshops and interactive displays to provide advice and support. The areas focussed on active learning and advice from partner and delivery organisations around capacity building and generally about the industry.
Afsana Lachaux, Director of the Sweaty Betty Foundation, said: “The Sweaty Betty Foundation’s mission is to empower women and girls to get active and find joy in movement. By amplifying her voice, we can start tackling the barriers holding girls back. We’re delighted to participate in this inaugural Go London event and have partnered with Make Space For Girls to give young Londoners a voice in designing and creating inclusive spaces.”
ENDS
Notes to editors
More information about the funding process and grants available can be found at: https://golondon.org.uk/
More images available here – please credit Grassrootsandbeyond
About the Go! London fund
Beneficiaries of the Go! London fund will be children and young people aged 4-24 who:
· have special educational needs, are deaf or have other physical and learning disabilities;
· have been, or are, excluded from school or college;
· are not in education, employment or training (NEETs);
· have, or are, associated with gangs or impacted by exploitation;
· are experiencing, or have been impacted by, domestic violence and abuse;
· refugees or asylum seekers;
· have a social worker (looked after children, those with a protection plan, children in need and care leavers);
· come from low-income families and or those living in poverty; and are less active or inactive.
The following will be eligible to apply for funding:
· community, charity and voluntary sector organisations;
· sports development organisations;
· social enterprises;
· young people led organisations;
· young Individuals (aged 16-24) including start-ups and perhaps with a fund holder organisation to start off with – testing grants only;
· schools;
· faith groups.
Profit making organisations and organisations/projects proposing to work outside of London are not eligible to apply for funding.
About London Sport
London Sport is a charity that exists to help ensure more Londoners live happier, healthier lives through access to sport and physical activity.
Supported by Sport England and the Mayor of London, London Sport collaborates with those that share our vision, running and supporting projects that help children, young people and the least active adults to embed sport and physical activity into their lives.
