Introducing our new five year strategy
Bloomsbury Football was founded in 2018 with the goal of supporting young people in London using the power of football. Our Founder & CEO Charlie, who was 22 at the time, had been working as a coach since his late teens, and had seen how football helped his team to develop communication skills, gain confidence and remain active. Being based in London, he also saw that the beautiful game was not accessible to all. Limited pitch space and the price of kit, equipment and location all meant that for too many young people, participation in regular football sessions was just not an option.
The goal was to create a football club for every young person. Bloomsbury Football was created.
With a financial assistance model and an inclusive range of programmes, Bloomsbury Football is now engaging over 5,000 young people per week in London. We have a dedicated team of over 50 Bloomsbury Football coaches who deliver sessions across our city every day. All sessions are designed to support the mental & physical health of participants, teaching them life skills and fostering community cohesion.
The power of football is real – 93% of Bloomsbury players say they’ve made new friends through engaging in our sessions, 86% say they feel healthier and 91% report feeling more confident, both on and off the pitch.
From 2018 to 2023, Bloomsbury Football grew from our first session on a pitch in Camden with 4 players to engaging over 5,000 young people per week. Now we’re planning for the next five years of Bloomsbury Football…
By the end of 2028, our goal is to engage 20,000 young people per week. That’s more Bloomsbury Football sessions, more goals scored & more lives changed.
Welcome to the 2023 – 2028 Game Plan.
THE STRATEGY
Bloomsbury Football Communities are at the heart of the new strategy to scale our impact in London. Communities are hyper-localised, community-led interventions that provide a 2-step engagement model, from engagement sessions in schools and on local housing estates to extra-curricular sessions outside of the young people’s immediate environment. In this way, we envision running 32 hours of schools sessions, 16 hours of non-team sessions and 4 hours of sessions on local housing estates. By running this complement of programmes on the doorsteps of those who need it most, we are removing location as a barrier to accessing the benefits of football. The goal is to establish 18 Communities by 2028, enabling Bloomsbury Football to increase the scope and breath of our activities efficiently and at scale – changing the game for more young people in London.
The Bloomsbury Club Football, Futsal and Leagues programmes provide a competitive, high-engagement approach for young people who otherwise would overlook our sessions. Coordinating these football and futsal streams into our leagues means that all young people are provided with high quality, regular competition, helping take their game and their engagement to the next level.
Bloomsbury’s Special Projects are crucial to ensuring that every young person can experience the power of the beautiful game. These programmes require specialist tailoring to accommodate all beneficiaries and help to share the power of football with as many young people as possible. A dedicated team is focused on growing the Disability and Refugee & Asylum Seekers Programmes, reaching young people that are traditionally excluded from mainstream football provision.
Bloomsbury Ventures has also been launched as part of the 2023-2028 Game Plan. With our expertise in organising effective events and campaigns, Bloomsbury Ventures will formalise this events management capacity in our team. Bloomsbury Ventures will deliver events, experiences and tournaments for corporate clients, provide our beneficiaries with work experience and generate an additional funding stream for the charity.
We have learned and developed a lot over our five years of growth. We are keen to share our knowledge and learnings with the wider sector to ensure that more people can feel the benefits of participation in sport. We are creating an internal innovation unit as a space to pilot new approaches, innovate and share.
To learn more about Bloomsbury’s 2023-2028 Strategy, click here.