Street League

Sheffield Functional Skills Academies

The Josh Davies Foundation is proud to be partnering with Street League to support the delivery of Functional Skills Academies in Sheffield. The Foundation has specifically chosen the Sheffield programme as the city was very close to Josh’s heart; one of Josh’s best friends is from Sheffield. Josh visited often and was incredibly fond of the city.

The foundation’s support will enable more young people to take part in the Acadamies programme, where they can work towards English and maths qualifications while building confidence, developing employability skills and preparing for work.

The Functional Skills Academies are 12-week programmes designed for young people in England to study functional skills, Maths and English, and gain support from a team upon completion of their qualifications to move into jobs, courses or apprenticeships. Each programme supports up to 15 young people. Participants attend from 10:30 am to 3:30pm each day, combining classroom-based learning with practical employability support and an hour of street sports each day.

The Josh Davies Foundation will directly support academy provision that will enable at least 7 young people to progress into employment, education or training outcomes. This represents funding for a substantial proportion of one Functional Skills Academy cohort.

A woman wearing a black hijab sitting outdoors by a green railing, holding a soccer ball, with blurred background of buildings and trees.

Activities

A typical day

Morning:

  • Maths session

  • Active session led by sports coach football, basketball, badminton, table tennis, interactive games and activities)

Lunch

Afternoon:

  • Employability sessions led by professional coaches coaches

    • CV, cover letter writing

    • Mock interviews

    • College/apprenticeship/job applications, personal statements

Participants

The academies are designed for young people who may have disengaged from education previously or who left school without the qualifications needed to move forward confidently into work or further learning.

In Sheffield, Street League works with young people often overlooked by traditional services. Many have struggled at school, lack qualifications in English and maths, or have lost confidence after difficult experiences with education or work.

The need for this support is significant across Sheffield and South Yorkshire. Youth unemployment in Yorkshire and the Humber consistently remains above the national average, while large numbers of young people continue to leave education without the qualifications needed to progress into work or further study. Around one third of young people nationally do not achieve a standard pass in GCSE English and maths by age 16, creating a major barrier to future opportunities.

Impact

The model focuses not only in enabling access to opportunity, but also in supporting young people sustain them.

Last year, across South Yorkshire:
196 young people started on Street League programmes

127 progressed into a positive outcome (against a target of 110):

  • 102 into employment

  • 6 into training

  • 19 into education

66% sustained their outcomes for at least 6 months.

Behind every number is a young person whose circumstances have changed. For some, that means gaining qualifications they never believed they could achieve. For others, it is attending consistently for the first time in years, completing an interview, securing a first job or beginning to see a future that previously felt out of reach.

Two young adults, a man with red hair and a woman with blonde hair, are sitting at a table engaged in a collaborative activity, possibly studying or working together, in a bright room with a high ceiling.

About Street League

Street League uses sport as a catalyst to engage young people who are unemployed, out of education, or facing significant barriers to work. Through a combination of sport, qualifications and personalised employability support, the organisation helps young people develop skills, rebuild routine and progress into sustainable employment.

The approach combines structure, relationships and achievable progression. Sport plays a central role in that and is far more than an additional activity alongside employability support. For many young people, sport is the engagement mechanism that makes participation possible in the first place

Young people who have disengaged from school, training or employment services are often reluctant to enter formal classroom environments again. For many young people, stepping onto a football pitch or joining a street sports session feels far less intimidating than walking into a classroom or job centre. Sport gives them somewhere to belong before asking them to believe they can succeed. It helps young people build relationships with staff, reconnect with peers, improve confidence and develop routine in a setting that feels supportive rather than judgemental.

That engagement then creates a pathway into qualifications, ,employability support and sustained progression. We consistently see that young people who first engage through sport are more likely to attend regularly, remain engaged and progress into positive outcomes. This combination of sport, qualifications and personalised support is what differentiates Street League from more traditional employability provision.

A group of young men playing a game on a smartphone in a casual indoor setting.
A woman wearing a black hijab and black shirt sitting on a park bench, holding a soccer ball with the UEFA Champions League logo, with a modern building and trees in the background.
Two young adults, a man with short light brown hair and a woman with long blonde hair, are sitting at a table working together on a paper or worksheet, in a brightly lit room.