Closed Collective Sports Fund

A new way to foster collaboration between sports leaders

Our sports funding has provided a catalyst for local leaders to enter civil society, especially for young men under 25 from racialised backgrounds, who now make up our second largest group of funded leaders. But these leaders are competing for scarce resources, and inequality in Camden means they are unlikely to develop paid-for models that meet financial costs and stay true to their purpose.  

The Role of Sports in Camden

Camden is a borough characterised by significant social challenges, including the most severe health inequalities in London and a 40% child poverty rate. Our funding of sports initiatives has been aimed at addressing these issues through a comprehensive approach to community wellbeing, encompassing:

  • Promotion of physical fitness and mental health.

  • Support for intervention projects targeting at-risk youth.

  • Contributions to youth centres and mentoring groups utilising sports as a tool.

  • Enhancement of community cohesion.

Promoting Diversity in Leadership

Of the 96 grants we have given to sports projects so far, 70% of them have been led by people from global majority backgrounds, particularly young men. This is particularly significant given the borough’s diversity, with 45.4% of Camden residents being born outside the U.K. Furthermore, with the cost of living crisis having the worst impact on Black and Asian communities, supporting leaders from these backgrounds and also funding sports to improve community well-being and resilience is especially crucial now.

A Challenging Funding Landscape

The cost-of-living crisis, scarcity of affordable sports grounds and pitches, and the lack of long-term unrestricted funding present significant challenges for project leaders in delivering sustainable impact. Additionally, 92% of our citizen grantees lack external funding sources.

We would like to set up a Closed Collective Fund supporting collaboration between different sports leaders, with this paving the way for sharing of l

Through this fund, community leaders will come together to identify priority focus areas and allocate grants across their projects, with Camden Giving facilitating the process and sharing learnings from it across our networks such as London Funders and the Participatory Grant-making Community of Practice.

We are keen to partner with businesses who can support the creation of this Sports Fund through money, resources or time. If that’s you, or you just want to know more, email natasha@camdengiving.org.uk.

“A lot of sports activities can be excessively expensive and unaffordable to some people so with the assistance of grants we will able to offer players free access to sessions which may have previously been impossible.”

— Zamil Ahmed, Camden Community Club