Centre Spot has received a £43,870 grant from money raised by Health Desire through The Health Lottery. The funding will enable Centre Spot to deliver the “Friar Park Sporting Champions” project.

Addressing a lack of community activities for young people in the Friar Park estate in Wednesbury Centre Spot will deliver weekly simultaneous football and dance sessions for 50 young people aged 14-18 from the deprived Friary Park estate with a positive way to spend their free time. Sessions will be led by qualified coaches and instructors who live on the estate alongside experienced Mentors, with local young people who have previously participated in Centre Spot projects supporting as volunteers and peer mentors. Young people attending the dance sessions will work together to create routines that can be performed locally at small scale events whilst football participants will form a fortnightly football league attended by other local young people. Additionally, the groups will work together to create annual award events to recognise their achievements.

Positive outcomes will occur as the Mentors and volunteers use an informal approach to regularly support participants within sessions as well as young people formally completing a ‘Play Maker’ qualification.

Project leader Dane Saunders said: “This grant will help us expand our work in the community and enable us to target young people especially. The young people will have full control of the project and will be heavily involved in its design and delivery”.

For more information about Health Desire contact Info@HealthDesireCIC.org.uk or visit www.healthdesirecic.org.uk

Health Desire is a Community Interest Company committed to raising money to address health inequalities in the West Midlands.

The Health Lottery is operated for and on behalf of 51 Community Interest Companies across England, Scotland, and Wales, all holding society lottery licenses issued by the Gambling Commission: www.healthlottery.co.uk

People’s Health Trust is an independent charity addressing health inequalities across Great Britain. It works closely with each Community Interest Company distributing grants. www.peopleshealthtrust.org.uk

Centre Spot CIC is delighted to be awarded a grant of £45,423 from the BBC Children in Need for its Shoot 4 Boots Soccer Saturday project in Wolverhampton. The project will run over 3 years and help make a difference to the lives of disadvantaged children and young people in the area.

This grant has been made possible thanks to the generosity of the public during which saw £26.7 million raised on appeal night 2012.
Centre Sport CIC is a creative social enterprise that uses Sports and Physical Activity to engage and build capacities of people, particularly young people. Centre Spot seeks to encourage the uptake of physical activity and improve the physical wellbeing of communities.

Centre Spot delivers exciting and engaging projects locally and their success has gained national and international recognition both from Sport Development partners and professional athletes.

Shoot 4 Boots Soccer Saturday will use sport to engage disadvantaged children aged 6-18 years old from the Wolverhampton area in positive, healthy activities with the aim of:

• Engaging disadvantaged children and young people in sport
  • Providing an informal environment allowing disadvantaged young people to develop their personal and sporting skills
  • Increase opportunities for children and young people who have no aspirations for their future & encourage them to take part in activities that have a positive influence on their lives.

Thanks to the support of BBC Children in Need, Shoot 4 Boot Soccer Saturday will run for 38 weeks each year, for three years in line with the Football League season and deliver informal training and competitions for participants aged 6 – 15 years including informal mentoring and signposting to other services.

The project will also deliver volunteering, training and mentoring for 16 – 18-year-olds, with the opportunity to gain entry level coaching certification.
Participants will also have access to free reconditioned football boots through the scheme.

Shoot 4 Boots Soccer Saturday taster sessions will start early in the New Year, dates and times can be found at www.centrespot.org from the January 2014.

Manny Abbeyquaye, Centre Spot Director said, “The investment from BBC Children in Need will ensure that children from one of the most deprived neighbourhoods in Wolverhampton get the opportunity to receive regular high quality coaching, and play football in a safe and fun environment, by training local young volunteers, it is hoped that the project will be sustainable and leave a lasting legacy”

BBC Children in Need funding relies on the energy and commitment of thousands of fundraisers and supporters across the UK, who donate their time and money to support the Appeal. Whether it’s cake sales, dance offs or treasure hunts, every penny of the money raised goes towards supporting projects across the UK.

David Ramsden, Chief Executive of BBC Children in Need, said; ‘We are delighted to be supporting Shoot 4 Boots Soccer which is only possible due to the incredible generosity of our fundraisers across the UK. You really do help us to make a difference to young lives – thank you!”

Centre Spot coaches and volunteers travelled to Ghana to distribute football boots and equipment to over 100 young people from deprived communities in Ghana.

The trip which was made possible through fundraising was part of Centre Spot’s Shoot 4 Boots 4 Africa project. The visit saw Centre Spot coaches providing coaching sessions to young children, as well as a coaching workshops for local coaches.

“This trip has been a real eye opener for me. It has also been the most rewarding bit of coaching I have ever done” – Jonathan Hunter- Barrett, Centre Spot coach.
“It is amazing that these young children have very little, but they just get on with life, and always with a smile. I am really looking forward to coming back again to do some more” – Sinead Scot, Centre Spot coach.

Centre Spot would like to thank all those who helped with fundraising or donated their old football boots, and we look forward to going back to do some more.
Olympic Camp and Gold, Silver and Bronze Project

Tuesday 21st May 2013 saw over 300 pupils from schools all around Sandwell and Birmingham area converge on the astro at Goals Blackheath for the annual Centre Spot Schools Tournament.

This year’s tournament, the fourth following on from last year’s Olympic themed Gold Silver and Bronze Tournament, was themed on the African Cup of Nations and all 16 participating schools received a complimentary Out of Africa Schools Education Pack, a resource that was created by Centre Spot as part of their Heritage Lottery Funded Out of Africa Campaign.

The boys and girls who attended were aged from 7 to 11 and took part in mixed team 5-a-side tournaments against their local counterparts to win trophies. The winning schools were Harper Bell Adventist Birmingham, Oakham Primary Oldbury, Rowley Hall Primary Rowley Regis and St James C of E Oldbury, with St John Bosco RC West Bromwich winning the Fair Play award. The children were supported at the tournament by parents and teachers, and everyone left with a medal, and all schools receiving a certificate of attendance. Everyone is looking forward to next year’s tournament, the theme being Euro’s 2014.