Positive Futures      

Positive Futures is a national sports-based social inclusion programme. It aims to use sport as a catalyst to encourage participants to make decisions for themselves, and to take self-determined steps towards a positive future.
Positive Futures is aimed at marginalised young people from 10-19 years of age. Priority is given to engaging those young people living in deprived neighbourhoods. The project aims to build relationships between responsible adults and young people based on mutual trust an respect, in order to create new opportunities for alternative lifestyles.

Positive Futures involves:

• Outreach and detached work to contact young people at risk of exclusion.
• Coaching skills across a range of sports
• Opportunities to play competitively in newly established or existing sports clubs.
• Education programmes, including those by Sports Leaders UK, National Sports Governing Bodies, Youth Achievement Awards and Open College Network.
• Leadership skills and mentoring programmes. Opportunities for volunteering, casual and part-time work and pathways to full-time employment.

Main Areas of work in Nottingham

• A 1st phase project in Radford/Hyson Green (Area 4), which started in 2000 and is co-ordinated and managed by Crime Concern;
• A new 3rd phase project in Aspley (West Area) started in 2004 and is co-ordinated and managed by Nottingham City Council Sports Development; the project offers a wide range of activities such as football, street-dance, skateboarding, basketball, healthy eating, gardening, swimming and boxing with opportunities in leadership and coaching qualifications. It also looks at the involvement of teams in specific sports.

Achievements to date:

• Aspley Positive Futures Girls Under 14 football team are currently the National Positive Futures Champions
• Football matches organised for the young people to play against the Police
• Football Coaching established through Forest in the Community

Future Activities
The Nottingham projects are working closely together to continually provide opportunities for at risk young people in both the Aspley & Radford/Hyson Green areas. This is being done through individual project specific work but also through a strategic partnership approach as the two projects deliver joint initiatives, these include:

• Plans to host a regional Positive Futures Pool tournament
• The creation of a motorbike project. This will run in partnership with Nottingham Youth Inclusion Project.

Please contact either Dawn Shillingford Joint Positive Futures Manager or Sameer Patel Community Sport & Leisure Manager if you would like to become involved either as a participant or provider.

Contacts
Dawn Shillingford
Joint Positive Futures Manager(Aspley/Radford & Hyson Green)
Tel:0115 9159678
email: dawn.shillingford@crimeconcern.org.uk

Mick Dawber
Aspley Positive Futures Co-ordinator
Tel: 07985 859951

Sameer Patel
Community Sport & Leisure Manager
Tel: 0115 9152742
email: sameer.patel@nottinghamcity.gov.uk

Useful Links
Cross-government drug strategy website
http://www.drugs.gov.uk/NationalStrategy/YoungPeople/PositiveFutures