ABOUT THE CHARITY

What is TJEP?

The Junction Elite Project is charitable incorporated organisation dedicated to providing excellent developmental sporting experiences to all young people, with a particular focus on young people from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds who would not typically be able to afford to take part in such experiences. In addition to this, the charity looks to ensure these young people have effective mentors in place through their sports participation to help reduce the risk of them being involved with or a victim of gang violence and knife crime, for which young people from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds are already at a higher risk of.

 

What are the aims of TJEP?

To provide an excellent, organised, and supportive sporting experience to young people up to the age of 23 without having to charge exorbitant fees that would exclude those from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

To provide sporting mentors for young people up to the age of 23 in an attempt to reduce the risk of them being involved with or a victim of gang violence and knife crime.

To promote the benefits of sports participation on health and wellbeing

 

How was it founded?

In 2018, Junction Elite Football Club was formed. The core philosophy of this club was ‘Football for all’. The club believed that an excellent, organised, and a supportive sporting environment was a developmental experience that all young people should have access to, regardless of their socio-economical backgrounds. To reach this goal, the club would have to raise the money required to run such an organisation, without charging fees that would exclude members. This meant that fundraising was an essential part of the running of the club. As the club has grown rapidly, the efforts of the club alone are becoming insufficient to raise the necessary funds. Therefore, like minded members of the club came together to form The Junction Elite Project and register the charity with the charity commission in 2019. The charity has now merged with the club.

 

Who does TJEP look to help?

The charity looks to help as many young people as possible, but has a particular focus on helping young people from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds. While multiple definitions exist for socio-economic disadvantage, the charity has chosen the adopt the concept of either those from a household with an income below the low-income threshold, or those from a historically disadvantaged or discriminated against background e.g. people of colour. The charity has chosen those up to the age of 23 due the founding members background working in football, as 23 is considered the last age of youth football, as well as still being an age of high risk for the problems the charity is tackling. Whilst we acknowledge that earning a greater income typically allows people access to experiences of higher quality, young people should not be denied an equality of opportunity for developmental experiences due to their financial background, as it is not of their choosing.

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Why is TJEP needed?

The boroughs of Lambeth and Wandsworth that the Charity operates in are home to a large income disparity. Many young people come from households of disadvantaged status. Conversely, there are many young people from high earning backgrounds in the same area. Many of the sporting programmes in the area have been tailored towards this audience, with membership fees completely inaccessible to many. As well as this, in relation to the charity's goal of tackling gang violence and knife crime, these issues are extremely prevalent in the City of London. Finally, the benefits of maintaining health and well-being, as well as the effect it can have on peoples everyday life and success are well documented and always a good cause to promote.

 

What are the targets of TJEP and how does TJEP track success?

Our 3 aims (a) of TJEP are listed below, followed by how we will monitor the success (b) of each one:

1a) To provide an excellent, organised, and supportive sporting experience to young people up to and including the age of 23 without having to charge exorbitant fees that would exclude those from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds.

1b) The details of anyone involved in the activities are recorded, including information regarding their socio-economic statuses. While multiple definitions exist for socio-economic disadvantage, the charity has chosen the adopt the concept of either those from a household with an income below the low-income threshold, or those from a historically disadvantaged or discriminated against background e.g. people of colour. The target will be for 20% of participants from households classified as financially disadvantaged.

2a) To provide sporting mentors for young people up to and including the age of 23 in an attempt to reduce the risk of them being involved with or a victim of gang violence and knife crime.

2b) For the participants identified as socio-economically disadvantaged, the charity will regularly perform a qualitative analysis on the well-being and quality of life using feedback surveys and informal interviews

3a) To promote the benefits of sports participation on health and wellbeing to young people up to and including the age of 23

3b) The coaches hired for the project will be qualified and of sufficient ability to provide activities that improve health and well-being. We aim to provide activities for over 300 young people this year

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