Breathing new life into community boxing facilities

Delivered in partnership with Volunteer It Yourself (VIY), Matchroom Makeover is a unique initiative combining DIY and volunteering to empower young people aged 14-24. This innovative scheme focuses on refurbishing grassroots community boxing clubs across the UK, providing both a physical upgrade to the facilities and valuable vocational training for participants.

Each year, the programme selects four amateur boxing clubs in need of repair and refurbishment. The makeover projects are not only about physical transformation, but also about the personal development of the young volunteers involved. These individuals, often from challenging backgrounds and classified as NEET (Not in Education, Employment, or Training) or at risk of disengagement from mainstream education, are given a chance to learn valuable trade skills.

Participants are mentored by professional tradespeople and work towards gaining Entry Level City & Guilds trade skills accreditations, providing them with practical experience and qualifications that can help them in future employment. The process and progress of both the clubs and the young people are documented, highlighting the positive impact of the programme on the community and the participants’ lives.

Through Matchroom Makeover, young people gain hands-on experience in construction and maintenance, while also contributing to the revitalisation of local boxing clubs, fostering community spirit and providing essential support to grassroots sports.

Volunteer It Yourself (VIY) is a social enterprise launched in 2011. Their primary goal is to help young people aged between 14-24 learn vocational trade skills and help renovate local community premises’. These young volunteers are mentored by local trade professionals and have the opportunity to work towards entry level City & Guilds trade skills accreditations.

VIY’s mission is to combine impact and progression outcomes in three areas:

Youth – Marginalised and disengaged young people better supported to progress towards and into employment, especially within construction.
Community – Vital community places and spaces able to benefit more people and new audiences and become more inclusive, sustainable and financially secure.
Volunteering – More people inspired to volunteer for the first time and/or more often in their communities – with associated health and wellbeing benefits.

To illustrate their impact, the following milestones have been reached since launch:

• 900+ projects completed UK-wide since 2011
• 15,000+ young people aged 14-24 volunteering and benefitting, all NEET or at risk of becoming so
• 7,000+ Entry Level 3 City & Guilds accreditations
• 1,200+ professional tradespeople sharing their skills as trade mentors
• 31% of 16+ NEET learners who participated in a VIY project in 2022-23 have progressed into further education, training or employment within 12 months of their VIY experience

Focusing on boxing related projects, the following outcomes have been achieved between 2021-2023:

• 16 projects renovating 14 boxing clubs or community spaces hosting boxing activity
• 215 young people aged 14-24 volunteering across these projects
• 75% NEET/At Risk
• 35% of those who specified their ethnicity identified as non-white British
• 21% female, 74% male

• To regenerate and enhance vital community boxing facilities
• To enhance boxing participation amongst young people from marginalised backgrounds
• To provide NEET young people with access to work experience and employment opportunities
• To inspire and motivate young people to be the best that they can be

To find out more about Matchroom Makeover, please send an email to community@matchroom.com.