Annual Report Year ending 31 March 2025
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Contents page
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2 Introduction
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4 Who does Sported support?
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6 Why our support matters
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7 Word from the CEO
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8 Word from the Chair
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9 Sported Partnerships
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12 Sported Delivery
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14 Sported Staffing Structure
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15 Volunteer Consultants
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16 Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
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17 Insight
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17 Sported Marketing and Advocacy
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18 Plans for the Future
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19 Sported’s Strategy House
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20 Financial Review
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22 Structure, Governance and Management
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25 Reference and Administration Information
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27 Independent Auditor’s Report to the Members of Sported
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31 Statement of Financial Activities
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32 Balance Sheet
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33 Statement of Cash Flows
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34 Notes to the Financial Statements
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55 Contact
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Introduction: The need to support grassroots sports
Sport is a potent tool to improve lives, connect people and strengthen communities. But grassroots sport remains underfunded and undervalued. And local clubs, and those whom they serve, lack the resources and expertise they need to make the difference.
This is where Sported steps in.
We are the UK’s leading grassroots sports charity and we exist to offer support and funding to these groups, breaking down barriers and ensuring that everyone — regardless of background — can access the life-changing benefits of sport.
Founded in 2008 by Sir Keith Mills as part of the legacy from the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, Sported’s mission was to not only inspire a generation to get active but also use sport as a way to help people overcome personal challenges and reach their full potential.
We now sit at the heart of a network of more than 5,000 extraordinary community groups across the UK, impacting the lives of over a million people each year. Many of them are overlooked by traditional structures for assistance. Yet they make a huge difference within some of our most under-served communities and in areas of deprivation.
Most grassroots sport is run entirely by volunteers. Brilliant at delivering activities and mentoring, they often lack expertise and capacity in the ‘behind the scenes’ management and administration that keeps the doors open.
Providing the support they need is central to what we do on a daily basis: reinforcing their efforts through our regional teams and central staff, as well as our skilled volunteer consultants. We provide professional expertise in areas such as governance, fundraising, finance, HR and marketing, plus training through webinars and events. Much of this is underpinned by funders, including Sport England and Sport Wales, and our corporate partners. We ensure that support gets to where it’s needed most.
And by increasing the proficiency, effectiveness, and viability of these amazing community organisations, we are able to create a ripple effect across the whole country.
We enable them to plan a long-term future of delivering positivity and change within our communities. In the last 12 months, 1,484 community groups in our network have directly benefitted from assistance from our team, in addition to the information and training they receive.
In addition to our core and long-standing role providing support, Sported has now become a significant grant distributor within the grassroots sport sector, allocating more than £10 million in funding since our inception. In the past year alone, we have distributed £1.85 million in grants, helping clubs and community groups remain sustainable and expand their reach.
Commitment to equity
We are dedicated to advancing equity in sport, with a focus on race, disability, gender, and socioeconomic status.
Our unique model combines national reach with deep local engagement, making us a trusted partner and a vital resource for community organisations. Through our work, we are able to create lasting social benefits, improving health, well-being, and community cohesion across the UK.
In short, Sported is transforming lives, one person and one community at a time, by making grassroots sport more accessible, sustainable, and impactful.
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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We support around
5,000 community groups across the UK.
We’ve distributed over £10 million since we began
and distributed
£1.85 million to our groups in the last 12 months
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Who does Sported support?
The groups we work with make huge impacts and are adept at reaching the supposedly “hard to reach”. However they can’t always access traditional pots of support due to the capacity of those at the helm or because they sit outside the traditional sporting ecosystem.
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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A need that remains greater than ever
Our evaluation and insight demonstrate Sported’s unique and valuable impact:
Almost 90% of groups we have supported tell us Sported has made a positive difference to their group . (up from 78% in 2024)
Over half (57%) say our support has increased their skills and knowledge (unchanged since 2024)
87% of organisations say our support is relevant to them , 79% say we understand their needs (up from 71%), 87% describe us as a trusted partner (up from 81%)
Knight Frank staff volunteer through the Limitless programme
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more than
Why our 82%
25%
support
matters of the groups we support of leaders say funding is
aren’t confident their their main priority for the
group will exist in three next six months.
years’ time.
Financial
hardship 55% 85%
is the most
reported
challenge for say young people of groups say there isn’t
young people reduce participation enough government
in sport and physical investment into grassroots
activity because they sport to back its impact at
can’t afford it community level
18% 31% 48%
said young people in said their group’s activities of respondents told
their communities face were impacted by climate us that the availability
inequitable access to change in the past of facilities is a
opportunities/activities. six months significant issue
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(Data from Sported/Ring Pulse)
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Word from the CEO ~~a~~
Trust is a major focus for all of us at Sported. Earning it from the community groups who we support in every part of the UK. Retaining it amid the valued partners who align with us to create meaningful and lasting change in our neighbourhoods and towns. Growing it from those in government at local and national level. While also advocating for the impacts that sport and physical activity can deliver. As well as nurturing it among our staff, to be valued teammates with shared values and goals.
That trust underpins our delivery as a charity. And while we hold ourselves accountable as an organisation in wisely using our time and resources and investment, we have also been bold in asking ourselves fundamental questions over how we add value and truly meet the needs of those we wish to serve.
It’s a customer-led approach. Not always a term that sits comfortably in the charity world but we have challenged ourselves to review what creates the greatest impact, how we provide that, who is out there needing our help, and where we need to position our resources. From that, we have a better understanding of the environment in which Sported sits and how our team can fulfil our ambition to transform lives as we implement a new four-year strategy from 2025 onwards.
But we can justifiably reflect on our previous successes, and how we have made further strides in widening our net. The Barclays Community Football Fund has grown into something more than just football – with real social reach. Our work with Sport England, and with other bodies across the country, underlines why investing in sport for development breeds social growth in tandem with physical health. I’m especially proud of how our collaboration with London Marathon Foundation on a Solidarity Fund got vital funds to those affected by last summer’s riots in a speedy and efficient way.
They, and other brilliant partners, enabled us to distribute over £1.85m in grants over the last 12 months. Throw in the countless ways our staff and volunteer consultants provide assistance and guidance every day. None of that happens without trust. We don’t take it for granted. In continuing to take a lead role in shouting the merits of grassroots sport, Sported’s pledge – just as it was when it was founded – is to ensure that every community has equal access to its life-changing benefits and no-one is left on the sidelines, missing out.
Sarah Kaye, CEO
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Word from the Chair
The clubs which Sported helps are a unique resource in our communities. Tireless volunteers bring them to life. Safe places to be active and have fun, dressing rooms cleaned, kit bought, and distributed, young people inspired and supported.
Every time any of us steps inside this extraordinary world, you see the results, measured often in smiles, joy and personal comfort.
As Trustees, our role is ensuring that Sported is able to spread that happiness but also protect it. We see the challenges faced within our communities, particularly for our next generation: crime and gangs encroach; mental health pressures from social media and elsewhere; cost pressures and capacity around facilities in both public and private spheres; and the availability of time, a precious commodity which is constantly squeezed.
We recognise how valuable sport is in addressing those challenges but also how sport faces challenges of its own. Our mission is to understand where we can best help and to be there with assistance when it is required.
We can’t do that alone. I’m very grateful to those who have invested in the power of sport by working with us, with the likes of Sport England, Sport Wales, Barclays, Cash4Clubs, Vodafone, Knight Frank and People’s Postcode Lottery growing our reach.
They join Garfield Weston, Moondance and Westminster Foundation in expanding our involvement across all four nations of the UK. A big thank you also to Baillie Gifford, our longest-standing partner, for almost a decade of support.
It was terrific to see Sported shortlisted as Charity of the Year for the first time at the Third Sector Awards in 2024. However, we will not stand still in improving and growing what we can offer. 2025 will bring a new strategy and a refresh that will reinforce the charity’s commitment to inclusion and our mission to empower individuals, clubs and communities.
In showcasing some of our work in this Annual Report, we can reflect on 12 months where we have made a real difference and met challenges head on, so that these unique pockets of hope near us all get a deserved assist.
Simon Cummins, Chair
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Sported Partnerships
We could not do what we do without the incredible support of our partners who truly believe in our work and mission. Funding from our corporate and statutory partners, trusts and foundations, is vital in enabling us to deliver on our charitable objectives, creating real impact and making a lasting difference in young people’s lives.
Leveraging investment for the sector - through our collaborations with Barclays, Ring, Knight Frank, the Cash4Clubs programme, P&G and Sudu - we have injected an additional £1.5m into the sector through these corporate partnerships over the last 12 months (see below).
Collaboration is at the heart of everything we do. We build partnerships that add real value — working together to create programmes that are innovative, meaningful, and driven by shared goals. Through our programmes, we build tailored solutions and focus our efforts where they will have the greatest impact. We are proud of our ability to get close to the communities we serve and understand what young people need at a local level, staying flexible and responsive to changing needs to deliver long-term partnerships that profoundly change lives.
This year, we have collaborated with a range of partners – each playing a vital role in supporting the work that we do as well as driving investment into the sector. Sported provide expert project management support, leveraging our experience, knowledge, and skills to help develop our partners’ ambitions. We continue to explore new partnerships, aiming to develop meaningful, long-term relationships with organisations that share our values and ambitions to change young people’s lives through sport.
Barclays Community Football Fund
The Barclays Community Football Fund expanded its reach and impact across diverse community groups, working side by side with Barclays’ team to deliver targeted support where it is most needed, adapting its delivery model in innovative ways.
Its success in amplifying football activities – and its momentous impact on community groups and young people - saw the Fund recognised at both the Sports Industry Awards and the Third Sector Awards.
Across the three-year programme from 2022-2024, we:
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Æ Provided over £3 million in funding, supporting over 3,500 community groups delivering football.
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Æ Reached over 550,000 young people, with over 30,000 new young people from under-represented groups now playing football.
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Æ Delivered two innovative Participatory Grant Making programmes focusing on engaging and supporting Black and South-Asian led community groups and young people by empowering local decision-makers in Birmingham and Manchester.
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Æ Addressed a capacity deficit through the Female Coaches for Girls programme, upskilling 664 new female coaches across the UK.
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London Marathon Foundation Community Solidarity Fund
London Marathon Foundation and Sported created an emergency fund to deliver targeted support to sports clubs and groups who were financially or logistically impacted by the riots and violence within the UK in August 2024.
The Community Solidarity Fund assisted and strengthened organisations providing sporting and physical activity to Black, Brown, Muslim and other communities affected, enabling them to continue to provide vibrant local spaces where people will be active and feel safe. This included groups working with:
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Æ Refugees, migrants and asylum seekers
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Æ Racially diverse communities
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Æ Other communities facing hate
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Æ Those uniting their wider communities
Funds were awarded based on immediate need and fast, trust-based giving was enabled through existing relationships and referrals to trusted organisations. 120 groups were each awarded a £2,000 grant, efficiently distributed within a nine-week spell.
Sport England
Our strong and trusted relationship with Sport England ensures Sported’s mission is closely aligned with their Uniting the Movement strategy and Theory of Change – and this will continue within our new strategy.
Supporting Sport England’s ambition to create an active society while ensuring under-represented groups are not excluded from physical activity, our links with their other System Partners, such as Active Partnerships and National Governing Bodies, allow us to share programmes, insight and resources with the wider sector.
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A huge thank you to all our funders and partners
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Sported Delivery
Over the past year, Sported’s delivery team across all the regions of the UK has been core to our ability to strengthen community sport through offering hands-on advice and guidance, in addition to ensure our grant and support programmes benefit those who need them most.
We want to support communities to create positive change by connecting people and organisations to work together in a place or on a topic, empowering them to deliver plans designed by the community, for the community.
Our work demonstrates how Sported unlocks local expertise, cross-sector collaboration, and embeds community support.
Connected Communities
We are rolling our Connected Communities model out across the country, taking a positive lead in engineering collaborations among organisations with grassroots sport as the conduit. Some focus on a specific location, others by a theme or a demographic such as community safety or disability.
Isle of Wight
We have catalysed a steering group of key stakeholders on the island, including the High Sheriff and senior figures from Children’s Services, Public Health, Local Authority, and governing body representatives. This addresses priority issues flagged during our Connected Communities project there: a lack of adequate sports facilities on the island.
Hartlepool
In tandem with a local partner, we helped to secure funding to employ a dedicated staff member to maintain the network, support local groups, and engage with the Local Authority and others to create system change, increasing special educational needs provision in schools and the wider community.
Rhyl
In partnership with Sported member group Brighter Futures and funder Building Communities Trust we have employed a network co-ordinator based in Rhyl. The network co-ordinator has provided local support for the community network and brought the community together to collaborate on local provision.
Westminster Foundation Rural Communities Project
Following a successful pilot, the Westminster Foundation agreed a five-year partnership which allows us to tackle rural social issues and support deprived communities in targeted areas within Lancashire and Sutherland. Locally-based coordinators are providing targeted one-to-one support while facilitating online and in-person networking to strengthen local connections. The project will invest over £600,000 in funding, resources, and expertise, constructing local hubs which drive positive change through sport and physical activities.
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England
Delivery capacity was significantly enhanced with new Regional Development Officers across four key regions of England. This contributed to 432 new groups joining the network, 1,484 receiving support, and 518 one-to-one interventions delivered. Standout projects included the Go! London capacity-building programme and the West Midland Combined Authority’s triage and evaluation pilots aimed at injecting expertise into local organisations. Plus tailored support and mentoring for disability sport groups in Tyne & Wear through the Nissan Possibilities Project and targeted place-based work backed and funded by Manchester City Council.
Northern Ireland
Supported by Garfield Weston, Sported has been able to engineer a concentrated recruitment drive among rural groups in the western part of the province, while delivering solutions which address local need. Engagement with government departments and Sport NI ensured our insight influenced policy. Our long-standing partnership with Ulster University’s Science Shop matched 16 student placements with local clubs, supporting real-world development plans.
Scotland
Sported in Scotland deepened its impact through place-based initiatives and strategic funding. An intelligence-gathering spell within the Highlands built momentum for our new Westminster Foundation project. 37 groups joined our network via the Garfield Weston Foundation-funded programme in the Borders. And a marketing campaign to boost recruitment saw us significantly increase our network in Scotland, supplemented by a Young Influencers initiative.
£100,000 in People’s Postcode Lottery funding supported diverse local projects, including Ride in Peace Adventures, which enabled mountain biking for 16 underserved young people. Across the country, 86 Meet & Greet events, 10 networking sessions, and 38 bespoke funding reports empowered local clubs with personalised support. Volunteer Consultants delivered over 40 placements, helping build sustainability and resilience across Scotland’s community sports sector.
A new small grants programme, launched in memory of Major Kevin McCool, has been established to boost cross-community activity in Mid Ulster. These efforts, grounded in local delivery and collaboration, continue to connect, equip, and amplify the region’s most under-served community groups.
Wales
Sported in Wales deepened its role within the wider community sport sector in addition to distributing funding and providing access to specialist assistance. The Wales Council for Voluntary Action engaged us to deliver a Strategic Volunteering Project which aims to address volunteering deficits and strengthen leadership across all sports. While place-based and inclusion projects in North Wales tackle local challenges and promoted diversity.
With vital backing from the Moondance Foundation, core programmes continued to thrive in disadvantaged areas. Over 400 volunteer consultant hours supported 30+ interventions, and more than £200,000 in funding was successfully leveraged into community groups—fuelling growth, inclusivity, and long-term impact across the nation.
Sported priority groups across the UK
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Sported Staffing and Structure
In 2024-25, Sported was underpinned by a team of 52 employees working around the UK.
The CEO is supported with a leadership team of 5 – CFO, Head of Marketing and Comms, Head of Operations, Head of Development and Strategy, and Head of Partnerships.
Our delivery team of 34 are based across all regions and nations of the country, giving us breadth and depth in our reach, but also enabling us to take a hyper local approach. Having team members based in the regions is fundamental to understanding the need at local level and ensuring that we are providing relevant solutions and support that are tailored to those needs.
Our other teams cover Network Services, Volunteer Services, Fundraising and Partnerships, Insight, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion, and Finance.
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Volunteer Consultants
A key component of our support comes from our network of Volunteer Consultants who provide professional and other expertise - at no cost – to organisations to address challenges or assist with specific projects.
Geographically dispersed across the country, this 222-strong cohort generated 2,400 hours of help in 2024-25 – a measured value of £0.3 million in economic benefit. In reality, many extra hours are given by these volunteers in the cause of making a difference and upgrading the ability of groups to deliver for their communities.
222 Volunteer Consultants generated 2,400 hours of help - a measured value of £0.3 million in economic benefit
Sported Volunteer Consultant locations in the UK
Areas of experience the Volunteer Consultants bring
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65% 52%
Planning Project planning
(Strategic/Business)
cA208 =Y
25% 23%
Volunteer and staff Governance
management
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33% 28% 26%
Financial
Evaluation & impact Marketing
management
+o
22% 20% 17%
Income Leadership Writing funding
generation coaching bids
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Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Sported’s commitment to reaching all parts of our society has resulted in our organisational Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan, putting it at the heart of our daily activity and annual planning.
Æ 100% of line managers have been trained as Mental Health First Aiders
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Æ Enhanced data capture within our recruitment process means we are ensuring our workforce is representative of the communities we service. We have raised representation from ethnic minorities amid our paid workforce, volunteers, and board from 14% to 18%, 15% to 22%, and 20% to 33% respectively.
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Æ 71% of the grants we have made from the Barclays Community Football Fund reached ethnically diverse young people.
Our colleagues, trustees, volunteer consultants, network, partners and funders have been instrumental in contributing to this work – in conjunction with the transformational funding awarded by Sport England, Barclays, London Marathon Foundation, National Lottery Community Fund, Actif North Wales and Nissan. Together, we make grassroots sport more inclusive and accessible to ensure more people benefit from its life-changing benefits.
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Insight
Sported’s insight, evaluation and learning continues to improve our own services and assistance, as well as allowing us to influence policy and system change across the UK.
The Sported Pulse survey, currently produced with support from Ring, is a sector-leading bi-annual research report into the community sport sector, surveying those groups and organisations involved. It explores their needs, challenges and sustainability, highlighting the issues they face and informing decisions by ensuring their voices are heard. During 2025, that research gave a voice to more than 1,200 community groups, representing the needs of more than 100,000 young people and others.
We also shared the findings from the first stage of our project with the Wales Strategic Volunteering Project, funded by Wales Council for Voluntary Action (WCVA). Our collaborative research considered:
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Æ The barriers and challenges facing volunteers, or those looking to volunteer, in these roles.
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Æ The routes into and facilitating factors for recruitment and retention in these roles.
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Æ Current good practice for encouraging and supporting volunteering at this level.
You can find all our Insight and Learning reports at sported.org.uk
Sported Marketing and Advocacy
Ensuring that Sported’s impact – and that of community sport as a whole - is explained, and our packages of help easily understood, has been central to our marketing activity. We want to engage with those we can support -and understand their needs. And we need to showcase just why grassroots groups are a great investment to the outside world and be unafraid in shouting about it.
That is why we have been creative in producing more films and social media clips that really explain the immense impact of those we serve, using that as a tool to advocate on their behalf. Better to show, than tell. And it has allowed us to build our library of stories which can sum up the benefits of Sported’s work in a way a Powerpoint never can.
But we continue to try and be smarter in reaching and resonating with our different audiences: improving our digital offer, including an AI chatbot, building a knowledge library that is now accessible to all, and running focus groups across the country to listen and learn.
We also grow our reach, through engaging with media – with over 100 pieces of coverage over the year – and in our advocacy work that brought numerous useful conversations with Parliamentarians in Westminster and devolved administrations, including English regional authorities. Through that, and our insight, we can retain our role in giving a strong voice to those we serve and highlight where more help might come.
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Plans for the Future
Our New Strategy: Transforming Lives & Strengthening Communities
To ensure we deliver for our communities, our sector, and partners, Sported undertook a robust strategy review that challenged the very purpose and approach of the charity and what we do.
During the process, we consulted with our network of supported groups, partners and stakeholders, staff, trustees and volunteers. It has ensured that our approach - and what we offer - continues to meet the current and emerging needs faced by our sports groups across the UK.
We have emerged with a refined strategy that recognises Sported’s role in transforming lives and strengthening communities.
During the 2024-25 year, we migrated our data into a new Customer Relationship Management system, Beacon, following a process of due diligence centred on how we can best serve our groups and gain useful insights into our impact. The costs of this are shown in intangible assets. The system was implemented in April 2025 and records network and volunteer consultant data. It also tracks our work by region and nation as well as underpinning our grant processing.
Over the next four years, we will work diligently across the UK to deliver on our defined mission: to ensure , every community has access to the life-changing benefits of sport our mission is achieved by delivering vital support to the local heroes who make it all possible.
We know that there are constant challenges on the ground. However, Sported’s unique position, the trust we have earned, and our relationships, gives us confidence that - together with the UK’s largest network of community sports groups - we will unleash the power of grassroots sport to achieve our shared goals:
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1 To ensure opportunities
for everyone
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To achieve this, we intend to broaden our focus beyond young people with support for groups in their work across all ages. And we will move away from an exclusive membership model to a simpler approach in which we assess need and provide solutions while continuing to prioritise based on social impact.
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2
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To improve health
and wellbeing
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3
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To empower communities
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Sported strategy house
Our new strategy house provides a visual representation of our purpose, mission and goals, underpinned by our organisational values.
England international footballer Eric Dier is one of Sported’s Ambassadors
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Financial Review
In the year ended 31 March 2025, income was £4,426k compared with £3,929k in the year to 31 March 2024. However, these figures are significantly affected by £1,620k (2024: £1,306k) of income received for grant making programmes, shown separately in the Statement of Financial Activities (SOFA). The income generated net of grant monies was £2,806k (2024: £2,623k).
Expenditure for the year was £4,539k (2024: £4,143k), again increased by grants paid out of £1,848k (2024: £1,628k), as shown in the SOFA. Expenditure net of grants was £2,691k (2024: £2,515k).
The net result overall was a deficit of £113k compared to a deficit of £215k in 2024 with the unrestricted reserve showing a deficit of £67k (2024: surplus of £13k).
As at 31 March 2025, the unrestricted fund was £480k (2024: £547k), the restricted fund was £527k (£573k) and net assets were £1,006k (2024: £1,120k).
Free reserves were £402k, 3 weeks below the Board’s reserve policy of 13 weeks of non-project related expenditure which equated to £523k for the year.
The charity will work to build the reserve to the reserve policy level and the 2025-26 budget shows a surplus. We will continue to balance controlling costs and ensure that there are resources in place so that plans are supported.
The balance sheet continues to show a large net asset position and cash flow projections remain healthy. In particular, projections show a positive balance for at least a year, when only contracted income is projected alongside budgeted expenditure.
Sported continues its aim to build on a base of contracted revenue as well as a strong pipeline of funds. We will continue to focus on cementing relationships with existing and new funding partners, with multiyear contracts that support our strategic objectives.
Principal risks and uncertainties
The Strategic Leadership Team and the Finance and Audit Committee of the board undertake a formal review of risk management quarterly. Risks are identified, assessed and mitigation strategies put in place to minimise the impact.
At the beginning of 2024-25, the key risks continued to be that the unrestricted reserves balance did not continue to be in line with the reserves policy and income generation did not meet the required budget and cover operating costs. Both these were mitigated by the partnerships and long-term funding secured in the year, although both were still the key risks at the end of the year.
Going concern
The trustees have considered plans for the 12 months from the date of this report and these show that even if no non-contracted income is received, the charity will remain cash positive and have adequate resources to continue operations. As ever, costs are tightly controlled to mitigate risk.
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Reserves policy
The charity’s reserves policy is to have sufficient unrestricted reserves to cover 13 weeks of non-project related expenditure on an ongoing basis.
This level of reserves has been set to enable sufficient time to secure new income sources should any be lost, and to ensure that major costs are covered in any period of funding hiatus. The unrestricted reserve on 31 March 2025 did not meet the policy above with reserves sufficient to fund 10 weeks of non-project related expenditure. Going forward, the focus is to ensure that this reserve is rebuilt to, at or above the
reserves policy level to ensure that there are sufficient funds for the charity to proceed with its plans. Careful cost allocation and agreements with funders that core costs will be covered will contribute to this aim as well as a continued drive to increase unrestricted income generation.
The Finance and Audit Committee (FAC) receive quarterly reports of reserves and finance, including the cash and reserves position, and the finance reports are a standing item on the agenda at the quarterly board meetings. Additionally, there are other more regular FAC calls to review cash flow and reserves.
Fundraising
We have used a small number of third-party organisations, professional fundraisers and commercial participants to fundraise for us this year and use consultants to assist in bid writing. We comply with relevant fundraising regulations and guidance and have had no instances of non-compliance over the year. No complaints have been received in 2024-25.
We would not ordinarily come across vulnerable individuals through our fundraising streams. Staff adhere to the Fundraising Regulator’s Code of Fundraising Practice and can provide support to anyone as required.
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Structure, Governance and Management
Governing document
The charity is a charitable company limited by guarantee, incorporated on 20 March 2008 and registered as a charity with the Charity Commission on 25 March 2008 and the Office of the Scottish Charity Regulator on 17 May 2012.
The company was established under a Memorandum of Association that established the objects and powers of the charitable company and it is governed under its articles of association.
A review of the governing document was undertaken during 2022-23 to bring it in line with appropriate language and to update the Objects slightly. The Objects changes were approved by the Charity Commission on 14 September 2022 and updated Articles of Association were filed at Companies House and the Charity Commission in March 2023.
Trustees
The trustees are the directors of the charitable company. New trustees are appointed according to the charity’s governing document and to meet specified capability requirements. The appointments are overseen by the Nominations and Governance Committee.
New trustees go through a formal induction process and are encouraged to meet the charity’s beneficiaries.
All trustees give their time voluntarily and receive no benefits from the charity. No trustees claimed expenses from the charity in 2025 (2024: £nil). A chief executive officer is appointed by the trustees to manage the day-to-day operations of the charity.
The trustees review the aims, strategic objectives and activities of the charity each year and approve all decisions relating to strategy and budget.
Associate Trustee
The Board have developed an apprenticeship scheme by the establishment of an Associate Trustee role. This post is a means to recognise the barriers present in enabling individuals from certain backgrounds access to board positions. No previous Board or senior management experience was required for this role.
This is a role with a 2-year term which seeks to provide the Associate Trustee with the opportunity to learn more about how a Charity board works, gain experience which they can use to build on in future roles and also seeks to bring a different perspective and experience to the Board.
Board sub-committees
The following sub-committees operate separately within the abbreviated Terms of Reference below and report into the Board.
Finance and Audit Committee
Ensuring the adequacy of financial and risk management and internal control arrangements and that the charity’s funds are used efficiently and effectively
Development Committee
Assisting the Board in meeting its responsibilities for ensuring that Sported’s income generation is fit for purpose, both in terms of raising the funds required to sustain and grow the charity’s work whilst also complying with all legal and good practices associated with charity fundraising
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Nominations and Governance Committee
Assisting the board in meeting its responsibilities for ensuring that the Board: Retains an appropriate balance of skills to support the strategic objectives of the charity, has a formal rigorous and transparent approach to the appointment of Directors and maintains an effective framework for succession planning; Has effective governance through the development and review of governance policies and procedures, providing induction and training programs for Board members and regularly reviewing the performance of the Board as a whole and evaluating the contribution of individual members.
Board diversity
The latest Diversity and Inclusion Action Plan (DIAP) has set a target of 30% of the Board composition (Trustees and Associate Trustees) to be from ethnically diverse communities by April 2025. At the year end this stood at 27% and at the end of April 38%. Courtenay Escorcio is the Trustee lead on the DIAP.
Board evaluation and governance
The board carries out an annual evaluation and skills audit to ensure that it has the requisite mix of skills. The charity is compliant with Sport England’s Tier 3 governance requirements.
In the 2023-24 year, work was completed on Level 1 of the Trusted Charity Standard through NCVO and we are now certified until April 2026. Additionally, Sport England confirmed that this review satisfies the criteria for an external Board evaluation.
Reporting
The Trustees receive quarterly reports before the Board meetings on activities, which include financial reports, progress against the strategic objectives, key performance indicators, feedback from our members and suggestions for the future.
Public benefit
The trustees have referred to the guidance contained in the Charity Commission’s general guidance on public benefit when reviewing the charity’s aims and objectives and in planning its future activities. In particular, the Trustees consider how planned activities will contribute to the aims and objectives that have been set. More detail is shown in the activities section of the annual report.
Remuneration policy
The strategic leadership team reviews the staffing structure annually to ensure salaries are fair and reasonable, taking into account both internal comparability of responsibilities and external market factors.
The Chief Executive Officer approves any proposed revisions to salary grades, and the Chief Executive Officer’s remuneration is agreed by the Trustees. In advance of each financial year, the strategic leadership team recommend to the trustees the level of inflationary uplift to be applied to salaries, in a way which seeks to balance the need to reward and retain staff and the affordability of any pay awards.
Environmental policy
As an organisation whose social outcomes align closely with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), we recognise we could be doing more against the environmentally-focused SDGs both as an organisation and for our network.
Recognising Sported’s members are most impacted by climate change and less able to adapt to its consequences, we are committed to understanding how our groups are affected and what sectoral support is needed to ensure everyone has access to the life-changing benefits of sport.
Our work in this area, will be guided by the United Nations Sports for Climate Action Framework’s five principles:
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Undertake systematic efforts to promote greater environmental responsibility across the sports sector
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Reduce overall climate impact through the collective efforts of Sported and the community groups in our network
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Educate for climate action by sharing learning and best practice across the sports sector and others
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Promote sustainable and responsible consumption both internally and to our network
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Advocate for climate action through communication internally and to our network and partners
Sported has partnered with Greenly to calculate our annual carbon footprint, covering scopes 1, 2 and 3. With the support of an environmental expert, we will create an action plan to reduce our carbon footprint each year, with a view to reach net zero by 2050. The reduction target for 2024-25 was 2% and the actual result currently being calculated. Staff and volunteers will actively contribute to the reporting and undertake training.
The world’s understanding of climate change and environmental sustainability is evolving at pace. We commit to a regular review of good practice, aligning our ambitions with our resources and ensuring a practical and inclusive approach to reducing our carbon footprint and contributing to a healthier society and planet.
Subsidiary companies
Sported Foundation has two wholly owned subsidiaries, Sported Trading Limited and Sported Limited, incorporated in England and Wales (company numbers 08623400 and 12921825 respectively). The trustees of Sported Foundation do not consider the results of the companies to be material to the charity and so have decided not to produce consolidated accounts.
Our Charitable Objects
To advance the opportunities of children and young people through participation in sport to help enable them to develop their full capacities.
To provide and assist in providing facilities for sport, recreation or other leisure time occupation of such persons who have need for such facilities by reason of their youth, age, infirmity or disablement, poverty, ethnicity, sexual orientation or social and economic circumstances (in particular children and young people) or for the benefit of the public at large in the interests of social welfare and with the object of improving their conditions of life.
To promote the health of the public (especially young people), in particular through the provision of sports facilities and sports coaching.
To promote community participation in healthy recreation by providing facilities for the playing of sports capable of improving health.
Such other exclusively charitable purposes as the trustees shall in their absolute discretion decide.
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Reference and Administrative Information
Company name
Sported Foundation [known as ‘Sported’]
Company number
06541137
Charity number 1123313 | SCO43161
Registered office Level 4, House of Sport, 190 Great Dover Street, London. SE1 4YB
Country of registration
England and Wales
Country of incorporation
United Kingdom
Patron
Sir Keith Mills
Trustees
Trustees, who are also directors under company law, who served during the year and up to the date of this report were as follows: Simon Cummins Karen Buchanan Jill Douglas (appointed 24 March 2025) Louise Dier Jeffrey Eneberi (appointed 25 April 2025) Roger Gochin Mickela Hall-Ramsay (appointed 25 April 2025) James Miller Rebecca Mills Priya Nair Carnegie Smyth (resigned 23 July 2024) Martin Stewart Kilian Toms Trevor Watkins (resigned 30 January 2025)
Associate Trustee
Courtenay Escorcio
Key management personnel
Sarah Kaye, Chief Executive Officer Debbie Salman, Chief Finance Officer Mark Woods, Head of Marketing and Communications Nathan Persaud, Head of Operations (appointed September 2024) Matt York, Head and Strategy and Development (appointed September 2024) Joanna Di Paola, Head of Partnerships (joined SLT February 2025) Toyin Higgs, Head of Inclusion and People (left October 2024) Emma Heel, Head of Insight and Strategy (left September 2024) Tom Burstow, Deputy Chief Executive Officer (left May 2024) Chris Sawyer, Head of Delivery (left April 2024)
Bankers
HSBC Bank plc 1-3 Bishopsgate, London. EC2N 3AQ
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Solicitors
Pinsent Masons LLP 30 Crown Place, Earl Street, London. EC2A 4ES Onside Law (pro-bono contract support) 642A Kings Road, London. SW6 2DU
Auditor
Sayer Vincent LLP 110 Golden Lane, London. EC1Y 0TG
Statement of the Responsibilities of the Trustees
The Trustees (who are also directors of Sported Foundation for the purposes of company law) are responsible for preparing the Trustees’ annual report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Company law requires the Trustees to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the charitable company and of the incoming resources and application of resources, including the income and expenditure, of the charitable company for that period. In preparing these financial statements, the trustees are required to:
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Select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently.
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Make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent.
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State whether applicable UK Accounting Standards and statements of recommended practice have been followed, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements.
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Prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the charity will continue in operation.
The Trustees are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the charitable company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the charitable company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.
In so far as the trustees are aware there is no relevant audit information of which the charitable company’s auditor is unaware.
The trustees have taken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the auditor is aware of that information.
The trustees are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the charitable company’s website.
Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.
Members of the charity guarantee to contribute an amount not exceeding £1 to the assets of the charity in the event of winding up. The total number of such guarantees at 31 March 2025 was 12 (2024: 11). The trustees are members of the charity but this entitles them only to voting rights. The trustees have no beneficial interest in the charity.
Auditor
Sayer Vincent LLP were appointed as the charitable company’s auditor in 2016.
The Trustees’ annual report has been approved by the trustees on 16 July 2025 and signed on their behalf by:
Simon Cummins
Position: Chair
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Independent Auditor’s Report to the Members of Sported
Opinion
We have audited the financial statements of Sported Foundation (the ‘charitable company’) for the year ended 31 March 2025 which comprise the statement of financial activities, balance sheet, statement of cash flows and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including FRS 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
In our opinion, the financial statements:
-
Give a true and fair view of the state of the charitable company’s affairs as at 31 March 2025 and of its incoming resources and application of resources, including its income and expenditure, for the year then ended
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Have been properly prepared in accordance with United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice
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Have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and regulation 8 of the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended)
Basis for opinion
We conducted our audit in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK) (ISAs (UK)) and applicable law. Our responsibilities under those standards are further described in the Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements section of our report. We are independent of the charitable company in accordance with the ethical requirements that are relevant to our audit of the financial statements in the UK, including the FRC’s Ethical Standard and we have fulfilled our other ethical responsibilities in accordance with these requirements. We believe that the audit evidence we have obtained is sufficient and appropriate to provide a basis for our opinion.
Conclusions relating to going concern
In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the trustees’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate.
Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on Sported Foundation’s ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.
Our responsibilities and the responsibilities of the trustees with respect to going concern are described in the relevant sections of this report.
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Other Information
The other information comprises the information included in the trustees’ annual report other than the financial statements and our auditor’s report thereon. The trustees are responsible for the other information contained within the annual report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover the other information and, except to the extent otherwise explicitly stated in our report, we do not express any form of assurance conclusion thereon. Our responsibility is to read the other information and, in doing so, consider whether the other information is materially inconsistent with the financial statements or our knowledge obtained in the course of the audit, or otherwise appears to be materially misstated. If we identify such material inconsistencies or apparent material misstatements, we are required to determine whether this gives rise to a material misstatement in the financial statements themselves. If, based on the work we have performed, we conclude that there is a material misstatement of this other information, we are required to report that fact.
We have nothing to report in this regard.
Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006
In our opinion, based on the work undertaken in the course of the audit:
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The information given in the trustees’ annual report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements; and
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The trustees’ annual report has been prepared in accordance with applicable legal requirements
Matters on which we are required to report by exception
In the light of the knowledge and understanding of the charitable company and its environment obtained in the course of the audit, we have not identified material misstatements in the trustees’ annual report.
We have nothing to report in respect of the following matters in relation to which the Companies Act 2006 and the Charities Accounts (Scotland) Regulations 2006 (as amended) require us to report to you if, in our opinion:
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Adequate accounting records have not been kept, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or
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The financial statements are not in agreement with the accounting records and
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returns; or
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Certain disclosures of trustees’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or
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We have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit; or
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The directors were not entitled to prepare the financial statements in accordance with the small companies regime and take advantage of the small companies’ exemptions in preparing the trustees’ annual report and from the requirement to prepare a strategic report.
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Responsibilities of trustees
As explained more fully in the statement of trustees’ responsibilities set out in the trustees’ annual report, the trustees (who are also the directors of the charitable company for the purposes of company law) are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the trustees determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error.
In preparing the financial statements, the trustees are responsible for assessing the charitable company’s ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the trustees either intend to liquidate the charitable company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
Auditor’s responsibilities for the audit of the financial statements
We have been appointed as auditor under section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 and under the Companies Act 2006 and report in accordance with regulations made under those Acts.
Our objectives are to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error, and to issue an auditor’s report that includes our opinion. Reasonable assurance is a high level of assurance, but is not a guarantee that an audit conducted in accordance with ISAs (UK) will always detect a material misstatement when it exists. Misstatements can arise from fraud or error and are considered material if, individually or in the aggregate, they could reasonably be expected to influence the economic decisions of users taken on the basis of these financial statements.
Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. We design procedures in line with our responsibilities, outlined above, to detect material misstatements in respect of irregularities, including fraud. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud are set out below.
Capability of the audit in detecting irregularities
In identifying and assessing risks of material misstatement in respect of irregularities, including fraud and non-compliance with laws and regulations, our procedures included the following:
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We enquired of management, which included obtaining and reviewing supporting documentation, concerning the charity’s policies and procedures relating to:
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Identifying, evaluating, and complying with laws and regulations and whether they were aware of any instances of non-compliance;
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Detecting and responding to the risks of fraud and whether they have knowledge of any actual, suspected, or alleged fraud;
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The internal controls established to mitigate risks related to fraud or non-compliance with laws and regulations.
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We inspected the minutes of meetings of those charged with governance.
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We obtained an understanding of the legal and regulatory framework that the charity operates in, focusing on those laws and regulations that had a material effect on the financial statements or that had a fundamental effect on the operations of the charity from our professional and sector experience.
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We communicated applicable laws and regulations throughout the audit team and remained alert to any indications of non-compliance throughout the audit.
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We reviewed any reports made to regulators.
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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We reviewed the financial statement disclosures and tested these to supporting documentation to assess compliance with applicable laws and regulations.
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We performed analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected relationships that may indicate risks of material misstatement due to fraud.
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In addressing the risk of fraud through management override of controls, we tested the appropriateness of journal entries and other adjustments, assessed whether the judgements made in making accounting estimates are indicative of a potential bias and tested significant transactions that are unusual or those outside the normal course of business.
Because of the inherent limitations of an audit, there is a risk that we will not detect all irregularities, including those leading to a material misstatement in the financial statements or non-compliance with regulation. This risk increases the more that compliance with a law or regulation is removed from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, as we will be less likely to become aware of instances of non-compliance. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation.
A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities . This description forms part of our auditor’s report.
Use of our report
This report is made solely to the charitable company’s members as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006 and section 44(1)(c) of the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the charitable company’s members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the charitable company and the charitable company’s members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.
Noelia Serrano (Senior statutory auditor)
Date: 5 August 2025
for and on behalf of Sayer Vincent LLP, Statutory Auditor 110 Golden Lane, LONDON, EC1Y 0TG
Sayer Vincent LLP is eligible to act as auditor in terms of section 1212 of the Companies Act 2006
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Statement of financial activities (incorporating expenditure and income account)
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For the year ended 31 March 2025 For the year ended 31 March 2024
Unrestricted Restricted Total Unrestricted Restricted Total
Note £ £ £ £ £ £
Income from:
Donations and legacies 2 94,160 50,000 144,160 175,251 101,808 277,059
Charitable activities
Capacity building and advocacy - - - - - -
Income for direct delivery 5 967,051 1,670,958 2,638,009 792,075 1,513,959 2,306,034
Income for grant-making 4 - 1,619,900 1,619,900 - 1,305,799 1,305,799
Other trading activities 3 460 - 460 2,467 - 2,467
Investments - bank interest 23,537 - 23,537 37,230 - 37,230
Total income 1,085,208 3,340,858 4,426,066 1,007,023 2,921,566 3,928,589
Total income excluding grants 2,806,166 2,622,790
Expenditure on:
Raising funds 6 153,201 - 153,201 171,815 - 171,815
Charitable activities
Capacity building and advocacy 6 - - - - - -
Direct delivery expenditure 996,665 1,541,153 2,537,818 816,923 1,526,239 2,343,162
Grants to groups 7 - 1,848,457 1,848,457 7,231 1,620,923 1,628,154
Total expenditure 1,149,866 3,389,610 4,539,476 995,969 3,147,162 4,143,131
Total expenditure excluding grants 2,691,019 2,514,977
Net expenditure for the year (64,658) (48,752) (113,410) 11,054 (225,596) (214,542)
Transfers between funds (2,885) 2,885 - 1,500 (1,500) -
Net movement in funds (67,543) (45,867) (113,410) 12,554 (227,096) (214,542)
Reconciliation of funds:
Total funds brought forward 547,339 572,532 1,119,871 534,785 799,628 1,334,413
Total funds carried forward 18 479,796 526,665 1,006,461 547,339 572,532 1,119,871
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All of the above results are derived from continuing activities. There were no other recognised gains or losses other than those stated above. Movements in funds are disclosed in Note 19 to the financial statements.
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Balance Sheet as at 31 March 2025
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Company no. 06541137
2025 2024
Note £ £ £ £
Fixed assets:
Intangible assets 13 - 60,994 - -
Tangible assets 14 - 17,375 - 16,272
- 78,369 - 16,272
Current assets:
Debtors 15 310,539 - 419,686 -
Cash at bank and in hand 852,469 - 1,072,810 -
1,163,008 - 1,492,496 -
Liabilities:
Creditors: amounts falling 16 (234,916) - (388,897) -
due within one year
Net current assets - 928,092 - 1,103,599
Net assets 18 - 1,006,461 - 1,119,871
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The funds of the charity:
Restricted income funds - 526,665 - 572,532
Unrestricted income funds - - - -
General funds - 479,796 - 547,339
Total charity funds 1,006,461 1,119,871
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Approved by the trustees on 16 July 2025 and signed on their behalf by
Name: Simon Cummins Position: Chair
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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For the year ended 31 March 2025
Statement of cash flows
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Year to 31 March 2025 Year to 31 March 2024
£ £ £ £
Net expenditure for the reporting period (113,410) (214,542)
Depreciation charges 11,992 8,091
Decrease in debtors 109,147 39,354
(Decrease) in creditors (153,981) (136,314)
Cash flows provided by operating activities (146,252) (303,411)
Cash flows from investing activities:
Purchase of tangible fixed assets (13,095) (17,984)
Purchase of intangible fixed assets (60,994) -
Net cash used in investing activities (74,089) (17,984)
Change in cash and cash equivalents in the
(220,341) (321,395)
reporting period
Cash and cash equivalents at the beginning of
1,072,810 1,394,205
the reporting period
Cash and cash equivalents at the end of the
852,469 1,072,810
reporting period
Analysis of cash and cash equivalents
At 31 March 2024 Cash flows At 31 March 2025
£ £ £
Cash at bank and in hand 1,072,810 (220,341) 852,469
Total cash and cash equivalents 1,072,810 (220,341) 852,469
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Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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Notes to financial statements
| 1 Accounting policies | 1 Accounting policies |
|---|---|
| a) | Statutory information |
| Sported Foundation is a charitable company limited by guarantee and is incorporated in the United Kingdom. | |
| The registered offce and postal address is 4th Floor, Marathon House, 190 Great Dover Street, London SE1 4YB. | |
| b) | Basis of preparation |
| The fnancial statements have been prepared in accordance with Accounting and Reporting by Charities: Statement of Recommended Practice applicable to charities preparing their accounts in accordance with the Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (FRS 102) - (Charities SORP FRS 102) and the Companies Act 2006/Charities Act 2011. |
|
| Assets and liabilities are initially recognised at historical cost or transaction value unless otherwise stated in the relevant accounting policy or note. |
|
| In applying the fnancial reporting framework, the trustees have made a number of subjective judgements, for example in respect of signifcant accounting estimates. Estimates and judgements are continually evaluated and are based on historical experience and other factors, including expectations of future events that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. The nature of the estimation means the actual outcomes could differ from those estimates. Any signifcant estimates and judgements affecting these fnancial statements are detailed within the relevant accounting policy below. |
|
| Sported Foundation has two wholly owned subsidiaries, Sported Trading Limited, incorporated in England and Wales (company number 08623400) and Sported Limited, a dormant company incorporated in England and Wales (company number 12921825). The trustees of Sported Foundation do not consider the results of the subsidiary companies to be material to the charity and so have decided not to produce consolidated accounts. |
|
| c) | Public beneft entity |
The charitable company meets the defnition of a public beneft entity under FRS 102. |
|
| d) | Going concern |
| The trustees have considered detailed plans, scenarios and cashfow forecasts for the 12 months from the date of this report and have a reasonable expectation of receiving adequate resources through contracted and pipeline funding to continue operations. |
|
| Furthermore, the trustees do not consider that there are any sources of estimation uncertainty at the reporting date that have a signifcant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next reportingperiod. |
|
| e) | Income |
| Income is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the income have been met, it is probable that the income will be received, and that the amount can be measured reliably. |
|
| Income from government and other grants, whether ‘capital’ grants or ‘revenue’ grants, is recognised when the charity has entitlement to the funds, any performance conditions attached to the grants have been met, it is probable that the income will be received, and the amount can be measured reliably and is not deferred. |
|
| Income received in advance of the provision of a specifed service is deferred until the criteria for income recognition are met. |
Continued overleaf
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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| 1 Accounting policies -continued | 1 Accounting policies -continued |
|---|---|
| f) | Donations of gifts, services and facilities |
| Donated professional services and donated facilities are recognised as income when the charity has control over the item or received the service, any conditions associated with the donation have been met, the receipt of eco- nomic beneft from the use by the charity of the item is probable and that economic beneft can be measured reli- ably. In accordance with the Charities SORP (FRS 102), volunteer time is not recognised. Please refer to the trustees’ annual report for more information about volunteers’ contributions. |
|
| On receipt, donated gifts, professional services and donated facilities are recognised on the basis of the value of the gift to the charity which is the amount the charity would have been willing to pay to obtain services or facilities of equivalent economic beneft on the open market; a corresponding amount is then recognised in expenditure in the period of receipt. |
|
| g) | Interest receivable |
| Interest on funds held on deposit is included when receivable and the amount can be measured reliably by the charity; this is normally upon notifcation of the interest paid or payable by the bank. |
|
| h) | Fund accounting |
| Restricted funds are to be used for specifc purposes as laid down by the donor. Expenditure related to the specifc purpose is charged to the fund. |
|
| Unrestricted funds are donations and other incoming resources received or generated for the charitable purposes. | |
| Designated funds are set aside to be used for a specifc purpose as laid down by the Board of Trustees. | |
| i) | Expenditure and irrecoverable VAT |
| Expenditure is recognised once there is a legal or constructive obligation to make a payment to a third party, it is probable that settlement will be required, and the amount of the obligation can be measured reliably. Expenditure is classifed under the following activity headings: |
|
| Costs of raising funds relate to the costs incurred by the charity in inducing third parties to make voluntary contri- butions to it, as well as the cost of any activities with a fundraising purpose |
|
| Expenditure on charitable activities includes the costs of delivering capacity building and advocacy services to groups, providing fnancial support in the form of grants to groups, and maintaining and developing resources used to measure the impact of the improving access to sports activities |
|
| Irrecoverable VAT is charged as a cost against the activity for which the expenditure was incurred. | |
| j) | Grants |
| Grants payable are made to third parties in furtherance of the charity’s objects. Grants are accounted for when either the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and the trustees have agreed to pay the grant without condition, or the recipient has a reasonable expectation that they will receive a grant and that any condition attaching to the grant is outside of the control of the charity. |
|
| k) | Allocation of support and governance costs |
| Resources expended are allocated to the particular activity where the cost relates directly to that activity. How- ever, the cost of overall direction and administration of each activity, comprising the salary and overhead costs of the central function, is included as part of support costs. |
|
| Support and governance costs are re-allocated to each of the activities on the following basis which is an esti- mate, based on the direct cost of each activity: |
|
| Raising funds 10% | |
| Capacity buildingand advocacy 90% | |
| Governance costs are the costs associated with the governance arrangements of the charity. These costs are associated with constitutional and statutory requirements and include any costs associated with the strategic management of the charity’s activities. |
Continued overleaf
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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| 1 Accounting policies -continued | 1 Accounting policies -continued |
|---|---|
| l) | Operating leases |
| Rental charges are charged on a straight line basis over the term of the lease. | |
| m) | Tangible fxed assets |
| Items of equipment are capitalised where the purchase price exceeds £500. Depreciation costs are allocated to activities on the basis of the use of the related assets in those activities. Assets are reviewed for impairment if circumstances indicate their carrying value may exceed their net realisable value and value in use. Major compo- nents are treated as a separate asset where they have signifcantly different patterns of consumption of economic benefts and are depreciated separately over its useful life. |
|
| Where fxed assets have been revalued, any excess between the revalued amount and the historic cost of the asset is shown as a revaluation reserve in the balance sheet. |
|
| Depreciation is provided at rates calculated to write down the cost of each asset to its estimated residual value over its expected useful life. Fixed assets are depreciated over 3 years. |
|
| n) | Intangible fxed assets |
| Intangible fxed assets are stated at cost, net of amortisation and any provision for impairment. Amortisation is calculated to write off the cost of intangible fxed assets by equal annual instalments over their expected useful lives which is expected to be four years. Amortisation is not charged on assets in the course of construction until they are available for use. Intangible fxed assets costing £5,000 or more and where it is probable they will create future economic beneft are capitalised. |
|
| o) | Debtors |
| Trade and other debtors are recognised at the settlement amount due. Prepayments are valued at the amount prepaid net of any trade discounts due. |
|
| p) | Cash at bank and in hand |
| Cash at bank and cash in hand includes cash and short term highly liquid investments with a short maturity of three months or less from the date of acquisition or opening of the deposit or similar account. Cash balances exclude any funds held on behalf of members. |
|
| q) | Creditors and provisions |
| Creditors and provisions are recognised where the charity has a present obligation resulting from a past event that will probably result in the transfer of funds to a third party and the amount due to settle the obligation can be measured or estimated reliably. Creditors and provisions are normally recognised at their settlement amount after allowing for any trade discounts due. No interest loans are recognised at face value. |
|
| r) | Financial instruments |
| The charity only has fnancial assets and fnancial liabilities of a kind that qualify as basic fnancial instruments. Basic fnancial instruments are initially recognised at transaction value and subsequently measured at their settlement value with the exception of bank loans which are subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method. |
|
| s) | Pensions |
| Sported contributes to a defned contribution pension scheme for all staff at or above the statutory rate. Pension costs are accounted for as expenditure when due. |
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
36
| 2 Donations and legacies | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| For theyear ended 31 March 2025 | For theyear ended 31 March 2024 | |||||
| Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Moondance Foundation (Wales) |
- | 50,000 | 50,000 | - | 50,000 | 50,000 |
| Just Giving | 35,215 | - | 35,215 | 24,122 | - | 24,122 |
| Fundraising Event - Golf Day |
32,541 | - | 32,541 | 46,156 | - | 46,156 |
| Baillie Gifford (Scotland) |
13,333 | - | 13,333 | - | 40,000 | 40,000 |
| Trust and Foundations | 6,000 | - | 6,000 | 7,150 | - | 7,150 |
| Corporate Donations | 3,781 | - | 3,781 | 7,000 | - | 7,000 |
| Peter Harrison | 2,000 | - | 2,000 | - | - | - |
| Individual Donations | 1,290 | - | 1,290 | - | - | - |
| Overbury | - | - | - | 26,774 | - | 26,774 |
| Sported TradingLimited | - | - | - | 23,001 | - | 23,001 |
| CVC | - | - | - | 20,264 | - | 20,264 |
| Cameron Norrie | - | - | - | 15,601 | - | 15,601 |
| The Warwickshire Golf Club | - | - | - | - | 11,708 | 11,708 |
| Other | - | - | - | 5,183 | 100 | 5,283 |
| Total income from donations |
94,160 | 50,000 | 144,160 | 175,251 | 101,808 | 277,059 |
3 Income from other trading activities
This comprises consultancy and business development support and is all unrestricted income.
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
37
| 4 Income from charitable activities - grant-making | 4 Income from charitable activities - grant-making | 4 Income from charitable activities - grant-making | 4 Income from charitable activities - grant-making | 4 Income from charitable activities - grant-making | 4 Income from charitable activities - grant-making | 4 Income from charitable activities - grant-making |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| For the year ended 31 March 2025 | For the year ended 31 March 2024 | |||||
| Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Barclays - Community Football Fund |
- | 767,785 | 767,785 | - | 764,799 | 764,799 |
| Flutter - Cash4Clubs | - | 400,000 | 400,000 | - | 400,000 | 400,000 |
| London Marathon Foundation Community Solidarity Fund |
- | 240,000 | 240,000 | - | - | - |
| People’s Post Code Lottery | - | 100,000 | 100,000 | - | - | - |
| Knight Frank | - | 40,000 | 40,000 | - | - | - |
| Proctor & Gamble - Morrisons | - | 32,000 | 32,000 | - | - | - |
| McCool Family | - | 12,000 | 12,000 | - | - | - |
| Nissan | - | 11,000 | 11,000 | - | 15,000 | 15,000 |
| Hertfordshire Sports and Physical Activity Partnership, club sustainability project |
- | 7,115 | 7,115 | - | - | - |
| SUDU - Fair Play | - | 5,000 | 5,000 | - | - | - |
| Vodafone | - | 5,000 | 5,000 | - | 25,000 | 25,000 |
| Ring | - | - | - | - | 70,000 | 70,000 |
| Proctor & Gamble - RisingStars | - | - | - | - | 20,000 | 20,000 |
| Ballinger | - | - | - | - | 11,000 | 11,000 |
| Total income from charitable activities |
- | 1,619,900 | 1,619,900 | - | 1,305,799 | 1,305,799 |
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
38
| 5 Income from charitable activities - for direct delivery | 5 Income from charitable activities - for direct delivery | 5 Income from charitable activities - for direct delivery | 5 Income from charitable activities - for direct delivery | 5 Income from charitable activities - for direct delivery | 5 Income from charitable activities - for direct delivery | 5 Income from charitable activities - for direct delivery |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| For the year ended 31 March 2025 | For the year ended 31 March 2024 | |||||
| Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | Unrestricted | Restricted | Total | |
| £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | £ | |
| Actif North Wales - Innovation Fund |
- | 33,600 | 33,600 | - | - | - |
| Actif North Wales - Place Based Pilot |
- | 55,040 | 55,040 | - | - | - |
| Active Partnerships | - | - | - | 26,442 | - | 26,442 |
| Barclays - Community Foot- ball Fund |
358,474 | - | 358,474 | 366,930 | - | 366,930 |
| CityBridge Trust | - | - | - | - | (2,090) | (2,090) |
| Football Foundation - Com- munity Engagement Toolkit |
- | - | - | (6,083) | - | (6,083) |
| Flutter - Do More | - | - | - | 60,000 | - | 60,000 |
| Flutter - Cash4Clubs | 84,333 | - | 84,333 | 62,333 | - | 62,333 |
| Garfeld Weston Foundation |
- | 150,000 | 150,000 | - | 150,000 | 150,000 |
| GLA - Mayor of London VRU Sports Internship Programme |
- | 43,000 | 43,000 | - | - | - |
| Ecorys - Go! London | 27,222 | - | 27,222 | 27,222 | - | 27,222 |
| Hertfordshire Sports and Physical Activity Partnership, club sustainability project |
12,500 | - | 12,500 | - | - | - |
| Knight Frank - Limitless | 114,100 | - | 114,100 | 12,000 | - | 12,000 |
| London Marathon - Emergency Fund |
35,000 | - | 35,000 | - | - | - |
| McCool Family | - | 3,771 | 3,771 | - | - | - |
| National Lottery Community Fund - RC England wide |
- | 126,558 | 126,558 | - | 255,694 | 255,694 |
| Nissan | 34,385 | - | 34,385 | 37,833 | - | 37,833 |
| Peter Harrison - Empower South Lanarkshire |
- | - | - | - | 20,000 | 20,000 |
| Participatory Grant Making Model - London Sport |
- | - | - | - | 7,500 | 7,500 |
| Participatory Grant Making Model - London Marathon |
- | - | - | - | 5,000 | 5,000 |
| People’s Postcode Lottery | 23,000 | - | 23,000 | - | - | - |
Continued overleaf
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
39
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----- Start of picture text -----
5 Income from charitable activities - for direct delivery - continued
Proctor & Gamble -
24,786 - 24,786 24,152 - 24,152
Rising Stars
Proctor & Gamble - 39,417 - 39,417 - - -
Morrisons
Pride Cymru - 5,530 5,530 - - -
The Rank Foundation - - 30,222 30,222 - 29,615 29,615
Start Here
Ring - Building Stronger 82,000 - 82,000 21,000 - 21,000
Communities Through Sport
Rhyl Building Communities
Trust - Community Anchor - 26,924 26,924 - - -
Development
Rocket Science Ltd - 67,074 - 67,074 79,933 - 79,933
Go! London
Sport England -
34,135 907,903 942,038 47,965 906,574 954,539
System Partner Grant
SUDU - Fair Play - 4,666 4,666 - - -
Table Tennis England - - - 5,932 - 5,932
Westminster Foundation - 144,386 144,386 - - -
WCVA - Volunteering Wales - 49,048 49,048 - 66,666 66,666
Strategic Grant
WMCA - Triage - 20,310 20,310 - - -
Vodafone - 70,000 70,000 - 75,000 75,000
Other sources of income
(sums of less than £10,000 30,625 - 30,625 26,416 - 26,416
each)
Total income from
967,051 1,670,958 2,638,009 792,075 1,513,959 2,306,034
charitable activities
----- End of picture text -----
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
40
Capacity building and advocacy
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----- Start of picture text -----
6a Analysis of expenditure (current reporting period)
Raising funds Direct delivery costs Governance costs Support costs Total 2025
£ £ £ £ £
Staff costs (Note 9) 56,037 1,725,723 - 379,775 2,161,535
Project costs - 62,287 - - 62,287
Staff cover, consultants, recruitment and 36,053 25,672 - 22,300 84,025
training
Travel and subsistence - 51,793 - 21,871 73,664
Office costs and rents - 27,861 1,026 31,396 60,283
Events, meetings, conferences inc. men- - 45,334 - 30,580 75,914
toring
IT, databases and telephones - 37,166 - 65,756 102,922
Marketing costs - - - 20,727 20,727
Insurance, legal and banking - - 15,295 - 15,295
Audit - - 14,520 - 14,520
Accountancy, payroll and pension - - 7,855 - 7,855
administration
Depreciation - 11,992 - - 11,992
92,090 1,987,828 38,696 572,405 2,691,019
Grants, vouchers and equipment kits - 836,501 - - 836,501
payable to members (note 7)
Grants, vouchers and equipment kits
payable to non members - 1,011,956 - - 1,011,956
(note 7)
Direct delivery expenditure 92,090 3,836,285 38,696 572,405 4,539,476
Reallocation of support costs 57,241 515,164 - (572,405) -
Reallocation of governance costs 3,870 34,826 (38,696) - -
Total expenditure 2025 153,201 4,386,275 - - 4,539,476
Total expenditure 2024 171,815 3,971,316 - - 4,143,131
----- End of picture text -----
- Net of core costs paid for by funders
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
41
Capacity building and advocacy
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----- Start of picture text -----
6b Analysis of expenditure (prior reporting period)
Raising funds Direct delivery costs Governance costs Support costs Total 2024
£ £ £ £ £
Staff costs (Note 9) 106,471 1,611,364 - 257,786 1,975,621
Project costs - 114,636 - - 114,636
Staff cover, consultants, recruitment and 19,933 79,223 - 13,173 112,329
training
Travel and subsistence - 35,780 - 23,336 59,116
Office supplies and rents - 23,387 - 29,626 53,013
Events, meetings, conferences inc. men- - 38,619 - 20,497 59,116
toring
IT, databases and telephones - 22,668 - 67,536 90,204
Marketing costs - 702 - 7,578 8,280
Insurance, legal and banking - - 10,964 - 10,964
Audit - - 13,860 - 13,860
Accountancy, payroll and pension - - 9,747 - 9,747
administration
Depreciation - 8,091 - - 8,091
126,404 1,934,470 34,571 419,532 2,514,977
Grants, vouchers and equipment kits - 586,472 - - 586,472
payable (note 7)
Grants, vouchers and equipment kits
1,041,682 1,041,682
payable to non members (note 7)
Direct delivery expenditure 126,404 3,562,624 34,571 419,532 4,143,131
Reallocation of support costs 41,954 377,578 - (419,532) -
Reallocation of governance costs 3,457 31,114 (34,571) - -
Total expenditure 2024 171,815 3,971,316 - - 4,143,131
----- End of picture text -----
- Net of core costs paid for by funders
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
42
| 7 Grants distributed through projects | 7 Grants distributed through projects | 7 Grants distributed through projects | 7 Grants distributed through projects |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2024 | ||
| £ | £ | ||
| Barclays Community Football Fund | 941,921 | 1,156,671 | |
| Flutter - Cash4Clubs | 403,174 | 395,728 | |
| London Marathon Foundation Community Solidarity Fund | 240,000 | - | |
| People’s Postcode Lottery | 100,000 | - | |
| Ring | 67,500 | - | |
| Knight Frank | 40,000 | - | |
| Procter & Gamble - Morrisons | 32,000 | - | |
| Procter & Gamble - Rising Stars | 9,862 | 9,881 | |
| Hertfordshire University | 9,000 | - | |
| SUDU - Fair Play | 5,000 | - | |
| Vodafone | - | 25,000 | |
| Sport England Together Fund | - | 17,874 | |
| Nissan | - | 12,000 | |
| Ballinger | - | 11,000 | |
| 1,848,457 | 1,628,154 |
All grants were made to member and non member groups for expenditure to further Sported’s charitable activities.
| 8 Net expenditure for the reporting period | 8 Net expenditure for the reporting period | 8 Net expenditure for the reporting period | 8 Net expenditure for the reporting period |
|---|---|---|---|
| This is stated after charging: | |||
| 2025 | 2024 | ||
| £ | £ | ||
| Depreciation | 11,992 | 8,091 | |
| Auditor’s remuneration (excluding VAT): | 12,100 | 11,550 |
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
43
| 9 Analysis of staff costs, trustee remuneration and expenses, and the cost of key managementpersonnel |
9 Analysis of staff costs, trustee remuneration and expenses, and the cost of key managementpersonnel |
9 Analysis of staff costs, trustee remuneration and expenses, and the cost of key managementpersonnel |
9 Analysis of staff costs, trustee remuneration and expenses, and the cost of key managementpersonnel |
|---|---|---|---|
| Staff costs were as follows: | 2025 | 2024 | |
| £ | £ | ||
| Salaries and wages | 1,896,567 | 1,751,687 | |
| Social securitycosts | 185,872 | 171,085 | |
| Pension costs | 55,531 | 51,449 | |
| Ex-gratiapayments | 22,279 | 1,400 | |
| Redundancy payments | 1,286 | - | |
| 2,161,535 | 1,975,621 |
The following number of employees received employee benefits (excluding employer pension costs and employer national insurance contributions) during the reporting period between:
| 2025 | 2024 | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| No. | No. | ||
| £90,000 - £99,999 | 1 | 2 |
The total employee benefits, including pension contributions and employer’s national insurance, of the key management personnel were £425,507 (2024: £456,834).
The charity trustees were not paid and did not receive any other benefits from employment with the charity in the reporting period (2024: £nil). No trustee received reimbursement for expenses incurred on Sported business (2024: £nil).
10 Staff numbers
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----- Start of picture text -----
The number of employees (head count based on number of staff employed) during the reporting period
was as follows:
2025 2024
No. No.
51.8 48.7
The average number of employees in each area was:
Delivery 34 28
Network and volunteer services 5 5
Grants 4 4
Fundraising 1 2
Support 8 10
Total 52 49
----- End of picture text -----
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
44
11 Related party transactions
Aggregate donations from trustees were £2,000 including gift aid (2024: £4,750). Aggregate donations in kind from related parties were £nil (2024: £nil). There were no restrictions on the donations.
12 Taxation
The charitable company is exempt from corporation tax as all its income is charitable and is applied for charitable purposes.
| 13 Intangible fxed assets | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| CRM System | Total | ||
| £ | £ | ||
| Cost or valuation | |||
| At the start of the reporting period | - | - | |
| Additions during the reporting period | 60,994 | 60,994 | |
| At the end of the reporting period | 60,994 | 60,994 |
| 14 Tangible fxed assets | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Computer equipment | Total | ||
| £ | £ | ||
| Cost or valuation | |||
| At the start of the reporting period | 77,800 | 77,800 | |
| Additions during the reporting period | 13,095 | 13,095 | |
| Disposals during the reporting period | (45,963) | (45,963) | |
| At the end of the reporting period | 44,932 | 44,932 | |
| Depreciation | |||
| At the start of the reporting period | 61,528 | 61,528 | |
| Charge for the reporting period | 11,992 | 11,992 | |
| Eliminated on disposal | (45,963) | (45,963) | |
| At the end of the reporting period | (27,557) | (27,557) | |
| Net book value | |||
| At the end of the reporting period | 17,375 | 17,375 | |
| At the start of the reporting period | 16,272 | 16,272 | |
| All of the above assets are used for charitablepurposes. |
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
45
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----- Start of picture text -----
15 Debtors
2025 2024
£ £
Trade debtors 112,832 267,884
Other debtors 6,563 18,050
Prepayments 46,955 54,301
Accrued income 144,189 79,451
310,539 419,686
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----- Start of picture text -----
16 Creditors: amounts falling due within one year
2025 2024
£ £
Trade creditors 54,589 44,147
Taxation and social security 70,620 85,069
Other creditors 10,954 10,796
Accruals 38,392 32,022
Deferred income (note 17) 29,191 214,663
Grants payable 31,170 2,200
234,916 388,897
----- End of picture text -----
Deferred income arises when unrestricted income is invoiced or received in the year but delivery of the project extends post the year end. Income is therefore recognised in line with the project delivery timelines.
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----- Start of picture text -----
17 Deferred income
2025 2024
£ £
Balance brought forward 214,663 134,649
Deferred in the year 340,326 519,314
Released in the year (525,798) (439,300)
29,191 214,663
----- End of picture text -----
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
46
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----- Start of picture text -----
18a Analysis of net assets between funds (current period)
General
Restricted Total funds
unrestricted
£ £ £
Intangible fixed assets 60,994 - 60,994
Tangible fixed assets 17,375 - 17,375
Net current assets 401,427 526,665 928,092
Net assets at the end of the year 479,796 526,665 1,006,461
----- End of picture text -----
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----- Start of picture text -----
18b Analysis of net assets between funds (prior year)
General
Restricted Total funds
unrestricted
£ £ £
Tangible fixed assets 16,272 - 16,272
Net current assets 531,067 572,532 1,103,599
Net assets at the end of the year 547,339 572,532 1,119,871
----- End of picture text -----
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
47
| 19a Movements in funds (current period) | 19a Movements in funds (current period) | 19a Movements in funds (current period) | 19a Movements in funds (current period) | 19a Movements in funds (current period) | 19a Movements in funds (current period) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| At 31 March 2024 |
Income & gains |
Expenditure & losses |
Transfers between funds |
At 31 March 2025 |
|
| £ | £ | £ | £ | ||
| Restricted funds: | |||||
| Actif North Wales - Innovation Fund | - | 33,600 | (19,157) | - | 14,443 |
| Actif North Wales - Place Based Pilot | - | 55,040 | (30,140) | - | 24,900 |
| Barclays - Community Football Fund - Grants |
187,496 | 767,784 | (941,921) | - | 13,359 |
| Baillie Gifford - Supporting Scotland | 13,333 | - | (13,333) | - | - |
| Baillie Gifford - Support Offcer Role | 18,139 | - | (18,139) | - | - |
| Flutter - Cash4Clubs | 4,272 | 400,000 | (403,174) | - | 1,098 |
| Garfeld Weston Foundation (Northern Ireland and Scotland) |
150,000 | 150,000 | (103,963) | - | 196,037 |
| GLA - Mayor of London VRU Sports Internship Programme |
- | 43,000 | - | - | 43,000 |
| Hertfordshire Sports and Physical Activity Partnership, club sustainability project - Grants |
- | 7,115 | (9,000) | 2,885 | 1,000 |
| Knight Frank | - | 40,000 | (40,000) | - | - |
| London Marathon Foundation Community Solidarity Fund - Grants |
- | 240,000 | (240,000) | - | - |
| Moondance Foundation | 4,167 | 50,000 | (48,266) | - | 5,901 |
| McCool Family | - | 15,771 | - | 15,771 | |
| National Lottery Community Fund - RC England wide |
17,073 | 126,559 | (143,632) | - | - |
| Nissan | 5,840 | 11,000 | - | - | 16,840 |
| Peter Harrison - Empower South Lanarkshire | 17,947 | - | (17,947) | - | - |
| People’s Postcode Lottery- Grants | - | 100,000 | (100,000) | - | - |
| Procter & Gamble - Rising Stars | 10,119 | - | (9,862) | - | 257 |
| Procter & Gamble - Morrisons | - | 32,000 | (32,000) | - | - |
| Pride Cymru | - | 5,530 | - | 5,530 | |
| The Rank Foundation Start Here | 15,219 | 30,222 | (29,676) | - | 15,765 |
| Rhyl Building Communities Trust - Community Anchor Development |
- | 26,924 | (18,871) | - | 8,053 |
| Ring - Building Stronger Communities | 70,000 | - | (67,500) | - | 2,500 |
| St James Place | 4,715 | - | (3,492) | - | 1,223 |
| Sport England - System Partner FundingGrant |
- | 907,903 | (907,903) | - | - |
| SUDU - Fair Play | - | 4,667 | (4,667) | - | - |
| SUDU - Fair Play - Grants | - | 5,000 | (5,000) | - | - |
Continued overleaf
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
48
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----- Start of picture text -----
19a Movements in funds (current period)- Continued
Vodafone - Sports.Connected 5,249 70,000 (69,232) - 6,017
Vodafone - Grants - 5,000 - - 5,000
Westminster Foundation - 144,386 (31,219) - 113,167
WCVA - Volunteering Wales Strategic Grant 48,962 49,048 (65,628) - 32,382
WMCA - Triage - 20,310 (15,886) - 4,424
Total restricted funds 572,532 3,340,858 (3,389,610) 2,885 526,665
Total unrestricted funds 547,339 1,085,208 (1,149,866) (2,885) 479,796
Total funds 1,119,871 4,426,066 (4,539,476) - 1,006,461
----- End of picture text -----
Purposes of restricted funds
Funds which are derived from grants awarded to the charity for specific projects are held as restricted funds. Grants received during the year are transferred into restricted funds and expenditure on specific projects is transferred out of restricted funds. A brief description of each of the main projects funded from restricted funds is provided below.
Transfers between funds
Transfers between funds arose as a portion of restricted funds for grants had been incorrectly recognised as unrestricted funds in the previous financial year. In the prior year a funder agreed that left over grant money could be used to fund the project.
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
49
| 19b Movements in funds (prior year) | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| At 1 April 2023 | Income & gains |
Expenditure & losses |
Transfers between funds |
At 31 March 2024 |
|
| £ | £ | £ | £ | ||
| Restricted funds: | |||||
| Barclays - Community Football Fund - Grants | 579,368 | 764,799 | (1,156,671) | - | 187,496 |
| Baillie Gifford - Supporting Scotland | 13,334 | 40,000 | (40,000) | - | 13,334 |
| Baillie Gifford - Support Offcer Role | 42,094 | - | (23,955) | - | 18,139 |
| Ballinger Trust | - | 11,000 | (11,000) | - | - |
| Burbo Bank Extension Community Fund | 2,573 | - | (2,573) | - | - |
| City Bridge Trust | 19,970 | (2,090) | (17,880) | - | - |
| Flutter - Cash4Clubs | - | 400,000 | (395,728) | - | 4,272 |
| Garfeld Weston Foundation (Northern Ireland) |
25,000 | - | (25,000) | - | - |
| Garfeld Weston Foundation (Northern Ireland and Scotland) |
- | 150,000 | - | - | 150,000 |
| Halifax - Skilled | 615 | - | (615) | - | - |
| Moondance Foundation | 4,167 | 50,000 | (50,000) | - | 4,167 |
| National Lottery Community Fund - RC England wide |
29,060 | 255,694 | (267,681) | - | 17,073 |
| Nissan | 2,840 | 15,000 | (12,000) | - | 5,840 |
| Participatory Grant Model | 4,500 | 12,500 | (17,000) | - | - |
| Peter Harrison - Empower South Lanarkshire | - | 20,000 | (2,053) | - | 17,947 |
| Procter & Gamble - Rising Stars | - | 20,000 | (9,881) | - | 10,119 |
| The Rank Foundation Start Here | 15,781 | 29,615 | (30,177) | - | 15,219 |
| Ring - Building Stronger Communities | - | 70,000 | - | - | 70,000 |
| St James Place | 23,342 | - | (18,627) | - | 4,715 |
| Sport England - System Partner Funding Grant | - | 906,574 | (906,574) | - | - |
| Sport England Together Fund | 10,587 | - | (10,587) | - | - |
| Sure - Beyond Sport | 1,500 | - | - | (1,500) | - |
| Vodafone - Sports.Connected | - | 75,000 | (69,751) | - | 5,249 |
| Vodafone - Grants | - | 25,000 | (25,000) | - | - |
| The Warwickshire Golf Club | - | 11,708 | (11,708) | - | - |
| WCVA Thrive | 24,897 | - | (24,897) | - | - |
Continued overleaf
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
50
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----- Start of picture text -----
19b Movements in funds (prior year) - Continued
WCVA - Volunteering Wales Strategic Grant - 66,666 (17,704) - 48,962
Other - 100 (100) - -
Total restricted funds 799,628 2,921,567 (3,147,162) (1,500) 572,532
Total unrestricted funds 534,785 1,007,023 (995,969) 1,500 547,339
Total funds 1,334,413 3,928,589 (4,143,131) - 1,119,871
----- End of picture text -----
Sported Foundation Annual Report Year ended 31 March 2025
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20 Movements in funds Funds and income sources A brief description of the use of each major source of funding and project is shown below. Actif North Wales Innovation Fund - Funding to employ an LGBTQ+ Lead to deliver a 1 year partnership with Pride Cymru in North Wales. Actif North Wales Place Based Pilot - Funding to support the implementation of 4 place based models in specific locations in Wrexham and Conwy. Baillie Gifford - Supporting Scotland: Funding to support Sported’s work with groups in Scotland to become more sustainable and effective. Baillie Gifford - Funding for additional regional officer to support Sported’s work in Scotland. Ballinger Trust - Grants for community groups or small charities across South Tyneside. Barclays Community Football Fund - Offers grants and additional support resources to grassroots groups. The small grants will be dedicated to making football more accessible, and will continue our work to reduce inequalities in the participation of sport and physical activity. Burbo Bank Extension Community Fund - Delivery of a Connected Communities model with a small cohort of groups in the North Wales area. City Bridge Trust, the funding arm of The City of London Corporation’s charity, Bridge House Estates (1035628) - Connected Communities: Launch and embed new community-led Connected Communities model in London aimed at improving social integration through grassroots sport by building the capacity, resilience and partnerships of community groups. Ecorys - Go! London: Providing capacity building support, and supporting the development and implementation of communities of Learning within the Evaluation contracts. Flutter Cash4Clubs: Funding received to distribute to community groups across the UK and Ireland. Flutter Do More: Funding received to research and prepare a design for a global grants programme. Garfield Weston Foundation: Funding for core costs supporting communities in areas of rural deprivation. GLA - Mayor of London VRU Sports Internship Programme - funding two apprentices for support of core work in London. Halifax Foundation - Skilled: Upskilling volunteers and members by developing a training package to support the Sported network. Hertfordshire Sports and Physical Activity Partnership, club sustainability project - Provide support for 20 Herts based clubs and groups based in their Active Local areas across county. They will receive volunteer support and a £500 grant at the end of the support period. Knight Frank - Limitless: To transform the lives of young people from diverse backgrounds – through the creation and development of deep impact through local inclusive wellbeing hubs and creating reach through building inclusive practices to all communities across Great Britain. Grant distribution to support the hubs. McCool Family - Donation received to distribute grants for groups within Northern Ireland. London Marathon Foundation Community Solidarity Fund - Distribution of grants to community organisations affected by the riots in 2024. Moondance Foundation: Funding for core costs in Wales. National Lottery Community Fund - RC England wide - Develop and implement our three key aims, To tackle inequalities both in sport and through sport, to improve mental health and physical wellbeing, to connect community sport groups for collective action.
Continued overleaf
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20 Movements in funds - continued
NISSAN: Delivery of Sported ‘hub and spoke’ model where groups with limited disability knowledge learn from others with significant experience, go through training and are provided with grants to support delivery. NISSAN - Possibilities Project: Work with 3 community running groups to develop their capacity and support a young person learning to run with a prosthetic provided by the Richard Whitehead Foundation. Give £15,000 in the form of grants to at least 3 community groups to develop their capacity for disability activities (with a focus on running). Participatory Grant Model: Design of a participatory grant model, and distribution of a collaborative pot of funds focussing on Black-led groups serving Black communities in London. Peter Harrison - Empower South Lanarkshire: Inclusion project specifically focused on hidden disabilities (autism, ADHD etc) working to build confidence and capability amongst groups in South Lanarkshire. People’s Postcode Lottery - Distribution of £1000 grants to community organisations based in Scotland. Pride Cymru - Funding for staffing costs. Proctor and Gamble: Rising Stars grant distribution / Marketing for P&G around Paris 2023 / Young leaders style programme. Proctor and Gamble: Morrisons grant funding for 29 x £1000 and 1 x £3k - tied in with Morrisons support of Paris 24 - generating collateral, stories and content for Morrisons. The Rank Foundation Start Here: Funding to finance a new NI Support Officer and upskilling of existing staff. Rhyl Building Communities Trust - Community Anchor Development - Funding to employ a Network Co-Ordinator based in Rhyl to deliver connected communities model over a 3 year period.
Ring Building Stronger Communities: Grant programme aimed at groups delivering sport for the purpose of building safer communities and who are struggling with the cost of living crisis. Rocket Science - Go! London: Providing capacity building support within the Grant Management & Evaluation Contracts. St James Place - Work with at least 16 community groups in Dundee, Glasgow, Belfast and Cardiff to increase their inclusion capacity and provide more opportunities for young people with disabilities in sport. Sport England - Together Fund: Distribute funds to Sported members in most immediate need across all regions including cost of living grants. Sport England - System Partner Funding: funding to support the England team to deliver services to members - linking with other system partners and stakeholders in the sector. SUDU - Fair Play - Creating opportunities to make running more accessible in Manchester & Greater Manchester. Provide opportunities for an estimated 1,000 young people to participate in running from communities in Manchester and Greater Manchester. Through the provision of x2 grants programme. X1 Deeper Impact grant for x1 Sported Group and x7 reach grants for 7 Sported groups or non members. Sure - Beyond Sport - To encourage as many Sported members as possible to get their coaches/volunteers/young leaders to complete the Sure Breaking Limits online modules and for those people to reach as many young people as possible to encourage them to move more. Table Tennis England : Research to determine the barriers and challenges for Young People to take part in Table Tennis. Vodafone - Sports.Connected: Supporting groups to improve digital connectivity and capability. Groups complete digital tool, have access to SIMs. Vodafone - Grants : Distribution of grants to communities across the UK. The Warwickshire golf club: Donation for our core work in the West Midlands. WCVA - Welsh Council for Voluntary Action - Thrive - Provision of Business Development Officer for Wales focussed on developing the sustainability of Sported in Wales focussed on commercial FR income via SMEs.
Continued overleaf
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20 Movements in funds - continued
WCVA - Welsh Council for Voluntary Action - Volunteering Project: Research and Solutions development project to support the identification and development of skilled volunteering (boards/trustees) in Wales Sports Sector.
Westminster foundation - funding to implement a place based approach in the Highlands and Lancashire.
WMCA Triage - To support WMCA and partners to set up a Capacity building project to those unsuccessful Inclusive Community Fund groups. Setting up health checks, scoping calls, workshops and through WMCA National Evaluation and Learning Partnership evaluation. Groups in first tranche from racialised communities.
21 Legal status of the charity
The charity is a company limited by guarantee and has no share capital. The liability of each member in the event of winding up is limited to £1.
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Contact
+44 (0) 203 848 4670 info@sported.org.uk sported.org.uk
/sported_UK /sported
/sporteduk /sporteduk
Registered Charity Number: 1123313 / SCO43161 VAT Registered: 317 0130 53
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