## **Sports for Sustainable Development Founda�on** 

## **Annual Report & Financial Statements** 


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**Suppor�ng the development and wellbeing of children and young disadvantaged people, using football as a pla�orm** 



**Reference Informa�on Name:** Sports for Sustainable Development Founda�on **Status:** Charitable Incorporated Organisa�on **Charity Registra�on Number:** 1198407 **Company Registra�on Number:** CE028720 **Principal Office Address:** 9 Violete Szabo House, London SE27 9RU **Website:** www.ssdf.org.uk **Telephone Contact:** 07460945232 **Trustees:** Ibrahim Sesay, Veronica Munetsi, Kansiime Pross Ategeka 



**Contents:** 

## **Trustees’ Annual Report** 

Chair’s Introduc�on 

Our Strategy and Plans 

Report and Review of Ac�vi�es 

Governance 

## **Financial Statements** 

Financial Review & 

Statement of Financial Ac�vi�es 

Photo Gallery 



## **Chair Introduc�on** 

We have just completed two years of opera�ons in interna�onal development. This Annual Report follows up on our last ac�vi�es in 2023 and provides insight into our current engagements in 2024 and our ac�on plan for 2025. 

Following our last ac�vi�es in 2023 and our current engagement in 2024, we experienced various challenges as a small charity with limited funding resources. However, we made significant progress facilita�ng and sustaining our ongoing ac�vi�es, promo�ng development and well-being amongst children and disadvantaged young people, using football as a pla�orm, with extracurricular ac�vi�es such as workshops, research, life skills educa�on, community outreach supports, and other capacitybuilding interven�ons, and being a protec�ve factor against crime, violence, drug and substance abuse, and promo�ng the Sustainable Development Goals and the role of young people in achieving these goals. 

children at the academy and the young disadvantaged people who consider our engagement remarkable, providing the opportunity for them to engage on issues related to their development and well-being, with an inclusive mechanism for youth empowerment, pu�ng young people at the centre of planning, and shaping their a�tude, behaviour, and learning and making them ac�ve partners, working together with their communi�es and other stakeholders to bring about posi�ve change. 

Our Ac�on Plan for 2025 aims at establishing a Youth Hub/One-Stop-Shop, together with the already established Superstars Academy, focusing on capacity building as a mechanism to promote the development and well-being of children, and disadvantaged young people through our sports-specific interven�ons, relevant workshops, seminars, research, and other interven�ons promo�ng youth leadership/enterprise development, employability/career development, ICT training,  skills training/life skilled educa�on, and addressing socio-economic inequali�es, including gender and health inequali�es and using “Social Prescribing” to support mental well-being. 

u�lised to establish our ongoing engagements, which include the “Superstars Academy”, and “Community Outreach Support” ac�vi�es combined with a “Social Prescribing” approach, reaching out to hard-to-reach children and disadvantaged young people, including those living with disabili�es who are not part of the academy ac�vi�es and are at risk of isola�on, violence, drug, and substance abuse, and going through other socioeconomic inequali�es such as financial stress and mental health challenges. 

In 2024, we received a dona�on of a forty-foot container containing charitable items such as football equipment, learning resources, disabled items, shoes, clothing, etc., and  £6,350 to cover the cost of facilita�ng our exis�ng programs and ac�vi�es, including customs duty, transporta�on, labourers, etc., and running the academy. 

review., The total amount received from donors is £10,350.00 and our team members also contributed to meet other costs. **Income: 2023** : £4,000.00 + **2024:** £6,350.00 = £10,350.00 

## **Chair of Trustees** 

## **Ibrahim Sesay** 



## **Our Strategy and Plans** 

## **Mission Statement** 

by providing support towards sports, educa�on, training, healthcare projects and all the necessary support designed to enable individuals to generate a sustainable income and be 

These objec�ves were created in consulta�on with the Charity Commission UK, with considera�on to the Commission's guidance on public benefit. Our work and engagements are presently helping many people in the UK and Sierra Leone, and we are looking forward to replica�ng our projects and ac�vi�es in other countries, found in our objec�ves. 

Our approach is mainly geared towards capacity-building interven�on, using sports as a pla�orm, with specific aten�on to disadvantaged communi�es, including children and young people, to enhance their social responsibility by empowering young people to have a transforma�ve experience of leading posi�ve social and economic reform to help make a posi�ve difference in their various communi�es and beyond and to inform and influence policies and public awareness towards their development and well-being. 

other regional areas as said in our government document. 

## **Program Ra�onale:** 

**Unemployment:** the youth popula�on aged 15-35 in Sierra Leone, makes up one-third of the country’s overall popula�on, with approximately 70% of young people underemployed or unemployed and an es�mated 800,000 youth are s�ll ac�vely searching for employment. Given the reality that many in the youth popula�on are illiterate and unskilled, but urgently need jobs and other income-genera�ng ac�vi�es. As a result of these shor�alls, young people are prone to involvement in ac�vi�es of violence and drug abuse. 

One of the main issues and challenges regarding youth unemployment in Sierra Leone is the lack of skills training, quality training on employability, the recogni�on of cer�fied skills required, leadership and business enterprise development, and the opportunity for young people to engage in appren�ceship programs and understanding the impact of mental health challenges and the opportuni�es available to support children and young disadvantaged people, including those living with disabili�es. 

**Mental Wellbeing:** In Sierra Leone, the impacts of the eleven-year civil war, Ebola, Mudslide, economic hardship, drug abuse, and elec�on violence, and the impact of COVID-19, are poten�ally genera�ng profound consequences for health and well-being, par�cularly mental health amongst young, disadvantaged people. 



## **Area of Focus:** 

**Sports:** Football Academy/extracurricular ac�vi�es with prac�cal football training, equipping local community teams with football equipment, and promo�ng well-being. 

**Capacity Building:** Youth Leadership, Business Entrepreneurship, employability, skills training, career development, ICT training, relevant workshops/seminars, coaching and mentoring, research, and life skills educa�on. 

**Advocacy:** promo�ng equality, including gender, health, educa�on, and income distribu�on, and advancing the collec�ve goal of a fair and just society,  also promotes the relevancy of the Sustainable Development Goals, the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and the role of young, disadvantaged people and their communi�es in achieving these goals. 

**SDGs:** Sustainable Development Goals relevant to our project objec�ves: **Goal 1:** Eradicate Extreme Poverty, **Goal 2:** Quality Educa�on, **Goal 3:** Promote Equality and Empower Women, **Goal 5:** Improve Mental Health, **Goal 7:** Ensure Environmental Sustainability, and **Goal 8:** Develop Global Partnership. 

**Our Key Objec�ves for the coming year (2025) are set out below:** 

- Take a lead role in tackling youth empowerment, se�ng up our “One-Stop-Shop” opera�onal centre to help implement and monitor our ac�vi�es. 

- Increase our current project ac�vi�es in Sierra Leone to ensure that the most disadvantaged children and young people are reached (for example launching a forward plan of suppor�ng one hundred children and young people in the football Academy). 

- Extend our support base in the UK and embark on fund-raising ini�a�ves and media campaigns. 

## **Ac�on Plan:** 

Our Ac�on Plan for 2025 aims at establishing a Youth Hub/One-Stop-Shop, together with the already established academy, focusing on capacity building as a mechanism to promote the development and well-being of children, and disadvantaged young people through relevant workshops, seminars, research, and other interven�ons promo�ng youth leadership/enterprise development, employability/career development, ICT training,  skills training/life skilled educa�on, and addressing socio-economic inequali�es, including gender and health inequali�es and using “Social Prescribing” to support mental well-being. 



## **Report & Review of Ac�vi�es** 

## **Superstars Academy** 

Our “Superstars Academy” is currently engaging 60 children (males and females) between the ages of 9 and 13 in physical exercise (Football), in a safe place, with qualified Coaches and adequate football equipment to keep them fit, help boost their mood, reduce stress, and be a protec�ve factor against crime,  violence, drug and substances abuse and enhancing their overall physical and mental well-being through our sports-specific interven�ons, using football as a pla�orm. 


Disadvantaged children at the Academy 

**The opera�on �me of the academy:** The Academy runs every Friday and Saturday from 10 am to 2 pm, with qualified coaches, volunteers, teachers/ mentors, and a welfare officer to monitor compliance and work according to our Child Protec�on Policies. Two hours are dedicated to physical exercise (football), and two hours are dedicated to extracurricular (classroom-based) ac�vi�es. 

**Physical exercise (Football):** that include physical exercise training with various other ac�vi�es like prac�cal football and resistance training, along with other cardio workouts, to improve fitness, motor skills, and 



agility, with other stretching exercises to help strengthen muscles, which is good for their overall well-being. 


Children at the Academy engaging in football (physical exercises 

## **Capacity Building/Extracurricular Ac�vi�es:** 

Our Superstars Academy also engages the **60** children (male and female) in extracurricular/classroom-based ac�vi�es such as assis�ng with schoolwork/study skills, summer school, providing ludic games and other par�cipatory interac�on to develop social interac�ve skills, and providing mentoring and volunteering opportuni�es, with a feeding program, incorpora�ng a “Sports methodology” model. 

## **Our Sports Methodology model includes:** 

**Self-competencies:** analysis, resilience, being goal-oriented, and adaptability. 

**Social Competences:** solidarity, coopera�on/teamwork, respect, fair play, and tolerance. 


Classroom-Based/Extracurricular Ac�vi�es: 

We also provide relevant workshops and other awareness-raising programs (gender equality, environmental degrada�on, drug abuse, leadership, business enterprise development and understanding mental health and opportuni�es available to children and disadvantaged 



young people, etc.) to empower these children and young people with the understanding, social skills, and resources they need to foster resilience, building social capital, providing role models, and connec�ng to other services towards their development and wellbeing and also understanding the Sustainable Development Goals and the role of young people and their communi�es achieving these roles. 

## **Community Outreach Ac�vi�es:** 

Our regular community outreach ac�vi�es support engaging about **650** hard-to-reach children and young people in the urban slums, including those living with disabili�es, provide support to local community schools with learning resources, and football equipment, and use “Social Prescribing” to support mental well-being. 

The Social Prescribing approach is a key factor, we use in connec�ng with various community stakeholders, hard-to-reach children, and disadvantaged young people who are not part of the academy and are at risk of isola�on, violence, drug, and substance abuse, and going through other socioeconomic inequali�es such as financial and mental health challenges. 

**Physical exercise (Football):** engaging communi�es in our “Social Prescribing” approach, we frequently organise Inter-Community Football Gala compe��ons for these hard-to-reach children and young people, including those living with disabili�es to improve their physical health and mental well-being, provide access to outdoor space for social interac�on/ cohesion, and provide a regular supply of football equipment to over 50 local community football teams, which include **650** children and young disadvantaged people living in the urban slum, including women/girls between the ages of 14 -26 years. 


Community football gala and physical ac�vi�es as part of our social prescribing approach to support mental wellbeing and promo�ng inclusivity and gender equality. 



## **Capacity-building interven�on:** 

Our capacity-building ac�vi�es are designed to empower local communi�es through a par�cipatory process, including stakeholders and young disadvantaged people in the designing and running of the project to meet the needs of the local communi�es and young people in par�cular. 

Connec�ng with the various communi�es through football, we kept a database of all the community football teams, children, and disadvantaged young people we are engaging with, and helped provide relevant workshops/seminars and research opportuni�es towards their development and well-being and their community at large. 

## **Examples of capacity-building workshops we organised for disadvantaged young people in Freetown:** 

country at large” 

“Understanding mental health, challenges, and opportuni�es available to children and young disadvantaged people,” 

“Understanding gender equality, leadership, and business enterprise development, youth violence including online and offline violence, drug, and substance abuse.” 


Capacity-building workshops for disadvantaged young people 



## **We are promo�ng quality educa�on and suppor�ng deprived community schools with resources.** 

Our Outreach Community engagement has been suppor�ng quality educa�on, and promo�ng reading culture and well-being, by providing learning resources and football equipment, to local community schools, engaging students, leveraging young mentors, and other volunteers to func�on as role models providing one-to-one support, and encouraging children and disadvantaged young people to set goals, improving their academic atainment and confidence to achieve their aspira�ons, and their interest in the sport. 





Distribu�on of learning resources to over 20 deprived local community schools. 

## **Recent distribu�on ac�vi�es** 

From March 9th to 17th, 2024, we distributed a large number of football equipment (jerseys, hoses, tracksuits, etc.) from our 40-� container resources to over 40 community football teams across Freetown and the provincial area. 

communi�es, using football as a pla�orm to encourage them to the sport, promote development and well-being, and act as a civic ac�on entry point to ac�vely engage children and disadvantaged young people in their community ac�vi�es, and develop capacity-building interven�ons, that will lead to the development of innova�ve civic ac�on through leadership acquisi�on, aimed at addressing socio-economic inequali�es, and online and offline violence, including gender-based violence. 



The main purpose of the two-week football gala and distribu�ons of football equipment was to promote community cohesion, physical and mental well-being, the interest of children and young people in sports, and the integra�on of sports into youth crime preven�on and criminal jus�ce strategies and to iden�fy good prac�ces on the use of sports (football) to reduce drug and substance abuse, crime, and violence (online and offline) amongst young people and their communi�es at large. 

Also to promote gender equality in the sport and inclusivity and the vision of the Special Olympic Games by providing opportuni�es for people with disabili�es to develop physical fitness, demonstrate courage, experience joy, and take part in the sharing of gi�s and friendship with other community football teams. 

The strategic objec�ves of both events from the 6th – 17th of May 2023 and the 9th – 17 of March 2024 were to enhance the social responsibility of young people to enable them to have the transforma�ve experience of leading posi�ve socio-economic change towards their development and well-being and inform and influence policy decisions and public awareness raising, workshops, and research programs to understand issues affec�ng children and young people. 

## **Governance** 

## **Status and Objects** 

The charity is a Charitable Incorporated Organisa�on. Our governing document is an adapted Cons�tu�on from the Charity Commission whose only vo�ng members are its charity trustees. Our formal objec�ve is set out in the sec�on on Strategy & Plans on pages…… 

## **Governing Body and Structure** 

Our governing body is made up of a commitee, which is the charity's trustees. At present, we have three trustees and strategic opera�onal advisers who are specialists in all our areas of interven�on. 

We are gradually developing our structure to meet the growing demands of our ac�vi�es/project and the relentless challenges of collabora�ng with disadvantaged communi�es at a cross-na�onal level. All emerging issues of the charity are addressed at the regular monthly mee�ngs, and we are in constant contact with all communi�es we serve and stakeholders, including beneficiaries in Sierra Leone. 

charity registra�on and reviews this accordingly, when necessary. We are constantly checking our performances and du�es, by conduc�ng a regular review of our effec�veness as a charity, based on best prac�ces within the third sector organisa�ons. 

We are well commited to making sure that the prime func�on of the charity embraces good governance, with a specific focus on policy and general strategy, approval of plans, checking of progress, and financial control. 



## **Opera�onal response** 

We con�nue to see our prime func�on as ensuring the good governance of the charity and to this end we focus on maters of policy and general strategy, the approval of plans, the monitoring of progress with charitable projects, and financial control. 

Opera�onal responsibility is delegated to the Programme Director. The Commitee is aided by the Chair who recommends us on governance generally and also acts as Treasurer in monitoring financial maters on our behalf. 

## **Trustees** 

There were no changes during the year. When we recruit, we follow a well-established prac�ce. We conduct a skills audit to find the quali�es looked for in poten�al candidates, and a trustees’ working group manages the appointment process. It is our policy to provide the new trustees with structured induc�on that includes comprehensive documenta�on, individual briefings, and the opportunity to meet our supporters and volunteers. 

## **Financial Review:** 

## Charitable Expenditure 

support we received from only two donors, with a total sum of £10,350.00. It would have not been possible to deliver our project ac�vi�es without this support. 

The breakdown of expenditure is set out below, and details of the project ac�vi�es are in this report. Our policy con�nues to give priority to keeping support for a core project and where we can, to achieve a con�nuing, steady increase in spending to achieve project aims, subject to further financial support from our donors, and supporters. 

The funding was spent on the following: to cover the cost of shipping donated items to Sierra Leone, Trustee air-�cket to and from Sierra Leone, organising workshops, and community football gala/outreach ac�vi�es suppor�ng local schools with learning resources, facilita�ng weekly football and extracurricular ac�vi�es at the Superstars Football Academy which includes ren�ng of pitch, classroom, and salary for Coach and facilitators, local transporta�on, and communica�on to deliver items to beneficiaries in their various communi�es, and remunera�on for volunteers. 

**Income & Expenditure:** 

**Our total Income for 2023:** is                                         £ 4,000.00. **Our total income for 2024:** is                                         £  6,350.00. **Total income:** £10,350.00. **Expenditure:** £   9,350.00 **Balance in account:** £1,000.00 



## **Ac�vi�es/Event Photo Gallery** 





Community Outreach Supports with learning materials, clothing, shoes, etc to 30 community schools, and vulnerable children and their families in the slums. 







Community Outreach Support with football equipment to 50 Local football teams.