Foundation projects nominated at 2014 BT Sport Industry Awards

E18HTEEN and Inclusive and Active 2 up for Best Community Programme of the Year

Two Tottenham Hotspur Foundation projects have been shortlisted in the Community Programme of the Year category at tonight’s BT Sport Industry Awards.

E18HTEEN, developed to support vulnerable young people in care and care leavers, has been nominated alongside the pan-London disability strategy Inclusive and Active 2, developed and delivered by Interactive in partnership with Tottenham Hotspur Foundation and the Greater London Authority (GLA).

Set up in 2011 with the backing of Jermain Defoe during his time at the Club, E18HTEEN has worked with over 160 young people within one of the most vulnerable groups in society. Through the project, the Foundation has offered more than 5000 hours of one-to-one mentoring and access to training and employment opportunities for young people in care or care leavers aged between 16-19.

Delivered in partnership with the GLA and four local borough councils, E18HTEEN aims to address the statistic that 29 per cent of young people who have been in care or are care leavers are currently not in education, employment or training, compared with 13 per cent of all young people in the UK.

Of those involved in the project, 80 per cent have gone on to achieve at least one formal qualification, with 78 per cent supported to stay in or get back in to education.

E18HTEEN has empowered the young people involved to make positive life choices that can aid their transition to adulthood, and has been instrumental in improving self-confidence, resilience, assertiveness and communication, and developing life skills such as timekeeping, travel, money management and cooking.

Inclusive and Active 2, described as the “gold standard of disability sport” by Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has been embraced by over 100 agencies in London and beyond, changing the culture of sport and physical activity and creating over 25,000 new opportunities for disabled people to be active.

Delivered by Interactive, in partnership with Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, the Greater London Authority and NHS London, the strategy has been implemented by organisations ranging from London borough councils and national governing bodies to grassroots community sports clubs and disability charities.

Through the investment and significant staffing support from Tottenham Hotspur Foundation via the Premier League/PFA Community Fund, the programme has driven inclusive opportunities and sports participation across London.

Grant Cornwell MBE, Chief Executive Officer, Tottenham Hotspur Foundation, said: “E18HTEEN and Inclusive and Active 2 have achieved incredible results in a short space of time. Both projects are unique in the sport industry as they use the appeal of the Tottenham Hotspur brand to deliver opportunities that can help to change the lives of so many individuals.

“We hope that being shortlisted for such a prestigious award will help to raise the profile of these fantastic projects that provide better access to sport, employment opportunities and support networks for some of the most vulnerable people in our communities."

Interactive’s Chief Executive Rebecca Dance said: “To be shortlisted for the BT Sport Industry Awards after such a competitive and rigorously judged process is a fantastic achievement and an honour. The ‘Inclusive and Active 2’ programme is leading a cultural shift to support the sport and physical activity sector; ensuring disabled people are included in all aspects of sport delivery and the workforce. The programme would not be such a success without the support of the GLA and Tottenham Hotspur Foundation and all our 110 adopted partners.”

The BT Sport Industry Awards recognise and reward the best the sport business has to offer in marketing, PR, sponsorship, new media, governance, advertising and design. The flagship event is Europe’s largest and most prestigious commercial sport awards. The star-studded awards ceremony takes place tonight at Battersea Evolution, London.