our IMPACT (2023-2024 latest report)

This year has been one of meaningful progress and deepening impact as we continue to champion healthier, more active lives for children, young people, and families across Gloucestershire. From expanding our reach to strengthening our foundations, every step we’ve taken has been rooted in our mission to help every child thrive.

We have been successful in securing our first multi-year funding from both Barnwood Trust and BBC Children in Need. This has enabled us to create a new Head of SEND role — a vital step in our commitment to improving outcomes and opportunities for children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities across the county.

Strengthening our governance has been another area of focus. We welcomed a new Chair and two new trustees to our Board, bringing a broader range of expertise and fresh perspectives. We also established a Finance, Audit and Risk Sub-Committee, and achieved Cyber Essentials certification — adding further rigour to our data and digital practices.

Our programmes continue to grow in both scale and impact. More than 10,000 children took part in festivals and competitions — from tag rugby to gymnastics to inclusive bowling. Our swimming interventions, delivered in partnership with local schools and charities, supported 128 children, with 82% showing improved water confidence and safety.

We continued to evolve our community-based provision, launching Mighty Movers for pre-school children and their families — 127 free sessions saw over 2,000 attendances. Meanwhile, Move More Clubs offered fun, non-competitive opportunities for local children to be active, reaching over 700 attendances in Cheltenham across St Paul’s, Coronation Square, and The Moors.

In schools, the Creating Active Schools programme entered its second year, with nine primary schools participating. Funded by Public Health Gloucestershire and Active Gloucestershire, the programme showed strong outcomes, including a 12% improvement across key indicators like policy, environment, and leadership. Schools also benefited from direct support through headteacher meetings and Communities of Practice.

We also delivered a targeted CPD project in partnership with the Diocese of Gloucester Academies Trust, working with 24 primary schools to address school attendance. Grounded in empathy, collaboration and practical strategies, the programme has sparked a cultural shift across the Trust. The results speak volumes: 73% of participating schools are now performing well above the national average for attendance, including 82% above average for children eligible for pupil premium.

Our work with families continues to be a vital pillar of what we do. This year, we provided 1:1 support to 103 families and engaged 1,443 parents overall. Encouragingly, 89% of parents told us their family life had improved as a result of our support, and 100% said they would recommend the service to others.

Our holiday provision reached new heights this year. We opened two new physical activity camp sites and added wraparound care in Tredington, bringing our total number of Ofsted-registered sites to seven. In total, 6,276 children attended our camps — including 328 inclusive days delivered for 27 children with SEND. Parent feedback remained strong, with an average satisfaction score of 4.64 out of 5.

We also helped bridge the holiday gap for many families. Through the Holiday Activities and Food (HAF) programme, we delivered 51 days of free activity and meals, supporting over 1,300 children on free school meals. Additionally, 198 young people aged 11 to 16 accessed 310 days of enriching activities — from bouldering to ice skating and bowling.

A key milestone was the relaunch of our apprenticeship programme in partnership with a new local training provider. Welcoming three new apprentices, we’re proud to be supporting young people into meaningful careers while also investing in the future sustainability of our own workforce.

None of this would be possible without the unwavering commitment of our team, the trust placed in us by school, families, partners and funders. Thank you for your continued support as we work to build healthier, more active futures for children and families across Gloucestershire.

2020-2021