Founding members extol the virtues of The Big Goal

Corporate social responsibility plays a crucial role in how brands are perceived by customers and 32 companies in our industry have now recognised the power The Big Goal initiative can provide.

A nationwide five-a-side tournament, culminating in a final’s day at St George’s Park – the home of England football – coupled with individual sponsorship of Street Soccer Foundation academies across the UK, brings a doubled edged sword of opportunities for The Big Goal founding members.

With over 40 company teams set to play in the tournament, with regional games being played at the training grounds of Chelsea FC, Leicester City FC and Sunderland AFC this spring, a spectacular team bonding programme is gaining momentum.

Moreover, the supporting of academies in sponsor’s local areas, helping disadvantaged young people gain direction in their lives through the power of football, represents a priceless CSR and recruitment opportunity.

In this month’s Kaleidoscope, some of The Big Goal Founding members explain why they have lined up alongside headline sponsor Giacom to support this unique initiative and encourage others to get involved.

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Sam Weller,
HEAD OF WHOLESALE, SKY BUSINESS

As a founding member of the Big Goal initiative, we’re helping to tackle youth homelessness across the UK by supporting the Street Soccer Foundation.Sky is committed to supporting the communities where our customers and employees live and work. Our teams are excited to participate in this programme, we want to give people access to the skills, support and mentoring they need to succeed.

Sohin Raithatha,
CEO, REDSQUID

Redsquid has a strong commitment to supporting charitable initiatives, particularly those that contribute to the well-being of the community. The Big Goal will offer a new and unique opportunity for Redsquid’s workforce to make a direct difference to the lives of disadvantaged young people in our areas of operation. We aim to enhance the Street Soccer Academy experience by providing support, encouragement, resources to aid the community, personal growth and important life skills for participants. We are most looking forward to the sense of camaraderie and community spirit during The Big Goal. It's a fantastic opportunity to bring people together, have some fun, and contribute to a meaningful cause through the joy of playing football.

Ian Walker,
Company Director, FIFTEEN GROUP

Football is popular in our business and in our city, with Port Vale and Stoke City being our local teams. Having our company team in a national industry football tournament is exciting for team building and this is a great vehicle to support and assist young people who are struggling and may be homeless to get into a regular, positive habits through the 10-week Street Soccer Academy programme. We’re seeing more and more people on our streets which is a major problem within Stoke-on-Trent, so it made total sense to support this. I’m looking forward to witnessing how we will make a real contribution to individuals in our local community and seeing Fifteen Group lift the trophy!

Barney Taylor,
CEO, FOCUS GROUP

The Big Goal has presented us with a game-changing opportunity to collaborate with industry partners, friends and colleagues to raise awareness of youth homelessness in the UK. We believe by harnessing the universal spirit of football, we can transform adversity into fresh prospects for young people, foster a sense of belonging and kickstart a future where every goal scored becomes a step closer to ending homelessness. Our team members are keen to use their own experiences to motivate and support the development of social skills, self-awareness, resilience, and teamwork, together with providing job-hunting advice, interview tips and career path insights. We’re also looking forward to having some fun on the pitch and will of course be bringing our competitive spirit!

Brett King,
Account Development Manager, EXCALIBUR COMMUNICATIONS

Hearing the passion Keith Mabbutt, the Street Soccer Foundation’s Chief Executive Officer, has for helping young people via The Big Goal initiative was incredibly infectious and motivated us to sign up. We run a large charity event each year. A couple of our favourites have been the Three Peaks Challenge, when 16 of us smashed all three peaks in 24 hours, and a team of eight completed The Royal British Legion’s Pedal to Paris – a super hard slog over four days on bikes. In both scenarios, we managed to raise a lot of money and made a big difference to a lot of people. Through The Big Goal, we are looking forward to getting to know other people and companies and having fun playing footy together!

Mark Beardsley,
Sales Director, NT VOICE AND DATA

The staff at NT Voice and Data enjoy being involved in team events that support worthwhile causes. The experiences of some of the young people who have been through the academies was inspiring the hear and if our efforts in supporting The Big Goal can help just one more young person to get their life on track, it’s worth the effort. In the past, NT Voice and Data has supported charities through collectively walking and running the distance from Lands End to John O’Groats and back over the course of a month for Motor Neurone Disease Association. During The Big Goal process, we’re looking forward to meeting some great people and, of course, playing in the football tournament!

Dave McGinn
CEO, DAISY COMMUNICATIONS

We’re always looking to support our staff and local communities, so The Big Goal is a great opportunity to do both. We hope we can support young participants in their journey off the streets, facilitate education in important life skills, encourage a healthy lifestyle and a better mindset. There’s nothing like the camaraderie of teams competing together in sport, so this will provide an excellent foundation for them to feel safe and supported in their growth and development.  We love to see talent rewarded, so the real excitement will be seeing the change in these young adults, knowing we’ve supported that. Ultimately, being able to offer opportunities to these individuals and welcome them to Daisy will be the biggest win.

Ellie Allseybrook,
Business Development Director, INFORM BILLING

I have a background in the social housing sector and am a long-time Derby County and England supporter, so the Big Goal and its work to tackle youth homelessness holds a special place in my heart. This is a powerful charitable initiate that our wider team is keen to embrace, whilst coming together and sharing the experience with fellow channel businesses across the industry. We are looking forward to playing a part in supporting hundreds of young people in gaining valuable skills and in turn positively changing their lives. Participating in The Big Goal not only promises to be a fantastic team-building experience, but also a meaningful opportunity to contribute to the impactful work of Street Soccer Academies.

Steffan Dancy, 
Group MD, RYDAL GROUP

We joined The Big Goal to actively contribute to tackling youth homelessness, a pressing issue in the UK. Our passion for social responsibility and belief in the power of collective action drives us to be a part of this significant initiative. By joining forces with others in our sector, we aim to leverage our resources and influence for a greater impact. Importantly, we aim to provide both financial support and technological expertise to enhance experiences at the Street Soccer Academies. Our goal is to help create engaging, effective training and educational environments for the participants, fostering both their soccer skills and personal development. The prospect of seeing real, positive change in our communities is truly motivating for our entire team.

Rob Stevens,
Operations Director, JOLA

When we first heard about The Big Goal, it was the word football that caught my attention as I have played football all my life and I also have two children who play. The launch day gave me the information on how football can be used to help vulnerable, often homeless, young people to learn new life skills. There is a unique opportunity to come together to make a real impact in terms of helping to fund an Academy and help The Street Soccer Foundation offer more courses, in more areas, to help even more people. Jola has previously supported local food bank charities and The Big Goal will offer another unique opportunity to support people in our local area.

Alexandra Stephenson,
Head of Communications, WAVENET

We signed up to The Big Goal because we wanted to support our communities, as well as companies from our own industry. Hopefully our participation and contribution, as well as the potential of young people later enrolling in the Wavenet apprenticeship programme, will make a difference to the Street Soccer Academy participants. Wavenet has recently been supporting the Trussell Trust as its charity of the year, by organising various fundraising activities across its offices. We are excited for Wavenet colleagues to have the opportunity to work together across our different offices, whilst also supporting our local communities and having fun by participating in The Big Goal tournament.