Gareth Swift, 19, has set up and now runs a successful junior football club for ‘at risk’ kids in his local area around the Manor Estate in Sheffield through his hard work, commitment, and limitless motivation,

After an initial involvement in organising local football tournaments for his peers to compete in, Gareth decided to start his football project. With the help of friends and volunteers he wanted to provide a constructive, extracurricular activity for young children aged 10-18. The idea was to engage young people in positive activities rather than hanging around on the streets as is often too much the case in his area.

It was through using his influence as a well known young person in his community that Gareth persevered in pushing for free use of his local sports centre and raising money for training equipment and kits. His efforts resulted in around 25 young people turning up two nights a week to play football at his sessions.

The admiration that Gareth has achieved through running this project has led to young people following his advice a looking to become involved in other community based projects opening up a range of other activities, especially focused on the environment. These are aimed at benefiting the elderly and vulnerable residents in Manor Estate and to help reduce their fear of youth crime; “We’re trying to keep these kids off the street, and get them doing something positive”.

The personal connection that Gareth has come to develop with the young people he works with has been an amazing one that has enabled him to become the matured and respectful young man he now is.

Once an aggressive and troublesome teenager like the ‘at risk’ kids he is now helping, Gareth has changed in the words of his youth worker Donna Jones, from being a “competitive to co-operative young man, enthusiastic to help others better themselves like he has for himself.”

Although he has left education, and currently unemployed, the fulfilment and sense of achievement that Gareth gets out of his voluntary work is something he relishes. For him, and his long term plans are to continue regardless of whether or not he wins a Young Achievers Award. “I would carry on and keep working at trying to keep these kids out of trouble…they need what I’m doing at the end of the day, and if we would get more funding I’d be glad to see more people doing the same to help”.