Sport can change people’s lives. That’s what our Hat-Trick project has shown over nine years working in Newcastle’s West End.
Founded in 2005, Hat-Trick has worked with over 10,000 children and young people, and helped over 100 Newcastle residents to gain FA coaching awards.
Newcastle is a football-mad city, so the game is an ideal way to help young people gain skills and confidence – while having a great time along the way.
It doesn’t matter how good a young person is at football: it’s about using sport as a hook to help young people develop and become more confident.
“Volunteering and sport really can change lives,” says Hat-Trick volunteer Michael Gardner. “I’ve seen young people change their attitude, change their behaviour, and become better people.” Michael, who lives in Elswick, qualified as a coach through Hat-Trick before moving on to spend World Cup year in Brazil coaching disadvantaged children and coordinating 200 volunteers from around the world.
It’s just one of the team’s achievements since it was founded in 2005 by New Deal for Communities and the Football Association:
- Hat-Trick’s good practice was showcased by a royal visit by FA President HRH The Duke of Cambridge
- Hat-Trick’s WAGS – Women and Girls’ Soccer – group won the National Lottery Award for Best Sports Project in 2013, as part of the national Us Girls network
- 15 Hat-Trick coaches worked with the street children in South Africa during the 2010 FIFA World Cup
- Several volunteers have won national awards – as well as travelling to Switzerland, Namibia, South Africa, Poland & the 2012 Olympics.
- Hat-Trick has featured prominently in the media – including the Daily Telegraph, BBC Look North, the Mirror and the South African Times
Hat-Trick’s roots are firmly in the West End – but the team now works with schools and youth organisations throughout Newcastle and the North East, including the Byker Community Trust (right, with Newcastle United manager Alan Pardew).
To find out more about Hat-Trick, call 0191 406 0291, email admin@hattrickproject.org or follow @hattrick_LS4C or @hattrickwags on Twitter.
