Introducing Our Strategic Funding Partners

Place2Be is a leading children’s mental health charity with over 30 years of experience providing in‑school mental health support across the UK, through one‑to‑one and group counselling, early intervention, and a whole‑school approach to wellbeing. Their vision is for all young people to have the support they need to build lifelong coping skills and thrive—an ambition they pursue by delivering high‑quality, clinically‑led support at the right time, deepening their impact across school communities, and using evidence to influence policy and drive lasting change. They work directly with pupils, families, and school staff, offering evidence‑based counselling, expert training, and professional qualifications.
Place2Be’s early intervention helps young people stay engaged in education by reducing absences and suspensions and improving learning and behaviour. All of this helps young people build the stability, resilience, and readiness they need to successfully progress into further education, training, and employment.

Get Further is an education charity that supports young people who have left school without a pass in GCSE English or Maths by providing high‑quality, small‑group tuition that helps them gain essential “gateway” qualifications needed to progress into further study, apprenticeships, and employment. Through research‑informed programmes delivered in further education settings, tutors provide personalised support that builds confidence, strengthens core skills, and complements classroom learning. Their vision is for every young person and adult to achieve the qualifications they need to progress and thrive in education, work, and life. Get Further partners with further education colleges and training providers across England, supporting thousands of learners—with outcomes showing their students make substantially more progress than the national average and achieve pass rates far above national benchmarks.

ThinkForward equip young people facing complex and intersecting barriers to access decent employment. Through long‑term coaching, they help them build essential skills, overcome barriers, and successfully move into education, employment or training. Their 2025-28 strategy aims to support underserved young people across London, Nottingham and Kent to gain the confidence, independence and skills they need for a better and brighter future. Through engaging with employers and creating work-related opportunities, ThinkForward will support more young people to successfully transition into work. Indeed, their flagship FutureMe coaching programme achieved 73% positive destinations for graduates vs. 53% national average.

Street League supports young people aged 16-30 to overcome barriers to employment by building their confidence, skills, and qualifications, and helping them move into the world of work across England and Scotland. Sport sits at the heart of Street League’s approach, recognising the strong links between wellbeing, health, and employment. They work in some of the most underserved communities helping young people develop motivation and essential skills, while also gaining the qualifications needed to progress into sustainable work.

Spear’s vision is for every young person in the UK, regardless of their background, to fulfil their unique potential and contribute to society. That is the goal of the Spear Programme. The Programme offers young people professionally recognised coaching, free of charge, to support them into sustainable work or education. Participants leave Spear equipped to thrive in work and life. Spear has been running the programme for two decades, supporting more than 11,500 young people across 18 centres in the UK. Over 70% of those who complete Spear move into work or education and are still there a year later.