Coca-Cola Great Britain has extended its six-year partnership with doorstep sports charity StreetGames in a move which will bring thousands more opportunities for people to access grassroots sports and activities across the UK.

The new partnership will see StreetGames and Coca-Cola Great Britain work together through to 2020 and is part of the company’s £20 million investment in community-based activity programmes.

For the first time StreetGames will join the company’s ParkLives programme, an initiative which brings free and fun activities to local communities in parks and green spaces across the UK, and help expand it to thirty-five new locations across England, Scotland and Wales.

Local projects that ParkLives will now reach through the StreetGames partnership include:

  •  Sporting Futures - a small charity based across Derbyshire which improves the lives of young people through engagement in sports participation, volunteering, health initiatives and education, training and employment

  •  Youth Almighty Youth Project – operating in Sunderland, the project is supported by youth workers and volunteers to deliver a variety of sessions for young people, including regular outdoor activities, residential weekends and one-to-one support

  •  Denis Law Legacy Trust – based in Aberdeen, the Trust works with partners like StreetGames to encourage young people to take part in and enjoy sports, whatever their background

Coca-Cola Great Britain and StreetGames have worked together since October 2010, helping to bring sport to the doorsteps of more than 165,000 young people. Through the award-winning* partnership, Coca-Cola Great Britain has used its global network to offer opportunities to young people and coaches from the StreetGames charity.

This includes creating work experience opportunities for forty-five young people at the London 2012 Olympic & Paralympic Games, and investing in StreetGames' Neighbourhood Festivals and other mass participation events. The largescale events have attracted over 60,000 young people from disadvantaged communities across the UK to take part in StreetGames.

The company also helped to set up the StreetGames Training Academy, which has provided qualifications to 11,000 young people and developed over thirty-three different courses over the last three years, including the Level 2 multi-sport qualification aimed at producing the next generation of community sports coaches.

Liz Lowe, Sustainability Manager, Coca-Cola Great Britain said: "We're delighted to be extending our partnership with StreetGames and look forward to working together to provide even more opportunities for young people across the UK to enjoy activities and sports in their local community. We have a long heritage of bringing people together and supporting local communities and grassroots organisations and our new partnership builds on that.

"The charity works for social good in the communities that need it most, and the StreetGames network will be vital in extending the ParkLives programme to reach thousands more people nationwide".

Jane Ashworth, Chief Executive of StreetGames, said: "Through our partnership with Coca-Cola Great Britain we've been able to bring sporting opportunities to 165,000 young people across the UK. It's also helped us to give young people once in a lifetime opportunities – from working at the London 2012 Olympic Games to leading out the England team at the FIFA™ World Cup.

"Our approach has always been about taking sport and physical activity right to the doorsteps of young people in disadvantaged communities. Local parks provide the perfect place to get young people together - not only is the activity free but it's in a familiar environment.

"We are looking forward to continuing to work together through ParkLives to have a positive impact on disadvantaged neighbourhoods and motivate more young people to live active lifestyles".

Launched in 2014 and delivered in partnership with local authorities, ParkLives offers hundreds of free and fun activity sessions in local parks, from Tai Chi and paddle boarding, to roller skating and Zumba. The programme encourages people of all ages and abilities to get outdoors, make the most of their local park, meet new people and enjoy new experiences. ParkLives currently runs in ten core towns and cities including Birmingham, Dundee, Glasgow, Manchester, Newcastle, Nottingham, Newham (London), Swansea, Southampton and Stoke-on-Trent.

Established in 2005, StreetGames helps to make sport more widely available for young people living in disadvantaged communities throughout the UK. The benefits of this ‘doorstep sports’ approach include providing a wide range of sports and activities in the right style, at the right time. StreetGames aims to bring sport directly to young people with appropriately qualified coaches, so that they can access a vibrant and varied sporting offering, while developing their confidence and capabilities through volunteering and leadership opportunities.

* Business Charity Awards, UK Coaching Awards, Corporate Engagement Awards