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The Change Foundation has launched an ambitious new five-year plan, setting the course for the journey towards a major milestone, the charity’s 50th anniversary in 2031.
Called “The Next Five”, the strategy outlines how the charity will grow its reach, deepen its impact, and reimagine what sport can mean for young people who are too often left out.
For more than four decades, The Change Foundation has used sport to support young people facing challenge, exclusion, and inequality. But this new chapter is about doing more and doing it differently.
“This next chapter isn’t about perfection,” said CEO Navjeet Sira. “It’s about honesty. It’s about creating spaces where young people feel seen, safe, and able to begin again.”
From Brixton to the Future
The organisation’s story began in 1981, during a period of tension and unrest in London. Amid the aftermath of the Brixton riots, founder Andy Sellins OBE, a young cricketer at the time, made a simple but powerful decision: instead of asking local young people to move off the pitch, he invited them to play.
That moment sparked what would become the London Community Cricket Association, now known as The Change Foundation. Over the years, that spark has grown into a movement that uses sport to build confidence, connection, and opportunity.
Today, the organisation carries that same spirit forward, guided by lived experience and shaped by the communities it serves.
Five Goals for the Next Five Years
The Next Five strategy sets out five clear goals to be achieved by 2031.
These include expanding into 50 new places, training a new generation of coaches through the Coaching for Change model, and transforming the organisation’s Cricket Centre into a youth-designed community space.
The plan also includes a global celebration called The Spirit of ’81, honouring 50 years of impact through events led by alumni and partners across the world.
At the heart of the strategy is a commitment to placing emotional wellbeing at the centre of sport, recognising that many young people carry unseen challenges.
Building Towards 50 Years of Change
As the charity approaches its 50th anniversary, The Next Five represents both reflection and renewal, a chance to honour its origins while preparing for the future.
The message is simple: change doesn’t happen to communities, it happens with them.
And over the next five years, The Change Foundation aims to build not just programmes, but places where young people can find stability, purpose, and hope.
The Next Five strategy is available to read here.
