About the project

Strood Boxing Club was founded 17 years ago to support a deprived community, to provide a safe, affordable space for individuals aged 8-40 to learn boxing, gain confidence, and access new opportunities. Refuse collector by day, gym owner/coach by night, Chris Ripley has built a community to be proud of at his club.

This is our second project funded by Medway Council through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund, following our previous project at Anchorians Sports Club – all helping to boost pride in place in Medway.

The project:

VIY has refurbished the gym by fixing and reboarding a bowing ceiling to boost warmth and safety repairing walls, doors, and ceilings, and refreshing both the interior and exterior to create a more welcoming environment. These improvements aim to attract more members, particularly women, while helping the club continue its vital work of mentoring and empowering the local community.

The impact:

• A club transformed boosted from a makeshift, grassroots space into a more welcoming, inclusive and professional space – boosted to help even more local young people and in particular, help to welcome more young women into boxing
• 18 NEET/at risk young people took part in the project, referred from local youth referral partners including DOMEG, the looked after team at Kent County Council, Medway 16+ leaving care team, Nacro – Medway & The Rowans Alternative Provision
• 15 gained a City & Guilds Entry Level 3 accreditation in Painting & Decorating or Health & Safety
• Chris Ripley, Owner at Strood Boxing Club told us: “Huge thank you to VIY and all your team, we really do appreciate everything you have done for our little club.  Our community was a desperately deprived estate – nothing for the kids was available without costing a small fortune. I have been involved in the art of boxing since the age of seven and searched for the opportunity to help my community and help education towards the sport and benefits it give a individual. From day one it was needed and over the years we have helped not only keep the kids of the street but put them on the right path for later on, helping with employment opportunities and support for the mothers of our boxers too.” 
• Local Active Partnership Active Kent also visited the project and told us: “It was a real pleasure to visit the project at Strood ABC. Getting to meet the young people working on the project and seeing first-hand the impact these projects have, not only for the improvement of local venues but also for the development of the young people working on them.”

About the UK Shared Prosperity Fund

The UK Shared Prosperity Fund provides £2.6 billion of funding for local investment by March 2025. The Fund aims to improve pride in place and increase life chances across the UK investing in communities and place, supporting local business, and people and skills. For more information, visit https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-shared-prosperity-fund-prospectus