My initiative is designed for and delivered in London
Yes
I am 18 years of age or above, by the application deadline.
Yes
My organisation is a registered legal entity
Yes
My organisation is a non-profit (e.g. school, university, or local authority) — not a for-profit, which can only join as a partner.
Yes
If there is a for-profit organisation as a partner in my initiative, they work on a cost-recovery basis only.
Yes
My solution is implemented at scale, or if not, I have a clear business plan, a minimum viable solution (prototype, pilot, or proof of concept), and evidence of work or impact in London within your coalition.
Yes
I am aware that, if I am submitting more than one application to a Challenge run by Ashoka and Go! London, only one of them is able to progress through the stages.
Yes
Are you an employee (and their children and grandchildren) of Ashoka or any of its respective affiliates and participating advertising and promotion agencies?
No
I have read and accepted the Challenge Terms & Conditions
1
First Name
Last Name
Pronouns
Email address
I would like to receive notifications and updates about Go London!, Ashoka, Ashoka Changemakers, and other Ashoka opportunities.
Are you an Ashoka Fellow?
Are you applying from an organization founded by an Ashoka Fellow?
If you are applying from an organization founded by an Ashoka Fellow, please specify the name and organisation of the fellow below.
Initiative Title
Active Roots Camden: Inclusive Movement and Play for Excluded Young People
Lead Organization Name
LONDON ROOTS FOR CHANGE CIC
My initiative is designed for and delivered in London
1
Year that you started/ registered your organisation
2024
Website URL(s) or Social Media Handles
https://www.rootsforchangeuk.com/ Facebook: facebook.com/rootsforchangeuk Instagram: @rootsforchangeuk Twitter (X): @roots4changeuk (if active) LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/rootsforchangeuk
Initiative Stage
Idea (You have a solid concept and are hoping to get started in the future)
Sectors/Themes: What topic does your project most directly relate to?
Children & Youth
Initiative Summary: Describe your initiative in one sentence
Active Roots Camden is a youth-led initiative reimagining a trusted community space in Camden into a safe, inclusive movement and play hub for BAME children and young people who are excluded from mainstream sport and physical activity.
Challenge Focus: What topic does your initiative most directly relate to?
Enabling climate-resilient participation
The Problem: What problem are you helping to solve and who will benefit the most from your solution? How close are you to the problem and/or community impacted?
Many BAME children and young people in Camden are excluded from safe, accessible spaces for sport and play. Young people we work with — including refugees, asylum seekers, and those from low-income migrant families — often live in overcrowded housing, rely on overstretched public services, and feel unsafe or unwelcome in mainstream sports settings. Cultural barriers, language, cost, racism, and trauma all play a role. There is a serious lack of local, culturally inclusive, youth-friendly space where these young people can move, play and feel they belong. Girls in particular tell us they don’t feel seen or safe in outdoor spaces. Others struggle with confidence or have never been part of organised activity before. We are rooted in this community — our team includes youth volunteers and parents with lived experience of the asylum system and local inequalities. We’ve run informal sessions at St Vincent’s in Camden and spoken to over 60 families through outreach, WhatsApp groups and drop-ins. They’ve told us what’s missing — and this initiative is our response. We’re not an outside agency trying to “reach” this group. We are the group. This matters to us because we see every day how movement, play and trust can unlock confidence and connection.
Your approach: How are you addressing the problem outlined above? How are you using the power of sport and physical activity to build awareness, shift behavior, and enable sustainable participation for all in response to the climate crisis? We'd love to know about the origin of your idea, and what was your "aha" moment" that led you to take action?
Our approach is to reimagine a trusted, underused space (St Vincent’s in Camden) as a flexible, inclusive movement hub designed by and for BAME young people who are excluded from mainstream sport and play. Through weekly Zumba, boxing basics, creative games and youth-led movement sessions, we’ll make physical activity joyful, safe and culturally relevant. This is about building confidence and connection — not competition. We’ll run 3 sessions a week (after school and weekends), supported by trained volunteers and peer leaders. Sessions will be low-equipment, low-waste and rooted in principles of climate resilience: using existing space instead of building new, travelling locally, walking to sessions, reusing materials, and delivering outdoors when possible. For many participants, this will be their first consistent experience of joyful, safe movement. Our “aha” moment came from a wellbeing workshop we trialled for young migrant girls. They told us they didn’t feel welcome in parks, felt judged in leisure centres, and didn’t see people like them leading activities. When asked what space they’d design, they said: “a place we can move without pressure, music we choose, people we trust.” That was the start of Active Roots Camden. Our initiative uses the power of movement to build belonging — and the power of co-design to shift how young people see space, sustainability and each other. Where possible, we’ll extend sessions outdoors into nearby green spaces like Talacre Gardens or Cantelowes Park, giving young people a positive relationship with nature, fresh air, and public space — on their terms.
Collaboration with young people and the community: In what ways does your initiative engage young people and community members closest to the problem? What role do they play in building the solution you deliver?
Young people are not just participants in Active Roots Camden — they’re the driving force. This initiative was born out of listening to young BAME people in Camden, particularly refugee and asylum-seeking girls, who told us they didn’t feel safe or welcome in mainstream sport and play spaces. We also engaged them through a series of wellbeing workshops and conversations held at St Vincent’s. When asked what they wanted from sport and play, their answers were clear: “somewhere close,” “somewhere fun,” “somewhere without judgment,” and “with people like us running it. We heard comments like: “parks aren’t for people like us,” or “I’ve never had a chance to join in.” That was our call to act — and to build something with them, not for them. We set up a small advisory group of Youth Play Ambassadors (aged 14–19) who co-designed the idea from the ground up. They chose the music, tested movement games, mapped safe local spaces, and helped plan how to make sessions welcoming. They’ll also co-lead parts of the programme, welcome new attendees, and run regular youth-led feedback circles. We use accessible tools like sticker voting, “You Said – We Did” walls, and interactive planning games to shape the programme around what young people want — and don’t want. Nothing is fixed; the programme evolves with them. Local parents and community members — especially mothers — play a big role too, helping with session setup, language support, and safety. Many are migrants themselves and understand the barriers young people face. By placing young people at the centre of planning, delivery and reflection, we’re building more than a programme. We’re building community ownership, confidence, and future leaders who see movement as something that belongs to them — not just to others.
Potential for/Evidence of Impact: How do you imagine your initiative will make a difference in raising climate awareness, shifting behaviors, or reducing environmental impact or harm? If you have already implemented it, what difference have you made so far? What is the impact your initiative has had¡, and/or what impact do you envision having in the future?
We believe our initiative can create lasting change by shifting how excluded young people engage with movement, community space, and the environment around them. Our impact isn’t just physical — it’s behavioural. Young people begin to see movement and will be both immediate and long-term. In the short term, we’ll engage 60 BAME children and young people aged 8–18 through weekly inclusive movement sessions. Our pilot activities already show demand — 40+ young people attended taster sessions at St Vincent’s and told us they felt “free,” “less anxious,” and “like we mattered.” Many had never attended a structured activity before. One 13-year-old said, “I didn’t know something like this could be for people like us.” We’ll also involve 10 volunteers, including 6 Youth Play Ambassadors and 4 parent/community stewards, in shaping and running weekly sessions. This creates local capacity and builds intergenerational community ownership. Parents gain confidence, young leaders gain purpose, and both become visible role models for younger attendees. Our sessions build climate resilience by encouraging walkable, local play; using low-carbon indoor venues and outdoor spaces like Cantelowes Park; and reusing equipment and materials. Youth leaders will run a “walk-to-play” campaign and co-design upcycled kits and games using repurposed materials. Over time, we aim to grow a local network of peer-led play leaders, embedding sustainable, inclusive activity into the heart of Camden’s BAME communities. We also plan to share our model through toolkits and open sessions with other migrant- and youth-led groups. This is about more than reducing harm — it’s about reclaiming space, building pride, and giving young people a climate-conscious, joyful way to move in the world.
Innovation: What is different about your initiative compared to other solutions that are already out there? How is your approach original and innovative?
What makes our project different is that it doesn’t try to “include” young people in existing sports models — it reimagines the space and structure entirely, based on what BAME children and young people actually want and need. Most sport or play programmes in Camden operate within traditional, often rigid settings: competitive sport, leisure centres, outdoor spaces that aren’t culturally safe or emotionally accessible. These environments exclude young people who feel judged, unsafe, or simply unwelcome — particularly girls, refugee youth, and those who’ve never had positive play experiences. Our innovation is in shifting who designs the space, how it’s used, and what “movement” looks like. Our sessions are co-designed by Youth Play Ambassadors. We use low-pressure formats like music-led movement, boxing basics, and games built around confidence and trust — not competition. It’s play, but it’s also emotional recovery and community-building. We also challenge environmental norms. Rather than building new spaces, we reuse and adapt existing ones (like St Vincent’s and Cantelowes Park). We reduce the need for travel, use upcycled materials, and promote “walk-to-play” habits. It’s sport for sustainability, led by the people who need it most. And we’re building new leadership pathways. Our peer delivery model puts migrant and BAME young people in visible roles of confidence and care — shifting how they see themselves and how others see them. This isn’t a drop-in project It’s a structural shift in how we think about accessing exercise, this model could disrupt traditional commissioning by showing what’s possible when migrant-led communities are resourced to lead. It’s practical, scalable, and ready to be replicated by other grassroots groups across London.
Roles and Responsibilities: Describe how responsibilities are shared among your team or partners.
Active Roots Camden is led by LONDON ROOTS FOR CHANGE CIC, a migrant- and youth-led organisation based in Camden. Responsibilities are shared across staff, youth leaders, volunteers, and local delivery partners to ensure community ownership and sustainability. • Project Lead (1 person): Oversees coordination, safeguarding, monitoring, and delivery. Acts as the main contact with partners and supports youth leadership development. • Youth Play Ambassadors (6 young people aged 14–19): Co-design and co-deliver weekly sessions, lead feedback processes, support social media and outreach, and co-host open days. • Sessional Facilitators (2–3): Deliver inclusive physical activity (e.g. Zumba, boxing basics, dance games) and co-create activities with young people. • Parent/Community Volunteers (4): Support with set-up, language translation, refreshments, safeguarding presence, and outreach to new families. • St Vincent’s Centre, Camden: Core delivery venue, providing indoor space at low cost and access to a trusted environment already used by local BAME families. • Rhyl Primary School and Regent High School: Partners for outreach and referrals of young people facing barriers to mainstream sport and play. • Camden Youth Early Help Service: Advising on safeguarding, youth mental health pathways, and appropriate referrals. • Camden CAMHS (via Lifecycle Service): Signposting young people who may benefit from low-pressure, wellbeing-focused activity. • Kentish Town City Farm and North London Cares: Potential partners for outdoor activity days and intergenerational movement programmes. Weekly planning meetings, shared delivery documents, and regular check-ins ensure everyone knows their role and feels part of building something meaningful, safe, and youth-led.
Viability and Scalability: How are you setting your organization up for success, and what is your plan to ensure operational sustainability of your solution and its impact? What are your ideas for scaling your initiative to the next level?
We’re setting Active Roots Camden up for success by starting with a small, replicable model — rooted in community, youth-led, and deliverable using existing spaces. By keeping our delivery cost-effective, low-carbon, and based on trusted local relationships, we are building something that is financially and operationally sustainable. To support long-term delivery, we are developing a local Youth Play Leadership Pathway, with paid progression for peer leaders through sessional roles and training. This reduces reliance on external staff and builds leadership from within. We are building partnerships with Camden Council, schools, and NHS services to embed Active Roots in referral pathways and secure venue access and in-kind support. We’re also applying to Camden Giving, Sport England Small Grants, and local foundations for continuation funding. To support long-term viability, we plan to introduce a low-cost community hire model — offering mini activity blocks and co-designed wellbeing sessions to local schools, youth groups, and housing associations, delivered by trained youth leaders. This earned income will help subsidise our free-to-access core programme. Our long-term aim is to share the model through an Active Roots Toolkit, expand to other boroughs, and build a youth-led, community-embedded movement that reimagines play as a right — not a privilege.
Upcoming Milestones: Please provide an overview of the milestones that are required for your initiative to come to fruition/ to grow.
Upcoming Milestones for Active Roots Camden 1. Community Mobilisation & Co-Design (April–May 2026) • Recruit and train 6 Youth Play Ambassadors • Host 2 co-design workshops with BAME young people at St Vincent’s • Confirm delivery partners and safeguarding protocols • Finalise session timetable and outreach plan 2. Programme Launch (June 2026) • Begin weekly delivery (3 sessions per week: movement, creative play, wellbeing drop-in) • Deliver first outdoor session at Cantelowes Park or Talacre Gardens • Launch “Walk-to-Play” campaign led by youth ambassadors • Activate referral links with local schools and Camden Youth Early Help 3. Community Feedback & Iteration (July–August 2026) • Collect session feedback using youth-designed tools • Host mid-point “What’s Working” reflection day • Adapt timetable and activities based on participant voice 4. Climate-Resilient Practice Integration (September-October 2026) • Introduce upcycled equipment and low-waste delivery methods • Expand outdoor delivery blocks • Explore partnerships with environmental or sustainability groups 5. Toolkit Development & Sharing (November- December 2026) • Begin drafting the “Active Roots Play Toolkit” for replication • Host open session for other grassroots groups to observe model • Identify next borough for potential scale-up (e.g. Newham, Islington) 6. Evaluation & Next Stage Planning (January 2027–March 2027) • Compile data, case stories and impact report • Secure continuation funding and develop sustainability plan • Present findings to Camden Council and potential commissioners
Capacity-Building Participation and Support Funding: If you were to make it as a finalist, you will be required to participate in an 8-week capacity building programme. If funding/ cost is a barrier to your participation, we may be able to offer up to 10,000 GBP of grant money available to support you. Please break down below, if it is the case, what costs you would incur and you would need covered. (Please note that there are restrictions on how the grant money may be used; please refer to the T&Cs for further details (LINK).
Here’s a clear and reasonable breakdown of costs that LONDON ROOTS FOR CHANGE CIC could request under the £10,000 Capacity-Building Participation and Support Fund, assuming you’re selected as a finalist for the Go! London Open Innovation Challenge: ⸻ Yes, we would require support to fully participate in the 8-week Capacity Building Project. As a small, community-led CIC with limited unrestricted funds, participation would incur costs related to staff time, volunteer support, travel, and accessibility. Below is a breakdown of the support we would need to ensure meaningful engagement in the project: Cost Item Amount (£) Explanation Project Lead Backfill Time £3,000 2 days/week x 8 weeks @ £187.50/day – to attend training and implement learning Youth Play Ambassador Participation £2,000 Honoraria for 4 youth leaders @ £250 each for active participation/input Travel & Lunch Expenses (staff/youth) £1,200 Public transport and food allowance for in-person sessions (8 weeks) Accessibility/Childcare Support £800 Enabling staff/volunteers with caring duties to participate Interpretation/Translation (if needed) £500 To make sessions accessible to team members where required Digital Access (e.g. Zoom, devices) £500 Supporting equitable online participation Space Hire for Local Reflection Days £500 Room hire for team reflection/feedback sessions during the programme Admin/Monitoring Support £500 Part-time support for logging, feedback, and follow-up Total £9,000 We are committed to full participation and would reinvest this support into delivering long-term impact in Camden through the learning gained.
