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 UK entity and has a London-based address.
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
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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
Clean Kicks - South London
Lead Organization Name
Rio Ferdinand Foundation
My initiative is designed for and delivered in London
1
Year that you started/ registered your organisation
2012
Website URL(s) or Social Media Handles
https://www.linkedin.com/company/rio-ferdinand-foundation/posts/?feedView=all, https://x.com/riofoundation, https://www.instagram.com/rioferdinandfoundation, https://www.facebook.com/RioFoundation
Initiative Stage
Growth (You’ve moved past the very first activities; working towards the next level of expansion.)
Sectors/Themes: What topic does your project most directly relate to?
Children & Youth
Initiative Summary: Describe your initiative in one sentence
Building on a successful Manchester pilot, the Rio Ferdinand Foundation will team up with Millwall Community Trust [Football Foundations - MUF, Palace,] and nine Harris secondary schools to deliver Clean Kicks – [South?] London ; transforming discarded trainers and football boots into a creative, income‑building pathway that empowers young people, cuts waste, and energises climate awareness across local communities.
Challenge Focus: What topic does your initiative most directly relate to?
Climate action through awareness and engagement
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?
Young people across London — especially those facing financial pressure, anxiety, exclusion from mainstream education or limited access to opportunity — often feel disconnected from routes into employment, creativity and climate action. At the same time, the UK discards millions of trainers each year, contributing to fast‑fashion waste, carbon emissions & wider environmental harm. Many young people we work with want to engage in sustainability but lack accessible, hands‑on entry points that feel relevant to their lives. Trainers hold cultural significance: they reflect identity, aspiration and belonging. For young people from low‑income households, pressure to own the ‘right’ trainers can affect confidence, self‑esteem and decision‑making. When trainers are worn out or discarded, they become both an environmental burden and a missed opportunity. Clean Kicks responds to this intersection of social inequity and waste. The young people we support face climate injustice alongside economic barriers that limit their ability to take meaningful climate action. Many come from households where creative materials, resources and entrepreneurial opportunities are out of reach. By grounding climate education in something familiar and culturally meaningful — footwear — we create a pathway that is tangible, relevant and accessible to those closest to both the problem and the solution.
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?
Clean Kicks uses the power of creativity, culture and hands‑on making to build climate awareness and behaviour change among young people. Through footwear upcycling, participants clean, customise, repair and reimagine used trainers that would otherwise end up in landfill. This practical process makes sustainability real and relatable — turning abstract climate concepts into personal, visible action. Our approach blends youth work, arts, design, entrepreneurship and environmental education. With support from trained youth workers, designers and creative industry professionals, young people gain accredited qualifications, business and marketing skills, and the confidence to turn an upcycled pair of trainers into income or a micro‑enterprise. They learn to price their work, tell their story, photograph their products, and sell them online — connecting climate action with economic opportunity. The idea originated from recognising how strongly footwear culture resonates with young people, and how the trainer market creates vast waste streams. The “aha moment” came when we saw how a single donated pair could become a creative canvas, a tool for learning, and a route to financial empowerment. [Ryan's story - side hustle] Our model includes both small‑group workshops and tailored 1:1 delivery for young people experiencing anxiety or complex challenges — ensuring access for those who need a different pace or environment. Nb - more sport , eg were embedded in sport/football and will use that connectivity.
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 co‑create every aspect of Clean Kicks. From the design of sessions to the styles they want to explore and the sustainability messages they feel matter, their voices define the initiative. We begin each cohort with listening sessions to understand pressures they face — financial, social, environmental — and build the programme around their needs. Participants choose the footwear they want to upcycle, the creative techniques they explore, and the stories they want their products to tell. They also help shape workshop rules, pacing, and delivery formats. In some boroughs, young people have led local pop‑up exhibitions and market stalls, acting as peer educators to other youth groups. We also engage families and community partners by inviting them to share unused footwear, attend showcases, and celebrate the achievements of participants. Some young people help record content for social media, providing peer‑to‑peer climate messaging that feels authentic and accessible. For those facing anxiety or additional needs, we offer 1:1 sessions shaped entirely around the young person’s preferred learning environment. This ensures that no one is excluded due to barriers beyond their control. Clean Kicks is not delivered to communities — it is built with them.
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?
Clean Kicks delivers impact across environmental, social, and economic outcomes. Environmentally, each pair of trainers restored or remade is a pair diverted from landfill, reducing waste and extending the life cycle of valuable materials. Socially, participants build confidence, networks, qualifications, and a sense of purpose. Economically, many young people use their new skills to generate income — easing financial pressure at home or investing in future materials and tools. Our impact so far includes: - Young people reporting increased confidence and improved mental wellbeing. - Participants creating and selling upcycled products, making their own income for the first time. - Families experiencing reduced financial strain through access to refurbished footwear. - Trainers/football boots being transformed into products that hold both economic and cultural value. - Positive behaviour change, with young people expressing increased awareness of environmental issues and their role within the circular economy. Over time, our goal is to scale across more boroughs, divert thousands of pairs of footwear per year, and create a youth-led sustainability movement rooted in culture and creativity. Clean Kicks demonstrates that small shifts — a pair of trainers, a few tools, and the encouragement to try — can lead to long-term transformation.
Innovation: What is different about your initiative compared to other solutions that are already out there? How is your approach original and innovative?
Clean Kicks which is the brainchild of one of our lead youth workers engaging with young people on the ground is innovative because it uses something universally understood and valued by young people — trainers — as an entry point into climate action, skill-building and enterprise. While many environmental programmes focus on policy or awareness, Clean Kicks offers hands-on circular economy learning that feels accessible, aspirational and culturally relevant. Our model merges creativity, youth work, sustainability and micro-enterprise in a way that is rare in the UK. Instead of teaching climate action through lectures or campaigns, we turn waste into opportunity and place young people as creators, designers, and entrepreneurs. The initiative is also innovative in its long-term approach. Participants keep all tools and materials, and receive up to 12 months of mentoring — ensuring that skills turn into sustainable outcomes, not one-off experiences. Our 1:1 model for those with anxiety or complex needs is another unique aspect, ensuring that climate education and opportunity are accessible to all. By shifting perceptions of value — showing that worn-out footwear can become art, business, or income — Clean Kicks also challenges norms around consumerism and fast fashion. We meet young people where they are culturally, and support them to reshape their futures and their relationship with the environment.
Roles and Responsibilities: Describe how responsibilities are shared among your team or partners.
- Rio Ferdinand Foundation: Overall programme management, youth worker delivery, safeguarding, partnership coordination, monitoring and evaluation. - Creative Practitioners (Artists, Designers, Photographers): Lead technical upcycling workshops, creative skill‑building, styling and photography skills. - Business & Enterprise Mentors: Support pricing, marketing, storytelling, sales readiness, and ongoing mentoring. - Community Partners [e.g Millwall Community Trust and Harris Federation Secondary Schools in South London] : Provide space, referrals, local support and access to young people most affected by exclusion or financial pressure. - Sports/Fashion Brand Partners: Donate footwear stock (surplus, returns, imperfect items), materials, or tools; provide brand‑led inspiration and amplification opportunities.
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?
Clean Kicks is built for growth. Our model is modular, low‑cost, and easy to replicate across new boroughs using local spaces, donated footwear, and trained youth workers. We have existing partnerships with schools, community centres and youth hubs that can host expanded cohorts. Operational sustainability comes from diversifying our income through brand partnerships, philanthropic funding, and earned income via youth‑led sales or product showcases. Donated footwear significantly reduces materials cost, and each cohort leaves with their own tools — meaning long-term engagement has minimal overheads. To scale, we plan to: - Expand borough partnerships across London. - Build long‑term stock donation partnerships with major sports and fashion brands. - Train more youth workers and artists in the Clean Kicks methodology. - Develop a digital platform to showcase youth-created upcycled products and climate stories. - Support in this challenge would help us reach more young people, avoid more waste, and expand our circular economy impact.
Upcoming Milestones: Please provide an overview of the milestones that are required for your initiative to come to fruition/ to grow.
Q1: Secure borough partnerships and confirm delivery sites. Q2: Recruit young participants, expand donated footwear supply chain, train additional youth workers. Q3: Deliver programme to first London cohorts; host community showcases. Q4: Launch youth-led online marketplace for upcycled products; evaluate impact; plan expansion.
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).
If selected, we may require support funding to enable full participation in the 8‑week programme. Costs may include: - Staff time for youth worker and project lead participation - Travel costs to attend capacity-building sessions - Materials and digital equipment to implement learnings - Contribution to venue and delivery costs during participation period Estimated need: up to £30,000
Now that you've explored what it truly means to put young people at the centre, how are you designing your initiative so that young people are genuine co-leaders and co-creators of the initiative?
The design process of clean is co-designed from the start. [ location, duration, focus of session] - It was a light bulb minute/hunch from Ryan as youth work lead because he knew that YP highest consumers of trainers....they are central to marketing. How can you turn something that’s seen as naff into something cool. Combine that with music/djing etc and onto something. It’s grown because YP loved it. In terms of YP being genuine co-leaders – It is in the space of empowerment/self-worth/agency. Looking to support them being in control. In this case it's geared towards them to be in a position of entrepreneurship. Historically pride/norm was working in a large company but reflects YP desire to be in control of their own destiny. We’re addressing something that is very difficult to engage YP in which is environmental sustainability. Complex reason for this which is both about YP from working class communities feeling connected to the issue – also perhaps that do not have means. However Clean Kicks – gives them a tangible way, perhaps for the first time to engage with issues around fast fashion and ignites a flame that people can effect change, eg ‘you’ve stopped a pair of trainers going to landfill. It’s directly related to leadership. There’s a mindset change. Want to do more of this and take this forward as a leader.
What partnerships and collaborations are most critical to delivering and sustaining your initiative and how are you building/ plan to build them?
Schools – we have the opportunity to work with a collective of schools which we think enable to work at scale and who expressed to be involved. This is the Harris Federation who has 34 schools and who provide experience opportunities, particularly YP who find it difficult to get these opportunities. If we don’t have access to young people, then it won't move forward. We are linked to the network of Club Community Organisations of Premier League and Football League Clubs in London and the UK. There are 15 of these in London which includes the Man United Foundation who have been active in Lmabth schools for serval years. . We have begun to train the trainer and delivery model with their participants of the community programmes. Really generating excitement. We feel there is huge, untapped potential to get the football community on board with what we are doing. Provides YP in community programmes in schools and communities but also scope for wider collaboration.
What are you measuring, how are you measuring it, and what does the data tell you so far (quantitative and qualitative)?
What are you measuring, how are you measuring it, and what does the data tell you so far (quantitative and qualitative)? Already began to test model locally in Manchester. Surveys/case study/ Measuring – Soft skills, eg confidence, communication, self worth/value, team work/agency Also pick up practical skills [canva/stencils] – before and after photos Cleaning Painting designing
Long-term impact: what lasting systems change are you seeking to create and how will you know when it has happened?
Political/systems change. With evidence of grass root engagement, football community buy-in, Rio’s support and the support of brands we feel that we could really begin to influence policy around environmental sustainability/fast fashion and also how this is taught in schools. More about the clean kicks charter – ethical framework similar to london living wage campaign where brands who are recognised by the charter are able to demonstrate standards with how substandard trainers/fashion/clothing are redistributed to communities. Pledge as a starting point in UK. Clean kicks are approved. May lead further down the line to even wider commitments around ethical production practices including living wages across supply chains, transparency on raw materials
Is there anything else you'd like to share with us that you were not able to share in previous questions?
Rio Ferdinand Foundation is a Player Foundation but Rio who was born and bred in Peckham, England and Man united Captain is a very high profile member of the football family and now a recognized media broadcaster in his own right who is soon to cover the World Cup. We have spoken to Rio previously back environmental campaign, eg green saves’ and he is excited about what we are trying to achieve and would help to engage his own personal and professional networks. He is helpful but not critical
If you selected “Other”, please specify below.
We’re excited about this opportunity because we know it works and it speaks directly to the heart of why we exist. As Rio Ferdinand, our Founder says, “My first pair of football boots were second-hand and too big, but I wouldn’t have been able to start playing football when I did without them. More needs to be done to make kit accessible for young people.” That lived experience underpins the spirit of Clean Kicks — turning something as simple as a donated pair of trainers into access, confidence, creativity and possibility. This opportunity allows us to scale that impact, reach more young people who are being overlooked, and remove barriers in a way that aligns perfectly with our mission and values.
