JLB Foundation has provided £310 of match funding
Moving minds! Fitness and wellbeing for teen boys
Bath, Bath and North East Somerset, United Kingdom
£620
Target: £20,000
16 supporters
28 days left
Your donation unlocks match funding
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Aim
Help us raise £10k to match-fund a donor pledge for our gym projects supporting the mental and physical wellbeing of teen boys in Bath!
Moving minds! Free fitness and wellbeing sessions for teen boys in Bath
Help us raise £20k to continue and expand our free gym classes supporting the physical and mental wellbeing of teen boys in Bath!
We’re Boys in Mind, a registered charity supporting the mental and physical wellbeing of boys and young men in Bath. We’re partnering with two local gyms: CaliUnity and UBX ('U box') Bath, to offer free coaching sessions to local teenage boys.
CaliUnity: offers calisthenics - a form of strength training which uses your own body weight and gravity to build muscle, power, flexibility and balance, increasing overall fitness.
UBX (‘Ubox’) Bath: offers strictly non-contact fitness boxing, combined with functional strength training. UBX focusses on punchbag work and 1 to 1 pad work with a coach; combined with ropework and other fitness training, rather than competitive sparring.
Our pilot projects have been a huge success! Now, a generous donor has offered us a £10k ‘match-funding’ pot!
Help us raise £10k to unlock this pot and reach our £20k goal so we can continue – and expand - these vital sessions for another year and reach more young lives!
Why We’re Needed
Too many young men in Bath are struggling in silence. Mental health challenges are rising and young men are particularly affected. For many, time online has replaced time spent being physically active with others. Exercise and team sports build skills, discipline, routine and a sense of community, keeping young men grounded. By contrast, social isolation and a lack of physical activity are driving a major rise in anxiety, depression, and low self-worth amongst our young men.
- Bath & Northeast Somerset has one of the highest suicide rates in the Southwest.
- Over 75% of suicides nationally are male.
- 20% of local youngsters have at least one mental health disorder (Office for National Statistics, 2024)
Numerous studies confirm that early intervention is key to preventing a young man sliding from despondency into depression and even suicidal thoughts. However, standard ‘across the table’ counselling simply doesn’t work for teenage boys.
By contrast, regular physical activity triggers positive brain changes, lowering stress and boosting mood and confidence. We believe prevention is all about action, connection and community and we use physical health to build mental strength and resilience.
We focus on early intervention and offer a range of strategies for improving wellbeing, including light touch mentoring from strong male role models.
We want to empower young men to be physically and mentally healthier and more connected with their peers and community, reducing social isolation and encouraging them to ask for help if they are struggling.
Our model allows healthy conversations to happen naturally, as the boys work out side by side in the gym.
We are passionate about what we do: our work embodies our values as parents of boys and as community members. We know many of the boys we work with, as they live in our street, our neighbourhood.
Why are our sessions free?
Bath is outwardly affluent and living costs are high, making access to gyms and other fitness venues a real challenge for lower income households. We work with several schools in areas designated as IMD (Index of Multiple Deprivation) so we’re proud to offer free sessions and resources to local young men.
Equality and inclusion are key, so we work with our partner schools to hand pick those boys who would most benefit – and we hand pick our coaches too, seeking the positive male role models that are sometimes lacking in the boys’ daily lives.
It is sobering to reflect that research shows that more boys own a smartphone than have a father living at home.
Our outreach
We offer teen boys dedicated spaces to train and build mental as well as physical resilience through two powerful disciplines:
- Calisthenics: For bodyweight strength, goal-setting and self-esteem.
- Non-contact Boxing: For focus, discipline and emotional regulation.
These are not just fitness classes - they are safe, welcoming spaces. Some of the boys we work with are neurodiverse and find sitting still in a classroom particularly challenging, sometimes leading to behavioural issues which can escalate into multiple detentions and even suspensions and exclusions. Others have simply lost the habit of exercise and instead are wedded to their phone or Xbox! Getting teen boys active in one of our gyms and giving them an outlet, has proven really beneficial, no matter what their background or reason for attending.
Under the guidance of trained youth coaches and mentors, the boys learn self-discipline, master new skills, build physical strength, discharge anxiety or pent-up aggression, generally let off steam and - most importantly - open up.
They find a brotherhood where it is okay to just be however they are feeling that day.
Our plans for the coming academic year
Our pilot projects proved that this model works! The boys who took part tell us that they feel more confident, fitter, less isolated and better equipped to handle life's storms. This is echoed by feedback from their coaches, family and school.
Here’s a few quotes from our fitness boxing pilot project:
From the boys:
- It is helping me focus more at school.
- I am having fewer detentions at school.
- I feel that I am becoming better at working with others.
Coach: We’ve noticed how supportive the boys are becoming of each other and how they’re now able to express their emotions verbally.
A father commented: He is really enjoying the sessions and focusing his emotions. He talks more openly about how he feels.
And from our calisthenics pilot project:
From the boys:
- I feel much more confident in myself.
- I used to look at my phone and not fall asleep until around 3am, but now I sleep all night.
- I feel stronger and happier.
- I am more confident in school.
A mother commented: He’s absolutely loving it! It's been a while since he’s been so committed to something. It’s a really positive thing the gym is doing.
Now, we want to expand our offering!
From late autumn, we want to scale up our timetable and open our doors to more boys across Bath. We also want to offer fitness training camps, especially during the long summer break, when boredom and inactivity can rapidly create a downward spiral. Social isolation is proven to play a big role in mental wellbeing, so getting boys out of their bedrooms, away from the Xbox and into a gym, can turn young lives around. Even for those boys who dislike the restrictions of the classroom, school provides a social space and many can find the long school holidays both lonely and challenging.
We understand that opportunities for connection, movement and community can provide a real lifeline.
How Match Funding Works
Help us raise £20k — every £1 you give will be matched, up to £10k, so your donation goes twice as far!
A generous donor has pledged up to £10,000 in match funding, meaning your donation will be matched, pound for pound up to that sum. And we're delighted to announce that Sport England has offered a pledge of £5k – but crucially, this will only be released once we have raised at least £5k from you, our supporter community!!
£10k from our community & Sport England + £10k from our match donor = £20k to fund a full year of coaching, venue hire and equipment!
£10 donated → £20 for the project
£50 donated → £100 for the project
£100 donated → £200 for the project and so on!
Every penny raised online is completely safe under our Flexible Funding model and will directly fund:
- Weekly Coaching and Mentoring in Boxing Fitness and Calisthenics: Covering venue and coaching costs to keep our specialized classes 100% free.
- Expanding Sessions: Reaching further young men and offering summer training camps.
- Equipment: Supplying branded training vests and other kit so that the boys feel a sense of belonging to ‘their’ gym community.
- Coach and Mentor Training: Ensuring our coaches are fully qualified to build skills, discipline and confidence and support any trauma or behavioural challenges in young men.
Join Our Corner!
We can’t do this alone! By backing this project, you are stepping into the ring for young men’s mental health in Bath. You are helping us provide the gear, the space, the coaches and the listening ears that can turn a young life around, improve mental and physical wellbeing and even prevent tragedy.
Please donate what you can, add Gift Aid if you are a UK taxpayer, share our page with your friends and help us hit our target to make our autumn expansion a reality. Thank you!
Funding method
Keep what you raise – this project will receive all pledges made by 27th October 2026 at 11:59pm