Crowdfunder Sports: £30 million for happier and healthier communities

This week we hit yet another important milestone at Crowdfunder UK.

The platform has now channelled more than £30 million into grassroots sports projects around the UK.

The total is made up by 400,000 supporters, averaging a little under £75 a pledge.

Clubs and organisations are the heartbeat of their communities, sitting on the frontline for creating healthier and happier communities, but now more than ever they’re plagued by the cost-of-living crisis.

That’s where we come in, building the crowd to make a difference.

More than £11 million alone has been invested by our extra funding partners, most notably Sport England in the last four years.

We have also collaborated with the likes of Sport Wales, Sport Northern Ireland, British Cycling, the ECB and Skateboard GB to amplify our impact at a local level.

But it extends well beyond fundraising. We’re building resilience for the challenges ahead. We know that nine in 10 clubs and organisations feel more financially stable after crowdfunding (source: Sport England).

Crowdfunder Sports is creating the environment to build digital skills and create new partnerships, connecting them far more closely to their communities – we know because 84% of them tell us that’s the case.

“Time and again we have seen the benefit of our community-driven model of fundraising, drawing on the wider resources of local people and businesses,” said Jason Nuttall, Programmes Director at Crowdfunder UK.

“Sports clubs have been facing multiple challenges over the last year as they continue to recover from the impacts of Covid-19 and the ongoing cost of living crisis,” he added.

“Our extra funding programmes have continued to provide crucial financial resources for clubs to improve service delivery, expand coaching programs, and engage the community.”

We exist to tackle society’s biggest challenges around wellbeing, inclusion and participation and we are achieving exactly that through sport, but there’s still work to do. So what’s next?

Firstly we want to welcome businesses to join us on our journey. The opportunity is there to drive brand purpose, complimenting the crowd and grant makers.

We want to inspire more clubs and organisations to adopt crowdfunding and then educate them around the power of what can be achieved by working together.

And we also want to develop innovative ways to tell our story, engaging different audiences about the demonstrable impact crowdfunding can make to a community.

“Our model has helped to revitalise sports facilities and transform vacant spaces into active hubs, catering to a wider range of participants,” Jason added.

“Increasingly we are seeing clubs using matched crowdfunding to foster inclusivity, enabling individuals to access sports clubs and programs, creating a more diverse sporting environment.”

Sport matters, and we’re making a difference.