Numerous sport-based interventions exist which target marginalised or ‘at-risk’ young people with the intention of enabling some form of social change for programme participants. Very often, the objective of such interventions is the acquisition and development of qualities associated with ‘good citizenship’. However, critical scholars have noted how sport-based initiatives are frequently used as a form of social control, focusing on the development of personal responsibility. As such, these initiatives accentuate more passive forms of citizenship, as opposed to more active forms of citizenship towards which many educational policies and programmes are aimed. Nevertheless, there is a limited amount literature which explores the connection between sport-based interventions and citizenship development within marginalised or ‘at-risk’ youth populations. This paper presents findings from a small-scale, qualitative study of one such (football-based) intervention located in a number of inner-city boroughs of London, UK. Placing the accounts of programme participants and staff at the centre of the analysis, the paper: (i) uncovers the practicalities and nuances of football being utilised as a tool for social engagement, and (ii) explores broader notions of personal and behavioural development in relation to the acquisition of citizenship qualities. The paper concludes by suggesting that sporting activity may confer citizenship benefits for young people, but only when integrated into wider programmes of social support and community engagement.

In recent years a plethora of arts-based projects and interventions targeting marginalised children and young people have emerged a number of which have focussed specifically on music-making. Resulting research has often highlighted the social, psychological and emotional benefits involved although few studies have explored the connections between music-making and mentoring with young people in educational contexts. This paper comprises a small-scale, qualitative study of one such intervention in a secondary school in the South of England. Analysis of transcripts from one-to-one interviews with participants (pupils) aged 11–17 years reveals various ways in which music-making facilitated positive change such as increased confidence, improved attitudes towards teachers and peers, feelings of calm, and better communication skills. The paper concludes by suggesting that music-making activity may confer significant psycho-social benefits for young people, particularly when combined with mentoring support.

Sport is often framed as a panacea for social disharmony, especially within the context of marginalised youth populations, and is widely promoted as a mechanism through which a multiplicity of social policy objectives can be achieved. Yet while political rhetoric has long pointed towards sport’s transformative abilities, the basis for such claims remains unproven. Theory-based approaches to evaluation have been posited as a useful device to explore the impact of specific initiatives and indicate where best practice may operate. The aim of this paper is to highlight one such theory-based framework that has been devised by practitioners in recent years around the operationalisation and evaluation of sporting interventions in criminal justice settings and which has come to be adopted as the dominant ‘theory of change’ across sport and criminal justice practitioner settings in the UK, but has, as yet, eluded academic scrutiny. To address this omission, the present discussion offers an in-depth analysis of this framework with the aim of discerning more clearly ‘what might work’ within sport and criminal justice contexts. In turn, the paper aims to stimulate further academic debate around the instrumental role of sport within criminal justice and the value of such frameworks for both policy and practice.

The discrepancy between the physical activity (PA) participation levels of men and women is well documented. Indeed, in the UK at least, women’s levels of inactivity are a serious concern, particularly given the effects of inactivity on long-term health. With recent shifts in the UK public health rhetoric recommending the attainment of daily PA levels via outdoor physical activity modes, such as walking and cycling, this paper seeks to explore the possible implications of such policy change on women’s PA participation and, specifically, the potential for gender-related barriers to be reduced. The paper features an empirical analysis of PA participation patterns among a sample of female respondents from a University in the South West of England. Data were collected via survey (n = 131, employees, n = 57, students: n = 74) and follow-up group and individual interviews (n = 45, employees: n = 25, students: n = 20). Findings acknowledge the various and diverse experiences of women with regards to social and cultural aspects of fear and risk and how this shapes PA participation. Specifically, the complex relationships women share with outdoor space are uncovered, and how access to, and patterns of exercise are influenced as a consequence. The paper concludes by reaffirming the need for links between public and personal health, well-being and the environment to be integral to the development of future policy and practice, whilst calling for further research to be carried out with different population groups across more varied geographical landscapes.

A consistent lack of achievement by the England national football team in recent years has led to English football's governing bodies carrying out an overhaul of youth player development. This process was initiated by the Football Association in the late 1990s and eventually led to the English Premier League introducing the Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) in 2012, a long-term strategy aimed at producing a greater number of talented ‘home-grown’ young players. The EPPP is designed as a system of ‘holistic support’ to produce not just technically proficient athletes but also good role models who understand the significance of professional football in contemporary culture. This paper comprises a small-scale qualitative study of how one Premier League football club utilized sports chaplaincy as part of its EPPP framework. Placing respondent accounts at the centre of the analysis, the paper seeks to illustrate how chaplaincy provision might enhance holistic support mechanisms within elite sporting organizations. The paper concludes by suggesting that the sports chaplain can play a key role in the non-performance aspects of youth player development which may ultimately benefit team success.

In recent years, there has been unprecedented awareness within policy and research of the disadvantageous trajectories that looked-after children and young people (LACYP) often face; particularly in relation to their education, health and wellbeing. Despite the perceived capacity of sport, physical activity and physical education to contribute to young people’s positive development, relatively few studies have considered the place of such activities in the lives of LACYP or the impact that being looked-after can have on individuals’ engagements with them. Presenting findings from a small-scale, qualitative study of LACYP in England, this paper explores the ways in which physical education and school sport (PESS) might be contextualised against broader life circumstances and experiences of care. Placing the personalised accounts of a group of LACYP alongside those of physical education (PE) teachers and local authority professionals, the paper examines varied perspectives and experiences of PESS and its relevance to LACYP. In particular, it highlights the extent to which the vulnerabilities of LACYP status may impact young peoples’ perceptions of health, wellbeing and educational engagement in this field. The paper concludes by suggesting that whilst PESS may be seen to present a number of social, emotional and health benefits for LACYP, when located against a backdrop of broader life-course vulnerability, such benefits may be de-prioritised by those concerned.