Participants from the Aston Villa Foundation’s Premier League Kicks project represented the club at 10 Downing Street earlier this month.
Three local teenagers joined Foundation coaches Ian Robinson and Ken Campbell at the Prime Minister’s official residence to help showcase the impact of the project.
Joining participants from Manchester City and Crystal Palace, Villa’s players engaged in a kickabout outside of 10 Downing Street before meeting then Prime Minister Theresa May.
"Play for the enjoyment. Stay fit, stay healthy, stay out of trouble" - @Mark__Bright
— PL Communities (@PLCommunities) July 19, 2019
The #PLKicks programme was well represented at @10DowningStreet by volunteers, participants and staff from @AVFCFoundation, @citctweets and @PalaceForLife
More: https://t.co/CbHtq9Oha0 pic.twitter.com/imJ3BXAgMR
Coach Campbell delivers Kicks sessions across the city and he knows the role the session can play in building safer, stronger communities.
"It's essential to have this stuff going on," he said.
"I didn't have Kicks when I was young and if I did, I would have made a lot of different decisions in my life that would have got me to where I am today sooner.”
Villa’s Kicks project started in 2006 and has been providing free football sessions to young people across the city ever since.
The programme engages with over 1,400 participants each year, with an emphasis on working with young adults aged 14+ from areas of the city vulnerable to crime and anti-social behaviour.
For more information about Premier League Kicks, please contact foundation@avfc.co.uk.
