Meet our partner - Brentford Community Sports Trust

Established in 1987, the Trust initially began as a local project, called Brentford Football in the Community (BFitC). It was one of the first football clubs to launch a community football coaching programme and aimed to improve the game’s increasingly negative image, which had been blighted by rising levels of hooliganism.

To tackle this, BFitC developed an unprecedented partnership between two local councils – Ealing and Hounslow. It aimed to bring football to the heart of the community – connecting with local schools and community centres, largely in the most deprived areas of west London.

As BFiTC began to flourish so did its community offer – it was one of the first football clubs to expand into health, disability and education projects. The Trust’s growth and diversification was formalised in 2005 – all the community initiatives were consolidated into a charitable trust. This signified the creation of Brentford FC Community Sports Trust.

Now, in 2018, Brentford FC Community Sports Trust is one of the leading football charities in the country – helping thousands of children and young people each year.

With their community work spanning more than three decades, Brentford FC Community Sports Trust has established itself as a pioneering organisation for the local community. It uses the power of sport to educate, motivate and inspire people from all backgrounds.

Working in partnership with Brentford FC, the Trust offers a portfolio of programmes in education, employability, sports participation, health and community engagement.

They have won the ‘Football League Community Club of the Year’ award four times and have cemented their reputation as a community-led Football Club.

Most recently, they joined the European Football for Development Network and aligned their strategy with the UN’s sustainable development goals, which demonstrates their local impact at a global level.