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The Steel Warriors community gathered at one of our gyms
Our impact

MoreThanAttendance

We don't just count who turns up. We want to know what happens next: who gets stronger, who finds their people, who trusts a coach, and who goes on to lead.

See our 2025 results Our programmes
A journey, not a programme

Built around the young person

We don't believe one programme fits every young person. Every young person arrives with different strengths, experiences, interests, challenges and ambitions. That's why our programmes connect around the individual rather than operate in isolation.

A young person might first meet us at school, join a free community session, discover us through dance and sport, or be referred because they need more targeted support. Wherever they start, we meet them there.

Our coaches build relationships first. We listen, understand what matters to the young person and help them identify what they want to achieve. From there, we connect them with the right opportunities across Steel Warriors.

Results

Our year in numbers

These numbers cover January to December 2025, taken from the attendance records our coaches keep for every session.

10,369
Attendances at our sessions
14,336
Hours of coaching received by participants
694
Sessions delivered
502
People registered and training with us
293
Free community classes, averaging 17 people each
584
Hours of targeted youth work in schools, youth settings and our gyms
62%
Of participants aged 25 or under (43% under 18)
58%
From Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds

Age and ethnicity figures are based on the participants who shared that information with us.

Since 2017
7Gyms built from knife steel
20,000+Young people supported
20Free classes every week
100%Free, always
First contact to regular

A reason to stay

Our programmes are designed to turn first contact into sustained engagement, trusted relationships and opportunities to progress. It starts with an accessible first session.

2025 survey

What participants tell us

Each year we ask the people who train with us what has changed. In our 2025 survey, 56 people responded: 22 adults from our community classes and 34 young people from our Carpenters Estate programme.

Everyone surveyed

Physical wellbeing has improved98%
Feel more positive95%

Adults at community classes

Coaches are supportive100%
Fellow gym users are welcoming100%
Mental wellbeing has improved95%
Made new friends86%
Helped them meet their goals or career objectives73%
Feel safer in their local community59%

Young people

Learnt new things100%
Feel better about themselves100%
Have positive relationships with other young people100%
Have positive relationships with adults100%
Have more energy94%
Are thinking more clearly91%
9.5/10 Average rating for our community classes. Most regulars gave us 10.
Our programmes

One organisation. Multiple ways in.

Each programme has its own purpose. Together they create a connected, person-centred pathway.

Community calisthenics

Built of Steel

Our free community sessions are often the first point of contact with Steel Warriors. Young people get regular physical activity without the cost of traditional gyms or organised sport. Qualified coaches run progressive calisthenics sessions where everyone starts at their own level and develops at their own pace. Consistent contact lets coaches build trusted relationships and connect young people with further opportunities.

OutcomesPhysical activity · Confidence · Positive relationships · Reduced isolation · Community belonging · Positive use of free time

Find a class
Schools & colleges

Steel in Schools

Not every young person will come to us, so we take Steel Warriors to them. Our coaches deliver structured calisthenics, wellbeing and personal development in schools, colleges, alternative provision and other education settings. Mobile calisthenics equipment lets us meet young people in places they already know and trust, creating pathways into community sessions and extra support.

OutcomesAccess · Physical activity · Engagement · Confidence · Teamwork · Wellbeing · Trusted relationships · Referral into support

Dance & sport

Steel in Motion

Steel in Motion combines dance, movement and calisthenics: creativity and expression alongside strength, conditioning and physical development. It gives young people who may not connect with traditional sport or gym activity another way in, with routes into the wider Steel Warriors pathway.

OutcomesFitness · Strength and mobility · Movement skills · Confidence · Creativity · Self-expression · Teamwork · Belonging

Women & girls

Steel Sisters

Dedicated sessions for girls and young women to take part in physical activity and experience the wider Steel Warriors community. We remove barriers to taking part and create welcoming spaces where girls and young women build physical strength alongside confidence, friendships, safety and wellbeing.

OutcomesPhysical activity · Confidence · Self-esteem · Mental wellbeing · Friendships · Empowerment · Safe spaces · Reduced risk of exploitation

Find a class
Inclusive calisthenics

Beyond Barriers

Our inclusive programme for children and young people with SEND, disabilities and additional needs. Rather than expecting a young person to adapt to a traditional sporting environment, we adapt the activity and support around them, tailored to physical ability and individual communication, sensory and emotional needs.

OutcomesPhysical activity · Strength and coordination · Confidence · Independence · Reduced isolation · Friendships · Inclusion · Belonging

Find a class
Targeted youth programme

Future Warriors

Targeted support for young people who can benefit from more structured intervention. Calisthenics provides the first hook, while mentoring and trusted relationships let coaches work alongside young people on their wider goals, wellbeing and personal development. Where a young person needs more intensive support, Future Warriors opens a route into specialist mentoring and partner services.

OutcomesConfidence · Resilience · Emotional wellbeing · Physical health · Aspirations · Reduced risk · Engagement with positive opportunities

Find a class
Targeted intervention & mentoring

Steel Connection

For young people at higher risk of serious violence, criminal exploitation, offending or becoming disconnected from positive opportunities. Delivered with specialist partners, Steel Connection combines sport, trusted coach-mentor relationships and intensive mentoring. Trust comes first, opening a route into personalised support around safety, resilience, decision-making, education, training and progression.

OutcomesReduced vulnerability to violence and exploitation · Trusted adults · Safer decision-making · Resilience · Sustained engagement · Positive progression

Leading and shaping

Youth Leadership & Youth Voice

Young people shouldn't just take part in our programmes. They should lead, influence and shape them. This pathway builds confidence, communication, responsibility and leadership, with structured chances to shape programme design, become ambassadors and act as role models. Paid Youth Voice roles recognise that young people's time, experience and insight have real value.

OutcomesLeadership · Confidence · Communication · Decision-making · Representation · Transferable skills · Organisational influence

Impact through progression

Right support. Right time.

Our programmes are designed to connect. A young person's journey might look like this, but it isn't fixed: young people can start at different points and move between programmes depending on their needs.

  1. 01

    First connection

    School · Outreach · Taster session

  2. 02

    Regular engagement

    Built of Steel · Steel in Motion · Steel Sisters

  3. 03

    Person-centred support

    Future Warriors · Beyond Barriers · Steel Connection

  4. 04

    Development & leadership

    Youth Leadership & Youth Voice

  5. 05

    Employability

    Made of Steel

  6. 06

    Progression

    Qualifications · Paid work experience · Steel Assistant

  7. 07

    What comes next

    Education · Training · Coaching · Employment

Our employability pathway

Made of Steel

Made of Steel supports young people to move from personal development and career exploration through to qualifications, paid work experience and employment.

Not every young person is ready to walk straight into a traditional employability programme. For some, the journey starts with sport: turning up, achieving something they didn't think they could do, building confidence and developing a relationship with someone they trust. Made of Steel builds from that relationship, at a pace that reflects each young person's strengths, aspirations and support needs.

Stage 1

Steel Works

Explore. Develop. Prepare.

Sport, personal development and employability combined. Young people explore their strengths, interests and ambitions while building the confidence and skills for their next step, with mentoring, career guidance, CVs and personal statements, interview preparation, goal setting, money management and employer engagement.

OutcomesConfidence · Communication · Teamwork · Employability skills · Career awareness · Readiness to progress

Stage 2

Steel Futures

Learn. Qualify. Experience.

Turning aspirations into practical experience. Young people ready to progress can access skills development, recognised qualifications, mentoring and paid work experience, applying what they've learnt in real workplaces while still being supported.

OutcomesQualifications · Paid work experience · Workplace skills · Independence · Professional confidence · Progression into education, training or work

Stage 3

Steel Assistants

Work. Lead. Inspire.

From participant to paid experience within Steel Warriors. Working alongside experienced, qualified coaches, Steel Assistants build practical experience in session delivery, engaging participants, safeguarding and professional responsibility. We support young people through safer recruitment where required.

OutcomesPaid employment experience · Coaching skills · Leadership · Safeguarding awareness · Role modelling · Progression into coaching and wider work

Steel WorksSteel FuturesSteel AssistantsEmployment · Further training · Coaching · Career progression

The pathway doesn't assume every young person will progress at the same speed or towards the same destination. Made of Steel meets young people where they are and helps them build the skills, experience and confidence to get where they want to go.

A Steel Warriors coach supporting participants on the bars
Trusted adults

Relationships make the difference

Our coaches aren't just there to teach a pull-up or run a session. They provide consistent, positive relationships with young people and are trained to recognise when someone may need extra support.

That consistency helps us spot strengths, celebrate progress and notice concerns earlier. Where additional needs or safeguarding concerns emerge, our pathways connect young people with the right internal or specialist support.

Physical activity is often the doorway. The relationship is what keeps that door open.
How we measure

We measure change, not just attendance

Numbers matter, but attendance alone doesn't tell us whether a young person's life has changed. We want to understand the difference taking part makes.

Attendance records

Coaches register every session on Upshot, our monitoring system. Each year we remove duplicate records before counting attendances, contact hours and the number of different people we've worked with.

Participant surveys

We survey participants every year about their wellbeing, confidence, friendships and goals. We report results as a percentage of the people who responded, and always say how many people that was.

Who we reach

When people register, we ask about age, gender, ethnicity, disability and home borough. We only ever report this in grouped, anonymised form. In 2025 our biggest communities were Tower Hamlets, Lambeth and Southwark.

Voices from the bars

In their words

Classes cater for all abilities, there is good camaraderie, you get fitter and stronger and get to try new exercises. The instructors are fantastic. And of course, sessions are free, which is incredible.
Amy, 39 · Ruskin Park
When I first began coming to Steel Warriors I had just got out of a very controlling and somewhat emotionally abusive relationship… Steel Warriors was a great way to be in a safe and healthy environment and it helped me greatly to get out there and be sociable again, boosting my confidence.
Regular class member
It breaks down social barriers and it brings people together. Here we are all equal. Stigma, prejudices and misconceptions evaporate. The bars humble us all… we share ideas, support each other and celebrate our progress together.
Lewis, 30 · Ruskin Park
From harm to opportunity

From steel designed to cause harm to strength that creates opportunity

Every Steel Warriors gym starts with something that was designed to cause harm. We transform that steel into something positive, and our programmes follow the same principle.

A young person might come to us to learn a pull-up. They might stay because they make a friend. They might begin trusting a coach. They might discover something they're good at. From that first connection can come confidence, mentoring, leadership, qualifications, paid experience and employment. One day, that young person might be the Steel Assistant, coach, leader or trusted adult welcoming the next young person through the door.

That's more than participation. That's progression.

Fund the next journey Find a free class

Keep the classes free

£10 a month funds an hour of free calisthenics coaching. If you can give, give.

Donate now