When Nick Burke finished his second spell in prison he was determined never to return, and to help people in his underprivileged area of Salford avoid the pitfalls of crime. Read how he did it.

Training offenders to be Football Association futsal Level 1 coaches is just the latest of Pete Bell’s pioneering initiatives using sport to improve the prospects of people in prison.

The Alliance of Sport’s Theory of Change (ToC) has been analysed by experts in the field of sport and criminal justice to open it up to academic critique and debate.

Professor Rosie Meek, author of last year’s landmark Sporting Chance review is launching a new project and needs the help of the Alliance of Sport’s Community of Practice.

The Alliance of Sport in Criminal Justice won the ‘Collaboration Award’ at Tuesday night’s Legal & General Not A Red Card Awards at the Kia Oval in London.

90 Minutes of Freedom is the self-published debut book by Jamie Grundy which tells the unique story of HMP Prescoed FC, the only prisoner football team in Wales.

The Alliance of Sport encourages our community of practice to put themselves forward for this year's BBC Sports Personality of the Year Unsung Hero award.

Rowing is proving to be a highly effective engagement tool with young people at risk of offending - thanks to London Youth Rowing’s Life Skills programme.

The Alliance of Sport in Criminal Justice has been named on the official shortlist for Legal & General’s Not A Red Card Awards 2019 in the 'Collaboration' category.

Find out how the Streetbase programme combines sport, young volunteers and an innovative ‘activity map’ to support young people at-risk of crime in Waltham Forest, East London.

The Alliance of Sport calls on Boris Johnson to include the recommendations from last year's MoJ Sporting Chance report when planning his forthcoming review of sentencing policy.

Sport is at the heart of vital support for asylum seekers and refugees in Newport, South Wales – boosting wellbeing and social inclusion, and providing a diversion from the temptations of crime.

Pete Bell, founder of football-based offender mentoring programme Step Out Stay Out, reveals what he learned from the innovative Football Works Festival held inside a Dutch jail.

More than 3,000 young people will be given places at sport and activity programmes this summer to help keep them away from possible violence and crime, Culture Secretary Jeremy Wright has announced.

Serving offenders from HMP Thorn Cross have begun working with young people at risk of school exclusions on a boxing programme in Cheshire – with immediate results for both parties. 

The Alliance of Sport in Criminal Justice has pledged its support for ukactive’s campaign to open schools as community hubs during the summer holidays. 

Sport and physical activity are at the heart of an innovative project aimed at helping rehabilitate young people held at Medway Secure Training Centre in Kent. 

Edgework Consulting , based in Boston, USA, has published a report offering fresh perspective into how sport provides a pathway to healing from the psychological trauma caused by ACEs.

Janet Sylvester from Leeds Rhinos Foundation reflects on how they've overcome many hurdles in setting up two sport-based prison projects working with offenders.

Read how HFE's partnership with the Prisoners' Education Trust is offering incarcerated offenders a priceless chance of rehabilitation and employment in the health and fitness industry.

Lord Farmer has published his follow-up report into the importance of family ties for female prisoners, identifying them as "a golden thread running through the criminal justice system".

The 'Alternative Lives’ prison programme delivered by Exeter City, Plymouth Argyle and Cardiff City FC community trusts has hugely benefited participants, coaches and prison staff.

We want to hear your views about the Alliance of Sport to help inform the future development of our partnership model.

When it comes to working with people caught up in crime, ‘collaboration’ and ‘multi-agency approach’ are modern buzz words. No-one embodies those philosophies better than the Met's PC Jason Hill.

The Alliance of Sport is delighted to see recognition in the Youth Justice Board’s 2019-20 business plan of the role sport plays in supporting young people in the criminal justice system. 

The charity Crimestoppers is rapidly expanding its Fearless programme in Wales to encourage young people to report crime – and they are using sport as a vehicle to get the message across.

The Burngreave area of Sheffield may be top and bottom of all the “wrong lists” but it has recently become a showcase for the power of sport to empower and unite local communities.

The Alliance of Sport is proud to have contributed to the new DCMS Committee report, ‘Changing Lives: the social impact of participation in culture and sport’.

The deadline is fast approaching to fill in the consultation about a new legal duty to underpin a ‘public health’ approach to tackling serious violence.

Alliance of Sport Trustee Professor Rosie Meek introduces a new Ministry of Justice toolkit that measures the effectiveness of programmes supporting desistance from crime.

Sport and physical activity’s power as a catalyst for change in the criminal justice system will be among the topics of discussion at Elevate – a free event at ExCel London on Wednesday May 8. 

The Alliance of Sport is delighted that the UK's successful prison parkrun programme has now expanded to Australia.

The outstanding work of Positive Futures in using sport as a tool to reduce crime is expanding across south-east Wales, with new partnerships and collaborations boosting their impact.

The National Youth Agency and All-Part Pariamentary Group for Youth Affairs have published their final report from the inquiry into Youth Work.

Alliance of Sport members Boxing Futures have showcased their ever-growing impact with a powerful video depicting one young person's transformation through sport.

Home Secretary, Sajid Javid, has launched a consultation on a new legal duty to ensure public bodies, including hospitals, raise concerns about children at risk of becoming involved in knife crime.

The Alliance of Sport were among the speakers in London’s Soho on Thursday night (March 28) as major players in the Sport for Development sector came together at Twitter’s UK headquarters.

The Alliance of Sport has completed a Sport England-funded pilot project in two secure establishments in Kent which tested the effectiveness of sports clubs on reducing offending. 

Alliance of Sport members in Wales are invited to share their experiences on a new 'People's Platform' to support and challenge how public bodies make their decisions.

Helen Arnold-Richardson, Business Director at Do-It Profiler, explains why their new glossary of prison language will support both offenders and staff within the criminal justice system.

The Prisoners Education Trust is seeking the views of users of the Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) to feed back into HMPPS.

Pete Bell is using the knowledge and experience from his ‘Step Out, Stay Out’ prison football programme to organise a sports event to foster community cohesion on the Clifton estate in Nottingham.

Do you deliver sport and physical activity and work with probation services? Read this Clinks guidance on how to prepare for the MoJ's forthcoming changes in this area.

Our Steering Group member Dr Haydn Morgan, Senior Lecturer in Sport and Exercise at the University of Gloucestershire, needs your help in a fascinating new research project.

Professor Rosie Meek, an Alliance of Sport Trustee, recently spoke to Radio New Zealand about her research into the benefits of sport and physical activity in prisons. Listen to it here.

Jason McKoy is experienced enough to know what works - and what doesn’t - in Sport for Development. His years of delivering programmes with offenders and at-risk young people give his opinion clout...

Professor Rosie Meek gives some honest thoughts on the progress achieved in the six months since the publication of her landmark ‘Review of Sport in Youth and Adult Prisons’.

Funding Touch Rugby training, refereeing and coaching qualifications in prisons to reduce reoffending is just one element to the ambitious plans of a new CIC - Koi Sports.

Inside Workout, a free fitness and wellbeing magazine designed specifically for inmates, is about to launch in prisons across the UK.

Organisations using sport for positive social impact can benefit from new income streams thanks to Sporting Capital – England's first investor focused solely on Sport for Development.

Read all about a new prison rugby project in Hong Kong, set up with the Alliance of Sport's help, that aims to link young offenders with training, education and employment post-release.

Exeter City, Cardiff City and Plymouth Argyle are working with local prisons to develop life skills and opportunities for offenders as part of a ground-breaking initiative called Alternative Lives.

The Leeds Rhinos Foundation has extended its successful 'Onside' prison programme to launch 'Tackle It' - a project focusing on perpetrators and victims of domestic abuse.

The Alliance of Sport's James Mapstone led a 'Twitter takeover' in partnership with the Sport for Development Coalition and ConnectSport on Monday December 17.

Sport for Development organisations could benefit from The Duke of York Inspiring Digital Enterprise Award (iDEA) - a free online tool to develop digital and employability skills.

Premiership Rugby's flagship education and employability programme HITZ is celebrating its tenth anniversary.

3Pillars has expanded its offering to adults and young people in the criminal justice system to include qualifications and employment in the fitness and wellbeing industry.

Read our Co-Founder and Chair James Mapstone's guest blog on sport's role in crime prevention for ConnectSport.

The powerful impact of sport in prison education came under the spotlight at the third EPALE UK conference on adult learning, which followed the organisation's Prison Education Week.

The Alliance of Sport has started working with Homeless Rugby CIC to discover how rugby can provide support for people in, or exiting, the criminal justice system.

A football league is being launched for young people in Banbury to raise awareness of the dangers of county lines – set up by two men with lived experience of its devastating effects.

The Alliance of Sport congratulates David Dein on the launch of the Twinning Project on Wednesday at Wembley Stadium.

HM Prison High Down in Banstead has seen a reduction in violence among inmates who are taking part in sessions run by Brighton Table Tennis Club.

Read how going to an Alliance of Sport Positive Action Group meeting led to Jamie Grundy successfully applying to research the impact of football at HMP & YOI Prescoed in south Wales.

The impact of Fundacion Espartanos' rugby programme at a Buenos Aires jail has been remarkable. We speak to Director Pablo Gloggler who is now spreading its positive effects across the world.

The Alliance of Sport is collaborating in a pilot project led by ukactive to provide people leaving prison with training and employment opportunities in the physical activity sector.

Recognition for our sector has hit another new milestone with the launch of a ‘Sport for social change’ category at the prestigious Sports Journalists’ Association awards.

The Alliance of Sport will be hosting a round-table discussion at a brand new industry event called ‘The F Word' at London’s City Hall on October 19. 

Read how the award-winning charity Boxing Futures use the sport to tackle mental health, wellbeing and social isolation with people in and around the criminal justice system.

Justin Coleman explains the role the Alliance of Sport is playing in training delivery staff for an exciting EFL Trust-funded prison project led by Exeter City FC Community Trust.

Read exclusive extracts from a The Rugby Journal article after they visited a 3 Pillars Project rugby session inside Cookham Wood YOI.

Gloves Not Gunz is an organisation with all the ingredients that go into a successful sport-based intervention – and yet another example of the power of boxing to reduce crime.

The Alliance of Sport welcomes Prisons Minister Rory Stewart's new 'model excellence' for our 10 most challenging prisons and looks forward to opportunities to showcase the part sport can play.

The Alliance of Sport visits Saracens Sport Foundation's Get Onside project which uses rugby and mentoring to build resilience, discipline, ambition and life skills with offenders in Feltham YOI.

The Alliance of Sport welcomes the long-awaited publication of the Review of Sport in Youth and Adult Prisons and looks forward to supporting its recommendations. Read our full statement.

Former inmate Pete Bell's football and mentoring programme in custody is achieving notable results. We spoke to him as the Ministry of Justice launched its Review of Sport in Prisons.

Alliance of Sport Chair and Co-Founder, James Mapstone, gives a passionate personal response to the Government's rejection of proposals to pilot boxing programmes in prisons.

Anna Upson, senior National Research Committee member, gives important information for Alliance of Sport members on how to conduct research into prison-based sport projects.

The Alliance of Sport is urging sports organisations who want to deliver programmes in prisons to act now by registering with the Ministry of Justice's Bravo Solutions Portal.

Sport's full potential in reducing crime will only be unlocked with a joined-up approach and more risk-taking across criminal justice, a DCMS Committee has been told.

In his latest blog, Alliance of Sport Co-Founder and Secretariat, Justin Coleman, gives guidance on setting goals and the importance of considering ACEs in achieving sustainable behaviour change.

The Alliance of Sport's "sports club" project is giving incarcerated young offenders the opportunity to develop "physically, behaviourally and psychologically," says researcher Dr Juliette Stebbings.

The Alliance of Sport used its quarterly Steering Group meeting to take an important "temperature check" of our current position and future direction.

Nottingham Forest FC have become the first professional football club to partner with the charity Clean Sheet and offer employment opportunities to people with criminal convictions.

Fight for Peace has been awarded a National Lottery grant to train community organisations in how to use sport to prevent youth violence.

In the last of our features to highlight #GreatCoaching during Coaching Week, we speak to Matt Airey from the Leeds Rhinos Foundation's Onside project, which has now expanded into four prisons.

We visit Chance To Shine's Crime Awareness Programme - the latest example of #GreatCoaching by those using sport to engage young people caught up in the cycle of crime and imprisonment.

As part of our celebration of #greatcoaching throughout Coaching Week, we speak to Marlon Boateng of AIR Sports Network, who use sport to engage hard-to-reach individuals in the community and prisons.

As part of our week celebrating #GreatCoaching, we speak to the award-winning Marcellus Baz about his incredible journey from gang member to founder of Nottingham School of Boxing.

To celebrate Coaching Week we're showcasing #greatcoaching in and around the criminal justice system. First up, it's Positive Futures Gwent, who use sport to enrich troubled lives in south-east Wales.

The Alliance of Sport is joining the All Party Parliamentary Group on Boxing to help demonstrate the sport's benefits to Government, decision-makers and wider society. 

The Alliance of Sport is launching a pilot programme to gather evidence on how sport can support looked-after children - who are over-represented in the criminal justice system.

The Daily Mile, the hugely successful initiative that is boosting children's physical activity levels across the world, is looking to expand delivery into the Secure Estate.

A first-of-its-kind degree course is set to open up new career possibilities for experienced practitioners working in the Sport for Development sector.

Nina Champion, Alliance of Sport Steering Group member and Head of Policy at the Prisoners' Education Trust, explains why there never been a better time for sports organisations to work in prisons.

Football saved Pete Bell following his release from prison. He's now determined to use the game to help current inmates break the damaging cycle of offending.

The Alliance of Sport's Tanayah Sam explains the link between young people's media consumption and the shocking rise in gang violence – and how sport may be able to intervene.

We discover how Street Soccer Scotland is spreading its impact by taking its award-winning community work through the prison gate.

Find out how police have positively engaged with youngsters in an anti-social behaviour hotspot in Bristol by organising bike races and maintenance workshops.

Today (Friday April 6) marks the UN's International Day of Sport for Development and Peace (#IDSDP2018) and at the Alliance of Sport we wholeheartedly support the ethos and values of this celebration.

In his latest blog on engaging participants in sport, Alliance of Sport Co-Founder and Secretariat, Justin Coleman, discusses the crucial final stages – getting them active and 'sticking with it'.

Alliance of Sport Co-Founder, Justin Coleman, shares more highlights from our recent Review of Community Sport, with insights on engaging those who are still "thinking about it".

Alliance of Sport Co-Founder, Justin Coleman, picks out some of the highlights from our recent review of community sport, with some priceless insights on engagement from those on the front line.

Read how Sport4Life use sport as an engagement 'hook' to develop the confidence, life skills and employability of at-risk young people, many of whom have been through the criminal justice system.

We visit AIR Sports Network, who have worked with over 13,000 hard-to-reach and disadvantaged men and women across London, Kent and Essex since 2007.

In his latest blog, Co-Founder James Mapstone explains how the Alliance of Sport is using its members' great work to influence policy and practice at the highest level.

Active Communities Network, who recently featured in our Review of Sport in Criminal Justice, have won a coveted Laureus Sport for Good award at a ceremony in Monaco.

We visited Active Communities Network's Havant programme which exemplifies sport's power to change the lives of young people with serious and complex issues.

We visited Charlton Athletic Community Trust and discovered an organisation deeply embedded in its local community, using sport as a vehicle to improve lives and fight crime.

Read how TSA Projects and Chance to Shine joined forces to steer at-risk young people in Birmingham away from drugs, gangs and knife crime.

If you're a young person in need of support in Coventry, it's fair to say that the Positive Youth Foundation has got your back. Read about their incredible work.

It's A Penalty harnesses the power of sport to prevent the abuse, exploitation and trafficking of children around the world. We speak to the charity's Founder, Sarah de Carvalho MBE.

Founded on the troubled streets of Rio's favelas, Fight For Peace (FFP) has now spread to 26 countries. Its distinctive philosophy for reducing youth violence is intriguing and highly effective.

Streets Revolution is a 'social franchise' that uses football as a tool to help improve the lives of some of society's most vulnerable people.

Read how Pause & Engage uses sport and mentoring to help at-risk youngsters in north Somerset hit back from tough starts in life.

Based in one of the UK's most deprived communities, Sporting Chance North East combines sport and education to throw a lifeline to some of the area's most hard-to-reach young people.

Read how Anfield North Liverpool Boxing Club acts as a hub for fighting knife crime, anti-social behaviour and substance abuse in the local community.

Read how the 3 Pillars Project uses the power of sport and positive role models to achieve life-changing personal development with inmates at two London prisons.

The charity Clean Sheet is keen to link up with sporting organisations that can offer ex-offenders the chance of employment upon their release from prison.

The dawn of 2018 brings with it two small but significant changes to our organisation.

Led by the inspirational Sunny Dhadley, SUIT (Service User Involvement Team) have been using sport to support Wolverhampton's most vulnerable and marginalised people for over a decade.

We visited Positive Futures Gwent to see how the project uses sport to make a real impact on the most disadvantaged communities in south-east Wales.

The Alliance of Sport's Tanayah Sam played a major role as the Commission on Gangs and Violence launched its report at Villa Park last week.

Read how the Leeds Rhinos Foundation uses the power of sport, alongside personal development, to prepare offenders for release back into society.

Alliance Co-Founders James and Justin collect their thoughts after visiting 13 sport organisations in England and Wales as part of our MoJ Review of Sport in Criminal Justice.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has launched his London Knife Crime strategy. There is much within it that can be adapted for the Sport for Development sector.

How can third-sector sport organisations survive - and thrive - in these times of economic austerity? Researcher Cath Walker provides some insight.

The Home Office has asked us to share vital guidance for frontline professionals on combating the growing problem of so-called 'county lines' child exploitation by criminal gangs.

The UDOIT! Dance Foundation uses StreetDance to reduce youth offending and boost physical activity. They have now reached a critical phase in their growth – and have called on the Alliance's help.

We ask PhD researcher Dave Woods what his new systemic review tells us about sport's psychological impact on people in prison.

The Alliance of Sport is to lead a major review of the use of sport across the youth justice system in England and Wales.

We are proud to have played a part in the launch of the world's first prison parkrun, taking place at HMP Haverigg in Cumbria.

The incredible story of our new Sporting Ambassador, John McAvoy, is set to be made into a feature film.

The Alliance of Sport is immensely proud to announce John McAvoy as our first Sporting Ambassador.

In his latest blog, Alliance Co-Founder and Chair, James Mapstone, explains why our review of sport in youth justice is such an important milestone.

If you're involved in sport in the secure estate or the community, we need your views as part our review of sport in youth justice.

The story of how an ex-offender from east London influences the Argentinian justice system may prove to be the best example yet of the power of the NASDC network.

Sport England has launched a £3million Tackling Inactivity and Disadvantage Fund and wants to hear from potential partner organisations who work with disadvantaged people.

We are proud to have been granted £100,000 by Sport England to research and develop the use of sport in bridging the gap between custody and community.

The Sport West Midlands Project is well worth sharing across the sector. By harnessing the power of sport, they are making communities safer and achieving tangible outcomes for young people.

Meet Dan Rochester; Senior Youth Worker at Kinetic Youth, valued NASDC member and living proof of the power of sport in tackling crime.

Stuart Felce, Strategic Lead in Community Safety at StreetGames, outlines how membership of the NASDC has benefitted the doorstep sport charity.

NASDC Co-Founder and Director of Operations, Justin Coleman, reflects on an unforgettable trip to New York which saw the Alliance recognised with a prestigious Beyond Sport Global Award.

We are immensely proud and honoured to have won the Beyond Sport global award for 'Best Partnership or Collaboration' in New York City!

The National Alliance of Sport for the Desistance of Crime is heading to New York this week, having been nominated in the prestigious Global Beyond Sport Awards.

Kickboxing is playing a big part in tackling crime and healing community divisions in Derry/Londonderry, as post-conflict tensions continue to damage young people's lives in the city.

In his second blog, James Mapstone talks about the importance of building a robust evidence base and how our new Positive Action Group will help make the case for future policy and practice.

Public Health England's influence has already proved hugely beneficial to the Alliance of Sport. PHE's Jackie Roberts explains why the Alliance is having a 'real impact' on health, wellbeing and crime

LJ Flanders is only 27, but his life experiences already include a spell in prison, qualifying as a fitness trainer, writing a best-selling book and meeting Prince Charles.

The Alliance of Sport has been named on the Official Shortlist for this year's Beyond Sport Global Awards in the 'Best Partnership or Collaboration' category.

Tanayah Sam is living proof that the destructive cycle of re-offending can be broken. His experiences - both harrowing and uplifting - are an asset to the Alliance's body of expertise.

Ultramarathon runner Andy Mouncey is taking his brand of physical and mental training into prisons in a pioneering rehabilitation project for offenders and their families.

In his first blog, Co-Founder and Chair, James Mapstone, outlines how 'PAGs' form the foundation of the Alliance's work in using the power of sport to tackle crime and rehabilitate offenders.

The NASDC has launched its new Theory of Change – a vision for how sport can work together with the development and criminal justice sectors to achieve maximum impact.

The 2nd Chance Group, who power the Alliance of Sport, has been highlighted nationally as an example of best practice in using sport to achieve social change.

A new study from England Boxing (“The role of Boxing in Development: A social marketing perspective”) has revealed how and why the sport is so successful in helping to combat anti-social behaviour.

The Alliance of Sport has launched its new Theory of Change – a vision for how sport can work together with the development and criminal justice sectors to achieve maximum impact.

3 Pillars Project works within the criminal justice system to provide positive role models through rugby coaching courses and using excellence in sport and military leadership.

Nine new prisons will open in England and Wales - five by 2020 - under plans to close Victorian jails and sell them for housing, the government has said.

Prisons Minister, Andrew Selous, gave a speech on 23rd September about the landscape for rehabilitating offenders, reducing reoffending and the challenges ahead. In his speech he covered Transforming

The Justice Secretary has asked Dame Sally Coates to lead a review into the provision of education in prisons. As part of this work they welcome your views and evidence by Friday 13th November 2015.