Future Living Hertford are thrilled to announce the exciting news that they have been awarded funding from Comic Relief and Paul Hamlyn Foundation ‘Build’ programme to develop a game app for young people to improve their mental health and well-being in their local area, centred around the concept of the sport of boxing as a digital ‘coach in the corner.’
Tech for Good was developed in response to the emerging need for civil society organisations to use technology to explore different approaches to delivering better services that help people, organisations and communities. The Build programme supports organisations like Future Living Hertford to define, develop or re-purpose existing digital tools, platforms and products that meet a social need or challenge.
The 2021 funding round saw 361 applications for the fund and Future Living Hertford were one of the 22 fortunate recipients to be awarded the funding to develop an app aimed at children and young people in the shape of a boxing game that provides therapeutic tools and support in a free and accessible way.
In addition to funding of £69,000, Future Living Hertford will receive an intensive package of non-monetary, specialist digital support provided by CAST (Centre for the Acceleration of Social Technology), including collaborative workshops with peers on the programme and online learning sessions, as well as one-to-one support. Kicking off in June 2021, the projects will last for nine months until February 2022.
Sandra Conte, CEO and Founder says:
We are delighted and enormously grateful to Comic Relief and Paul Hamlyn Foundation to receive this funding to help us develop and build this digital solution. Through the pandemic and lockdowns we saw the huge impact this was having on children and young people and wanted to find a way to provide children that were unable to attend our services face to face with therapeutic tools, advice and support in a digital format. The pandemic meant that we had to delay the launch of our Sugar Foot therapeutic Boxing Club (now up and running and a huge success at a local Hertford secondary school) and we wanted to create a digital version, informed and developed by children and young people, to give them what the club hopes to provide at their fingertips, whenever they should need it. We have recruited our digital partner, 4th Wall Virtual, and are looking forward to working with them again. Watch this space!
