INSPIRESPORT PACKING CHECKLIST
And as is the case with all Premier League football clubs, on occasion, kit suppliers change. But what happens with any surplus kit? Where does it go?
When we recently changed our official kit supplier from Under Armour to adidas we found ourselves in possession of a number of branded kits we could no longer use!
We were eager to find a meaningful (and hopefully greener) alternative for the surplus kits we had in storage. Seeing them just go to a landfill wasn’t an option – they were brand new, quality kits, so we took some time to investigate a number of charities who recycled kit for good causes overseas.
After some research, the first charity we decided to collaborate with was Lord’s Taverners who’s programme equips UK clubs and developing nations with high-quality kit, giving players from all over the world a sporting chance. Their main objective when recycling kit is to help clubs increase participation among young people while reducing the build-up of kit in landfill sites.
With some help from the team at BT Fleet in Cardiff, we were delighted to donate 18 boxes of kit containing over 800 shirts and shorts.
At this stage, we don’t know exactly where our kit is going to end up, but some of the latest kit deliveries by Lord Taverners include Northern Ireland, Gambia, Antigua and St. Kitts.
The second charity we decided to go with was the Royal Air Force FA. Their Taking Football to Africa and Beyond Charitable Appeal delivers ‘Aid through Football’ by collecting donated kit and transporting it to places all over the world for both youth and adult teams in developing communities. To date, the RAF FA has delivered over 225, 000 items of kit, including over 65, 500 football shirts to 57 countries worldwide.
One of their latest missions just returned from 10 days in Kenya completing 54 separate deliveries across Nairobi and to outlying areas including Gilgil, Kandara, Juja Farm and Ruiru.
We were pleased to be able to donate 10 cartons of kit including over 250 football kits.
Steve Butchart, inspiresport CEO said:
“By donating our surplus kit to The Lord Taverners and RAF FA, not only have we helped to reduce the amount of waste going to landfill but we’ve played a small part in helping to inspire participation in sport, in places across the world which might not otherwise do so. We think it’s empowering for children and young people to be part of a team and it sits well with our mission statement and values. If we find ourselves in a similar position again, we would definitely look to work with these organisations again.”
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