Ahead of the Birmingham 2026 European Athletics Championships (10-16 August), Personal Best Foundation, the official charity of England Athletics, has introduced four new Community Athletics Hubs across the city to create a network of free, inclusive athletics provision for children living in some of the city’s most under-served communities.
The initiative - officially launched during May’s Community Athletics Festival held at Alexander Stadium - means that five Birmingham wards in total are now supported by a Community Athletics Hub, with programmes operating in Sparkbrook & Balsall Heath East (which has been in place since 28 September 2025), Castle Vale, Lozells, Ward End and Nechells, areas which collectively are home to 14,927 children living in poverty.
Through Birmingham 2026’s impact plan ‘Beyond’ - a programme created to inspire positive, lasting change across the region linked to the Championships - organisers are creating new opportunities for communities and amplifying existing initiatives, such as this one, that are already making a difference across the West Midlands.
Birmingham faces some of the most significant inequalities in the country, ranking third nationally on the Income Deprivation Affecting Children Index (IDACI), with 61.7% of children aged 0–15 (around 149,300 out of 241,971) living in income-deprived households. Physical activity levels are also below the national average, with just 42% of young people in Birmingham meeting the recommended 60 minutes of daily activity, compared with around 49% nationally, and 38% classified as inactive. These inequalities are not evenly experienced, with children and young people from Black and Asian communities and those in lower-income households less likely to meet activity guidelines.
With 28% of Birmingham’s population aged under 20, there is a clear need for safe, inclusive spaces that enable children and young people to be active, supported, and engaged in positive community life.
More than 250 children attended May’s Community Athletics Festival and for many of those children, the newly funded Community Athletics Hubs will now provide a free local pathway to continue participating in athletics-based programmes long after the event itself.
At the heart of the initiative is funetics, an inclusive athletics programme developed by England Athletics for children aged 4–11, designed to help young people develop fundamental running, jumping and throwing skills through fun, game-based activities that build confidence, movement skills and enjoyment of physical activity.
The new Hubs will provide free weekly sessions lasting 90 minutes - intentionally designed to give children not only 45–60 minutes of physical activity, but also valuable time to socialise, build friendships and develop trusted relationships with leaders and peers in nurturing environments.
The Hubs will be delivered in partnership with carefully selected local community organisations that already have deep-rooted relationships within their communities and a strong understanding of the unique challenges faced by local children and families.
Personal Best Foundation, a ‘Beyond’ delivery partner, will fully fund the first year of delivery across all Hubs, helping to remove financial barriers and ensuring children can access sessions free of charge from day one. As part of the initiative, all delivery partners have received funetics training alongside equipment and ongoing support for their coaches and leaders.
The initiative has been designed not simply as a short-term programme, but as a long-term community investment that builds local capacity and creates sustainable pathways into sport for children and young people. Beyond the first year, the charity hopes to continue supporting the hubs through on-going training opportunities, workforce development and the creation of a Young Leaders volunteering initiative designed to help build long-term sustainability within each community.
The five Community Athletics Hubs now operating across Birmingham are:
- Sparkbrook & Balsall Heath East (delivered by Street Futures)
- Lozells (delivered by Aspire and Succeed)
- Castle Vale (delivered by The Pioneer Group)
- Ward End (delivered through Unity Hub in partnership with Street Futures)
- Nechells (delivered by free@last)
Amy Weaver-Tyler, Foundation Manager at Personal Best Foundation, said: “This is a significant moment for Personal Best Foundation and a hugely important step forward for children and families across Birmingham.
“Too many children living in poverty are missing out on opportunities to be active, build confidence and feel part of something positive simply because access to sport is not always affordable or accessible.
“These Community Athletics Hubs are about much more than athletics. They are about fun and enjoyment, building confidence, fostering a sense of belonging and creating safe, supportive spaces where children can thrive. By working alongside trusted local organisations who truly understand their communities, we can ensure these opportunities reach the children who need them most.”
The Beyond framework is shaped by three central pillars: providing community benefit through athletics and running; delivering an environmentally conscious championships; and improving accessibility and inclusion for all.
It is guided by three key principles - aligned, prioritised and sustainable - ensuring that stakeholders work collaboratively to best allocate resource, target where the greatest impact can be made, and that sustainable decision-making is at the heart of all planning.
The Birmingham 2026 European Athletics Championships take place from 10-16 August. Tickets are on sale via this link.
For more about the Beyond programme, click here.
Data sources
Population and income deprivation data sourced from the Birmingham City Observatory, Birmingham City Council, May 2026:
- Indices of Deprivation 2025 in Birmingham — Birmingham City Observatory
- Birmingham Observatory Microsoft Power BI
Physical activity data sourced from Sport England Active Lives Children and Young People Survey 2024/25: