Volunteer It Yourself

Volunteer It Yourself combines volunteering and DIY by challenging young people aged 14-24 to learn trade and building skills, on the job, by committing to fix community buildings in need of repair or improvement.

VIY are working on a three year project with Sport England involving 4,000+ young volunteers helping to renovate and improve 225 grassroots sports clubs and other active community spaces and places in need.

More than 60% of the projects will be located in local communities among the 20% most deprived nationally.

Projects will also be match-funded and delivered in collaboration with other stakeholders such as national sports governing bodies, local authorities, and building and construction sector employers, as well as key VIY partners Dulux and Travis Perkins.

In the process, young people will be gaining valuable trade skills and communities will be brought closer together. Sport, volunteering and DIY is a powerful mix!

Visit their website for more information

How can VIY work with you?

VIY is working with Sport England on 225 refurbishment projects at sports clubs and community buildings over the next three years.

They are looking for smaller scale refurbishment projects (c.£20,000 overall budget) in or close to:

London, Birmingham, Leeds, Nottingham, Nottinghamshire and Norfolk

that will have a meaningful impact on the group in question.

Examples of some of VIY’s previous projects and programmes can be found on their website or this video of a recent VIY project at a rugby club in Coventry in partnership with Toolstation.

Are you eligible?

Ideally you will be situated in areas in the top 20% of the Indices of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) or serve these areas
Suitable projects include changing room refurbishments, outdoor areas or activity spaces, disabled bathrooms, community cafes or kitchen or repurposing and partitioning of existing spaces
Works should not involve a large degree of compliance or work at height in order to be suitable for involving young people
Projects are match funded 50% by VIY and Sport England. VIY will work with your club to secure the remaining 50% of the project total budget.

If you are interested in finding out more and completing an application form, please email info @teamviy.com

More resources on this topic

Homepage News Stories

Sported’s research into volunteering in sport launched

The Kevin McCool Memorial Fund aims to increase participation in athletics across Mid-Ulster, promoting inclusivity and developing the capacity of local groups.

Grants of up to £2,000 will support projects and initiatives that address local need, promote social inclusion, and help strengthen communities through cross-community engagement.

March 27, 2025