Removing barriers to sport is at the heart of everything Southside Boxing Academy and Community Hub do. It has become a cornerstone of the community and provides a sporting home for hundreds of people, many who would previously have been inactive.
Many of their 400 members are from deprived areas and their ethos to keep as many sessions as possible free helps those people attends regularly. Around a third of members are women and girls, over 40% are from ethnically diverse backgrounds and over 25% of youth participants have additional support needs. The organisation also work with disability groups, people living with Parkinson’s and people in recovery.
The dedicated team behind the academy and hub deliver 30 hours of free boxing and sporting activity each week and put on free sessions in local schools as well. Helping to tackle food poverty is a priority for the team, community outreach work helps local people in need and free food is made available at sessions.
The academy’s elite boxers are also thriving, taking home a host of national medals in the last 12 months.
This time last year the academy and hub were running at capacity with many sessions limited by the space in their facility. They received £149,987 from sportscotland’s Sport Facilities Fund towards the conversion of the community hall to a bespoke boxing gym, the work would allow them to reach more people each week.
The club took over the running of the Geoff Shaw Community Centre in Toryglen from Glasgow Life. The centre only opened on a part-time basis after the COVID-19 pandemic so was made available to lease through the People Make Glasgow Communities programme and Toryglen Community Youth Project (TYCP).
The funding was used to transform a neglected community centre hall into a bespoke and inclusive boxing gym. The refurbishment included accessible changing facilities, a stairlift and a mezzanine level, creating a flexible, multi-purpose space for boxing, physical activity, community programmes and events.
The funding has been game-changing for the organisation; it can also now host events including the academy’s own club boxing shows. This gives local boxers the opportunity to compete in front of their families and community.
Anthony Quayle, Founder and Director of Southside Boxing Academy and Community Hub:
“When we moved to Toryglen we made the decision that being based in an area of high deprivation, we needed to help tackle food poverty and anti-social behaviour, so our focus changed.
“We had a young boy who was bang on weight for an upcoming championship. He came back after the weekend and he was 2kg lighter, I managed to find out that he was basically left to fend for himself over the weekend so wasn’t being fed.
"It was really alarming that we could see this boy deteriorating.
“My young son is autistic and he struggles every day, it’s really important for me that all kids are included in what we do.
“The funding from sportscotland has been absolutely brilliant for us. We started with just a ring rope, we now have three rings and one of the best boxing facilities in Scotland. It’s improved our capacity massively.
"We’re able to run two programmes at the one time now, we’ve been able to do the Parkinson’s project and the ASN classes, the female-only night, all of which is completely free.
“There’s no egos here, everyone is treated the same. Whether you’re a boxer at the highest level, like Jay Sheridan who just won a silver medal at the Europeans, or someone coming to our ASN classes. They’re all treated with the same respect and the same care."
Earlier this year sportscotland, the national agency for sport, announced that sports clubs and community sports facilities across the country will receive an extra £5m of National Lottery funding over the next two years after the Sport Facilities Fund budget was doubled. Meaning £10m is available in that time for projects designed to increase sporting opportunities in Scottish communities.
The aim behind the sportscotland Sport Facilities Fund is to work with partners to support projects which are designed to create or improve the places where people take part in sport and physical activity in their local community.
Priority is given to plans that widen access to participation or allow people to progress further within their chosen sport locally by removing barriers, particularly in rural areas or areas of deprivation and for groups who are underrepresented in sport.
In addition to the investment, projects can benefit from the expertise within sportscotland’s facilities team to maximise the impact that their plans will have, ensuring they meet the needs of their local communities now and in the future.
Chief Executive of sportscotland, Forbes Dunlop:
"Southside Boxing Academy and Community Hub is a great example of an organisation that has shown huge commitment to growing their sport and becoming a crucial part of their community.
"We know that sport has the power to change lives. The benefits of providing somewhere for people to feel a sense of belonging and take part in regular physical activity to those individuals is immeasurable.
“We are proud to have supported their continued growth to ensure more people can enjoy all the brilliant work the academy and hub does.
“The impact of the sportscotland Sport Facilities Fund cannot be overstated. Without that regular investment, and the investment and commitment of our local and national partners, Scotland’s sporting infrastructure would look very different today.”
