Whether or not crime rates are actually on the rise, it certainly feels as if they are. Knife crime and gang culture in particular seem more prevalent than ever before. The poor economy certainly doesn’t help matters and with the recent news that the rate of NEETs is set to increase (National Training and Resources Ltd, 2010) - a group among which criminal activity is an increased possibility - it seems that things are getting worse, not better. There is no simple, one size fits all response or solution - that is evident - so to pretend there is would be disingenuous at best.

Despite this, as we all know, the only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing. The sporting industry is peopled with good men and the inclusive, leveling nature of sport - just look at how the country rallies to support its teams in international tournaments - gives it an influence with groups of young people who have perhaps become disengaged with many other aspects of day to day life - from education to their families.

With this in mind we decided to try to channel this influence sport has, to help tackle issues that are not as shouted about; developing the first ever National Occupational Standard (NOS) aimed at tackling gang membership, crime and anti-social behaviour, using sport as a medium.

This NOS has just been launched after a three-year project run by the Active Communities Network, which examined how engaging in sport can help gangs and young people involved in crime. This exciting new venture aims to capitalise on sporting ability to give young offenders a new focus. No one can deny the feeling of satisfaction felt when you win a game, score a point, hit a goal and the sense of camaraderie it creates amongst teammates. Sport is not only fun but it introduces you to a variety of different people of all backgrounds and races; teaching different skills of teamwork and interaction and helping young offenders to start to break free from the crime circle, giving them a new focus. Winning is key - it provides something to aim for and is motivational - showing that there is something more to life and you can achieve great things if you put your mind to it.

In order to get out of the crime cycle young people need a push in the right direction and we are hoping that this new NOS will do just this; helping our country and community join together in a united ‘equipe.’ Furthermore the skills gained through this initiative are transferable; recognised by employers and can be utilised in the working world. This will help begin to get our youth back on track and hopefully give them the ‘leg-up’ needed to get out of offending and onto the career ladder.

By teaming up with The Laureus Sport for Good Foundation which is funding the project, these occupational standards should provide crucial building blocks that will unlock sport’s potential to help tackle gun and gang crime. With the creation of this initiative paving the way for new accredited training programmes, it will hopefully broaden the ways in which we use sport in the UK and beyond and with the Olympics looming, and 2012 just around the corner, it couldn’t be a better time to get our youth excited about the Games ahead.

One mustn’t forget in this current economic slump, businesses and organisations need to improve their competitiveness and productivity. We believe that this new NOS will be the start of, not only bringing young offenders into the ’light’ but bringing employers, educators and the government together; uniting them with a common agenda for action on crime through sport.

Having worked with a number of partners to develop the standards, including the Football Foundation, Metropolitan Police and Kickz, a National social inclusion programme that builds young people’s potential. We recognise there has never been a national occupational standard in this area before, making it even more of a significant and exciting piece of work for us. We know that sport is a great leveller - it has the unique potential to bring communities together. We also know that participation in sport can aid in reducing youth crime and anti-social behaviour, so to now be able to provide clear standards on how coaches, volunteers and managers in our community can use sport to tackle crime is fantastic. We are happy to have played a huge part in developing these new standards for the sector and can’t wait to see the results and new openings this will hopefully bring for our young people. Over the next 12 months, we look forward to seeing the first qualifications in this area be developed for the benefit of the sport sector and the community.

For more information about SkillsActive, please visit: www.skillsactive.com.