This Commercial report forms part of a series of reports which accompany the 2023-24 BF Annual Report.
In 2023-24 commercial focus remained on the education sector and commercial delivery partners, with a goal of working with 30 new partners delivering the We Are Forging Futures educationally aligned personal development brand. This was supported with development of communications and marketing to position the core purpose of the brand within educational outcomes in comparison to solely a Physical Education, School Sport and/or Physical Activity offering.
Our underlying strategic objectives were to grow and sustain business as reported on below.
Objective 1. Diversify Portfolio of Partners
By April 2024 formal agreements were in place with 44 organisations, equating to 36 schools, 6 activity providers and 2 official designated partners. This showed an increase of 16 from the previous year. All of these agreements are minimum two year agreements supporting programme sustainability and developing long term partnerships.
Rolling out We Are Forging Futures into the education sector is also part of our overall strategy to diversify fencing’s participant base by overcoming schools perceived financial and non-financial barriers to introducing fencing.
Of the 36 schools now successfully delivering the Resilience and Self-efficacy programme, 33 of these are state government funded and 3 of these are independent paid schools. This mix of school types challenges perceptions often associated with fencing and shows that demand and interest exists in state schools, which if met with the right product, can result in fencing reaching a larger and more diverse audience.
Through the 36 schools now partnered and delivering fencing via the We Are Forging Futures brand, the Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) shows that 36% of the school pupils partnered are in the most Deprived Places (IMD 1-3) and 33% of the school pupils are in poor Health and Disability domain (IMD 1-3) evidencing the positive impact British Fencing are having across a cross-section of communities.
*Full list of partners can be found at the We Are Forging Futures Partners page.
Through the programme, BF has trained 125 new teachers via the Core Coach course, who in turn are supporting delivery to over 14,000 children every year, contributing to BF’s wider vision of building ‘A strong, successful and sustainable fencing community’.
Five organisations remain in the Licensed Partner Programme, delivering in total 47 Core Coach courses, training 428 new instructors, who will continue to bring fencing experiences to new audiences.
Carnival UK, Barracudas Activity Day Camps, PGL Travel Ltd, Kingswood Inspiring Learning and Center Parcs, continue to work with BF. PGL Travel Ltd became an Official Have-A-Go Partner for the next three years, due to their ongoing impact as the largest deliverer of introductory fencing in the UK and their interest in adopting a delivery approach aligned to We Are Forging Futures.
Kingswood Inspiring Learning became the Official Resilience Partner (2-year agreement initially) aligning with their interest in the Resilience and Self-efficacy programme of We Are Forging Futures. BF and Kingswood aim to begin a joint research project through Sheffield Hallam University in 2024-25 to academically assess the impact of fencing as a distinct tool to introduce and develop the concept of resilience for all young people.
Both PGL and Kingswood support the growth of the wider fencing community by providing venues to deliver coach education, which reduced the cost of educating coaches.
Objective 2. Strengthen our Commercial Offerings through Data and Insight
Following the successful strengthening of the We Are Forging Futures branding and positioning in the previous year, focus turned to promoting awareness of this brand and its associated services. April saw the development and implementation of a weekly communication process where schools across England were contacted, broken down by local authority. In 2023-24, 13,000 schools (out of 24,000) were contacted via email, showcasing this personal development opportunity.
Responding to the needs of an increasing partner base, the We Are Forging Futures ‘How’ Training will be moving online. Expected to be five modules the focus on ‘How’ skills is intended to enhance individuals’ knowledge of the We Are Forging Futures positioning and ensure partners feel confident to make the links to personal development outcomes. The development has started ready to launch in Q2 of 2024.
Engaging with stakeholders to source external funding and remove barriers for educational establishments to partner with We Are Forging Futures fencing continues to be a high priority.
Eight new schools were able to join We Are Forging Futures following success with building relationships across the available 43 local Active Partnerships who distribute the Department for Education’s ‘Open Schools Facilities’ fund. Access to funding has meant schools opening up their facilities longer after school to allow pupils to access fencing where they were not able to previously. The successful bids were awarded due to the focus on those children receiving Free School Meals and SEND (Special Educational Needs and Disabilities).
Objective 3. Sustain
The main commercial objective is to generate revenue that supports the organisation and reduces its reliance on external funding. This contribution to the overall sustainability of the organisation enables us to better support the sport and our members.
In 2023-24 revenue increased from £172k, to £195k showing a 12.8% increase in revenue year-on-year, and proving to be British Fencing’s best year ever in terms of commercial revenue and gross surplus. All our surplus is reinvested in supporting delivery to members, for example helping to cover the losses in the BF Events Portfolio.
In March 2024, BF recruited a new Commercial Administrator, to increase capacity in the team and allow further growth of commercial offerings across British Fencing. The successful candidate, Giulia Enright is supporting with onboarding new partners and support with implementing and strengthening processes, using her expertise in project management.
Coach Education Metrics
Looking Forward
Our focus areas for 2024-25 include:
Click here for the full 2023-24 Annual Report.
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