Body & Sole Funding – Partnership with The Cordiners
In November 2017, The Cordiners met with Education and Social Work to discuss providing £10,000 of funding to support sports and physical activity footwear for children and young people across Glasgow. The aim was simple but powerful: to remove the barrier that unsuitable footwear creates for participation in sport and physical activity.
Together, we established criteria for the funding:
• Focus on SIMD 1 and 2 schools
• Purchase of footwear must increase participation in sport and physical activity
• Potential for team-building projects to help build self-confidence
• Support for both indoor and outdoor activity
• No project too big or too small
Funding Support Since 2017
Since that first meeting, The Cordiners have provided support to Education in a range of ways, from 2017/18 through to the present day.
• Footwear funding for school sport and physical activity
• Support for Duke of Edinburgh programmes and Developing the Young Workforce within ASL schools
• Winter pandemic support through clothing donations from Bar One, under the “Help Keep Glasgow Warm” banner
• £10,000 during lockdown to buy outdoor play resources for the School Hubs supporting vulnerable children, families, and children of key workers
This sustained commitment has grown year on year. We are now in the 8th year of funding, and for the 2025/26 school term, PEPASS Education Services has been awarded £22,179 of Body & Sole funding to support:
• Early Years Nurseries
• Primary, Secondary, and ASL Schools
• Asylum Seeker Refugee Football Programme
• Blairvadach / Duke of Edinburgh
In total, The Cordiners have awarded a remarkable £131,795 to date – far beyond what we imagined when the partnership began.
The Impact
A simple thing like having suitable footwear may seem small. But without it, children and young people are often unable to take part in sport and physical activity, missing out on opportunities that are vital for their physical health, mental health, and wellbeing.
The Body & Sole funding from The Cordiners has made – and continues to make – a huge difference across Glasgow by reducing barriers to participation and ensuring more children can enjoy the benefits of physical activity and school sport.
Thank You
We are extremely grateful to The Cordiners and the Trades House of Glasgow for their continued support of PEPASS, Education Services, and the Body & Sole projects. Your commitment has created opportunities and removed barriers for countless children and young people across the city.
Please see an overview of how some of the funding has been spent below:
