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RM’s story
RM is a pseudonym
Programme: CashBack Achieving Goals
LA for case study: South Ayrshire
CashBack Achieving Goals by Scottish Football Association uses the power of football to provide young people with routes to learn, build confidence and skills, volunteer, and gain qualifications to divert them from taking part in antisocial behaviour or involvement in the justice system.
The project has three strands: Alternative Football, Alternative Education, and Volunteer Inspire Programme.
Summary of YP’s life before CB activity
RM has been a player at Whitletts Vics for over 7 years and is currently 16 years old. Recently, RM had been struggling at school, he wasn’t enjoying it and his attendance was low. RM left school without knowing what he wanted to do later in life, and this was a difficult period for him.
Summary of YP’s time in CB activity
RM was given the opportunity to become a coach on the CashBack for Communities programme which ran until March 2026. Since joining as a coach, RM has shown remarkable progress. Previously, he was shy and didn’t like speaking in front of groups, and he also had doubts about how effective he could be as a coach.
His participation in the programme has allowed him to develop his social skills. He is now much more confident than he was before when speaking one-to-one with children, as well as in group settings. He has also developed confidence in his ability to coach and has learned from more experienced coaches, picking up tips from them along the way and improving as he gained experience.
The biggest challenge for RM was delivering his first few sessions in the Cashback activity. He found these sessions difficult, but he learned from more experienced coaches, which helped him adjust more quickly and improve over time. RM’s biggest achievement has been his commitment and consistency. Especially as he had not been attending school before he left, this has been a significant turning point for him.
How CB activity impacted YP
RM now wants to go to college to study sports coaching. His ambition for the future is to become a coach coordinator, where he can run football programmes and make a positive contribution to his local community, helping others in a similar way to how he has been supported.
RM says :
‘I have loved coaching on the programme and look forward to developing as a coach in the future’.
