School of Hard Knocks & Impetus

The need: Suspensions have risen by 80 per cent compared to pre-pandemic levels, while persistent absence and severe absence rates are at record highs. Teachers are increasingly looking for interventions to support children, reduce exclusions, and improve attendance.

Our portfolio partner: School of Hard Knocks (SOHK) empowers young people living in complex and challenging situations to fully realise their potential. Working with children at risk of exclusion and disengagement, SOHK delivers a holistic programme to drive improved attendance and reduce suspensions and exclusions. The programme combines high-impact rugby sessions, group social and emotional learning sessions, and one-to-one mentoring - all with a focus on building long-term trusted adult relationships.

Our impact: Through our Driving Impact workshops, SOHK decided to focus their delivery exclusively on young people, reaching them with interventions before challenges become entrenched. They have correspondingly restructured their senior management team to support this upstream work in schools and are beginning an intensive pro bono strategy project to plan for expansion across England, Scotland, and Wales.

It is no exaggeration to say that School Of Hard Knocks' (SOHK) partnership with Impetus has been genuinely transformational. The weekly input and encouragement of Danny (Investment Director) & Chloe (Investment Manager) have empowered us to scale our ambition, fine-tune our programme, and more ably demonstrate our impact. I feel more confident than ever about the future of our charity and that of the young people we are privileged to work with.

Ken Cowen, CEO, School of Hard Knocks