Leadership Through Sport & Business (LTSB) is a national social mobility charity established to tackle deep injustice: talented young people from disadvantaged and under represented backgrounds are excluded from professional careers. Not because they lack ability or ambition, but because they lack access to networks, confidence, and the social capital that more privileged peers inherit naturally. LTSB challenges this reality and to build structured, fully supported pathways that enable young people to progress into meaningful careers that reflect their capability rather than their circumstances. Our mission is rooted in the belief that talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not, and that systemic barriers must be dismantled through deliberate, sustained and collaborative intervention.
Our journey began using sport, particularly football foundations to engage young people and develop leadership, teamwork and coaching skills. Working with football foundations, we delivered programmes that built confidence, discipline and aspiration among young people who had been overlooked by traditional systems. These early years demonstrated the power of sport as a catalyst for personal growth and community engagement, but they also revealed a critical limitation: leadership development alone could not overcome the structural barriers preventing young people from accessing stable, well paid professional careers. Without recognised qualifications, professional pathways, employer engagement and long term support, many participants remained excluded from the opportunities they deserved.
This realisation led to a decisive transformation. Under the vision of founder David Pinchin, the charity evolved into Leadership Through Sport & Business, integrating formal education, employability training, pastoral support and corporate placements into a comprehensive social mobility model. Pinchin, who had spent 25 years as CEO of Tradition Financial Services, recognised the vast “wasted potential” among underemployed youth and committed to addressing it. He personally invested significant funds to establish and grow the charity, secured match funding from senior financial leaders, and used his corporate network to persuade employers to open their doors to young people who would not normally be considered for professional roles. Pinchin served as Chair of the Board of Trustees for over a decade, guiding the organisation from concept to nationally recognised charity and earning the Freedom of the City of London in 2022 for his contribution to social mobility.
Today, LTSB delivers structured programmes that combine personal development, employability training, industry recognised qualifications, professional coaching, workplace insight and high quality apprenticeships. Participants receive intensive support including mentoring, interview preparation, confidence building, digital and business skills training, and long term pastoral guidance. We work with major employers across finance, law, digital, insurance and professional services to ensure young people gain both the technical skills and the professional behaviours required to succeed. Our programmes are designed not only to secure a first job, but to equip young people with the resilience, ambition and capability needed to sustain and progress in their careers.
We focus on young people who have experienced financial hardship, disrupted education, caring responsibilities, limited family support or a lack of professional networks. Many participants are the first in their families to enter professional sectors. We identify overlooked talent through partnerships with schools, community organisations and local networks, and provide a clear, supported pathway into meaningful roles. Employers benefit from motivated, diverse talent; young people gain access to careers that once felt out of reach; and communities see improved social mobility, reduced NEET rates and strengthened local engagement.
LTSB has grown into a national organisation with multiple regional hubs and a broad employer network. Hundreds of young people each year progress through its programmes into meaningful employment, and more recently our new schools programme FutureYOU is reaching 1,000 young people a year. 2,500 young people have completed our Business programmes and 70% of our young people gain meaningful employment. Young people who once doubted their prospects now working in major firms, supporting their families, contributing to their communities and acting as role models for others. LTSB continues to expand its programmes, deepen pastoral support, diversify employer partnerships and strengthen its commitment to ensuring that opportunity is not determined by background. We are focused on building a future in which every young person, regardless of circumstance, can access a career that matches their ability, ambition and potential.
