New inclusive talent programme to identify future sports stars “regardless of background”

Sport England has partnered with Youth Sport Trust and Greenhouse Sports to launch Elevate, a programme aiming to identify and develop 45 talented young people in sport.

Billed as an “inclusive talent programme”, Elevate will focus on developing young people with “exceptional sporting potential”, whatever their background.

With a tagline of “prioritising high potential over privilege”, Elevate brought 45 young people aged 13-16 to the School Games National Finals 2026 earlier this month, held at Loughborough University.

With a qualitative project led by global research and insight studio Beyond embedded throughout, the partnership is testing the idea that the next generation of sporting role models already exists in communities that talent systems too often overlook.

Sport England’s strategic lead for talent and performance, Duncan Truswell, said: “We all share the belief that talent is everywhere, but opportunity is not. This programme is about providing that opportunity and exploring systemic solutions to the challenges that stand in the way of inclusion and progression.”

According to Sport England, traditional sporting talent pathways often reward those with the strongest resources, networks and access to be seen, while underlying potential extends much wider but is “often unseen”. Elevate is designed to challenge that notion.

“Rather than asking who is already performing at a high level, it asks who has the greatest potential to thrive when given the right environment, support and opportunity,” Sport England said in a statement.

“By identifying talented young people from a wide range of backgrounds, Elevate will provide a high-quality development programme to support more young people to explore their potential.

“It will provide them with opportunities that athletes within the talent pathway have exposure to, in an aim to level the playing field in the talent space.”

The first 45 participants in the programme were nominated by Greenhouse Sports’ specialist coach-mentors, who work full time in schools across some of the country’s most under-resourced communities.

The sporting charity says that its “daily, trusted relationships” with young people mean they are uniquely placed to spot raw potential – which it describes as “the physical, psychological and behavioural markers that don’t always show up in conventional selection”.

Greenhouse Sports’ CEO, Don Barrell, said: “Traditional talent systems can mistake existing skills and confidence for future potential.

“That’s why development environments like Elevate matter so much: to recognise potential in young people who’ve had more challenges than opportunities so far in life, and to support it with our team’s expertise in positive youth development.”

The 45 invited young people were supported to attend the School Games National Finals, removing the practical and financial barriers that can prevent some talented young people from taking part.