What The Aldridge Foundation does

The Aldridge Foundation is a UK-registered educational charity (CIO, charity number 1170932) founded by Sir Rod Aldridge OBE in 2006-2007 to address educational inequality for disadvantaged young people. It operates a portfolio of five interconnected programmes - Next Steps (bursaries and career mentoring), Bright Futures (outdoor confidence-building), Aldridge Cricket Academy (sport-based skills development), Creative Arts (including the annual Junior Signature Art Prize), and Enterprise & Entrepreneurship (live briefs, simulations, and Founder Talks). All programmes are delivered free of charge to beneficiaries through the 12-school Aldridge academy network across London, the North West, and South East England.

The Foundation has no proprietary technology product; its competitive asset is the Aldridge Attributes framework (passion, determination, teamwork, risk-taking, problem-solving, creativity) applied consistently across programmes, combined with embedded delivery inside partner schools. In 2023 it extended into commercial activity by launching Aldridge Enterprise Services Ltd (AES), a wholly-owned subsidiary that operates as an umbrella employer enabling sixth-form students to take on paid freelance work, piloted at UTC@MediaCityUK.

Revenue is generated through philanthropic donations, grants, and corporate partnerships (e.g., Sussex Cricket, Accenture, NatWest, Taylor Wessing, Callsign, DegreeArt.com). The Foundation reports cumulative reach of 7,000 students, with 40% from families earning under £7,400 net income, and a 95% post-Year-11 education continuation rate. It is governed by a board chaired by the founder and operates with a small staff (11-50) supplemented by partner organisations such as Startup Sherpas, Future Foundations, and British Exploring Society for programme delivery.

Name

The Aldridge Foundation

Legal name

Aldridge Foundation CIO

Website

https://aldridgefoundation.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2007

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

The Aldridge Foundation is a UK educational charity delivering bursaries, enterprise, sport, and creative-arts programmes to disadvantaged young people across its network of 12 Aldridge academies in London, the North West, and South East England.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Education Charity

NAICS

Educational Support Services (611710), Educational Services (61), Sports and Recreation Instruction (611620)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200), Services-Social Services (8300)

akta.pro primary industry

After-School, Tutoring & Academic Enrichment Nonprofits (BPAGADAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Entrepreneurship, Startup Incubation & Pitch Programs (EDAMAKAK), Communication, Collaboration & Conflict Resolution Skills (EDAMAIAF), Portfolio, Capstone & Project-Based Program Support (EDAMAKAD)

Keywords

• Youth education programs
• Educational bursary support
• Enterprise skills programmes
• Creative arts education
• Disadvantaged student charity

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Philanthropic donations and grants: The foundation relies on donations, grants, and philanthropy to fund its programs supporting disadvantaged young people. The website includes a 'Donate' section for supporters.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

The Aldridge Foundation is an educational charity that supports disadvantaged young people through five core programmes — Creative Arts, Next Steps (Beyond School), Enterprise & Entrepreneurship, Skills Through Sport, and Building Confidence through Outdoor Experiences. Programmes are delivered directly within a network of 12 Aldridge family of academies across London, the North West and South East England, combining bursaries (e.g. Next Steps Bursary), mentorship, enterprise skills and creative-arts initiatives free of charge to students.

Product overview

The Aldridge Foundation is a charitable organization offering a portfolio of five interconnected educational programmes designed to support disadvantaged young people: (1) Discovering Creative Arts Pathways, which includes the annual Aldridge Junior Signature Art Prize and artist workshops; (2) Next Steps: Beyond School, which provides bursary support with mentoring and career guidance; (3) Exploring Enterprise & Entrepreneurship, featuring the 2023-launched Aldridge Enterprise Services Ltd (AES) freelance platform; (4) Developing Skills Through Sport, anchored by the Aldridge Cricket Academy; and (5) Building Confidence Through Outdoor Experiences and Coaching, which includes the Bright Futures residential programme. These programmes work together to inspire, skill and mobilize young people from disadvantaged backgrounds through education and into careers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Next Steps: Programme that opens young people's eyes to careers and supports them as they follow paths into further education and the world of work, including the Next Steps Bursary programme.
• Bright Futures
• Aldridge Cricket Academy
• Aldridge Junior Signature Art Prize
• Aldridge Enterprise Services Ltd (AES)

Products and services

• Discovering Creative Arts Pathways A programme that aims to inspire, inform and develop confidence in young people to raise their aspirations and explore how their talent could lead to a career in the arts or creative industries. Includes the Aldridge Junior Signature Art Prize and artist workshops, for students at Aldridge family academies.
• Next Steps: Beyond School A programme that opens young people's eyes to the wide range of careers available and supports them as they follow paths into further education and the world of work, including the Next Steps Bursary, academic and career mentoring, internships, networking and pastoral support.
• Exploring Enterprise & Entrepreneurship A programme that encourages creativity, builds confidence and develops key life and employability skills and gives young people an insight into different career pathways through live client briefs, hands-on business learning modules, online business simulation training and Founder Talks.
• Developing Skills Through Sport A programme that uses competitive sport to help young people build confidence, develop a positive attitude and acquire transferable life and employability skills, anchored by the Aldridge Cricket Academy at Brighton Aldridge Community Academy.
• Building Confidence Through Outdoor Experiences and Coaching A programme that combines group coaching sessions with outdoor experiences and a residential to increase young people's confidence and self-belief, including the Bright Futures programme for young people disengaging or at risk of disengaging with education.
• Aldridge Junior Signature Art Prize An annual art competition with categories in Fine Art, Graphics, Film, Photography and Textiles, with 15 finalists exhibited in a private exhibition at the Bankside Hotel. Created in partnership with DegreeArt.com and Callsign.
• Aldridge Enterprise Services Ltd (AES) An umbrella company that allows sixth-form students to set themselves up as freelancers so that they can respond to clients' briefs and be paid for their work. Currently piloted at UTC@MediaCityUK.
• Next Steps Bursary Programme A bursary programme consisting of financial support plus academic and career mentoring, internships, networking opportunities and pastoral support to help awardees overcome challenges as they take their next steps beyond school into further education and careers.
• Aldridge Cricket Academy A junior and sixth-form cricket programme at the Sir Rod Aldridge Cricket Centre (SRACC) based at Brighton Aldridge Community Academy (BACA), delivered in partnership with Sussex Cricket, enabling young people to combine academic studies with intensive cricket development.
• Bright Futures Programme A positive skills-building intervention combining group coaching sessions with outdoor experiences and a residential for young people disengaging or at risk of disengaging with education, or facing social, family or emotional challenges.

Quantifiable outcome

• 95% of supported students stay on in education following completion of year 11
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers15 records

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

16 partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• DegreeArt.comcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with the original graduate art gallery for the Aldridge Junior Signature Art Prize competition and internship opportunities for winners.
• CallsigncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerDigital Trust pioneer and sponsor of the Aldridge Junior Signature Art Prize, supporting young artists in creative industries.
• Bankside HotelminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerLondon's 'Art Hotel' on South Bank provides venue for annual art prize exhibitions and celebrations near Tate Modern.
• Sussex CricketcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSix-year partnership making BACA Sussex Cricket's state school of choice for cricket until at least August 2025. Provides professional coaching, pathway programs, and represents BACA as their state school of choice for aspiring cricketers.
• Arundel Castle Cricket FoundationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerHosts cricket and character development residential programs for Duke's Aldridge Academy students, combining sport and outdoor activities to build confidence and life skills.
• The Willows Cricket Club (Christchurch, New Zealand)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner in the Dormer Melluish Aldridge Cricket Scholarship program enabling student exchanges between UK and New Zealand.
• British Exploring SocietyminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership for 2-week expeditions in Scotland as part of the Bright Futures program, with Dangoor family funding the expedition elements.
• Startup SherpasminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerDesigned and facilitated Social Enterprise Bootcamp in partnership with the Foundation for young entrepreneurs.
• Paddy Willis (Mission Ventures)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCEO and co-founder of Mission Ventures, serves as Entrepreneur in Residence and developed integrated enterprise learning program at UTC@MediaCityUK.
• Sustainable VenturesminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerEuropean shared workspace for innovative young companies. Prize trip destination for Global Entrepreneurship Week competition winners to meet founders and learn about sustainable enterprise.
• Future FoundationsminorImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerLed the Aldridge Social Leadership Bootcamp, delivering workshops on UN Sustainable Development Goals and leadership skills for Year 8 students.
• Guild of EntrepreneursminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPaddy Willis is the lead contact at the Guild of Entrepreneurs, connecting Foundation with entrepreneurial mentorship.
• AccentureminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner participating in Social Enterprise Day, providing career pathway insights and business mentorship to students.
• NatWestminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner participating in Social Enterprise Day to help students understand business and career opportunities.
• Taylor WessingminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCorporate partner participating in Social Enterprise Day as industry experts and judges.
• East Africa Character Development Trust (EACDT)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership to provide funding and share learning for Cricket and Character Development Programmes reaching disadvantaged young Kenyans in Nairobi.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• IntoUniversity: UK education charity running local learning centres that support disadvantaged young people to progress to higher education. Comparable mission and beneficiary group, with a programme model that complements Aldridge's bursary and mentoring pathway.
• Envision: UK youth charity that runs enterprise and social-action programmes in state schools, equipping students from low-income backgrounds with employability skills. Directly comparable to Aldridge's Enterprise & Entrepreneurship and Bright Futures programmes.
• Sutton Trust: UK education charity focused on improving social mobility through research, programmes and partnerships aimed at disadvantaged young people. Highly comparable mission to Aldridge, with overlapping programmes around university access and bursaries (similar to Next Steps Bursary).
• Everton in the Community: Sport-for-development charity using sport and education to support disadvantaged young people across the North West of England. Comparable in combining sport (akin to Aldridge Cricket Academy), life-skills and educational engagement in the same geographic footprint.
• Career Ready: UK charity providing mentoring, internships and masterclasses to disadvantaged young people aged 14-24 to help them into skilled employment. Closely aligned with Aldridge's Next Steps programme around career pathways, mentoring and employer engagement.
• Speakers for Schools: UK charity connecting state school students with leading professionals for talks, work experience and careers insight. Comparable target beneficiary (state-school disadvantaged students) and emphasis on employer-led career exposure, similar to Aldridge's enterprise and corporate partner work.

Broad incumbents

• ARK (Absolute Return for Kids): UK charity running a network of academies and education programmes for disadvantaged pupils. Closely comparable operating model through a family of schools, plus research and direct youth programmes — overlapping structurally with Aldridge's academy-network approach.
• Teach First: UK education charity working to address educational disadvantage by placing teachers and leaders in low-income communities. Comparable target population (disadvantaged students) and mission of closing the attainment gap, though delivered via teacher training rather than direct youth programmes.
• The Prince's Trust: Major UK youth-development charity supporting disadvantaged 11-30 year-olds through education, training and enterprise programmes. Directly comparable mission, donor-base and beneficiary profile to The Aldridge Foundation, with much broader scale and brand recognition.

Regional players

• Foundation for Young Australians: Australian non-profit focused on young people's enterprise, education and employment pathways. Comparable mission and programme mix (enterprise skills, social leadership, confidence-building) but operating in a different geography.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/aldridgeonline
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/the-aldridge-foundation
• Instagraminstagram.com/aldridge_foundation
• Facebookfacebook.com/aldridgecricketacademy

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles10 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about The Aldridge Foundation