What Reaching Higher Charity does

Reaching Higher Charity is a UK registered charity (Charity Commission No. 1137915), founded in 2011, that delivers youth services to young people aged 10–18 in Croydon and the surrounding South London boroughs. Its core offering consists of free, donation-funded programmes including school-based mentoring, community hangouts, the Summer Blitz, the Limitless Youth Camp, the Youth Board, and a Contextual Youth Work practice. The organisation operates with a Christian ethos but is explicitly secular-accessible, and is positioned as a youth-voice-led intervention rather than a faith-recruitment programme. Operational reach in 2025 is reported at 718 mentoring sessions, 943 new young people engaged through schools, 687 unique community participants, and 318 programmes delivered.

The technology stack is minimal: a Wix-hosted public website with Google Analytics for traffic measurement. There is no mobile application, no proprietary platform, no data warehouse, and no AI/ML capability. Programme delivery is mediated through physical venues and school partnerships rather than a digital product. Strategic relationships include venue partners BoxPark Croydon, Merky FC, and Legacy Youth Zone, research partner University of Greenwich, and a Jack Petchey Award as a reputational credential. The 2025 Contextual Youth Work Research Report is the most visible positioning move, intended to establish the methodology as a distinct, evidence-based practice.

The business model is a non-profit donation engine. Services are provided free to beneficiaries (young people 10–18), with funding sourced from individual donors, the "Join The 500" volunteer/donor campaign, and likely a mix of trust and grant funding. No commercial pricing, subscription, or revenue line is disclosed. No financial statements, total income, or headcount data are provided in the input, so the financial scale is not directly observable and must be inferred from operational volumes, which are consistent with a small local charity operating on an annual income well under £1m.

Name

Reaching Higher Charity

Legal name

Reaching Higher

Website

https://reachinghigher.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2011

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Reaching Higher Charity is a UK registered charity, founded 2011, delivering free youth programmes — mentoring, community hangouts, and youth camps — to 10–18 year-olds in Croydon and South London, funded by donations and delivered through school and venue partnerships.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Development Services

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Educational Support Services (611710)

SIC

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

akta.pro primary industry

Youth Mentoring & Positive Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Arts, Sports & Recreation-Based Youth Development Nonprofits (BPAGADAJ)

Keywords

• Youth development services
• Mentoring programmes
• Community youth work
• Charity youth services
• Youth leadership training

Headquarters

HQ city

City Of 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, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Donations and Charitable Funding: As a registered charity (No. 1137915), Reaching Higher operates primarily through donations from individuals, organisations, and community supporters. Services are provided free to young people aged 10-18.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels7 records

Core offering

Reaching Higher is a registered youth charity (Charity Number 1137915) delivering free youth development services for children and young people aged 10-18 (Year 6-13) in Croydon and South London. Its core offer combines school-based mentoring and leadership programmes, weekly community Hangouts, holiday activities such as Summer Blitz, the faith-based residential Limitless Youth Camp, and a Youth Board initiative, all delivered under a Christian ethos with secular inclusivity.

Product overview

Reaching Higher is a youth charity with a Christian ethos serving young people aged 10-18 in Croydon. The organisation offers a portfolio of youth services comprising school-based programmes (sports clubs, leadership training, mentoring), community programmes (Youth Hangouts, Summer Blitz), and residential camps (Limitless Youth Camp). The services also include youth leadership development through the Youth Board and research-backed Contextual Youth Work. These interconnected offerings aim to challenge young people to be leaders of their own lives by teaching transferable skills and providing safe, positive spaces for personal growth.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• School-Based Programmes Programmes delivered in partnership schools across Croydon, including sports and creative after-school clubs, leadership training, and 1:1 and group mentoring sessions to build confidence, raise aspirations, and develop essential life skills for young people aged 10-18.
• Youth Hangouts Weekly after-school community sessions held at various venues across Croydon, providing emotional wellbeing support, skill development workshops, social connection opportunities, and a safe environment for young people aged 10-18.
• Summer Blitz Free summer holiday activities offering outdoor sports, performing and creative arts, trips, and personal development workshops for young people aged 10-18 during the school summer break.
• Limitless Youth Camp A faith-based residential Easter Half-term camp offering outdoor sports, activities, performing and creative arts, evening services and seminars, combining spiritual development with recreational activities for young people.
• Youth Board A youth leadership initiative empowering young people to shape communities and influence decisions affecting them, with participation in events such as BoxPark Croydon and engagement with local government officials.
• Workshops & Training Structured workshops and training programmes focusing on transferable skills, sports and leadership development, providing young people with opportunities to learn and develop essential life skills.

Quantifiable outcome

• 718 mentoring and leadership sessions delivered across partner schools in 2025
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Oasis HubminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Community partner participating in community-focused conversations and collaborations with Reaching Higher.
• University of Greenwich (Dr Elaine Williams)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerResearch partnership with University of Greenwich for the Contextual Youth Work Research Report, exploring how community context shapes young people's experiences and outcomes. This serves as a first call to action for embedding Contextual Youth Work in Croydon.
• BoxPark CroydoncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYouth Board at BoxPark Croydon demonstrated youth influence on spaces and decisions, showing how young people can confidently influence community environments.
• Merky FCcoreOthersFootball venue hosting multiple Reaching Higher programmes including Leaders in Training (Yr 10-13), Football sessions, Forerunners (Yr 7-9), and Youth Hub activities.
• Legacy Youth ZonecoreOthersCommunity venue hosting basketball sessions for Reaching Higher participants at CR0 2LG location.
• SoCco ChetaminorOthersYouth Cafe venue hosting Youth Caff sessions at SE25 4PQ location.
• Woodside Baptist ChurchminorOthersChurch venue hosting Youth Hub sessions at SE25 4SP location.
• Elmers End GoalsminorOthersSports venue hosting football sessions at BR3 4EJ location.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• UK Youth: National membership body and grantmaker for youth organisations across the UK. Comparable as a broader incumbent shaping the funding and policy environment in which small charities like Reaching Higher operate.
• The Prince's Trust: The UK's largest youth charity, supporting 11-30 year olds through education, training and enterprise programmes. Comparable as a national incumbent in the youth development space, though operating at vastly greater scale and a broader age range.
• National Youth Agency: National body for youth work in England, setting standards and advocating for the sector. Relevant as the incumbent infrastructure body whose frameworks and funding routes shape Reaching Higher's operating context.

Emerging players

• MyBnk: UK charity delivering money-management workshops and programmes to young people in schools and community settings. Comparable delivery model (school- and community-based youth programmes with measurable outcomes), though focused on financial capability.
• Key4Life: UK charity focused on reducing youth reoffending through mentoring and personal development. Comparable as a smaller specialist youth charity using mentoring and structured programmes to drive behavioural outcomes in young people.

Direct peers

• Doorstep Discipleship: UK charity delivering faith-based youth work through detached and community-based engagement. Comparable in ethos (Christian youth work), target age group and free-to-access community delivery model.
• Oasis Hub Croydon: Community hub partner of Reaching Higher in Croydon. Operates faith-rooted youth and family services in the same geography with overlapping programme types, making it the closest geographic and mission-aligned comparable.
• Legacy Youth Zone: Croydon-based youth facility that hosts Reaching Higher's basketball sessions. Operates a comparable youth-development model focused on providing safe spaces, activities and personal development for young people in the same local market.
• XLP: London-based charity working with disadvantaged young people through mentoring, education and community programmes. Directly comparable as a faith-rooted (Christian) urban youth charity delivering free services across multiple London boroughs with a similar mentoring-plus-activities model.

Regional players

• Streetwise Youth: South London-based youth charity (Lambeth) offering mentoring and detached youth work. Comparable as a London faith-rooted youth charity operating free community-based services for adolescents in a single borough footprint.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/ReachHigherUK
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCBUDWkVp2SmndiZmkXEKF-w?view_as=subscriber
• Facebookfacebook.com/ReachingHigherUK
• Instagraminstagram.com/reachinghigheruk
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/reaching-higher-charity

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Reaching Higher Charity