Youth United Foundation

What Youth United Foundation does

Youth United Foundation (YUF) is a UK registered charity (Charity No. 1147952, Company Number 07983862) founded in 2009 by King Charles III, then Prince of Wales, operating from 200b Lambeth Road, London. YUF functions as a national coordinating body rather than a direct service provider, bringing together 12 leading uniformed youth organisations — Air Cadets, Army Cadets, Boys' Brigade, Fire Cadets, Girlguiding, Girls' Brigade, Jewish Lads' and Girls' Brigade, Royal Navy Cadet Forces, Scouts, Sea Cadets, St John Ambulance, and Volunteer Police Cadets — which collectively reach 1.5 million young people aged 4-24. Its stated strategic objectives are respected advocacy for the uniformed youth sector, broadening access through growth, and increasing impact via network collaboration.

YUF's core offerings are programmes and coordinating initiatives rather than technology products. These include the DCMS Uniformed Youth Fund (administered in partnership with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport and Groundwork UK, targeting 20,000+ new places for 10-18 year olds in deprived areas), the Heritage Youth Partnership (Historic England-funded cross-sector project with £600 microgrants), Silver United (Royal London-funded intergenerational pilot with care homes), and Back Youth Alliance membership. The foundation's technology footprint consists of standard Microsoft tools (SharePoint, Teams) for data storage and communications, with no proprietary software or AI/ML systems. Royal patronage from King Charles III and Queen Camilla, plus a high-profile trustee board including Baroness Delyth Morgan (Chair), provides substantial institutional credibility.

YUF's revenue model is grant-funded: primary income flows from UK government departments (DCMS) administered in partnership with Groundwork UK, supplemented by charitable foundation grants (Historic England, Royal London, Prince of Wales Charitable Foundation). YUF does not charge for its coordination services and does not sell products commercially. Distribution of impact occurs through its 12 autonomous network member organisations, each operating local units across the UK. The foundation markets its mission through its website, social media (Instagram, Facebook, LinkedIn), newsletters, earned media coverage of royal engagements, and sector events including House of Lords gatherings.

Name

Youth United Foundation

Legal name

Youth United Foundation

Website

https://yuf.org.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2009

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Youth United Foundation is a UK registered charity founded in 2009 by King Charles III that coordinates a network of 12 leading uniformed youth organisations collectively reaching 1.5 million young people aged 4-24, administering grant-funded programmes such as the DCMS Uniformed Youth Fund.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Youth Sector Network Coordination

NAICS

Child and Youth Services (62411), Grantmaking and Giving Services (81321), Civic and Social Organizations (813410)

SIC

Services-Social Services (8300), Services-Membership Organizations (8600)

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 network coordination
• Uniformed youth sector
• Charity grant administration
• Youth development programs
• Sector advocacy services

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Government Grants: Primary funding from UK government departments, particularly the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) Uniformed Youth Fund, administered in partnership with Groundwork UK.
2. Charitable Trust Funding: Funding from charitable foundations including Historic England for Heritage Youth Partnership and Royal London for Silver United intergenerational projects.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Youth United Foundation is a UK registered charity that serves as a coordinating body for a network of 12 leading uniformed youth organisations, collectively reaching 1.5 million young people aged 4-24. It administers government and charitable grant programmes (such as the DCMS Uniformed Youth Fund and the Historic England-funded Heritage Youth Partnership), advocates for the uniformed youth sector, shares best practice across its member organisations, and publishes research and impact evidence for the sector.

Product overview

Youth United Foundation is a network organisation (not a product company) that serves as a collaborative network of 12 leading uniformed youth organisations. The Foundation's primary 'offering' consists of programmes and initiatives it administers and coordinates: the DCMS Uniformed Youth Fund (managing grants to uniformed youth organisations), the Heritage Youth Partnership (Heritage England-funded cross-sector heritage projects with microgrants), Silver United (intergenerational care home partnerships), and Back Youth Alliance membership. It also publishes research, reports and evidence documenting the impact of uniformed youth groups. These programmes collectively support the network's mission to expand access to uniformed youth groups for young people regardless of background.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• YUF: Youth United Foundation uses the abbreviation YUF as its trading name/dba.

Quantifiable outcome

• 1.5 million young people reached through network member organisations
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers12 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Groundwork UKcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartner organisation delivering the DCMS Uniformed Youth Fund alongside YUF. Groundwork UK is a charitable social enterprise working with communities across the UK.
• iWill MovementminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerNational movement encouraging youth social action. Listed as a partner organisation on YUF website.
• Back Youth AllianceminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration of senior leaders and youth representatives from leading UK youth charities. YUF is a member of this alliance.
• 12 Network Member OrganisationscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerYUF brings together 12 leading uniformed youth organisations: Air Cadets, Army Cadets, Boys' Brigade, Fire Cadets, Girlguiding, Girls' Brigade, Jewish Lads' and Girls' Brigade, Royal Navy Cadet Forces, Scouts, Sea Cadets, St John Ambulance, Volunteer Police Cadets.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• UK Youth: UK-wide umbrella charity for the youth sector, convening a network of youth organisations and supporting over 750,000 young people. Directly comparable to YUF as a network-coordination body advocating for the youth sector, although UK Youth covers a broader non-uniformed youth segment.
• Youth Sport Trust: UK children's charity focused on PE, school sport, and youth development. Highly comparable to YUF as a youth-development charity with strong government engagement; its CEO Ali Oliver is a YUF trustee, evidencing direct sector overlap.
• National Youth Agency (NYA): England's statutory body for youth work, providing policy advice, training, and standards for the youth sector. Comparable to YUF in its national convening and advocacy role, though NYA is a government-supported arms-length body rather than a private charity.
• British Youth Council: National youth-led charity representing young people's voices to government and decision-makers. Similar to YUF in its youth-advocacy function and sector convening role, though focused on democratic participation rather than uniformed youth groups.

Broad incumbents

• NCVO (National Council for Voluntary Organisations): Largest membership body for the voluntary sector in England. Comparable to YUF as a sector-wide umbrella that coordinates, advocates for, and supports member organisations, but operates at a much broader scale across all voluntary activity.
• NSPCC: Largest UK children's charity focused on child welfare and protection. Comparable to YUF as a high-profile UK children's charity with government engagement and policy influence, though focused on safeguarding rather than youth development.
• Scouts (The Scout Association): One of YUF's 12 network members and the largest UK uniformed youth organisation, reaching almost half a million young people aged 4-24. A peer because it is the dominant uniformed-youth body in YUF's network and a benchmark for the scale YUF coordinates.
• Girlguiding: A YUF network member and one of the UK's largest girls-only youth organisations. Comparable as a major uniformed youth group with similar volunteer-driven, locally-delivered model and emphasis on character development.
• St John Ambulance Youth Programmes: A YUF network member and a major UK youth organisation running Badgers, Cadets, NHS Cadets and Young Responders programmes. Comparable as a uniformed youth body delivering first-aid and citizenship training to hundreds of thousands of young people.

Emerging players

• Groundwork UK: UK federated charity partnering with YUF to deliver the DCMS Uniformed Youth Fund. Comparable as a co-delivery partner and fellow charity working with DCMS on youth and community programmes, with overlapping funder relationships.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/YouthareUnited
• Facebookfacebook.com/YouthareUnited
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/yuf
• Instagraminstagram.com/youthareunited

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Youth United Foundation