At Youth Unity, our work with young people continues to grow, and alongside this growth comes the need to strengthen the systems that support our team behind the scenes. Thanks to funding support from Active Essex, and development guidance through Sporting People, we have been able to invest in building organisational infrastructure that improves how we work, collaborate and deliver high-quality support to young people across our programmes.
We were contracted to support the development and growth of our organisation by focusing on key areas identified within our Action Plan. With guidance from Sporting People, we explored how strong internal systems can improve workforce development, governance and long-term sustainability.
Areas of Focus
Through guidance from Sporting People, we focused on strengthening four key areas that support organisational growth and sustainability:
Employee Journey
Developing clearer pathways for staff and volunteers from onboarding through to development and progression, ensuring our team feels supported, confident and connected throughout their journey with Youth Unity.
Employee Experience
Improving communication, access to resources and internal collaboration to support staff wellbeing, engagement and consistency across delivery.
Learning & Development
Embedding structured training, shared learning resources and digital tools that support workforce development, leadership growth and ongoing skills development.
Governance
Strengthening organisational systems, processes and oversight to improve compliance, accountability and sustainable delivery.
Turning Strategy into Action
To bring these priorities to life, our Action Plan focused on building practical infrastructure that supports everyday delivery:
- Developing Microsoft SharePoint as a centralised intranet platform for resource storage, collaboration and organisational knowledge.
- Enhancing Microsoft Teams with structured channels to replace informal communication methods, improving clarity and information tracking.
- Providing digital upskilling to increase staff confidence and efficiency when using Microsoft tools.
- Hosting a “Team Reset Day” to deliver hands-on training, align workflows and update devices.
- Hiring a SharePoint specialist to support expert implementation and training.
Organisational Impact Snapshot
Since implementing the new infrastructure, we have already seen significant organisational improvements:
- Improved staff collaboration and communication through structured digital systems.
- Faster access to safeguarding policies, training materials and programme resources.
- Stronger governance through integrated project tracking and timesheet management.
- Reduced administrative duplication, enabling more time spent on direct youth support.
- Increased organisational readiness to scale delivery while maintaining consistency and quality.
What This Means for Our Work with Young People
While much of this work happens behind the scenes, the impact is directly felt in our delivery. The new integrated system now brings together project management, timesheets, policies, training resources and programme information into one accessible environment. This has strengthened communication across our team, improved governance and reporting, and enabled us to manage funding and projects more effectively.
Most importantly, it allows our mentors and staff to spend less time searching for information and more time focusing on what matters most building relationships, creating safe spaces and supporting young people to thrive.
We are incredibly grateful to Active Essex for investing in our organisational growth and to Sporting People for their guidance throughout this process. This infrastructure has not only improved how we work today but has created strong foundations that will support Youth Unity’s sustainability, scalability and long-term impact.
