The Programme Management team works closely with clients to consult, create and deliver services that achieve maximum effectiveness and learning from outcomes-based programmes.

The team’s sectors of interest include sport and social impact, sport and physical activity, youth development, criminal justice, education, mental and physical health and addressing inequalities.

Our services What we can do for you

Services include developing and managing outcomes-based partnership programmes, programme development, financial modelling, producing specifications and guidance documents, implementing robust funding processes, performance managing national and local interventions, governance and accountability, supporting programme sustainability and exit strategy planning.

We work closely with colleagues across the business for data, research and social valuing support.

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We work closely with clients to design and develop evidence-based programmes that use sport to address social issues.

We manage, track and implement complex multi-stakeholder contracts.

We capacity build the market and design impact investment solutions in sport for development such as the flagship Chances programme.

We support existing funders and contract managers with data gathering, analysis and reporting to better understand outcome achievements.

We support clients with designing and implementing finance and governance processes that help to maximise the success of sports based contracts.

Chances the world’s first social outcomes partnership which uses sport and physical activity as a pathway to tackling deep-rooted social issues.

With 41 partners involved, Chances is considered the world’s largest social outcomes partnership.

The Chances programme supports disengaged young people from deprived backgrounds to attend school more regularly, gain qualifications, get into training, reduce or avoid offending whilst also improving their physical literacy.

In partnership with:

Programme Management Case Studies

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London United
Programme Management
Inspiring Impact
Programme Management

The Programme Management Team

We have an experienced team with backgrounds in community development and supporting delivery chains, investment and fund management, programme design and management.

Sangita Patel
Sangita PatelHead of Programmes

which included everything from public consultation to managing protests to hosting dignitaries. I then went on to work at Premier League, as senior manager for the Charitable Fund. It was a privileged role of working with the 92 professional football club charities, supporting them with their organisational development and development of quality interventions.

When not working you can usually find me on a yoga mat in a hot room. And when I’m not in a hot room I like to run up hills.

Why Sangita works at Substance?


I’m so lucky to be working on the first Social Impact Bond that uses sport and physical activity in England and this project brings together everything I’ve enjoyed about my work life – supporting with delivery organisations with quality interventions, using data and evidence to intelligently develop programmes and most importantly trying to tackle important social issues.”.

Matt Baird
Matt BairdPerformance & Insight Manager

Matt’s role at the PLCF that saw him primarily responsible for supporting the 100+ professional football club charities to deliver high quality and impactful sports participation, social inclusion, health and wellbeing and employability projects for communities up and down the country.

At Substance, Matt provides main role is to provide performance and insight support for the Chances Social Impact Bond, the only sport and physical activity based social outcomes contract currently in Europe. In addition, Matt also provides support and expertise to London United.

When not at work you can usually find Matt either travelling up and down the country in his quest to watch a decent game of football, or enjoying the fresh air and amazing views the Sussex countryside provides.

Why Matt works for Substance?

Prior to joining Substance, I had been extremely fortunate to have worked alongside many of the team at Substance through my role at the PLCF. This not only made me fully appreciate the vase array of skills, knowledge and experience the team possesses but also to understand the difference the organisation is making both up and down the country and globally. Therefore, when the opportunity presented itself to join Substance, the rest became history, so to speak’.”

Provide a better service to your audience and society.

We can provide unbiased, evidence-based understanding, to help you adapt and grow your organisation to provide a better service to your audience and society.