Tomorrow, 20th December, Future Foundations turns 21!
It began in the Ideas Penthouse in Clapham Junction, with Jack Butler FRSA and Jonathan Harper FRSA, sharing a small flat (which was home and an office!) and a simple belief: that young people, when trusted and supported, can lead change in ways adults alone never could.
The team grew with early members including Justin Connor, Lydia Campbell, Josh Blacker, Jeff Burton, Becky Spanos, Pete Cuff FRSA, Michelle Horne FRSA and many more, creating strong foundations.
Together, we secured big projects ranging from the Vodafone Take A Change programme, to the McKinsey Leadership Academy, to the National Citzen Service which we ran in 9 cities…!
Twenty-one years on, our belief still shapes everything we do. Over the years, our focus has shifted: from personal development to social development, and now towards community development.
As we look ahead to 2026–2030, this next chapter is about schools becoming hubs, places that don’t just educate young people, but bring communities together, build belonging, and support collective wellbeing.
At its heart, our work remains the same: helping young people build the foundations they need for their future, academically, socially and as active citizens, so they can become leaders in their lives and society.
We see huge opportunity to transform schools into places where young people and communities want to be, don’t have to be: where doors are open, relationships are strong, and communities are connected.
We are nurturing the social leaders and problem-solvers of tomorrow.
This past year, we’ve made BIG progress towards our mission and vision:
Through Global Social Leaders…
Supporting 700+ young people in 21 countries through Global Social Leaders, with teams designing and delivering youth-led social action projects as part of the GSL Membership 2024/25, addressing the Global Goals.
We celebrated all teams at the sixth annual Global Social Leaders Festival, hosted by the German YMCA in London at the Lancaster Hall Hotel and streamed live — an inspiring global celebration of youth voice and youth-led action.
We were delighted one of our GSL students was announced as the winner of the Global Student Prize for this project, winning $100,000 to scale his impact.
We would ike to say a big thank you to our GSL Global Goals Heroes, Judges and Lead Teachers, whose commitment to nurturing young people is extraordinary.
Maths Camps:
We oversaw the delivery of three residential Maths Camps in August, reaching 258 pupils aged 11–14, with 46% eligible for free school meals, hosted by Churchill College, Cambridge and Christ’s Hospital School.
We were proud to be invited to project manage the camps for Purposeful Ventures and Axiom Maths, enabling more young mathematicians to develop their love of maths beyond the classroom and grow as confident, curious problem-solvers. We enjoyed working closely with Maria Cunningham and Adam Geach to turn the ambition into reality.
We also supported the 1729 Maths School to deliver the inaugural 1729 Year 5 Maths Camp at Mill Hill School, welcoming 60 pupils at a pivotal moment in their learning journey, working closely with Andrew Roberts and We Solve Problems.
A huge thank you to the close to our 50 staff (teachers, ambassadors and pastoral team ) who delivered all four Maths Camps, creating safe, joyful and challenging summer experiences that young people will carry with them.
Special shout out to George Watkins and Kath Wyatt who led the residentials and Megan Gains and Vladlena Kazantseva who led the 1729 Maths Camp.
Thank you to Michael Clark for inviting us to be a part of this very special pilot, which has shown the potential for Maths Camps in the UK.
CanTeam – community dining after school:
We scaled up our CanTeam community dining in schools across England, from Durham to Bognor Regis, supporting young people to transform their school canteens after school into community hubs.
We worked with brilliant catering partners, including Impact Food Group in London in partnership with the Haberdashers’ Academies Trust South and Chartwells Schools, whose chefs and teams help turn shared meals into moments of belonging.
Bedford Academy (UK) our first school outside of London, has developed CanTeam into a regular feature of the school, with events planned across the year, embedded into school themes, with strong leadership from Year 12 and 13 overseen by Farida Nelson. Big thank you to Russell Abbey for catering, and we will miss you, as you move down under.
We were delighted to partner with James Taylor and Chris Steele-Kendrick to deliver a scratch-cooked menu, with the Year 5 and 6 students helping to prepare and serve a community meal for 160+!
We partnered with Bite Back to offer microfinance grants to 7 schools across the country to host community dining in their schools, and have launched a 2nd round of grants, for events in 2026.
We were delighted Vanditha Prativadi was invited to speak on a panel about CanTeam at the British Nutrition Foundation annual conference.
We were proud and excited to secure support from the Pip & Nut | B Corp Foundation and the Greenslade Family Foundation, enabling us to scale our impact in 2026.
A huge thank you to our people, partners, funders and schools.
I want to say a BIG thank you to Conny Demontis , Shenel Shefik, Andy Dunn and Juliette Noske who have played big roles in delivering our programmes this year.
A special thanks to our advisors who have backed Future Foundations for many years Justin Beavis, Daniel Wellings, Daniel Shakhani and Tania Watson.
A shout-out to our Global Social Leaders member schools, particularly Svitlo Education and the The British International School, Ukraine, whose courage, leadership, and commitment to young people against a backdrop of unprecedented challenges continue to inspire our global community.
With special thanks to Big Change for their continued support for CanTeam and for supporting me as a changemaker, and to Katy and the team at Wellington College for your partnership, belief and generosity over many years.
We’re also proud to be part of the ACTionism and #CitizenFriday movement, alongside friends who believe, as we do, in active citizenship, community, and everyday action for the common good.
Following and supporting the progress of the Divergent Schools, which has gone from strength to strength, with our CEO proud to sit on their advisory board and to see @Daniel well and Amy’s vision coming to life. A powerful example of what’s possible when schools are designed as hubs of inclusion, with feedback describing the school simply as “a BIG HUG”
As with our 20th year, we’re taking this moment to take stock, reflecting on what we’ve learned, listening to our community, and shaping what comes next.
We have big plans for 2026 and beyond, and we’ll be sharing more in the new year. Behind the scenes, we’re working on a special new project, which we’ll announce early in the new year!
Join us
From January, we have co-working space available at Devas Club in Clapham, including one full-time desk and three days of shared co-working with up to six desks for a small team. If you’d like to join a community of purpose-driven organisations and know that your rent supports Devas’ mission do get in touch. You will be joining a floor of incredible organisations – including: Fox & Cubs – Nanny and Private Staff Agency, Oxbridge Futures, Mia Care and Youth Legal. Find out more & register interest here.
We invite you to subscribe to our newsletters on Social Leadership and Community Dining in schools, where we share learning, stories and practical ideas from the field.
Our office will close over the festive period for two weeks, and we’ll be back rested, refreshed and ready to gear up for the next chapter of delivery alongside young people and communities.
As we step into 2026, we’re still guided by the question that sparked those early conversations in Clapham Junction: What becomes possible when young people are trusted to lead — and schools become places where communities can thrive together?
Join us in our mission to equip young people to thrive.
With the support of our people and partners, we’ve inspired over 100,000 young people across 100 countries to realise their potential.
We welcome organisations that share our mission and vision to partner with us to help build a brighter future for all.
Thank you for being part of the journey.
Together, we can create a brighter future for all.
Jonathan Harper FRSA CEO, Future Foundations
We thank our people and partners, who have supported us to inspire over 100,000 young people in 100 countries to achieve their potential our Mission. We invite organisations who share our mission and vision to partner with us to build a brighter future for all.
Contact us to explore partnership opportunities.
Jonathan Harper FRSA, CEO Future Foundations