A speech by Prince Harry as the Coach Core apprenticeship scheme celebrates its nationwide expansion

[Introduced by Ethan Beard – a Nottingham apprentice]
 
Thank you Ethan – and thank you Terrell, it's great to see you both again. Two awesome examples of how this programme is making a difference.
 
It's great to be here to celebrate the national roll out of Coach Core and I can’t quite believe that it was four years ago that, my brother, Catherine and I launched It And now, here we are at Lords, 'the home of cricket'.
 
I hope that you've all been able to spend some time with our amazing apprentices this morning.  As you will have seen, Coach Core is providing world class sports and training opportunities that previously did not exist in sports coaching. 
 
The young people here today have a real chance of moving on into employment or training and in turn will inspire thousands of other young people to take part in sport - extending the positive reach of this programme.
 
Since 2012 Coach Core has seen almost 100 apprentices trained in our pilot sites with 98% moving on into employment and/or education. 
The goal is, and always will be, to provide places of employment on the apprenticeship scheme, giving each individual the best chance once they graduate from Coach Core. 
 
We want to be clear that Coach Core is not about elite sport – it is as much about the 14 year olds who turn up at their local sports club to train every week as it is about finding the next Olympian or Paralympian – it is about extending the benefits and impact of sport to children and young people across the country. 
 
At the beginning of 2016, The Royal Foundation made a commitment to bringing Coach Core to 10 cities over the next 3 years and I am delighted to say that we on track to achieve this by early next year.
 
We have a big vision for Coach Core and want to make it possible for young people all over the country to take part in this programme. It has achieved so much for our graduates like Terrell and Ethan and I want to see other young people have this same opportunity.
 
To do this, we must continue to work with employers and partners in each respective region to provide more opportunities that reflect their needs as businesses and the communities in which they serve.  
 
We must harness the increasing interest from sports clubs and organisations, regional and national governing bodies and like-minded sports charities so that we can make it possible for young people everywhere to take part in Coach Core.
 
By training the next generation of coaches to put the child first and the sport second, we hope the ripple effect of positive experiences in sport are felt by their participants in their communities.  Therefore changing lives and in turn, creating a surge of sporting enthusiasts.
 
Thank you for coming today and thank you for your continued support. My brother, Catherine and I are passionate about expanding this programme across the UK and I hope  that many of you will continue to join us on this journey.