Our objectives & Projects

Objectives

• Provide employment opportunities with courses on refereeing, coaching and officiating.
• Raise the profile of  healthy living and eating, by partnering with other initiatives in schools
• Provide volunteering opportunities.
• Prevent anti-social behaviour -  specifically knife crime through continued partnership with the Metropolitan police.
• Develop a girls U14 national league team ready to compete in the 2012/13 season.
• Qualify 30 of the existing registered 460 players as officials and coaches in the next year.
• Move from 4 Star to 5 star Club Mark Accreditation
• Establish a parent steering group for the junior national league involving a minimum of four parents on the board.
• Identify talented athletes to take part in an AAU (Amateur Athletic Union) basketball tournament in Florida.

Projects

Ball 2 Success

The Ball 2 Success programme is aimed at addressing the needs of disadvantaged and marginalised young people.  NASSA uses the sport of basketball as a tool to focus on increasing participation through sustainable coaching of grassroots basketball in the community.  

NASSA uses the power of basketball to improve academic and athletic achievements.  We strive to improve young lives by engaging with over 65 schools (2000 young people each week) in the London Borough of Newham, varying from primary, secondary and special education schools.
By being in this privileged position NASSA can mould their social and emotional wellbeing by improving confidence, self esteem and other aspects of a young person to flourish. 

NASSA coaches and mentors believe in being role models; their enthusiasm is truly contagious and they ensure they teach what it means to be a team player.  They work towards individual and collective goals as well as the importance of punctuality and how to respect others and themselves. The teaching and coaching does not stop at the ‘Ball 2 Success’ programme as they then have the opportunity to  train and play within a national league team for their respective age group.

‘Carry a Basketball Not a Blade’ (CABNAB) Annual Event

This event was founded by a London Borough of Newham local resident, Anthony Okereafor, aged 19 who personifies the type of young person NASSA interacts with and encourages.

Anthony had a close friend stabbed to death in 2007 and in honour of his memory founded the event in partnership with the Met Police.  The objective of the event is to raise the profile of knife crime and anti-social behaviour by giving an opportunity to educate those at risk and make contact with the community through interactive workshops.

‘Carry a Basketball not a blade’ was endorsed by Prime Minister David Cameron and was launched by an inspirational NASSA player in 2007. At the end of the event the Met Police Basketball team challenged a NASSA team and then each young person who attended the workshop was given a T-shirt and basketball to help take the message back to their communities

CABNAB

The Project runs every Friday at Cumberland school, Oban Close, E13 8SJ from 16:15 - 18:00 (8yrs-11yrs boys/girls) 18.00-20.00 (12-16yrs) boys.
The aims of the project are to

• Encourage community spirit so the community can grow and prosper
• Bridge the gap between generations
• Develop safer neighbourhoods
• Encourage young people to lead positive lives.

Anthony runs a prevention mentoring scheme to identify young people who may be picking up a blade in the first place and then to convince those with blades, to put them down and in Anthony’s words he wants “to give disaffected youths a positive way of expressing themselves through basketball”.

The Aiming High for Disabled Children

Runs every Saturday from 10am-2pm at Newham Leisure Centre the project is aimed at children with a range of disabilities.

Session 1- Basketball Bears

1 x 1.5 hour basketball session: aimed at children and young people with Autistic Spectrum Disorder
The session delivered by a qualified disability basketball coach and supported by volunteers from NASSA and Newham.

The session incorporate ball control, shooting, fun and games and as the sessions progress will introduce mini basketball.

The sessions allow children and young people the opportunity to participate in a relaxed format. Coaching will initially be on a 1-2-1, and will continue in this way if required. As the sessions progress new skills/practices will be introduced to build confidence.

Session 2- Basketball Buffalos

1 x 1.5 hour basketball session: aimed at children and young people with complex health needs.

The session incorporates multi-skills, and encourages movement with and without the basketball on the courts.
Wheelchair Basketball.

Runs in Newham Leisure Centre every Wednesday from 4pm-5pm to provide an opportunity for people with physical disabilities to get involved in team sport.  Wheelchair basketball is Paralympics sport, and with London 2012 just around the corner, the NASSA hope to give everyone the opportunity to play and get involved in wheelchair basketball.

Youth Opportunities with NASSA 

Sustainability of our projects and the success of the programme lie within young people giving back and as such they are encouraged to gain qualifications in:

• Level 1 and Level 2 basketball coaching
• Level 1  and Level 2 Table officiating
• Level 1 & Level 2 Referee.

With these qualifications in basketball coaching they can help create the NASSA culture using what they have learnt on and off the court to develop others in the communities they live in.