CoRe 2020 Case Study: MMARAP

The charity 

MMARAP (Mixed Martial Arts for Reform and Progression) delivers programmes which teach boxing, karate and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) to young people aged six and upwards in London. The organisation delivers its programmes to deaf, blind, disabled, disadvantaged and non-disabled individuals and groups. They provide training and mentoring to assist with their students’ development and encourage empowerment through short and longer-term programmes.

The project 

MMARAP applied to CoRe to help them explore how to make the most of their position as one of the only/best providers of mixed martial arts for deaf, blind, and disabled in Islington and beyond. The organisation was looking for extra capacity to make progress on their communications and marketing to increase their chance of winning grants while the directors focussed on the organisation’s delivery and updating their governance policies.  

Impact on MMARAP as a result of CoRe 

Capability:

• Significant improvement in ability to provide a better service to their beneficiaries.

• Recognisable improvement in :

  Governance and/or management

  Operational processes e.g. IT, HR, etc.

  Staff or volunteers’ knowledge and ability

Capacity:

• Significant improvement in their ability to provide new or additional services.

• Recognisable improvement in ability to:

  Spend more time with beneficiaries

  Recruit more of the right volunteers and/or staff

Sustainability:

• Recognisable improvement in ability to continue to deliver services that attract a minimum viable number of participants further into the future.

Added value provided by the volunteers 

• Helped review and draft content for new website and social media platforms

• Produced social media strategy

• Supported the creation of new logo, adding branding guidelines

• New funder and partner engagement templates created including potential target list

• Safeguarding, equal opportunity, and health & safety policies

• Questionnaire created to help MMARAP understand their clients’ readiness to return to sessions post-coronavirus pandemic

MMARAP’s CoRe experience:

“With the overall website revamp, I knew what we needed but in small voluntary organisations not everyone has the relevant skills or ability to get involved in these workstreams. The CoRe team were always available to make suggestions and offer support. I genuinely appreciate the input they gave me and the organisation itself. I have no doubt that if I had turned to one of the CoRe team for support or advice outside of the initial objectives, they would’ve tried to help.” (Tim, Head of Communications at MMARAP)

MMARAP CoRe volunteer’s experience: 

“What struck me from the very start was the passion, enthusiasm, and drive from the whole MMARAP team, especially Jonathan the director, and their commitment to making a positive impact in the community. Working with MMARAP has given me an appreciation of the challenges these organisations face with the limited resources they have available but more importantly an understanding of how teamwork and collaboration is needed to drive them forward. I thoroughly enjoyed the experience, it was a great opportunity to connect with a diverse group, step outside my comfort zone and make a positive contribution.” (Elliott, MMARAP CoRe volunteer)

For more information on the full CoRe programme visit our CoRe pages. If you'd like to access CoRe for your organisation get in touch with info@thebigalliance.org.uk