Youth Achievement Award Winner - Arsen Dorozhynskyi
At our recent Awards Night our Youth Achievement Award, sponsored by our friends at MidexPRO, celebrated a young person who has shown exceptional growth, teamwork, and resilience. Arsen, our winner, is a shining example of these qualities.
When Arsen arrived in the UK from Ukraine, he faced huge challenges — a new country, a new language, a completely different life. But through his involvement with our Holiday Activity Fund (HAF) programmes and weekly Premier League Kicks sessions, he found more than just sport, he found connection, confidence and community.
Today, Arsen is not just an enthusiastic participant — he’s someone other young people look up to, welcomes others in, and leads by example. His journey is one of bravery, positivity, and strength.
Our Community Coach, Maddi Sweetman, lauded Arsen’s kindness, explaining that “every single week Arsen works really, really hard to make sure that he’s putting in the effort, that he’s getting better at his football, but - most importantly - that the people around him feel safe and can get involved as well”.
Arsen at a Premier League Kicks session
Arsen loves playing football, and wants to be a footballer one day. However, in a testament to the positive attitude he brings to every session, he says his best moment at HAF was “winning star of the week for his good behaviour and kindness”.
“Football helped him express himself when words were difficult and [Premier League] Kicks gave him confidence and a sense of belonging”
Arsen’s mother, Solomiia, explained that although Arsen struggled with learning a new language when he first arrived in the UK, “football helped him express himself when words were difficult”, adding that “being part of [Premier League] Kicks gave him confidence and a sense of belonging”.
Our Community Coach, Kai Howe, shares this view, noting that although Arsen struggled to fit in intially, due to the language barrier, “he has shown a massive improvement and we love having him attend”.
