A while ago two of my students said they were going to 'turn over' a large house in a wealthy area near them. I asked why? They said they had it tough, they wanted a new TV, and it was something to do.

I listened, and then explained that just because they were poor they didn't need to rob a house. I explained how my Grandparents grew up in the East End during the great depression.

There were few jobs, no money and no welfare. They went without food on occasion, suffered discrimination and had to deal with fascism, yet they emerged from poverty by working hard, sacrificing for the future, educating themselves, respecting the law and other people, had strong families and never gave up.

The two boys looked thoughtful, and then one said: 'Yes, but I never had a father to tell me that'.

A practial solution

I founded the Boxing Academy in 2006. It is now an award winning charity that gives a second chance in life to teenagers in danger of exclusion. We are based in Hackney and Tottenham.

These areas were getting better in so many ways, but there was always a nagging doubt that 30 or 40 years of misguided social policies had broken the ties that bind us. Once the money went - and it was always going to - the sticking plasters would fall off our broken society.

The wave of stabbings that came to public attention in 2008 never went away. There remains in many areas of London a 'postcode' civil war between teenagers, with a complex network of gangs operating above them, sometimes recruiting the kids that get enough 'stripes'.

Many of the teenage stabbings go unreported as they are inter-gang, or the victim is simply too scared. So the problem is left alone.

Firm but kind works

Children need love, but tough love. The Boxing Academy is based on this principle and it works. Our mentors are all amateur boxers or martial artists and cannot be bullied. The kids respect them. We teach GCSEs, life skills and a full sports curriculum, but boxing is the key. It helps you calm down and control your anger.

Children see the discipline, the work ethic, the authority of a coach, the much needed father figure, the sense of achievement, the decision making, the control of aggression and the self-respect inherent in Boxing and learn that the use of force has a place, comes with responsibility and is not for the street.

Respect for all is vital at the Academy, we work through persuasion and rational discussion. But at the end of the day we will say no to them. Some kids have never heard this before. But this word in the right context is a vital act of authority and love. It says I care enough to argue with you and I have seen young gang members reduced to tears when this was explained to them.

However every individual or society needs a deterrent that works when reason fails, and the Boxing Academy is no exception. At the Academy the students are consulted and set their own disciplinary code in consultation with the staff, and disruptive teenagers prescribe harsher punishments than adults!

Collective thinking

An example of this was seen on a recent trip to Somerset for an adventure holiday. On the second night, a student stole some change from the collection box of the local Church, which resulted in the entire Academy being woken up and interrogated. When the culprit finally owned up at 8am the next day, he was sent back to London in disgrace.

His punishment was decided by the student body, who took three things into account: the disruption to their trip, the shame he brought on the Academy and the fact that he lied for 6 hours to cover his tracks.

The punishment? The ‘Tyson Workout”. This includes a 3 mile run; 10 rounds of sparring (with the staff, who did not hold back); 2000 sit-ups; 500 dips; 500 press-ups; 500 shrugs with a 30kg barbell.

After the week it took to complete, the student stood up in front of the whole Academy and apologised to everyone for letting them down.

Our secret recipe of old world wisdom, mixed with cutting edge psychology, cognitive techniques, a simple sense of achievement and reward - stick and carrot - turns lives around.

Solutions that work

This is the key; with proper adult authority, some basic knowledge and common sense children learn right from wrong, and make good choices. Their power to redeem themselves is inspiring. I am privileged to have seen this.

It humbles me. In our simple model lie the answers, we have the evidence, the success stories, and we are ready to help.

At the Boxing Academy we are helping young people in London turn their lives around. We need business support to keep making that happen.

If your company has a budget for community investment, we can help you deliver on your desire to make a proven positive impact in the community. Support us today.

For external endorsements of our work and key facts that demonstrate our success, see below.

Simon Marcus founded the Boxing Academy in 2006 which is based in Tottenham and Hackney. He was also the Conservative Candidate in Barking in 2010, beating the BNP into 3rd place. Before this Simon was involved in small business management and investment and worked for the British Chamber of Commerce in Brussels. simonmarcus2003@yahoo.co.uk / http://www.theboxingacademy.co.uk

Laureus report on sport and education: http://www.philanthropycapital.org/publications/education/sport.aspx

UCLA evaluation: http://www.theboxingacademy.co.uk/evaluation.html

The Boxing Academy has been evaluated by: New Philanthropy Capital/Laureus Sport for Good Foundation, The Man Group, Comic Relief, and the Stone Foundation, all of whom elected to work with the charity.

For a longer article by Simon Marcus on which this article was based, click here.