Refurbished Harvist Estate football pitch provides safe space for young people to fulfil their potential

On Saturday (12 February) young footballers, Arsenal in the Community coaches, and Islington councillors came together to formally open the transformed pitch, which sits just minutes from the Emirates Stadium.   

As part of its commitment to standing with its communities, supporting young people’s safety, and tackling knife crime and youth violence, Islington Council is supporting the No More Red campaign, which aims to protect young people from crime and violence.   

The campaign will see the council, Arsenal and adidas work together in creating and refurbishing safe spaces to play football. The redevelopment of the Harvist Estate pitch is the first step in achieving this, and the council will work with Arsenal to identify more locations for new or refurbished pitches.   

Cllr Una O’Halloran, Islington Council’s Executive Member for Community Development, said: “In Islington, we stand with our communities and work tirelessly to make our borough a place where young people are given the best possible start in life, which is why we’re fully supporting the No More Red campaign.   

“By investing in creating and refurbishing safe spaces to play football, like the Harvist Estate pitch, we can help empower Islington’s young people to fulfil their potential and shape their own, bright futures.   

“We’re grateful to ward councillors, Arsenal and adidas for making the transformation of the pitch possible, and look forward to creating and developing more spaces for young people to enjoy the benefits that sport can bring.”   

Freddie Hudson, Head of Community at Arsenal in the Community, said: “The Harvist pitch is such an important facility for the local community and it’s great to see it refurbished and looking so good.

"We started delivering projects here with Islington Council in 2004 and it’s incredible to think the sessions have been sustained since then. This long term approach is a serious commitment to the residents of Harvist Estate and one we are hugely proud of.

"Thanks to adidas and our No More Red campaign we will be able to extend our youth engagement work at Harvist into the future.”  

Islington Council stands with its communities so they are safe, connected and inclusive. It works closely with Arsenal in the Community, both on and off the pitch, to help support young people – and with the Arsenal Foundation, which has funded a knife bin near the stadium in Hornsey Road. The knife bin is one of eight across the borough that have taken more than 1,000 knives and other bladed items off the streets since October 2020. 

For more information on No More Red, see www.Arsenal.com/NoMoreRed  

As well as supporting the refurbishment of the football pitch, the council is taking numerous other steps to improve the Harvist Estate for everyone, including building 24 new council homes.