To commemorate this new collaboration, Neil has a conversation with the head of Matchroom's community development programme, Alex Le Guével. Alex used to work for England Boxing and has been involved in other sport development ventures in the past. He's been in this role at Matchroom for around a year so Neil and Alex discuss how he got there, the aims of the new partnership and what kind of impact Empire and Matchroom might have on boxing in the UK and beyond.

To support Empire Fighting Chance and to find out more about the work we do, head to www.empirefightingchance.org

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Neil chats with Empire coach and former British super lightweight title champion, Darren "Ammo" Hamilton. He's had 19 fights, 16 wins with three by knockout. He also had an illustrious amateur career with 27 amateur bouts, losing just four. But it's not all confined to the ring. He had to overcome many challenges as a young man and then as an adult; dabbling in criminality, spending time in custody and at one point in his life finding himself homeless.

He's now supporting young people as part of Empire Fighting Chance's programs alongside training up and coming professional boxers at the Bristol Boxing Gym run by Chris Sanigar.

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Neil talks with Hardeep about the future of schools, challenges young people face, education, league tables and more.

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Today, he supports young people to move away from criminality into alternative positive lifestyles via his organisation Each One Teach One.

Dayton also works at Empire Fighting Chance delivering programs at the gym, helping teenagers overcome anxieties associated specifically with knife crime. So, why do young people carry knives? Why do they join gangs? How can we understand this better and how can we support and redirect positive outcomes for young people?

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REACH is an organisation which brings together communities to develop safety strategies for the city, they support current social programs and fill any gaps in the system. REACH have partnered with Empire Fighting Chance through their shared interest as members of the international Peace in Our Cities initiative.

Neil and Jan talk about this partnership, the importance of building international networks when it comes to violence reduction work, her trip to Bristol and much more.

To support Empire Fighting Chance and to find out more about the work we do, head to www.empirefightingchance.org

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Host Neil Maggs talks with his old mate Joe Sims, an actor known for being in hit TV series Broadchurch who has recently become the presenter of the BBC radio Bristol breakfast show. Neil and Joe discuss his career and why he's crossed the rubicon into radio broadcasting as well as the difficulties of breaking into media and acting based on class.

They also discuss Joe's work in charity: he's linked to various good causes in Bristol, supporting sport for development trusts and setting up his own project called 500 reasons, with another unannounced project in the pipeline...

To support Empire Fighting Chance and to find out more about the work we do, head to www.empirefightingchance.org

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However, he is better known as the voice of Bristol Rovers Football Club. He was the MC at the ground for many years, known for his catchphrase "I can smell gas". He has interviewed top boxers, including world champion Lee Haskins from the Sanigar stable, and his son has benefited from programs at Empire and gone on to fight as an amateur boxer.

Neil and Nick discuss business, boxing, and football.

To support Empire Fighting Chance and to find out more about the work we do, head to www.empirefightingchance.org

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Santiago was heavily involved in that process of reformation. He was the world's second appointed Chief Resilience officer; a role that works with cities to build resilience and opportunity, and to address violence by building a more sustainable response to it, being proactive rather than reactive.

From 2007 to 2010, he served as an administrative assistant on cultural and economic affairs at the Colombian Embassy in South Africa, working alongside Nelson Mandela. 

Neil and Santiago discuss his expertise in the field of violence reduction and what lessons can be brought home to Bristol and beyond.

To support Empire Fighting Chance and to find out more about the work we do, head to www.empirefightingchance.org

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So what was it that helped transform him? What was it about boxing that was instrumental in his development? His name's Matt Lawrence. He is now a coach at Empire, working with young people that were just like him. He's just signed a professional contract with Chris Sanigar to fight in Bristol and expects to make his debut in the autumn. Neil talks to him about his journey and how far he wants to go in the sport.

To support Empire Fighting Chance and to find out more about the work we do, head to www.empirefightingchance.org

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It's sports psychologist Sam Kotadia. He cut his teeth in professional football, working at several clubs, including currently with Wrexham FC. He's also starring in Welcome to Wrexham, the behind the scenes documentary about the club which is streaming on Disney plus.

Sam crossed the Rubicon into boxing when he was working at Bristol boxing gym stable several years ago. After a conversation with Martin Bisp and Jamie Sanigar from the charity, they asked him to write some programs for coaches to use with young people with some underlying principles which guide the work of the charity as a whole.

In this discussion, Neil and Sam dive into sports psychology and how he is trying to push the field forward at Empire Fighting Chance.

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Her work in Parliament saw her set up the all party parliamentary group for boxing in 2011 with the aim of promoting the sport and keeping it high on the agenda in Westminster.

In this discussion, Neil and Charlotte talk about her background in boxing and the impact it had, her involvement in founding the charity, her life in and after politics and the future for Empire Fighting Chance.

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So on the Empire Fighting Chance podcast, we talk to Alfredo Baldo. He is an Urban Violence Program Manager for Peace in Our Cities; A global network that look for solutions, in particular, in this case, urban violence. 

He's also the Urban Violence Program Manager at the Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice at the University of San Diego. We talked to him in New York, and it's a deep dive. What ideas, what strategies can we bring back to Bristol that might potentially be successful here?

To support Empire Fighting Chance and to find out more about the work we do, head to www.empirefightingchance.org

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In light of the ongoing issue of knife crime among young people in Bristol, they talk about how to make Bristol safer and how to learn from other cities in order to reduce youth violence in a sustainable way.

To support Empire Fighting Chance and to find out more about the work we do, head to www.empirefightingchance.org

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