Helping young people take part, one pair of shoes at a time
Body and Sole is the charitable footwear initiative of the Incorporation of Cordiners in Glasgow. Established in 2017, it supports children and young people whose participation in sport, outdoor learning or physical activity is limited by the cost of suitable footwear.
9,000+
pairs of footwear recorded in the 2024–26 programme
£161,905.50
allocated to footwear since 2017
40 schools
submitted footwear bids in 2019–20 alone
How the programme works
Body and Sole works with public-sector and community partners, including Glasgow City Council’s Physical Education, Physical Activity and School Sport team (PEPASS). Schools and services identify what is needed and explain how the provision will enable participation.
The original model created shared pools of footwear held by schools or activity providers. That approach allows many young people to use suitable equipment over time, rather than restricting the benefit to a single issue of footwear.
What Body and Sole provides
Provision has included sports shoes, football boots, running shoes, walking boots, wellington boots, climbing shoes, water-sports footwear, sailing boots, roller skates and occupational footwear for horticultural activity. During the pandemic, the programme also responded to changing needs with outdoor play equipment and warm clothing.
The purpose is straightforward: remove footwear as a barrier to participation, safety and belonging.
Impact over time
2017: Body and Sole established
The Master Court adopted Body and Sole as the Incorporation’s main charitable focus, linking the Cordiners’ shoemaking heritage to a present-day barrier facing children and young people.
2018–19: the pilot year
The first annual report records 680 pairs of assorted sports shoes and a shared pool of 150 walking boots for the Duke of Edinburgh’s Award. Awards worth around £11,000 supported six Glasgow secondary schools serving communities experiencing high levels of socioeconomic disadvantage.
2019–20: rapid expansion
Forty schools submitted bids totalling £33,000. A £20,000 grant from the Charles Wolfson Charitable Trust helped the Cordiners respond at scale. The report records £12,000 for footwear in Glasgow schools, £5,000 for the Glasgow Duke of Edinburgh programme, £5,000 for the Glasgow Outdoor Resource Centre, a further £8,332 for schools in December 2019, and £6,600 for outdoor play equipment in school hubs as COVID-19 changed provision.
2020–21: adapting during the pandemic
With organised sport disrupted, Body and Sole funded £6,000 of outdoor activity equipment used across 40 establishments. The Cordiners also contributed £5,000 to the Keeping Warm in Glasgow campaign, purchasing warm garments while classroom ventilation requirements increased.
2024–26: city-scale provision
The 2026 report records more than 9,000 pairs of footwear provided through the 2024–26 programme and cumulative footwear allocations of £161,905.50 since 2017. It records £24,391.50 of donations in 2025, including support involving PEPASS and East Dunbartonshire Council Outdoor Education. The report also identifies continuing demand across early years, primary and secondary education, outdoor centres and kinship-care activity.
Reports and programme history
Together, these reports show how Body and Sole grew from a Glasgow school pilot into a city-wide partnership. They capture the people, organisations and changing needs behind the figures, and make earlier reports easy to find alongside the programme’s latest work.
Body and Sole Prospectus and Annual Report 2019–20
Covers the programme’s aims, the 2018–19 pilot, the 2019–20 expansion, Duke of Edinburgh activity, the Glasgow Outdoor Resource Centre and the first COVID-19 response.
Body and Sole Report 2026
Covers activity from 31 May 2024 to 31 May 2026, cumulative giving, recent donations, current requests and the case for further support.
Related historic updates
- The Craftsman, Winter 2018: the launch-year account of Body and Sole and wider Cordiners giving.
- Deacon Convener’s Post, January 2021: the pandemic response, outdoor activity equipment and Keeping Warm in Glasgow.
Support Body and Sole
Demand has grown faster than the resources available. Support for Body and Sole helps children and young people access sport, outdoor learning and wider opportunities through safe, suitable footwear.
Programme figures are taken from the Cordiners’ annual reports and contemporary Trades House publications.
