‘This experience hasn’t just shaped my career ambitions; it’s helped shape who I am and what I want to stand for’

Jayden Baterip has spent the past 21 months with Think Beyond after initially joining on a 12-month paid internship. In this blog, he explains how the experience hasn’t just shaped his career ambitions; it’s helped shape who he is and his purpose.

Let me start with some background. My Think Beyond journey was made possible thanks to a partnership between the consultancy, the Greater London Authority and London’s Violence Reduction Unit (VRU).

Collectively, they initiated a programme to give young Londoners from underrepresented backgrounds a real opportunity to experience the sports industry and as a stepping stone to  build a future career within it.

I was one of those young people, and it has genuinely opened the door for me.

Before joining in March 2024, I didn’t actually know this specialist type of consultancy – one that sits between sport, strategy, and social impact – even existed.

It’s not something you naturally come across unless you’re already in the sports sector, so discovering it through this internship was a big moment for me and has really shaped the direction I want to go in.

Although the internship was designed as a 12-month placement, at the end of the year I was delighted to be asked to extend my stay as a Junior Associate – giving me more time and space to grow, learn, and find my footing in the field.

Most of my time at Think Beyond has been spent working on Head in the Game, a multi-year initiative created to address the urgent youth mental wellbeing crisis in the U.S.

Think Beyond supports the campaign across strategy and content, shaping how it speaks to young people in a way that feels authentic and accessible.

My role on the project has grown considerably during my time with Think Beyond. At the start, I was mainly supporting with uploading content to various digital and social channels, alongside learning the basics.

As the months went on, I began taking on much more responsibility, eventually managing the day-to-day content, deciding which social moments, peaks and awareness weeks to focus on, and working with partners to ideate new storytelling ideas and concepts.

Young people’s mental health has always mattered to me, so being able to work on a project like this genuinely meant a lot. Even knowing I played a small role in bringing these stories to life, or in supporting something trying to address such a real issue, made the work feel meaningful in a way I didn’t expect.

Chelsea might not be my favourite team in the world (I’m an Arsenal fan after all!), but for someone like me, you don’t often get the chance to be inside a Premier League stadium or pitch side.

It was one of those experiences that reminded me how unique, unexpected, and exciting this sector can be.

What has stood out most, though, is the environment at Think Beyond. The team is incredibly smart, kind, and genuinely committed to creating impact through sport and purpose-led work.

From day one, people made the effort to include me and give me real responsibility, something you don’t always get as an intern.

Although the internship began as a 12-month placement, it became a longer journey for me, and I’m grateful for the chance I had to continue to develop and contribute for another nine months.

That extended period made a real difference to my confidence, my skills and my understanding of the industry as a whole.

Looking ahead, I know I want to continue building a long-term career in the social impact space. My time at Think Beyond has made that even clearer.

I’ve loved being part of an organisation that uses sport as a force for social change, and what matters most to me is staying involved in work that drives meaningful impact for young people and communities, whether that ends up being within sport or in another area of purpose-driven work.

This experience hasn’t just shaped my career ambitions; it’s helped shape who I am and what I want to stand for.