Transforming Purpose into Impact: A Bold Digital Experience for Youth Sports Trust
Background
Youth Sport Trust (YST), a national children's charity, faced challenges with their existing website, which struggled to effectively communicate their mission to a diverse audience. As a national charity working with young people, schools, and communities, YST needed a platform that could effectively speak to a wide-ranging audience — from educators to policymakers, and young people themselves. The site lacked creative flair and had an outdated design and navigation, making it difficult for users to find and engage with content. To address these issues, YST underwent a significant rebrand and sought a digital platform that could reflect its new identity and values.
Solution
Cantarus collaborated with YST to design and develop a modern, accessible website using Umbraco CMS. The new site features a vibrant design with bright graphic elements that align with YST's brand and values. Key improvements include:
User-Centric Design: By understanding YST's audience, the site was designed to cater to distinct user journeys, allowing each user type to quickly identify YST's value proposition.
Enhanced Navigation: The implementation of a megamenu-style navigation enables intuitive browsing, and prominent calls to action guide users to key areas of the site.
Advanced Search Functionality: A significantly improved advanced site search allows users to find resources quickly, reducing the manual effort previously required by staff.
Salesforce Integration: Single Sign-On with Salesforce offers a personalized user experience and ensures a single source of truth for data like programs, events, and schools.
Impact
The new website has significantly elevated YST’s digital presence, improving clarity, navigation, and overall user experience. Internal and external feedback has been overwhelmingly positive, with measurable results including:
- 160,000 active users in the past 12 months
- 23% year-on-year increase in engagement
- 204% growth in page views (Apr 2024–Mar 2025)
The platform’s accessibility and bold design have earned industry recognition, including:
- Best Website – Northern Digital Awards 2022
- B2C Website of the Year – UK Digital Growth Awards 2022
These outcomes reflect a user-centric strategy aligned with YST’s mission.
“We’re really pleased with the outcome of our new accessible website. We’ve thoroughly enjoyed working with Cantarus – from branding to community, to now our main public-facing website, it has been a fantastic journey from start to finish, and we couldn’t have asked for a better partner to help bring our visions to life.” – Glen Harrington, Website Manager
