By his own admission, Dean Burton was not a positive influence at his school in the West Midlands.
"I knew the behaviour managers a bit too well," he says. "I was always being spoken to by some teacher for one thing or another.
"I wasn't really thinking about the future; I was just focused on being the class clown.
"I was hanging out with a big group of people, trying to get the biggest laughs, trying to get involved in whatever mischief we could really."
Although he had no idea what he wanted to do after school, Dean was a big West Bromwich Albion fan and began studying on a football coaching apprenticeship.
It was on this course that his potential for coaching was spotted, and he was put in touch with The Albion Foundation and the Premier League Kicks project.
"Me and PL Kicks seemed to fit a little bit better. It was more relaxed and you could have a little bit more communication with the young people that came to the sessions."
Dean started off as a volunteer in 2011 and with the help of The Albion Foundation and its then PL Kicks co-ordinator Hayley James, his talent for coaching and mentoring was nurtured.
Slowly but surely his responsibilities and hours increased and by the end of 2014, Dean was working full-time as a Foundation PL Kicks coach.
"Hayley brought me in and she saw the light when not many others did," Dean says. "There weren't many people who believed in me.
"It was nice to be recognised and nice to have somebody on my side."
See: Dean's PL Kicks Hero comic
Now 23, Dean is a very different person to the one that started out in PL Kicks seven years ago, and hopes his story can inspire others coming through the project.
"It's brought my confidence out massively. I wasn't always for talking and engaging with people but now, it's just second nature.
"The areas we work in aren’t the greatest and the people can relate to the stuff I have gone through, especially for the volunteers.
"I have come through that pathway and it gives them someone to look at and think, 'This does actually work.'"
Dean is now a volunteer co-ordinator for the Foundation’s education and engagement team and to recognise his development and commitment, Dean was last week named as West Brom’s PL Kicks Hero, a campaign which marks 10 years of the Premier League Kicks project.
"I didn't know anything about receiving the award. It was overwhelming and I'm quite proud to be honest.
"I am thankful for opportunity because if it wasn't for PL Kicks, I probably would have mixed with the wrong people and got into the wrong things. PL Kicks pushed me into a way more positive direction."
