WHAT'S ON?
Cett 4 Success
A group of young people from the Fawcett estate have won a £2000 award from the RSA, beating of stiff competition from other youth groups. Inspired by the success of the Cett4 film project, the group wanted to build on their film-making skills by producing a docu-drama investigating young people's relationship with the police.
With the help of Tania, our youth worker, the group wrote their award winning application and were subsequently invited to receive the award from Jim Knight, MP Minister for Schools and Families at the Houses of Parliament.
Now we just have to wait for the next Fawcett premiere!
For further information please click here.
Jack Petchey Achievement Awards
The first Jack Petchey Achievment Awards have been made to young people in our Jack Watts, Fawcett and Amwell Court groups. The Awards require each group to nominate someone who they feel has made a particular contribution over three months and gives them £300 to spend on the group.
- Amwell Court have decided to hold a canal clear up, spending one of their evenings clearing up rubbish from the waterside. Those that attend will then be able to go on a group trip to somewhere like Chessington.
- The Jack Watts' awardee has decided with the group to put the money towards refurbishing and repainting the communal flat that they currenlty use for forum meetings. We are looking for match funding to complement their £300 and make a real improvement to the environment.
Water Works
We are now running the second installment of canoeing sessions at the West Reservoir in North East Hackney. Funded by The Manor Tenants and Residents Association, the course is enabling 20 young people from the neighbouring estates to make the most of their local watersports centre and develop their paddling skills. Feedback from the course has been overwhelmingly positive and we are hoping to be able to repeat it next year.
If Only
The Springfield estate drama group are rehearsing their play 'If Only' for performances at both the Arcola Theatre and the BUYA festival held in Stratford. The cast of twelve, faciliated by Alice, Elevate's Community Drama Co-ordinator, originally performed the play at the Springfield Youth Club and are now preparing for much larger audiences at the two festivals.
If you'd like to attend the performances or would like more information please email info@elevateuk.org.
Newham Babysitters
13 young women from Canning Town have now completed an accredited British Red Cross Babysitting and First Aid course. Covering basics in looking after young children, accident prevention and first aid, the course led by Tania, developed participants skills in childcare and will hopefully bring them in some extra money.
WHAT'S GONE?
Discovering Young Hackney
More than 20 young people from the Fawcett estate in Hackney showcased their filmmaking talents at a special screening that was part of the recent Discover Young Hackney festival, celebrating the young creative talent in the borough.
The Cett4Film project, run by Elevate and supported by Immediate Theatre and Cityzen, supported the group, aged between 11-19, to plan, design, script, act, film and direct a fictional film inspired by life on an urban estate.
Alice Nicholas, Elevate’s applied drama practitioner who facilitated the project, said: “Young people from the Fawcett estate had requested we run a filmmaking project, so, working alongside the Fawcett Youth Committee, co-ordinated by Cityzen, a local peer research group, the Cett4 Film project was developed. It really set a high standard for genuine participation".
The Cett4 Film was the first time that young people on the estate had used their community hall and our team in Hackney, Alice and Tania de St Croix are working with them to ensure that the hall sees many more creative uses in the future. A screening at the Rio cinema in Hackney is being planned for the near future.
Churchill Gardens Speaks Out 
Churchill Gardens in Westminster now has Churchill Youths to represent young people on the estate. Four meetings and a Christmas social in, the group have been working to get bike racks installed by the Youth Club, and are in the middle of plans for their first team-building day. Working alongside CityWest Homes and Pinnacle, they are making sure that the voice of young people is heard on local issues.
One Spirit
We have continued to work in partnership with Hackney Music Development Trust this year, running two One Spirit projects in Newham and Hackney. The most recent project was held on the Fawcett Estate, Hackney during the Easter holidays.
One Spirit is a skills development project for young people aged 13-19, particularly those who are at risk of offending. Using creative activities, One Spirit aims to equip young people with life and work related skills in order to break the cycle of offending and social exclusion.
For details of our past projects please see the archived news articles.