400 young people participated in four interactive “hackathon” events designed to design future youth services.
Last month, City Council announced a massive £13.7m investment in new youth services, including rebranding and expansion.
Dubbed Young Tower Hamlets (YTH), the new youth service will offer a diverse program of free opportunities and support to young people aged 11-19 (25 on SEND) across the Borough. It is part of Mayor Rahman’s broader £19m investment. young people in the years to come.
Four hackathon events held on May 2, 3, 4 and 11 formed part of the consultation process. A workshop was held aimed at providing young people with an opportunity to stimulate discussion, generate ideas and contribute their vision for designing future youth services.
The workshop included:
- Needs and Wants: Creating a Modern Youth Offer: Young people identified issues that were important to them and gave their opinions on opportunities and activities that best suited their needs.
- See the Future: Virtual Reality Experience: Using virtual reality headsets, young people learned about the “metaverse” and the prospects it might bring to engagement.
- Building Your Brand: What You See Is What You Get? Ideas for logos and lanyard lines were created, as well as what was attractive and what was not.
The Borough Youth Council helped plan and design the event, and young people helped co-facilitate workshops, welcome participants, and deliver speeches and performances.
The event was filmed by youth activist-led production company Know Wonder, which employed local youth and trained them to professional standards in how to film the event and interview peers. The film will be screened at public events in the summer.
Tower Hamlets Mayor Rutfer Rahman said:
“The Hackathon was a huge success. Each event had an amazing turnout and we could tell that the young people were excited about the launch of Young Tower Hamlet and the opportunity to make their voices heard.
“Thanks to the Youth Team, Osmani Trust, Spotlight, George Greene’s School, Haileybury Center and all other partners for supporting the Hackathon progress.”
Deputy Mayor and Minister for Education, Youth and Lifelong Learning Mayor Mayum Tarkdar said:
“It was a pleasure to participate in two of the four Hackathon events. There was a lot of energy in the venue, with valuable ideas and discussions. looking forward to it.”
Sonny Spillane, 17, said: “Young people will want to come if they know there is a place where they feel comfortable and where they can enjoy themselves. I think I want to do.”
16-year-old Tanvir Ahmed said: “As soon as I entered the store, the staff greeted me and made me feel very comfortable. I felt like I was at home. Everyone had a great time.”
Anas Mohammed, 19, said: “Kids get bored quickly, so you should consistently try new things.”
Young people can also share their thoughts by filling out the form below. online survey.
Posted on Tuesday, May 16, 2023
