Fundraiser for Cambridge Uni course to tell Hackney people's stories
Neetu Singh completed her studies in English at the University of Oxford, last year, and is now looking to raise funds for a master's in creative writing at Cambridge - Credit: Antara Majumdar
A 22-year-old woman from a Hackney estate is fundraising to pay for her studies at Cambridge, as she hopes to “open doors” for more stories to be told by people from minorities.
Neetu Singh, who is intend to complete a masters course in creative writing, grew up on the Pembury Estate in Hackney.
Born into a Punjabi Sikh family, she started becoming aware of social and class differences when she began attending Mossbourne Community Academy.
It was there that she was encouraged to apply to study English at the University of Oxford, and she completed her course last year.
Initially thinking she wanted to follow a career in publishing, and even working for a period at No Brow Press in Hackney, Neetu realised while at Oxford that what she was really interested in was theatre production.
Currently finding work as a freelance assistant director, including at the Brixton House Theatre, Neetu said she decided to apply to do the creative writing masters course at Cambridge due not only to her passion for the arts, but also the discipline that attending the Oxbridge universities requires.
“I need that accountability,” she said.
Neetu at her Oxford graduation with her family - Credit: Antara Majumdar
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With a total bill of £16,000 just for her tuition fees, Neetu said that, alongside continuing to work, she is having to fundraise to enable her to complete her part-time masters course.
She said Cambridge would be a step towards her ambition to help tell stories of people often not given a platform, who are shut out from traditional routes to esteem and success.
“What I learnt from that place (Oxford) is we need more people like us in these spaces,” she said.
“It would be very important to me and my career but it will give stories a platform, stories that are not told by people from those backgrounds.
“I want kids from Hackney to know there’s space for them.”
To donate to Neetu’s fundraiser, visit her GoFundMe page at https://www.gofundme.com/f/get-neetu-to-cambridge
