Summer school keeps Hackney teens off the streets
SCHOOL may be out but Hackney teens have been keeping busy during the holidays - learning to construct a car, design an outfit and shoot a short film in workshops run by an anti-gun and knife crime charity.
Young people aged 11 to 17 have been taking part in the five-week summer school run by the Robert Levy Foundation at Hackney Community College in Falkirk Street, Shoreditch.
The foundation was set up in memory of Hackney A-level student Robert Levy who suffered multiple stab wounds in September 2004 after defending a younger schoolboy. It campaigns for an end to youth violence and provides alternative opportunities in the community.
Activities offer at the summer school have included workshops in design and engineering, as well as a trip to Alton Towers.
Sixteen-year-old Jordan Takooree, who took part in motor mechanics workshop, said: “I’m interested in cars and plan to do a car bodywork course in September. This workshop is preparing me for the course with the experience.
You may also want to watch:
“I really enjoy it, plus it’s something useful to do over the holidays. This is my second year coming to this summer school and I would recommend it to everyone.”
Patricia Levy, of the Robert Levy Foundation, said: “There is a need for activities like this in the community. As well as giving young people something to do over the summer holidays, it also helps them with their development and interpersonal skills. They make new friends and learn how to work well with others.”
Most Read
- 1 Key road closed: Hackney and Islington travel news July 31 - August 6
- 2 'Heads need to roll', says domestic violence campaigner after 'reckless' council data blunder
- 3 Students earn scholarships at top schools worth £150,000
- 4 £5.75m investment agreed for "historic" Clapton leisure centre
- 5 Lidl opens! First shoppers enjoy Finsbury Park supermarket
- 6 'It's like toilet', say Dalston residents who have had enough of broken locks, rats and scaffolding
- 7 Vacant Grade I-listed Shoreditch church to be restored and revamped
- 8 Dangerously overloaded vans leaving New Spitalfields Market taken off the road
- 9 Hackney residents plan to make noise for more representative voting systems
- 10 Drug dealer who killed "beloved" Hackney father convicted
The young people’s short films and garments will be showcased at the Robert Levy Foundation youth talent event on September 18 at the Hackney Empire in Mare Street. For more information about the foundation, the summer school and the talent showcase, go to www.robertlevyfoundation.org.
