FROM 8 TO 180,000 – that’s the story of how Tower Hamlets Youth Services has progressed from the Labour ragbag of provision to the unified, coherent Young Tower Hamlets today.
Eight? That was the number of youth centres which Labour Leader John Biggs set up in Tower Hamlets. Inheriting 18 Youth Centres, Biggs went on a programme of closures, relocating services to eight “hubs” in the borough. Young people were expected to travel to the centre they had been allocated. Some young people did travel: to the Town Hall, to protest at what Labour was doing. Labour quickly realised their plans were not working and set up a few additional outlets to quiet local protests. It was a ragbag of provision, which pleased no one – except, perhaps, the accountants at the Town Hall.
One hundred and eighty thousand? That’s the number of attendances at the youth centres set up by Mayor Lutfur Rahman’s Administration – one centre in each ward.
All this came out on Tuesday, 13th January, when Tower Hamlets Council launched its youth strategy for 2025-2027 with a massive gathering of youth workers at the Town Hall. Awards for exceptional work were presented by Deputy Mayor Cllr Maium Talukdar, Lead Member for Children’s Services, who said, “Two years ago we made an ambitious investment of £13.7 million into our youth service, at a time when others were cutting funding. I’m glad to see it making an even greater impact than what we imagined. We have a great youth service, and our youth workers are really at the heart of it.”
The event showed what investment to deliver local services can achieve: ●£13.7m investment includes opening 19 youth centres in two years ●More than 5,000 sessions delivered in 2025 including careers advice, outdoor adventure learning and multisport sessions.
This level of investment is worthwhile because Tower Hamlets has London’s youngest population – the average age of the borough’s residents is 30. Investment in youth centres is supported by parallel investments which support young people without being part of the youth service, such as free school meals for school pupils up to age 16, help with the cost of school uniforms, and grants for attending college and/or university.
Mayor Lutfur Rahman was also delighted with the progress of the youth service. “I am proud that Tower Hamlets now has the best youth offer in the country,” he said. “We have chosen to invest heavily in our young people. Our new Young Tower Hamlets Strategy builds on that success. Importantly, this strategy has been created with our young people, and we will always ensure their voice is at the centre of our youth provision.”
The young people, it seems, are not going to let the Council rest on its laurels. Musa Noor, Young Mayor of Tower Hamlets, said, “As the newly appointed Young Mayor of Tower Hamlets, I’m excited to work with the council to develop its youth service. This youth strategy is the first step in making Tower Hamlets an opportunity-rich borough for young people. I’ll be working closely with the new Young Mayor Team to champion and represent the voices of young people in Tower Hamlets.”
Mayor Lutfur Rahman: you have been warned!
●Read more about it: Council confirms occupying youth decreases ASB Table for thirty-eight thousand and two, please!