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Ella Nuttall, Laila Dahou, Leighann Monaghan, Penny Neale, Claudia Quinn and Emma Kuong at the Castlehaven Project launch on Tuesday |
At last, a chance for them to get their share of the action
New Journal backs scheme to get youngsters working and winning tickets for the Crawl
CAMDEN’S youngsters will soon have a chance to benefit from the wealth of glamour, glitz, grooves and celebrity on their doorstep.
The fast-paced fun enjoyed by many in Camden Town has often felt a world away for those teenagers living even in the same postcode, let alone borough.
That is all set to change, however, under a ground-breaking and innovative project launched this week that will see 150 youngsters from across the borough offered the chance to earn a free ticket to the All Ages Day at the legendary Camden Crawl on April 25 by carrying out six hours of voluntary work in Camden Town.
The project aims to show that teenagers shouldn’t be all labelled troublemakers and hopes to bring old and young neighbours together in Camden Town.
The Castlehaven Project, run by the Camden Crawl in conjunction with the Castlehaven Community Association and youth charity Envision, was launched on Tuesday at the Haven Youth Café in Hawley Road.
The Camden New Journal is also right behind the project and has added its sponsorship.
As well as a ticket to the 2,500-capacity Camden Crawl, those involved in the scheme will get the chance to meet some of the stars performing at the festival and have a day of mentoring at some of the country’s most exclusive companies.
The teenagers can apply to take part in the project by visiting our website www.thecnj.co. uk/castlehaven, launched today (Thursday) – and filling out suggestion boxes for ways to improve Camden Town.
There are 150 spaces for volunteers and it is being run on a first-come-first-served basis.
The Castlehaven Project panel will choose the six best suggestions for voluntary work to carry out and the shortlist will be announced online in January.
The mentoring scheme will be run for the volunteers aged between 16 and 19 and the BBC and the Camden New Journal have both officially stated their commitment to the project.
Negotiations are going on behind the scenes with several other high-profile entertainment, news and fashion businesses.
Those aged between 13 and 15 will be taken on a day’s excursion, most probably to an art studio in south London.
Project organisers are also arranging “meet and greets” with some of the biggest stars and newest hit-makers due to play at this year’s festival, and while their identities are still under wraps, recent heavy hitters have included Wiley, Kano, Amy Winehouse, Blur’s Graham Coxon, the Klaxons and Maximo Park.
Camden Crawl organiser Lisa Paulon – who will be donating £1 from each of the 20,000 tickets sold this year to the Castlehaven Community Association – said she decided to get more involved in the community following some negative feedback from locals last year.
After researching which charity she should approach, Ms Paulon hit upon Castlehaven and came up with the idea to run a competition for tickets through a community reward scheme.
“I did a lot of research and Castlehaven kept resurfacing as the most influential and proactive group in the area,” she explained.
On top of that, Ms Paulon also wanted to make sure the project gave youngsters some kind of career advice and opportunity. She said: “Everyone who completes this scheme will get some kind of mentoring – a day at the BBC, the CNJ or working backstage at the Camden Crawl – something empowering.”
Among the ideas floated at the launch by young people at the Haven Youth Café were suggestions to hold inter-generational tea dances, dance-offs, and refurbish sports areas.
Laila Dahou, 17, from Hampstead, said: “It’s good because you feel more involved in the situation. You realise people do care and want to make a difference.”
Eleanor Botwright, director of Castlehaven Community Association, said: “It’s really exciting and a wonderful opportunity to help young people engage with the community.”
Ms Botwright also urged older people who want to get involved or have a problem they need help with to contact Castlehaven.
“We’re waiting for people who know they need help and contact us to help them address a real issue,” she said.
“We’re looking for real inter-generational interaction.”
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