Youth & Community Work
1984 – 1994
This decade focuses on my Youth and Community work in Newham. The highlight being the ‘Eastlea Barbados Project’ for The United Nations International Youth Year (IYY) 1985.
Since my last post we celebrated the African Diaspora Cultural Celebration of Kwanzaa which was held from the 26th December 2024 to the 1st January 2025. Its first principle ‘Umoja’ means Unity and is of great importance to our community.. It was a great privilege to lead a group of 12 young people and four staff members on an educational trip to Barbados as part of Newhams’ contribution to IYY 1985.
It’s first principle ‘Umoja’ means Unity and is of great importance to our community.
Celebrating Kwasa in the UK 2024.
Youth work at the Eastlea Centre
As mentioned in the last decade that I was appointed as the Senior Youth Worker. This gave me the opportunity to widen the centre programming and introduce new initiatives that reflected the changing cultural demographic of Newham.
The Eastlea Barbados Project
After placing IYY publicity on the Youth Centre notice board, Cordelia Barker a Lunch Club member asked me if we could do something exciting for the year. I asked her “like what?” She then suggested with a cheeky smile that we could go to Africa or even the Caribbean! I told her no problem, all things are possible, but you have to put the work in.
That conversation was the beginning of the 1985 IYY Eastlea Barbados Project and one of my proudest youth work achievements.
The young people were enthusiastic and we supported them in achieving their dream. After securing funding we overcame a few obstacles including having to make our own uniform ( blazer, tie and crest) since Eastlea school at the time saw the wearing of school uniforms as elitist.
A schedule of events during our preparations.
Barbados here we come
On the morning of our departure the school held a breakfast reception for us and our families, friends and the press who came to wish us bon voyage. The Headmaster Mr Cyril Holmes gave me a Plaque to be presented to our host school Combermere to commemorate International Youth Year and the relationship between Barbados and Newham. In addition to my other responsibilities there was a fear of returning to Combermere school and meeting my old history teacher the late Mr Charlie Pilgrim who was now the headteacher.
The Mayor and Mayoress of Newham, the 1985 Newham Carnival Queen.
Eastlea Barbados Project Report
The Eastlea Barbados Project Report was launched in 1986 as part of the Caribbean Focus celebrations in Newham with the Deputy High Commissioner of Barbados Mr Owen Eversley OBE as the Guest of Honour.
The report comprehensively covers the project, but they are two things that stand out for me :
- How the members responded to the Emancipation statue (Bussa) which brought home to them the realities of the Trans Atlantic Slave Trade.
- The principal Youth officer Mr John Boyd who had wanted to know when I was leaving (as mentioned in my 74 84 posting) actually ended up becoming part of the Eastlea Barbados project. In his contribution to this report he thanked me for giving him his greatest Youth work experience.
Click below to read the report:
****Below my reading of the High Commission letter add the video of Beautiful Barbados.
British High Commission letter Audio
Other Youth Work projects I participated and facilitated in whilst at Eastlea
The Archbishop of Canterbury Dr Runcie accepted my invitation to visit Eastlea centre in 1986 to meet IYY members and be introduced to staff. Here he is playing a game of pool with lunch club members.
A letter received from the Archbishop of Canterbury about his visit to the centre
Newham in Notting Hill
We set up a mas’ camp at the Centre as part of the 1986 summer scheme activities. This allowed the young people to express themselves creatively by learning Steel Pan, designing props and making their costumes, fully participating in the spirit of the Notting Hill Carnival. We partnered with a local Mas band called ‘Design in Mind’ and took part in the junior costume competitions. Here we are ‘On de road’ with our theme ‘De mas in we.
The following year we went on the road with the Dallaway Mas band and as the great calypsonian Lord Kitchener defiantly reminds us: “The Road is made to march on Carnival Day“
Extracurricular activities
The centre ran a certificate course in Hair braiding for Eastlea pupils who used the centre for extra-curricular activity. It was very popular amongst the girls who used the centre as they had never had something like this before. We employed a local Black hairdresser to teach the course over a 6-week period. Multiple African hair braiding styles were taught and the pupils were awarded their certificates in the school assembly.
After seeing pupils struggling to make a proper base sound from an old music centre in the club, I asked them if they would like to build their own. They agreed and I employed a local sound system owner Melvin Sinclair, as an instructor to develop an electronic course for six members to make their own. On a visit by the Councils’ Youth panel, the Chair claimed that the speakers were that big they were touching the roof.
The boxes were modelled after the popular Sir Coxson’s Down Beat Sound system.
Area Patch Leader
In 1990 after a review of the youth service and community education, I was appointed patch Leader of Forest Gate. Making me responsible for the Forest Gate Youth Centre programme, other voluntary youth centres in the area and developing community initiatives. One of those initiatives was A.H.A.P. African Historical Awareness Project.
African Caribbean Young Peoples Music Association
I attended one of the West Indian Musicians’ Association concerts and was impressed with the young talent young on display. We held regular meetings at the Forest Gate Youth Centre and later constituted the organisation.
We commissioned a young local designer Roy Defreitas to create our logo.
Other Community Projects
As a member of Newham Black NALGO I took part in this ground breaking conference. The conference was organised to raise awareness of what the single European market meant for us as Black people, immigrants, migrants or refuges living in Newham.
The government went to great lengths to alert businessmen of the new business opportunities of the single European market but nothing to alert our communities about the new European racism that was developing to accompany the market.
Newham African Caribbean Alliance
I was involved with the formation of the Newham African Caribbean Alliance. NACA brought together 20 plus small African and Caribbean organisations in the borough. Matthew Hippolyte the Newham Community Outreach worker had the brief to support the community and bring marginalized groups together. I as Black youth worker wanted to be involved and came onboard to support this initiative. I sat on the Management Committee in an ex officio capacity as this was a voluntary venture and not tied to my post.
A page from one of our Annual Reports listing the Alliance members.
If you look carefully there is a group called Newham Black Arts (The shortened version). Their full title was Newham Black Performing and Visual Arts Workshop and was run by my good friend the late Tony Cheeseman.
In 2024 a Blue Plaque was awarded to the workshop, and it is placed on the NACA building on Barking Road in Newham, as they regularly held meetings and events there.
For more information regarding Tony, the foundation created in his honour and both of their achievements please visit www.tonycfoundation.com
Newham Drugs Advice Project
I sat on the management committee of Newham Drugs Advisory Project 1992/94 and made a contribution in helping the project achieve their aims.
AFRICABANA
Africabana was an annual African and Caribbean community celebration in the late 1980’s and early 1990’s in Newham. For Africabana 1991 I sat on the planning group that held a mental health conference at the Forest Gate Centre exploring mental health issues in our community.
Hibiscus Caribbean Elderly Group
In 1992 the late Donna Keizer and Lucille Tait who ran the newly formed Hibiscus Caribbean Elderly Group began meeting weekly at the centre. We offered the group general support and helped them find a building of thier own.
I continue supporting the group and here is a copy of my 1993/94 membership card
Information in this decade has been deposited at the London Borough of Newham Archives.
The next decade 1994 – 2004 highlights my work with African and Caribbean users of mental health services in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets.
My Very Important Events – VIE’s
The British High Commission in Barbados commendation of the Eastlea Barbados IYY project.
Appreciation of the Archbishop of Canterbury visit to the centre and his thank you letter.
Working with young people’s ideas and supporting them to achieve successful outcomes.
Returning to Barbados on a family holiday in the Autum of 1985.