Focus on Lewisham

First-of-its-kind youth jobs and skills hub

Only 3% of Lewisham’s jobs are based in Downham and young people have reported difficulty navigating fragmented services to support both their personal and professional growth.

Responding to this, we launched Elevate 100 earlier this year. A first-of-its-kind space for young people (16 to 30 years) in Downham which offers a mix of personal, professional and start-up business services and opportunities.

Central to the decision-making is the Youth Action Board who have helped ensure the project is designed by young people, for young people.

This project is a partnership effort between the Council, Circle Collective, Phoenix Housing and our award-winning employment service Lewisham Works and made possible by funding from Youth Futures Foundation. This programme aims to identify barriers facing marginalised young people and collaborate with them to develop effective strategies for system change.

This project is guided by our new Inclusive Economy Lewisham strategy which sets out the Council’s mission to equip young people with the skills they need to succeed as well as making sure residents across the borough can achieve their potential and access economic opportunities. It also aims to put young people at the heart of service design.

Our offer to employers and local providers

We at Elevate 100 want to collaborate with local service providers and employers to maximise opportunities for young people in the borough.

By working together, we can support you by:

• promoting your jobs to a pool of trained and job ready young people

• promoting your support services and referring your programmes and activities

• coordinating focus groups of young people to help you improve your services

• co-locating opportunities as an outreach location for your organisation

• offering workshops and a training space

Find out more about how we can work together by contacting us at elevate100downham@gmail.com.