HeadStart London was created by youth empowerment charity The Challenge and Team London and addresses youth unemployment and social segregation by building character traits and skills needed for work and life through volunteering. By 2017, HeadStart London will have supported 5,000 young people to become work ready while also supporting local community projects through volunteering.
Ayanna Joseph, HeadStart Intern for the Environment Team shares the story of her time working at City Hall in August 2016.
The Mayor of London supported HeadStart London this year by offering nine paid internship positions over the month of August, and I was lucky enough to be one of those interns. HeadStart London has given us all the opportunity of a lifetime to work within the Mayor’s office and to learn new skills related to office work and London policy. It has also given us the chance to make a difference in our own city, an opportunity that we would not have been privy to without such a programme.
Throughout the internship I wrote content for the website, reviewed the ways in which cities around the world are greening their streets and created presentations to highlight community tree planting projects.
It has been lovely to see the simple ways that London can be made into a greener and healthier city. I enjoyed finding out about the volunteers willing to give up their time to help improve their areas and getting involved as a community.
Furthermore, I was taken on site visits in order to see the different projects that have been led by the environment team. I visited Stanmore Marsh in the borough of Harrow, Barnes Wetland Centre in Richmond and Team London Bridge, a business improvement district. I was able to see the practical applications of the work that is done within the office.
This internship has been an amazing opportunity to try something new and meet lovely people along the way. I would recommend the HeadStart London programme to everyone my age.