The Youth Charter’s Float Like A Butterfly Social Coach Leadership Programme is the culmination of a 17-month dialogue, discussion and debate on the issues of social, cultural and economic affect and impact on the disaffection, disadvantage and disillusionment of the young people of Newham and the East End of London.

UEL hosted Newham’s Youth Movement’s ‘Addressing Safety through Active Participation’ (ASAP) Conference on 27 January 2018 with support provided by the Civic Engagement team. This was a youth planned and led response to the escalating violence in Newham. The event was attended by young people, service deliverers and decision makers. Geoff Thompson, new Chair of the Board of Governor UEL, joined the panel, which included the local authority, a local councillor, Chair of Local Children’s Safeguarding Board and the Metropolitan Police. During this conference a number of young people presented the issues of anxiety and fear following the shooting of their friend Corey Junior Davis, a 14 year old schoolboy gunned down in a park in Newham on September 4th 2017, Geoff Thompson pledged to provide: Somewhere To Go (where they would be safe and taken off the streets); Something To Do (with sporting, artistic, cultural and digital activities); and Someone To Show Them (how to develop their mental, physical and emotional life skills resilience).