I was honoured to attend and speak at the official opening of our new House Project on Tuesday, which will play a key role in helping local care leavers achieve successful independent futures.
We are proud to be the first authority in the East of England to launch this innovative facility which is based at Chauffeurs Cottage behind the Town Hall and will help some of our most vulnerable young people.
Like all good parents, the council wants to give young people in its care the very best chance in life, and we’re confident this scheme will be a game-changer and make a positive difference.
We can point to the fact that the House Project initiative is already being run successfully in other areas. Since launching in 2018 it’s helped over 500 young people leaving care nationally to move into their first home and live connected and fulfilling lives.
Many of these young people do not have supportive families and leaving the care system to go out into the world and make a life for themselves is extremely difficult. Tasks which we take for granted, such as paying bills, opening a bank account or cooking dinner, are really daunting for them. In some cases, many young people can’t cope and end up on the streets.
Children in care deserve the same opportunities as any other child, and the House Project will help us address this. Every young person who comes through the doors will benefit from community-based support, tailored to their needs, preparing them for independent living and assisting with general life-skills such as managing finances and decision making.
Through regular meet ups and one-to-one sessions care leavers will be given advice and skills in areas such as employment, job searching, CV writing, interview techniques, completing applications and setting up business models.
Teaching life skills is another key aim of the project, with young people also learning how to cook, manage a household, understand nutrition, as well as budgeting and finance, including tenancy agreements, dealing with bills and building positive relationships with each other.
The venue will also be used as a Hub for all care experienced young people. It will be a place for young people to gather, have fun and find support across all areas. The Hub will offer a chance to speak to dedicated teams who have in-depth knowledge of care experienced people and the support they are entitled to.
When Ofsted visited the council for a monitoring visit last summer they focused on the experiences and progress of care leavers aged 18-25 and found progress in the support we are offering these young adults.
Inspectors reported that the local offer for care leavers had been enhanced with input from care leavers and staff, and they cited the development of the House Project as a positive. We are committed to ensuring better outcomes for care leavers and will continue to work with our care leavers, staff and partners across the system to sustain and build on these improvements.
I look forward to seeing the House Project develop and, most importantly, I look forward to seeing young people getting opportunities to succeed and achieve in their lives. Most of all, I look forward to going over there to volunteer myself, even if it’s just to help them not make the mistakes I made at their age.
The region’s key role in powering economic growth nationally was highlighted at a special event in Westminster this week, which I was also privileged to attend.
Organised by the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA), the event, titled ‘Driving Growth for the UK: The Pivotal Role of Cambridgeshire and Peterborough’, featured insights from leading figures in advanced manufacturing, Agri-tech, education and life sciences, highlighting the region’s strengths in innovation, growing infrastructure and skills development.
It was a really positive event and great to hear from leaders from both public and private sectors about our area’s economic successes. As the fourth fastest growing city in the country, Peterborough is a city of great opportunity, and I am proud to help showcase this.
I will be attending the similarly themed UKREiiF event in May to update industry experts, policymakers and business leaders on what’s been happening in our patch. Continued collaboration with key partners is vital to deliver growth and regeneration, helping turn visions into realities.
On the subject of turning exciting ideas into reality, we’re launching a new scheme which could lead to Peterborough appearing on the silver screen.
We’re reaching out to movie producers and film crews to bring their productions to Peterborough with the creation of the Peterborough Film Office, aimed at promoting filming locations and venues across our city.
It will be used to capitalise on a growing market for movie creation outside London, with the city centre, Embankment, Central Park, and many others regarded as possible locations for productions. The office, which will be administered by council staff at Sand Martin House, will aim to deal as a one stop shop for FAQs, licenses, permits and other matters.
This will be an exciting development and income generator for the city, and a boon for tourism and our economy. We already have beautiful locations that we should be using, and this will be a way of containing that information in one portal that showcases what we have to offer. For more information visit www.peterborough.gov.uk/residents/leisure-and-culture/film-peterborough