CitySafe Champions awarded at concert
25 October 2012
On Wednesday 24 October, over 1000 young people from across London came together at the O2 Academy Brixton for a stunning celebration concert for CitySafe – a London Citizens campaign to tackle crime and rebuild community relationships.
During the ceremony MPS officers were awarded with certificates for being ‘CitysSafe Champions’ and encouraged for their positive partnership work between London Citizens organisation and the community.
"CitySafe Havens are places of safety to escape immediate danger"
Hosted by Choice FM’s DJ Abrantee, the event featured speeches from MPS Commander Christine Jones, Dame Tessa Jowell Chair of the CitySafe Foundation, Margaret Mizen - mother of murdered teenager Jimmy Mizen and a recorded video message from the London Mayor Boris Johnson.
Lambeth Met Police Sergeant Jack Rowlands of Ferndale Safer Neighbourhoods Team (SNT) was a proud recipient of an award and spoke to the audience of how his SNT together with the CitySafe campaign, local community and Community Trust Housing launched Stockwell Park Estate as London’s first housing estate.
Performances came from talented young people from schools across London and professional entertainers including Vibe Squad, Mista Silva, Flava Kwamz, A Dot Comedian and DJ Afro B.
The concert celebrated the achievements of hundreds of young people in who have spent the Olympic summer encouraging local shops and businesses to open their premises as CitySafe Havens – places of safety for people in immediate danger. Their work, one year on from the riots, has created over 50 new CitySafe Zones. The zones are made up of over 300 CitySafe Havens across the capital, including shops, libraries, the first ever housing estate in Lambeth and even the office of Mayor Boris Johnson at City Hall.
The event was also used to launch a new CitySafe Map of London that plots the locations of CitySafe Havens and begins a CitySafe Roadshow, led by DJ Abrantee that will use music to inspire young people in schools across the capital to take action for peace.
Inspired by the tragic murder of teenager Jimmy Mizen in 2008, CitySafe is a community-led campaign from London Citizens to tackle crime and reconnect fractured neighbourhoods. The campaign sees teams of young people building relationships with local shopkeepers and business owners to open their premises as CitySafe Havens. These are places of safety for people in immediate danger; whose have staff have also pledged to report 100% of crime to the police.
Since 2008, several more of the communities represented by London Citizens have lost young people to violent crime, including Bob Litambola in Newham, Martin Dinnegan in Finsbury Park, David Idowu in Southwark, Godwin Lawson and, most recently Junior Nkwelle, who was murdered on the Loughborough Estate, less than a mile from Brixton Academy. In memory of these young people, the CitySafe campaign has provided a practical and effective way for communities to come together to overcome violence.
- Commander Jones presents Sergeant Rowlands with his award Sergeant Rowlands helped to make Stockwell Park Estate a CitySafe Haven
- Dame Tessa Jowell speaks at event Dame Tessa Jowell is the chair for the CitySafe Foundation