Ed Byrne, Al Murray, Dara O’Briain and friends wowed a packed audience at the Prince Edward Theatre in London’s West End on Monday 18^th July 2011. Over a 1000 supporters turned up for what was a fantastic evening of comedy and fun including performances from the New Horizon Choir, Jon Snow and Mara Carlyle. This fundraising event raised much needed revenue for the centre and will be the first of many. It included other talented comedians: Dan Antopolski, Lucy Porter, JJ Whitehead, Simon Evans, Tom Allen, and Matt Kirschen.

Jon Snow stole the show and the auction when prompted by the audience,  he took his socks off and auctioned them along with his ties. The lucky recipient was Dara O’Briain who paid an inordinate amount for these prized items.

Jon Snow’s socks have made it into Friday 22^nd Telegraph. Page 8,  you can read this online here:

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/celebritynews/8653185/Kirstie-Allsopp-I-feel-like-an-elephant-in-high-heels.html

Latest news: Dara O’ Briain to perform with the original line-up of Ed Byrne, Al Murray and friends and joining them will be Tom Allen, Matt Kirshen and JJ Whitehead.

For ticket please visit:        http://www.delfontmackintosh.co.uk/Tickets/EdByrneandFriends.php

Or call the Box Office on 0844 482 5127

Photo by Othello De'Souza-Hartley

Working in partnership with University of the Arts London’s Widening Participation Programme, young people from the centre presented a Career Wear Fashion Show during the Opportunities Fair on 25th Feb. Introduced by our chair Jon Snow – the show presented young people wearing work wear outfits generously sponsored by Olympus Keymed & Buzzacott. A big thank you to Central St Martins – who provided a stylist (Larry), makeup artist (Claire De’Graft), photographer (Othello De’Souza-Hartley) and Berni Yates for Choreographing the show.  

Photo by Othello De’Souza-Hartley

Jon Snow said.. “The new service standards will ensure that people get excellent services when they go to participating centres. These standards should also help the wider public understand the vital role day centres play in giving a hand up to those in need – not a hand out.”

“This exhibition shows what can be acheived by the most disadvantaged with a little support. Young people’s creativity never ceases to astound me, the professionalism of these photos is on a par with anything on display in London”. …Check out our Facebook Group for the full exhibition pics.

New Horizon Youth Centre’s new building  was officially opened by Sarah Brown yesterday. Other speakers at the launch were MP’s Frank Dobson and Vernon Coaker, Mr Bobby McDonagh, the Irish Ambassador, Comedian Rory Bremner and our very own Jon Snow!

The launch began with young people giving guests tours of their new building and culminated in an unveiling of our supporter’s plaque by Sarah Brown, who was helped by Fitsum – a young person from the centre who was an apprentice on our re-build site.

Sarah Brown then joined in a creative art workshop with young people. Sarah later tweeted  ‘what a great space for those who need support’.

Thank you to everyone who attended the launch and helped to make it a very special day for New Horizon Youth Centre.

New Horizon Youth Centre’s Women’s Open Space programme has won the Home Office - Tackling Drugs Changing Lives Award.

The award recognises people who have made an outstanding contribution to tackling drugs. They reward people who have changed lives and communities through their work. Out of 300 nominations – The Women’s Open Space Project were among the 28 finalists…and guess what?…WE WON!!

The Women’s Open Space Project operates an outreach service in the Kings Cross area for rough sleepers under the age of 25, female sex workers and other vulnerable women. They witness the immediate and long term impact of their work with these vulnerable women.

Their twice weekly drop-in service offers a relaxing and welcoming space where we run, for example, a peer education programme aimed at educating and informing the women on drugs and dangers of sex work.

“I’m incredibly proud of the Women’s Open Space Team and the work they do. And I’m now bowled over by the Home Office Award – it is so richly deserved. I would like to thank the team for touching and making a difference to so many women’s lives. New Horizon is fortunate indeed to have them”….said Jon Snow, Chairman of New Horizon Youth Centre.

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The builders are on site, we have decamped to temporary premises along the road and the work will be completed by Christmas this year.

We are the beneficiaries of a Lottery Award designated by the Department of Children Schools and Families, under the heading of ‘My Place Funding’. The idea is that our young people themselves, together with local community and businesses will deliver ‘world class youth facilities’.

When the £1.5 million project is complete we shall have an entirely new day centre on our old Chalton street site. We shall have kitchen, washing facilities, education, andrecreation facilities together with computer room, consulting rooms and the rest. The centrepiece with be a newly constructed ‘Barn’, a large performance room in which we can stage music, drama, education, exercise and meeting space.

This will have the added benefit of being available to the local community for use when the Centre is closed. It will have its own entrance and will provide urgently needed meeting and performance space for those who live nearby. All this would have been impossible without the support of the community around us and the creative and financial input of the Kings Cross architect, John McAslan and his Family Trust. He funded a RIBA competition to find our eventual architect Adam Khan, and has been a constant source of advice and support at every stage.

It is largely thanks to him that we were ready and right for the Lottery Award. It would also have been impossible without the support of the London Borough of Camden and our local councillors. Our new neighbours, The Guardian, have provided support at every level through fund raising concerts, work placements, coaching and support for the new build.

I want to express enormous gratitude to Elizabeth Shields who secured critical seed funding that enabled us to produce everything required by the lottery to secure the lottery funding. The Rayne Foundation and Garfield Weston, and the R & S Cohen Foundation have been pivotally generous too.

Finally none of this would have happened without the drive and inspiration of our Director, Shelagh O’Connor,and her dedicated team and of course the enthusiasm of our young people. And don’t think that this wonderful capital injection will solve all our funding issues in these tightening times. It won’t’.

We shall be out fund raising again this year, but with the wind in our sales, generated by the huge uplift in the services we shall now be able to offer homeless young people in Central London.

Jon Snow
Chair, New Horizon Youth Centre

Download the full Annual Report 08/09 by clicking here.