The Mayor's Fund for London

Since 2017, The Mayor's Fund for London #KitchenSocial Programme has focused on tackling holiday time food insecurity and social isolation. Over the past 12 months, we've supported 𝟭𝟭,𝟭𝟵𝟮 young people, provided 𝟴𝟳,𝟬𝟵𝟱 additional holiday meals, and delivered 𝟰𝟲𝟬 life skill and activity sessions. We are strong advocates of the Department for Education HAF Programme. It's proven to be a vital support mechanism for young people and their communities. 76% of our Kitchen Social hubs also rely on HAF investment to help young Londoners thrive. Kitchen Social takes a universal approach and is not means tested. It supports young people during each of the 13-weeks away from school. Aligned to HAF, we know access to a healthy, nutritious meal and a menu of positive activities focused on physical, mental wellbeing and essential life skills ensures young people have a 𝙨𝙖𝙛𝙚𝙩𝙮 𝙣𝙚𝙩, 𝙨𝙪𝙥𝙥𝙤𝙧𝙩 𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙪𝙘𝙩𝙪𝙧𝙚 and 𝙨𝙥𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜𝙗𝙤𝙖𝙧𝙙 to capitalise on their potential and passions. This is backed up by our 23/24 impact data: - 95% of young people had more access to fun and engaging activities during the school holidays. - 94% had access to a daily healthy meal. - 88% felt healthier and happier, with 85% being more physical active. - 86% leant new skills to help in other parts of their life. For community organisations, 100% reported improved quality in their holiday activities. 97% noted their meal quality had improved. 90% said their capacity and resources increased. In London, the commitment to Free School Meals from Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan has been a huge boost, with the Mayor also increasing support for young people over the holidays. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙨𝙚 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙘𝙧𝙪𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡, 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙖 𝙙𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙚𝙭𝙩𝙚𝙣𝙙 𝙃𝘼𝙁 𝙥𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙘𝙝, 𝙩𝙝𝙤𝙪𝙨𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙮𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙞𝙣 𝙇𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙤𝙣, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙣𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙛𝙖𝙘𝙚 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙞𝙣𝙜 support across the school holidays, support which provides young people with the fuel for life and skills for life to thrive. This was reinforced yesterday by OnSide Generation Isolation report that highlighted young people want ‘𝙢𝙤𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙛𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙡𝙚𝙞𝙨𝙪𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙘𝙩𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙖𝙛𝙚, 𝙛𝙪𝙣 𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙤𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙨𝙚 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙣 𝙣𝙚𝙬 𝙨𝙠𝙞𝙡𝙡𝙨’. The ripple effect of no firm decision to extend HAF also impacts community organisations. 75% of Kitchen Social hubs face a decline in funding or operating budgets, whilst 75% report increased demand for existing services. 1in3 face challenges recruiting staff. 28% are struggling to retain their workforce. But, don’t just take my word for it. Check out this excellent post by Professor Greta Defeyter and the detailed research by Northumbria University (https://shorturl.at/ZY9bL). This includes an economic evaluation showing an SROI of £8 for every £1 invested! #YouthWorkWeek #YWW24

Last day of half term and a chance to get out to see some of our partner youth and community projects in South London. Throughout the week they’ve been providing opportunities for young Londoners to have fun make friends and do positive activities - with support from The Mayor's Fund for London to ensure they have healthy nutritious food and access to new connections and things to do. It was really good to catch up with Margaret Jummy Taribo and Pamela at Parentskills2GO CIC - they shared their new publication celebrating food, all designed and created by young people. It was good to hear of their range of work supporting families - including training for parents to understand and support children with additional needs. We hope that the government’s additional funding for SEND announced in the budget will help this kind of vital work. After that it was down to Streatham Youth and Community Trust to meet Mark and Sophie who’ve been supporting young people in the local community for many years. A really vibrant place with multiple activities all week, drawing in children from many different backgrounds. They talked of the need for support all year round - in every holiday time in particular, where half term funding can sometimes be hard to find. I am glad that our Kitchen Social funding, supported by Mayor of London and many other partners allows us to offer some funding in every holiday time. It’s so important to have the chance to hear direct from youth workers and family specialists- lots for me to learn and think about as we seek to build stronger partnerships to support this vital work. And lots for other funders to be aware of. Thanks to all the teams and organisations who’ve worked so hard this week to give young Londoners half term opportunities- and who will continue to support them throughout the year. If you want to support our work with these and many other vital partners, please do consider donating to our appeal: https://lnkd.in/g9c32N6V And of course do reach out to Margaret, Mark and others to find out more if you want to connect with them direct.

🎬 Introducing our new Employability & Skills film 🎬 During half-terms, we connect businesses with diverse 16–18-year-olds hungry to learn and discover their future careers. Our pan-London reach and expertise enables us to work directly with employers who want a more inclusive workplace where all talented people can succeed. So we provide the pipeline that enables this, transform employer diversity practices in the process, and ensure London grows more prosperous and inclusive for all.    💼 In our latest youth-led film, we follow 17-year-olds, Miracle and Luqman, as they build crucial soft skills and workplace knowledge with our employability partners at Talking Tables Ltd | B Corp, Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, and Wild. Propelled by a sense of belonging and ambition that helps them thrive, these opportunities open doors to careers once thought unreachable. 🎥 This youth-led film was created in collaboration with the Yekko Collective. Director Yasmin Amin previously completed our Creativity Works programme and premiered her MFL-commissioned short film Chicken Estate at our 2024 Food and Communities Summit in City Hall. Thanks to DOP Judith Rita Nanyonga and camera operator Sara Wilkinson who are also part of Yekko Collective.      Thank you to our partners, Talking Tables, Weil, Gotshal & Manges, and Wild, for contributing to the film and for your support in connecting young Londoners to their future careers. 💚 

Young Londoners across the capital learn subjects to pass exams. But what about topics that will help them navigate life?  Finance is everywhere - from the government’s budget to our weekly food shop. Young people deserve to understand how money works, so that they can make the best decisions. This season of our youth-led podcast, The Intersect, we are exploring “What School Didn’t Teach Us”.   In episode 4, our Youth Board hosts, Huda and Ya’Eesh are joined by trailblazing young Londoner, Abdirahman A., the founder of Urban Rise, a social enterprise dedicated to improving financial literacy among young people aged 16-25 from under-resourced communities in London. They have an insightful conversation full of learning as Abdirahman shares stories on how he started selling snacks in secondary school, the experiences his professional relationship with money came from and how financial literacy is a skill we can all develop. Episode 4 is out now: https://spoti.fi/4ediaHv

🌟 Empowering future leaders in partnership with the UK Black Business Show 🌟 By connecting students of Black heritage with inspiring Black professionals, we aim to help them explore career paths they might have previously thought were out of reach. Thanks to our partnership with the UK Black Business Show we were able to invite 65 students from schools across London to attend the show's STEM Career Day. These students had the chance to interact directly with industry leaders, listen to inspiring stories, and gain insight into available career pathways. Many professionals at the event shared similar backgrounds with the students, creating a strong sense of relatability and possibility. 💬 A student from our employability programme, Access Aspiration, who attended the event reflected: "Seeing people who look like me in roles I've always admired made me realise that I could get there, too." 🖊️ Our Senior Business Engagement Co-ordinator Akeem Wangeh writes: “We want to challenge the perception that careers in fields like STEM are out of reach for our students. By showcasing successful Black professionals in these fields, we aim to support our students by helping them develop skills as a springboard for their future… Representation is not just about seeing someone who looks like you in a role; it's about knowing that the door is open for you to walk through, regardless of your background.” Read Akeem’s full thoughts from the day here 👉 https://bit.ly/40ksdaK 💚 Thank you to the UK Black Business Show for their partnership and continued support. Through creating opportunities such as these, we hope to continue building a future where every young Londoner can access opportunities that allow them to thrive.

🎉 Introducing the Activity Library our new initiative promoting lifelong health and wellbeing by making physical activity accessible and enjoyable. 🎉 The Activity Library breaks down financial and societal barriers to physical activity for young Londoners. Imagine a library, but instead of books, it's filled with sports equipment! Giving young people and their families free access to everything from skipping ropes to badminton sets, making it easier for young people to stay active and healthy. The library's cycle of “Borrow-Use-Return-Repeat” also fosters a sense of responsibility, inclusion, and trust.    Thanks to our partnership with Decathlon via funding from the Decathlon Foundation, the Activity Library was piloted this summer across 10 MFL Kitchen Social hubs, many situated in communities among the top 30% of the most deprived areas in the country. The impact was big!  ✨ 431 young people and 227 family members engaged    ✨ 898 pieces of equipment borrowed during the 6-week summer program    ✨ 90% felt happier and 86% healthier    ✨ 88% of hub leaders strongly agree that every community organisation in London should have access to an Activity Library. Thank you to Decathlon for bringing this vision to life. We’re excited about the future as we work toward expanding this initiative and enabling more young Londoners to enjoy the benefits of physical activity, helping to build a healthier, more inclusive city for all. 💚 Read the full report on the Activity Library pilot! 👉 https://bit.ly/40b94Ib #PhysicalActivity #YouthEmpowerment #CommunityEngagement #KitchenSocial #Wellbeing #Inclusion #London

A big thank you to Debbie Weekes-Bernard and our Patron Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, for their continued support and commitment in enabling us to provide holiday time meals to children and their families across London. To cap off London Challenge Poverty Week, Debbie has written an article acknowledging the financial difficulties many Londoners face and the important work and collaborations going on to tackle this. Last week our Youth Board got involved with London Challenge Poverty Week, releasing a special episode of their podcast, ‘The Intersect’. Joined by The Food Foundation the conversation covered the stigma of free school meals, when food poverty is spoken about in schools and how young Londoners can be empowered to talk about these issues.  Listen here 👉https://spoti.fi/3Yqk0QO #LDNChallengePoverty

We hope you have been able to get involved and engage with Black History Month over the last few weeks! This year, Black History Month focuses on #ReclaimingNarratives and highlighting the untold success stories within the black community. At the Mayor’s Fund for London, we work with so many unsung heroes from the black community all year round, who help children in London facing the biggest barriers not only survive but thrive! Last Black History Month, we interviewed four inspirational black women, who are creating lasting impact in their community: Fisayo Fadahunsi, Founder and Managing Director of Filmanthropy CIC. Kemi Akinola, Founder and Chief Executive of Be Enriched and Brixton People's Kitchen. Yetunde Olakigbe, Manager at PlayZone Out of School Care. Margaret Jummy Taribo, Director at Parent Skills2Go. In the four blogs, Fisayo, Kemi, Yetunde and Margaret highlight important topics such as the meaning of Black History Month, how those who aren’t of Black heritage become active allies and how food can bring communities together. We wanted to reshare these blog posts to continue to shine a light on the impactful work of these inspirational women. Read the full blogs at https 👉 ://https://lnkd.in/gD28wDky

Holidays are a time for community, development, wellbeing and fun. Not a time to dread because food and activities are unaffordable and inaccessible. We want to be there for every child and young person who needs support and hope over the holidays. But currently, we can only meet 35% of the increasing demand we see. We need help to close this gap and reach as many young Londoners as possible. Will you join us as a supporter of MFL’s #InYourGift holiday appeal? Donate today https://bit.ly/3zROYrN

Mondays aren't typically my favourite day of the week, but this week it might just have been. I was lucky enough to be in attendance at the London Child Poverty Summit 2024, hosted by The Childhood Trust, representing the The Mayor's Fund for London💚 It was a powerful start hearing from Dr. Kenny Imafidon MBE (whose book I have personally read, loved and highly recommend!) about his personal experiences growing up in Peckham, followed by an engaging panel that explored the question, is London a city for children and young people? It was compelling to hear from the panellists about the opportunities and spaces they are providing young Londoners and inspiring to hear they felt London IS a city for children and young people. One of the things that I have been and will be reflecting on is Taz Virdee's observation, or question, of whether London is for 'all' young Londoners. This is something we aim for at MFL, working with trusted local spaces, investing in and strengthening these established grassroot hubs, and focusing on fun as well as food to try and ensure young Londoners facing the biggest barriers have spaces where they feel physically and mentally supported, are learning key life skills, and experiencing joy like 'all' young Londoners should.    Thank you to the The Childhood Trust and 4in10 - London's Child Poverty Network for an engaging and inspiring event, made even more so by presence of youth voice. To coincide with London Challenge Poverty Week our own Youth Board have released a special episode of their podcast, The Intersect, highlighting how food poverty impacts young people. It’s a great listen with some strong take home messages on how young Londoners can be empowered to talk about and raise issues relating to food poverty. Highly recommend giving it a listen: https://spoti.fi/3Yqk0QO 🎧 🎙️