Interview with the Mayor’s new Ambassador for Youth: James Cleverly
London Assembly Member James Cleverly represents Bexley and Bromley. He became the Mayor’s Ambassador for Young People in January 2009. Three members of Young London’s Peer Outreach team talked to him about his new role.
PO: We know you’re keen to see the Time for Action projects begin… were young people consulted as part of developing Time for Action?
JC: Yes they were, although it’s fair to say that many of the original ideas in Time for Action began in City Hall, with Kit Malthouse, the Community Safety Team and myself. Most recently, we talked to participants at the London Schools and the Black Child conference last month.
PO: What other areas do you want to see happen as well, and how can the Peer Outreach workers and other young people help?
JC: Time for Action was a first priority as it was a core part of the Mayor’s election campaign. I’m keen to identify any gaps in policies and plans not covered here, To help us to do this, it would be great if we had a roundtable of Peer Outreach workers, and other young people, with myself and the Mayor’s team.
PO: How would you describe to Young London users what the Peer Outreach team – do, and you and the Mayor’s views about us and our work?
JC: This is the way I see it. You’re a team of young people who know enough about how government works to talk in our language, yet also bring real experiences in your lives as young Londoners. This is something we couldn’t get just, say, by running focus groups. When we came out of the meeting with you, the first thing Boris said to me was, ‘Are we using these people enough?’ You’re a fantastic resource and we must get the best from you.
PO: Do you think young people themselves can play a lead role in taking on the issue of media stereotypes of young people?
JC: The media is unfair in how it portrays young people as a whole. Headlines about teenage stabbings sell more newspapers than stories about young people being the most likely to do voluntary work, more likely to be victims and not perpetrators of crime, and now most susceptible to the economic downturn. So, much of this work must be down to us, as adults, politicians.
PO: What if young people set up projects with media companies to educate them? Or is the gap too wide to bridge?
JC: Definitely be proactive. We can all try to ‘ram down’ the throat of the media all the positive work and activities of young people, and help form a new narrative that young Londoners are great, the ‘good guys’.
PO: Especially the coverage of gun and knife crime… 11 Million has just published a report on this after a major survey on young people across England. It found that the majority of current or former knife carriers were aged between 15 and 17, white and male…
JC: Yes, again. Gun and knife crime is a small but incredibly important problem. The media doesn’t always get across that while having enormous impact on young people, their families and communities, the numbers involved in gun and knife crime are low. I would value the Peer Outreach team’s thoughts on this report.
PO: How can the tension between young people and police officers be resolved?
JC: There have always been some tensions between young people and authority. Some of the biggest changes in history have been driven by young people, asking the awkward questions – whether on civil rights, female emancipation or wars. In today’s London context, it’s important to recognise that the police have a protective role for young people, as well as the rest of the community.
PO: What do you think, from your work with the Met, would make a big difference?
JC: To a large degree, it’s about police officers coming with the right attitudes, like they do when the Met work with us as the Pear Outreach team at City Hall.
PO: Also, there should be more ways that locally based officers, including PCSOs, get to interact with young people and adults, like through workshops.
JC: We could look at the role of training, too.
PO: How do you plan to make sure that the 2012 Olympics bring more jobs?
JC: The Mayor is passionate about this and that young Londoners get the benefits in terms of training and Apprenticeships.
PO: What about competition from foreign workers?
JC: The key thing is young Londoners have the right skills. The LDA is increasing funding, so that, say, in terms of building the 2012 media centre, when the construction industry meets the media, you can supply some of these hi-tech roles. Crossrail and Olympics Legacy projects will also be key opportunities.
PO: What health issues for young Londoners are on your radar?
JC: Through the London Assembly Health and Public Services Committee, we’ve been doing work on measles and immunisation, and problem drinking among young people and in relation to teenage pregnancy. Other work we’re now doing is looking into hospital car-parking charges and provision for older people.
PO: How has it been working these first three months?
JC: I love it, whether spending time with parents who’ve lost family members to violence, or the more upbeat work such as with you and the rest of the Peer Outreach team. I feel more optimistic than when I started.
PO: How does it work with you being an Assembly Member, with a role in holding to Mayor to account, and now being his youth Ambassador?
JC: It’s mostly been about practical issues and making a clear distinction between these two different ‘hats’ I’m wearing.
PO: Finally, what has been your biggest challenge?
JC: Finding the time to see as many people and organisations. There’s so many passionate people giving their time and doing really good work in the children and young people’s area that they want to talk to me about.
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