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On Tuesday 19 July 2021, a consortium - led by the Bridge Renewal Trust and including The Godwin Lawson Foundation, Mind in Haringey, Father2Father and the North London Partnership Consortium - introduced and launched the Home Cooked initiative.  The event was hosted by Harris Academy – an all-through school at the heart of Tottenham Hale. Strategic partners came along to hear about the aims of the programme and to show their support. This included our local MP, Haringey Council, the police, clinical commissioning group, mental health trust, Lee Valley Estates and key community organisations. Funding is for 2 years; it is essential we work together to build the foundations for change.

Students from the Harris Academy highlighted why it is so important for Home Cooked to make a difference. Reading aloud their creative writing projects, they shared personal experiences of how violence, knives and guns affect their lives.

Home Cooked received £750,000 of funding over two years from the Mayor’s London Violence Reduction Unit Flagship My Ends Programme. 

Rachel Hughes, Chair of The Bridge Renewal Trust said: “Thank you to the Mayor’s London Violence Reduction Unit for the funding. We are excited to work together with the local community and partner agencies to make Tottenham Hale a place where everyone feels they belong, free from the fear of violent crime.”

Councillor Peray Ahmet, Leader of Haringey Council said: “This project is going to make a big difference to the community here is Tottenham Hale. I am really looking forward to the work that is going to be done; it will all be co-produced and co-designed.”

David Lammy, the MP for Tottenham said: “Home Cooked is a fantastic initiative. For communities like Tottenham, grassroot initiatives are vital to strengthening our community networks and providing positive alternatives to crime.”

Dr Lawrence Foley, Executive Principal of Harris Academy Tottenham, said: “Our academy has played a central role serving local children and families within Tottenham Hale since its inception and we are privileged to be a key beneficiary and partner in this vital new initiative funded by the Mayor’s London Violence Reduction Unit. We were incredibly proud of our students during the event who gave thoughtful perspectives on the drivers of violence in the area and put forward their suggestions on how our community can work together to find solutions.”

Lib Peck, Director of Violence Reduction Unit said: “We are really pleased to be able to support Home Cooked in Tottenham Hale and excited to see the positive ideas and enthusiasm coming from the strong local partnerships.”

The programme is all about working with young people and residents to build home grown solutions to violence. We will be holding a community launch very soon. Local community groups will be able to apply to a grassroots pot of funding to deliver local interventions to reduce violence. 

To find out more or get involved, please email: [email protected]

About the consortium partners

The Bridge Renewal Trust is a local charity based in Tottenham. We are leading the consortium of partners and will also be responsible for developing interventions that empower positive role models to be agents of change and build trust between young people and local authorities.

Godwin Lawson Foundation (GLF) was established in 2012 founded by Yvonne and Calvin Lawson to commemorate the life of their son, Godwin Lawson, who was a victim of knife crime. GLF will lead on development of interventions that support young people’s engagement with school and learning as well as protection from violence and exploitation.

Mind in Haringey is a local charity that works to improve the mental health of Haringey residents. Mind in Haringey will lead on development of preventative interventions that reduce the vulnerability of young people and trauma-informed interventions that work with victims and perpetrators to break cycles of violence.

Father2Father (F2F) works holistically to increase the proportion of children growing up with involved, responsible fathers and male role models. F2F will lead on development of interventions that take a whole family approach to building resilient families and preventing conflict.

North London Partnership Consortium (NLPC) works to improve the socio-economic welfare of disadvantaged members of deprived communities. NLPC will lead on the development of interventions that provide pathways to youth engagement/consultations and  economic opportunity, including life skills and jobs.

About Strategic partners

Strategic partners for the programme include Haringey Council, The local Metropolitan Police Service, local NHS organisations, The Probation Service, Developers and Housing Associations in Tottenham Hale and local Schools.

Geoffrey Ocen, Chief Executive of the Bridge Renewal Trust speaks about the £750k funding for youth violence reduction and more

Year 9 students at Harris Academy Tottenham spoke about the violence reduction from youth perspectives

Students, guests and partners at the launch event

Guests included from left to right: Cllr Ruth Gordon, Cllr Peray Ahmet - Leader of Haringey Council, David Lammy - MP for Tottenham, Rachel Hughes – Chair of The Bridge Renewal Trust, Lib Peck – Director of The Mayor’s London Violence Reduction Unit and Detective Chief Superintendent Treena Fleming  - North Area BCU Commander