Media Release
For Immediate Release: 29.10.2021
THICN Winter Cup to Promote Youth & Community Cohesion
In response to recent incidents of violence across the Isle of Dogs (IoD) and Tower Hamlets, Osmani Trust as part of the new Tower Hamlets Island Community Network (THICN), hosted the inaugural THICN Winter Cup on the IoD, on the 28th of Oct 2021.
The event was hugely successful with 14 teams and over 100 young people from various backgrounds, ages, and ethnicities from across Tower Hamlets coming together to showcase their footballing talent at the Isle of Dogs Power League.
The youth football tournament aimed to bring diverse young people from the IoD and neighbouring areas, raise awareness of a public health approach to reducing serious youth violence as well as promoting the new youth services being made available by THICN on the IoD.
THICN recently conducted several consultations regarding where young people and residents highlighted where they felt unsafe on the IoD and what services/support they would like to see offered. The tournament further provided an opportunity for young people to explore and talk about their concerns on safety and to meet youth workers from the THICN.
The activities on offer included a BBQ and an Emergency First Aid Workshop by Street Doctors. The tournament provided much needed activities for local young people and opportunities to ease tensions between groups of young people and to promote long term community cohesion.
In attendance were Unmesh Desai (GLA Assembly), Cllr Sirajul Islam and Cllr Mufeedah Bustin (Tower Hamlets), Charles Griggs (LBTH), Diane Peters (Streets of Growth), Peter Vittles (THCVS) and several youth and community leaders, the Safer Neighbourhood Team, VRU partners and residents.
The day concluded with a prize ceremony for the winning team Aberfeldy and the runners up Osmani FC.
Shafiur Rahman, Executive Director of Osmani Trust said “THICN will put young people, who face barriers to inclusion, ahead of the curve with much-needed opportunities and positive engagement. Today was an excellent example of youth engagement, and we have an exciting range of activities and interventions planned to support young people on the IoD to build resilience to violence and to adopt positive lifestyles.”
Ends
Notes for Editors:
- Tower Hamlets Island Community Network (THICN) is a new grassroots consortium supporting young people facing multiple/complex disadvantages on the Isle of Dogs.
- Funded by the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime (MOPAC) Violence Reduction Unit (VRU), THICN is one of a number of grass-roots neighbourhood partnerships funded in London as part of the MyEnds programme for 2 years until March 2023.
- THICN is led by Osmani Trust, in partnership with Spotlight and Streets of Growth, who are all specialists in transforming the life trajectories of young people who have become marginalised by severe local poverty, unemployment and crime – particularly those from BAME communities who are disproportionately affected by these issues.
- Osmani Trust is a youth and community organisation based in Tower Hamlets. The Trust offers a wide range of youth, social welfare, education, training, health and sporting initiatives tailored to the needs of local communities. It aims to provide a holistic service, which helps people, particularly those living in disadvantaged urban communities to re-engage with mainstream society and improve their quality of life.
For more information:
Zakaria Hussain, Tower Hamlets Island Community Network, Programme Manager
zakaria.hussain@osmanitrust.org
Telephone: 020 7247 8080
To find out more on THICN please visit