Newham's Young Mayor puts spotlight on youth legacy
Date: 28 January 2010
Newham's Young Mayor has met with the Chief Executive of the Olympic Park Legacy Company to make sure that young people can influence what happens after the Olympic and Paralympic Games are over.
Kaycee de Belen met with Andrew Altman at the Company’s new premises in West Ham Lane, Stratford, on Tuesday. The Company is in charge of the long term planning, development, management and maintenance of the Olympic Park and its facilities after the 2012 Games. That includes overseeing the creation of thousands of new homes and jobs, the creation of new educational and cultural facilities and the use of the world class sporting facilities.
The Company is already working with young people in Newham through regular school visits and its Legacy Youth Panel in which young people aged 14- to 19-years-old work with urban planners to offer their views on what should be built on the Olympic Park site.
Kaycee said:
"I’m really excited about the Games and the regeneration they’ll bring to Newham and the whole of London.
"With my Youth Council I'm going to make sure that we continue to empower young people so that they have an influence on the Games, creating an enduring legacy after 2012. This includes working with people like Andrew as well as Newham's Mayor, Sir Robin Wales, who's a member of the OPLC Board.
"Newham has the largest population of young people in the country and also one of the most deprived populations. This was a perfect opportunity to find out how the Games will transform our borough and how we can have a say on what benefits we'd like to see."
Andrew Altman, Chief Executive of the Olympic Park Legacy Company, said:
"We were delighted to welcome the Young Mayor to our new home in Stratford. The Company is already working with young people in Newham and we look forward to hearing the views of the Youth Council.
"Ultimately it is going to be Kaycee’s generation who will benefit the most from the 25 year legacy development of the Olympic Park site, so it is vital we make every effort to involve young people from the start."
Should you have any queries regarding this news story, please speak to Andreas Christophorou or Sarita Bhatia at the Olympic Park Legacy Company Press Office on 020 3288 1777 or email press@legacycompany.co.uk
