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Young people help Olympic visitors find hidden gems with unique visitor guide

Tuesday 7 August 2012

Young Person's Guide to East London

With the help of staff and students from the University of East London, four hundred local teenagers have produced an award-winning guide to the borough they call home and which, for one summer only, has the eyes of the world upon it.

Recognised by an Olympic Inspire Mark and a Media Trust ‘Inspiring Voices’ award, The Young Person’s Guide to East London has been distributed to youth centres, cultural venues, community centres, schools and colleges across London’s Olympic boroughs.

The newspaper-style travel guide is the culmination of a five-year project by cSPACE (a charitable organisation based at the University of East London’s Docklands campus) and based on The Young Person’s Guide to East London interactive online guide, which has drawn on the local knowledge of young East Londoners.

Participants identified  the best things to do in their own neighbourhoods and photographed, researched and commented on their favourite places, to provide interesting and accessible information for other young East Londoners as well as visitors during the Games.

The next stage of the work is to extend the guide globally through YPG2world, which aims to create a global network of youth guides. Organisers, cSPACE, are currently seeking resources to work with interested partners in Rio, the next Olympic city, as well as locations across the world, including Barcelona, Pittsburgh, Ireland, Lithuania, Bangladesh and even the Shetland Islands.

Dr Loraine Leeson, Director of cSPACE and Visiting Research Fellow at the University of East London said: "We are very grateful to the Olympic Lottery for supporting us through their Transformers fund to complete this exciting project. The young people have achieved some excellent work and gained confidence and self-esteem through seeing their ideas valued by thousands of people online and on the streets.”

Notes to Editors

The University of East London (UEL) is a global learning community with over 28,000 students from over 120 countries world-wide. Our vision is to achieve recognition, both nationally and internationally, as a successful and inclusive regional university proud of its diversity, committed to new modes of learning which focus on students and enhance their employability, and renowned for our contribution to social, cultural and economic development, especially through our research and scholarship. We have a strong track-record in widening participation and working with industry.

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