Makers & Mentors is growing - introducing Future London Makers

Applications are open for people aged 16 to 21 who live in London, are passionate about improving communities and have an interest in housing. The Future London Makers will be paid the equivalent of London Living Wage for their time and valuable insight, helping to set a new standard for youth-led regeneration in London.

 At a time of increasing pressure on affordable housing delivery, Future London Makers has been launched to address the significant opportunity for more impactful engagement with young people to inform better housing design and delivery in the capital. At the same time, it will provide the participants with a unique opportunity of hands-on experience to kick start potential careers in housing.

Over the course of a year-long programme, participants will visit housing estates at various stages of development, to explore what’s working and what’s not; meet and collaborate with industry experts; and contribute ideas to make estates safer, healthier and happier. Mentoring and professional skills development in leadership, communication and estate design are embedded throughout the programme.

Mount Anvil will use the contributions and ideas from the group to inform its work with partners on estate transformation schemes across London. This supports the developer’s ethos of seeking independent, outside perspectives to hold it to account and challenge it to continually improve its overall approach and project outcomes. The programme takes inspiration from Mount Anvil’s Independent Resident Advisory Panel (IRAP), which sees a panel of external housing experts canvas feedback from estate residents, which is shared with senior leadership to be actioned and reported on.

The launch of Future London Makers coincides with the fifth anniversary of Makers & Mentors, Mount Anvil’s award-winning and GLA-backed mentoring and careers initiative. Launched in 2020, Makers & Mentors addresses the property and construction industry's historic challenges in attracting and retaining diverse talent, giving every student an equal chance to discover a passion for the built environment, regardless of their background.
 
Created with the aim of making industry exposure and learning opportunities more accessible, close to 2,500 have now either participated or expressed interest in the programme which began with a sector-wide mentoring platform and has grown to offer week-long work experience opportunities for students, a curriculum support programme for schools, and now Future London Makers.