When Landsec - owner of Lewisham Shopping Centre - were looking for ways to engage young people on their plans for a new centre in Lewisham, EYC were a natural first point of call as a leading youth organisation in South London. What followed has been described as a "pioneering move for public consultation", where EYC and partner organisations have utilised the power of gaming to engage a group all too often unheard in the conversation of shaping our future community spaces - youth.
Over the 11th and 12th May 2024 weekend, in a first-of-it's-kind model, EYC hosted more free gaming sessions at Lewisham Shopping Centre where young people could explore the designs for the new shopping centre in a custom-developed Fortnite map. The event proved hugely successful with kids keen to explore the map, socialise and compete for prizes. They were also able to engage with Landsec's expert team to ask questions about the design proposals for Lewisham town and provide their feedback. As put by Jon Watson, Development Director for Landsec U+I “By utilising the immersive and interactive world of Fortnite, we’re hoping to encourage people to engage with these plans in a way that is both accessible and exciting.”
Enter the Dons
In another huge collaboration, EYC partnered up with the SE Dons, the much sought-after Youtubers and Lewisham natives, who came down on the Saturday to engage young people in a 'Beat the Dons' format on EAFC 24 which proved to be wildly popular. Seeing the charismatic Big G debuting on Fortnite was a site to behold and Don Strapzy, Young Mad B and the rest of the squad vibing with locals and really buying into the concept of EYC is something we're gassed to have had the chance to host. Huge thanks to the Dons family for coming through and really engaging with local youth, we'll no doubt be collaborating again soon. #anything
EYC have been fully involved in the project from design stage - when EYC Director Finan Trethewey identified BAFTA-winning immersive games studio PRELOADED as a partner to develop the custom Fortnite map back in March, through to preparation and the event activation itself. The event was delivered to positive local feedback within a short time frame and such has been the success, that we're set to collaborate further with Landsec on other engagement projects outside of Lewisham and across the country. As ever, any profits delivered from such events will be re-invested right back into holding more community sessions and helping more young people to explore their passion. We're hugely proud of this work and know it was driven in large part by our innovative ethos, focus on delivery and our desire to always put young people at the forefront of our thinking.
If you're interested in partnering up with EYC, reach out to us on contact@esportsyouthclub.org
To hear about opportunities to shape the new centre for Lewisham visit www.morethanaplace.com
Check out another write-up on the event here: mcvuk.com/business-news/from-the-industry-lewisham-shopping-centre-enters-fortnite-landsecs-creative-approach-to-public-consultation/
And check out our Instagram @esportsyouthclub for more content and all the latest news
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