Empowerin­g East London's Next Generatio­n

What does it mean to be a good neighbour? To Here East it’s about listening to the local community, caring about their ambitions and challenges, and creating opportunities that unlock their full potential.

One of our main priorities in this is to nurture East London’s next generation of innovators – carving out paths for young people from our surrounding growth boroughs to access inspiration, education, role models, and career paths on our campus.

We’re acutely aware of the barriers that children in Hackney have in front of them. It’s a community where child poverty levels average 44%, many families struggle to afford uniforms and essential school equipment. With that in mind, this year we partnered with Badu to celebrate our 'Back 2 School' campaign. A joint initiative from Here East and our charity partner, Badu, that has a broader mission of reducing child poverty in the local growth boroughs, by supporting local families with the cost of school supplies and uniforms.

This is a small helping hand to ease the financial burden on families in Hackney - ensuring that children are equipped with the tools they need to engage in learning on an equal footing with their peers.

In parallel, we were proud to support Hackney Youth Parliament’s ‘Pack to School’ campaign. This donation appeal ran throughout the summer to provide free school packs to young people who are starting secondary school this September. From rucksacks to calculators - this will help families affected by the cost of living crisis put their children on a strong footing on their first days back at school.

How else do we make a contribution to our community? From opening up opportunities for young people to study at the world-class institutions on our campus through our Scholarship Programme, to introducing them to the skills of the future through our Tech Stars/Masters programmes – many of our community projects are focused on making a difference to the lives and futures of children in our surrounding growth boroughs.

East London is a hub of creativity, entrepreneurialism and technological excellence. Nurturing the next generation should be everyone’s business - and we want to play our part in improving access to education, role models, and career paths for the bright young minds of East London. Our doors are open to connect local young people with the opportunities they deserve.

Underscoring our long-term vision to create a pipeline of opportunity for local young people, Here East’s Community and Partnerships Manager, Onaba Payab said:

“These partnerships are about more than just immediate support—they’re about fostering a sense of belonging, building resilience, and inspiring the next generation to reach their full potential.”