Turning boys into men

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By Sue Mitchell Radio 4's You and Yours

Gun crime, gang culture and underachievement among black boys are at the top of the agenda, so why is a group that aims to tackle these issues about to close due to a lack of money?

By the age of 14, Jacob Lewis had already fathered a child with his 18-year-old girlfriend, been excluded from school and become involved in drug crime and street robberies.

His life seemed destined to follow a tragic but familiar path. Then he came within the bounds of the From Boyhood to Manhood Foundation.

"When I started here they could tell what a mess I was in. I was very very angry and had so many things and so much trouble," he says.

Local men of violence have become an inspiration because many black boys see no alternative style of manhood Uanu Seshmi

"All my friends were doing what everyone else was doing. I think if I hadn't come here I would have been dead. One of my friends was shot and I think I just wouldn't have been alive today."

Jacob is now 21 and one of the many plays he's written has been performed at London's Royal Court theatre. He works as a peer mentor at the foundation in Peckham - where its school has eight staff teaching and counselling 30 boys - in the hope of helping other youngsters escape from gang life and make something of themselves.

It's the kind of barely believable transformation that should surely have the politicians, desperate for ideas on how to tackle the thousands of teenagers dropping out and taking to crime, banging down the door.

Founder's frustration

And foundation co-founder Uanu Seshmi seems to confirm this, having twice been called to Downing Street to take part in discussions with Prime Minister Gordon Brown on how to reduce gun crime.

"I've met ministers, I've met the home secretary and the prime minister. They all say they want to speak to me."

But this patronage from the most powerful man in the country does not translate into funding and stability. Like many voluntary organisations, the foundation is caught in a constant cycle of bidding for grants from councils and funding bodies. The government has indicated it understands this problem and will address it, but in the meantime, the foundation has run out of money and closure in December seems certain.

Gun crime is a problem in many urban areas

Mr Seshmi is gripped by frustration.

"With all these powerful people it just doesn't make sense to close us. We want to deal with young people, with violence and gun crime but at the same time a good community organisation that's been there from the beginning is going to close."

It means that those who are like 12-year-old Reece will lose one of their few paths out of the morass. Reece was excluded from a local secondary school and sees little hope of being accepted back into mainstream education.

"There are more teachers here [at the foundation] so they have time for you. It's better than school because they give you a chance - you sit down and talk and resolve things," he suggests.

Role models

"But other boys won't have this chance. They won't have the same chances that we have had to make something of their lives. It won't be beneficial for them because they will just keep going and getting into trouble."

Started in south London in 1996, the From Boyhood to Manhood Foundation came amid growing concerns about the number of black boys between the ages of 11 and 17 being excluded from mainstream education. Mr Seshmi was part of a group that saw that facilities for boys could tackle the cause of these problems.

Good nutrition is a key strategy

"There was an overwhelming amount of exclusion, and they were just walking the streets. We provide an environment where these boys can come and meet those who can provide them with positive role models," he says.

As well as helping pupils redefine their attitudes towards growing up, the school provides extra-curricular activities, such as sport - an outlet for energy which might otherwise be misdirected.

"Boys everywhere take stupid chances to prove themselves - they join gangs and they challenge other men - that's natural. But we try to encourage them to do it in a more productive way," he adds.

For three days a week they have conventional lessons, leading to GCSEs or other qualifications. On the other two days they play games.

The male staff act like substitute fathers, playing table tennis and soft football with the boys before lessons begin. Lessons are conducted in groups around tables with one teacher for every two boys. Afterwards there are group sessions on a range of current issues, including violence in rap and the way the boys absorb the culture of "hyper-masculinity".

Moral courage

"Local men of violence have become an inspiration because many black boys see no alternative style of manhood," Mr Seshmi suggests.

Teaching at the project is difficult. It can take ages to settle the boys down and to get them to concentrate. But good food and particularly a nutritious breakfast is seen as key.

The foundation has picked up awards and praise from Ofsted for its outstanding pastoral work, while in June this year, Mr Seshmi received the prestigious Anne Frank award for educators who have shown "personal strength, moral courage and determination to stand up for what is right".

Highly publicised murders of teenagers have sparked concern

The project has persuaded excluded boys to tackle their behaviour, address their aggression and in many cases escape the gangs and street culture that led them astray. Past pupils have gone on to get degrees, win awards and in some cases come back to the project as peer mentors.

In the 11 years since the Boyhood to Manhood Foundation was established it has helped more than 2,000 boys move back into school, college and training programmes. But for Mr Seshmi that seems to count for very little when it comes to getting funding.

"I thought that that success would show people that this is an organisation that is worth supporting. Sometimes I feel as if I want to shout. So many government ministers have tapped us on the back and said what fantastic work has been done but ironically we're going to close."

You and Yours reports on the From Boyhood to Manhood project on Monday at 1200 GMT on Radio 4 or afterwards at the <a class="inlineText" href="http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/youandyours/">You and Yours</a> website.

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