How we've been making the news
Date: June 2010
Title: MAMA Youth Project is holding a presentation at BAFTA's Princess Ann Theatre on the 8th July for the good and the great of the television industry
The event will be hosted by television comedian Curtis Walker of The Real McCoy (BBC), They Think It's All Over (BBC), Paramount City (BBC) and Blouse & Skirt (BBC). Other high profile speakers will include Sophie Turner Lang (Managing Director of Entertainment & News, BSkyB), John McVay (Head of PACT), and Ade Rawcliffe (Deputy Head of Diversity, Channel 4).
MAMA Youth Project is celebrating the success of its first few years where it has been recognised by the Council of Europe as a top10 company in Europe demonstrating a good initiative and practice towards Diversity in Media. Notably, 31% of young adults helped by the MAMA Youth Project are now working within the television industry, the latest of whom has just been taken on by ITV Drama. And, Bob Clarke the founder of MAMA Youth Project was the recipient of the Special Recognition Award at the Cultural Diversity Network (CDN) Awards in November 2009. Serena Williamson, Head of Training at MAMA Youth Project said:
"As well as a showcase of what MAMA Youth Project is about, it is a chance for the television industry to make a commitment to help MAMA Youth Project financially so we can continue that success and help the industry help young people from diverse backgrounds."
Title: MAMA Youth Project is holding a presentation at BAFTA's Princess Ann Theatre on the 8th July for the good and the great of the television industry
MAMA Youth Project is celebrating the success of its first few years where it has been recognised by the Council of Europe as a top10 company in Europe demonstrating a good initiative and practice towards Diversity in Media. Notably, 31% of young adults helped by the MAMA Youth Project are now working within the television industry, the latest of whom has just been taken on by ITV Drama. And, Bob Clarke the founder of MAMA Youth Project was the recipient of the Special Recognition Award at the Cultural Diversity Network (CDN) Awards in November 2009. Serena Williamson, Head of Training at MAMA Youth Project said:
"As well as a showcase of what MAMA Youth Project is about, it is a chance for the television industry to make a commitment to help MAMA Youth Project financially so we can continue that success and help the industry help young people from diverse backgrounds."
Date: December 2009
Title: CDN Awards at Channel 4 gives MAMA Youth Project the stamp of approval from the TV industry
Bob Clarke, CEO of the MAMA Youth Project was the winner of the prestigious Cultural Diversity Network's Special Recognition Award for promoting diversity in media. Bob Clarke said:
"What a year it has been for us. At the beginning of the year we were recognised by The Council of Europe as one of the top ten TV companies in Europe, showing a good initiative to diversity, the only other two companies from the UK being Channel 4 and BBC. Now we end the year with this total recognition and approval by the industry. I now want this to turn into sustainable support and finance for the charity."
Bob brought onto the stage two of the MAMA Youth Project's success stories to address the audience. Carla Bartley, from the very first training programme, who since leaving the MAMA Youth Project, has worked with Endemol and on 'Harry Potter', 'Are You Smarter Than A 10 Year Old?' and 'Gulliver's Travels'. The second person was Rebecca Lewis, from the last training programme who since leaving the MAMA Youth Project has worked with Endemol and is currently employed by the BBC. To date, one in three young adults trained by the MAMA Youth Project has obtained employment within the TV industry. MAMA Youth Project is supported by Endemol, Channel 4, BBC, Shed Media, Monkey Kingdom and Leopard Films, but BSkyB are the first to make a financial commitment as well as resource support. It is hoped that other companies will follow BSkyB's initiative. To find out more about the Cultural Diversity Network go to www.culturaldiversitynetwork.co.uk.
Title: CDN Awards at Channel 4 gives MAMA Youth Project the stamp of approval from the TV industry
"What a year it has been for us. At the beginning of the year we were recognised by The Council of Europe as one of the top ten TV companies in Europe, showing a good initiative to diversity, the only other two companies from the UK being Channel 4 and BBC. Now we end the year with this total recognition and approval by the industry. I now want this to turn into sustainable support and finance for the charity."
Bob brought onto the stage two of the MAMA Youth Project's success stories to address the audience. Carla Bartley, from the very first training programme, who since leaving the MAMA Youth Project, has worked with Endemol and on 'Harry Potter', 'Are You Smarter Than A 10 Year Old?' and 'Gulliver's Travels'. The second person was Rebecca Lewis, from the last training programme who since leaving the MAMA Youth Project has worked with Endemol and is currently employed by the BBC. To date, one in three young adults trained by the MAMA Youth Project has obtained employment within the TV industry. MAMA Youth Project is supported by Endemol, Channel 4, BBC, Shed Media, Monkey Kingdom and Leopard Films, but BSkyB are the first to make a financial commitment as well as resource support. It is hoped that other companies will follow BSkyB's initiative. To find out more about the Cultural Diversity Network go to www.culturaldiversitynetwork.co.uk.
Date: January 2009
Title: MAMA Youth Project recognised by The Council of Europe as a top ten company
Bob Clarke, CEO of the MAMA Youth Project will travel to Prague in February as he is representing the charity that has been recognised by The Council of Europe as a top thirty company showing a good initiative and practice towards diversity in media. All the top thirty companies have been invited to Prague at the expense of the European Council to take part in workshops to help form European policy for the future. The companies were broken down into groups - Television & Radio, Print and New Media. The only other companies in the MAMA Youth Project's group from the UK are the BBC and Channel 4. Bob Clarke said:
"This is an amazing achievement for the charity. We are so small compared to the other companies in our group but the European representative told me that originally we were in the top fifty companies but were not going to make the top thirty simply because we are so small, but then he said at the final decision meeting they felt what MAMA Youth Project is doing is so significant, it was a unanimous decision to put us through."
Title: MAMA Youth Project recognised by The Council of Europe as a top ten company
"This is an amazing achievement for the charity. We are so small compared to the other companies in our group but the European representative told me that originally we were in the top fifty companies but were not going to make the top thirty simply because we are so small, but then he said at the final decision meeting they felt what MAMA Youth Project is doing is so significant, it was a unanimous decision to put us through."
Date: February 2008
Title: Prince's Trust Award MAMA Youth Project
The Prince's Trust has awarded MAMA Youth Project a grant of £5,000 to make a 'What's Up' special television programme to be broadcast on the Community Channel later in the year. The programme is a 30-minute episode about youth unemployment. As with the main 'What's Up' show, the small production team will be recruited from black, ethnic minorities, white working class and disadvantaged young adults of any race and colour. They will learn the skills of TV production and hopefully gain employment once the production and training is completed. 'What's Up' is a Youth Culture and Lifestyle broadcast television show and is the tool that is used for the training of young adults into employment within the broadcast industry. MAMA Youth Project has a 27% success rate since it started in 2005.
Title: Prince's Trust Award MAMA Youth Project
Date: August 2007
Title: MAMA and 1600 Avenue makes a dream come true in L.A.
MAMA Youth Project has linked up with 1600 Avenue (1600avenue.com) who are a Los Angeles based charity helping deprived youths. After watching MAMA Youth Project's magazine and culture show 'What's Up', 1600 Avenue liked what they saw and contacted MAMA Youth Project with a view to collaborating in the future. In the first collaboration, 1600 Avenue are flying Bob Clarke, CEO, a colleague and one of MAMA Youth Project's youths to Los Angeles for the Hip Hop Leaders Conference International. This is a dream come true for Sharon, the young 16-year-old girl that is being taken. She has just successfully completed a MAMA Youth Project workshop and was then told she will be travelling to Los Angeles. Sharon said:
"None of my friends believe me and I cannot really believe it myself."
They will be in L.A. for five days in August and the trip will be filmed for the show 'What's Up'. Bob Clarke said:
"This will be a wonderful experience for Sharon and the start of a kindred relationship between MAMA Youth Project and 1600 Avenue in the cause of helping our young people."
Title: MAMA and 1600 Avenue makes a dream come true in L.A.
"None of my friends believe me and I cannot really believe it myself."
They will be in L.A. for five days in August and the trip will be filmed for the show 'What's Up'. Bob Clarke said:
"This will be a wonderful experience for Sharon and the start of a kindred relationship between MAMA Youth Project and 1600 Avenue in the cause of helping our young people."
Date: July 2007
Title: MAMA Youth Project gives away £25,000
17 youths completed a 10 day workshop. The first five days they produced a mini version of the show called 'What's Up' where they produced items including interviews with Choice FM DJ George Kay and Levi Roots, the man who made his millions from the BBC show 'Dragons Den'. The second five days were spent by the youths volunteering at four different homeless charities where they also produced a free video for each charity worth in total £25,000. The charities will be able to use these videos for support and fund raising. Bob Clarke the CEO of the Youth Project said:
"I am proud of all the youths and what we have done as an organisation for other charities."'
Title: MAMA Youth Project gives away £25,000
"I am proud of all the youths and what we have done as an organisation for other charities."'
Date: June 2007
Title: Deprived youths from the UK meet their peers from Los Angeles
MAMA Youth Project, a UK based charity which is helping deprived youths of any race or colour get a start in television production, have linked up with Los Angeles based 1600 Avenue who work with youths at risk from deprived areas. The leaders of both organisations, Bob Clarke from MAMA Youth Project and Frank Satterwhite from 1600 Avenue, on meeting for the first time, quickly realised that they are kindred spirits who not only share a similar passion, they both have a similar vision which is to help the youths that society is leaving behind. Bob totally respects the work Frank and his team are doing in their endeavour to bring IT and other skills to youths who would not otherwise have that opportunity. Also, Bob believes that by using Hip Hop, as a means to get the attention of the youths, is a genius idea. Bob is using television and media in a similar way. 1600 Avenue are flying Bob, a colleague and one of MAMA Youth Project's youths to Los Angeles to take part in the Hip Hop Leadership Conference International. This conference is the start of a programme which is a year-round training ground for the advancement of young minds. MAMA Youth Project produces a monthly TV show distributed free on DVD. The show is made by youths who have had no experience before and come from various backgrounds and organisations such as the Probation Service, Social Service and youth organisations. The show is called 'What's Up' and is a youth culture and lifestyle magazine show. 1600 Avenue and MAMA Youth Project intend to show how youths in different parts of the world share a lot in common. This will be done through the 'What's Up' format. Eventually both organisations will collaborate on programming for broadcast television for the UK and the USA.
Title: Deprived youths from the UK meet their peers from Los Angeles
