LHT Win Prestigious UK Housing Award

A Liverpool project which teaches young people respect for life has won the national UK Housing Awards in the category of ‘Creating integrated and safe places to live’.

The Learning Lessons from the Past project set up by Liverpool Housing Trust (LHT), part of the Vicinity Housing Group, aims to inspire young people to treat each other with respect by learning lessons from the Holocaust. It is hoped that by teaching them about the horrors of genocide they will learn to respect life and address the issues around gun, gang and knife crime.

CIH Vice President Paddy Gray said: “This is an ambitious and innovative project that has done something very special. Not only has it focused very clearly on young people with low aspirations and helped them to respect themselves and others, but it has had significant long term knock-on effects for the whole community.”

John Healey MP said: “I congratulate the team behind the Learning Lessons from the Past project, who are showing what can be achieved despite the recession and every winner that is delivering the very best housing and services where they are needed most.”

The project is the brainchild of Jeanette Green, LHT Community Regeneration Leader, who was inspired by a film called 'Freedom Writers' to develop this approach to working with young people in north Liverpool to tackle gang culture. Many of the young people involved have been directly affected by gun and knife crime and the approaches taken include:

• Working with the Liverpool Jewish Resource Centre to combat racism
• Visiting the Holocaust Centre in Nottingham
• Meeting a survivor of the Holocaust
• Travelling to Poland to visit Auschwitz-Birkenau

The group has also learned about other genocides and watched a video about the atrocities in Rwanda. Members decided to hold a candlelight vigil for the international remembrance ceremony marking the 15 year anniversary of the Rwandan genocide.

David Lambert, LHT Managing Director said: "We are exceptionally proud to have won this award which is a fantastic endorsement, not only of the work of the Regeneration Team at LHT but also the work that young people themselves, when given the opportunity, can put into changing their perspective."

Philip Gandy, Vicinity Group Chief Executive added: "Jeanette is an excellent example of the calibre of employee that we attract to work at Vicinity; her inspiration and dedication to developing this project have been reflected both in its success with the young people involved and in this recognition from our sector."