SPCO

THE UK IMPRISONS MORE YOUNG PEOPLE THAN ANY OTHER EUROPEAN COUNTRY. START PERFORMING COMMUNITY ORGANISATION (SPCO) AIMS TO CHANGE THIS SIMPLE TRUTH BY TRANSFORMING THE LIVES OF YOUNG PEOPLE THAT SOCIETY USUALLY GIVES UP ON

SPCO is a collective of artists, entertainers and professionals from public and private sectors. Its mission is to improve education, employment, environmental and health prospects of people who live in the five London 2012 Olympic boroughs, targeting people who usually fall to being socially excluded

SPCO runs workshops, courses, seminars, exhibitions and projects. They all are centred on bringing a broad range of educational and skills development to people of all backgrounds. These will culminate in a multi genre internationally televised showcasing festival “The World is Your Oyster”. The theme is “inclusion and cohesion”

The festival will create a wide reaching excitement around the Olympic and Paralympics Games. The event will be held on Hackney Marshes, the largest green-field site by the 2012 Olympic Games. It will lend a positive, international social image to the Olympic site. The festival will highlight that the Olympic boroughs celebrate social diversity and inclusion. Broadcasting the event will showcase that London is a place where people from different cultures and backgrounds live, work and play in harmony. The emphasis will be on the legacy programme of changing lives for the better

SPCO has been working with high calibre professionals from the public and private sector developing strategies to maximise the sustainable legacy from 2012. Its focus has been the educational and skills based development because this provides the most enduring legacy that affects not only the life of the individual but also future generations

SPCO has been working since its inception in June 2007. It now has an active programme of workshops, courses, events and projects including the International Educational Handshake. The planning for the International Educational Handshake is at a well developed stage. The launch of the project on 26^th June 2009 at the London Metropolitan University was a huge success. It will be rolled out internationally at seven partner universities in Europe and then worldwide through schools. The World is your Oyster festival will start in the summer of 2010 and will be an annual event

Focussing on an educational and skills based legacy, with a theme of inclusion and cohesion we aim to create a positive change for 2012 and beyond