Our Olympic Values

Here at ELBA we have been out working just as hard as before in some of the areas affected by recent disturbances. Our volunteers are all reassured on their continuing safety due to the ELBA ‘escort to first meeting’ policy and our companies have inundated us with offers of help.

How to capture and focus that activity and goodwill I thought? And then it came to me - with the Olympics in under a year, why not set the Olympic and Paralympic values against every new project or initiative we undertake between now and then.

Respect and friendship would have ensured no looting, because you are unlikely to rob a friend. Courage and determination would have helped prevent rioting because confidence in your own abilities counts for more. And being excellent or an inspiration would have meant that you wouldn't be on the street looking for trouble in the first place.

ELBA's Hackney Schools Mentoring Programme, with nearly 300 Year 10 young people mentored by City folk every year - which counts Oxbridge and Gordonstoun graduates amongst its alumni - already meets the criteria as does our Future Directions programme, working with schools in Newham, which recently won a Times Educational Supplement award.

And our new initiative on community cohesion, centred on the Boundary estate in Tower Hamlets, will have at its core a youth engagement plan that will help local youngsters measure up to the Olympic and Paralympic values. If you subscribe to the Olympic ideals and want to help why not come along to our tour of the area on September 15? Call me on 020 7068 6960 to book a space!