#HeroesOfLondon is shining a light on the humans behind our small charities and the amazing – and vital – work they do in London's communities, during the cost-of-living crisis and every day. We spent the last month meeting just some of these local heroes. The stories you are reading are direct transcripts from our chats with them.
Meet Dominic from Laburnum Boat Club.
Small charities can offer an intimacy that bigger charities just don't get or will gloss over. Every young person that comes in that has been here before. I make a point of knowing their name.
The idea of community for me is both the immediate location – here we're in E2, but the other side of the canal is E8 – so there's those two post codes which comprise a certain amount of community. There's also the canal users – they’re a community. There’s the families of those that use the club. So, the young people that come to the club, they're also part of the community. I would say we are quite welcoming to everybody.
Small charities can offer an intimacy that bigger charities just don't get or will gloss over. Every young person that comes in that has been here before. I make a point of knowing their name.
So it’s a one-to-one interaction. If that young person feels part of this, they will take a bit more ownership and a bit more responsibility and hopefully a bit more longevity.
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