This week, The Burberry Foundation hosted its second annual Burberry Inspire showcase, bringing together young people from OnSide Youth Zones across London in celebration of their creative achievements.
Hosted at Burberry’s headquarters, Horseferry House, over 60 young people from four London Youth Zones were welcomed for a day of creative activities, including a series of workshops, a collaborative mural project and a performance showcase.
The annual Burberry Inspire showcase provides a platform for young people to present the projects they have developed and celebrate their achievements. It also provides an opportunity for young people to discover more about the role of creativity in business and the career pathways available within the creative industries.
This year’s workshops included an ‘Exploring the 3D Digital Wardrobe’ session, focused on how specialist software is used for design customisation and visualisation; a ‘Product Engineering Masterclass’ accompanied by a live fitting session with product developers; and a ‘Behind the Scenes at the Atelier’ tour, to explore how each design is brought to life.
Following the workshops, the young people gathered for a collaborative mural project. Tying into Burberry’s heritage, each group was asked to consider the theme ‘The Power of Exploration’ and reflect their collective vision on their part of the mural. At the end of the day, the mural was pieced together to commemorate the event.
In the afternoon, the Chair of The Burberry Foundation Trustees, Lord Chris Holmes MBE, was joined by OnSide CEO, Jamie Masraff, to introduce the showcase. From unveiling a stop motion video project, to musical and dance performances, the young people’s work was enjoyed by their peers and Burberry colleagues.
"It was such a pleasure to have so many young people from across London’s OnSide Youth Zones here with us to share their projects and demonstrate the power of creativity. We want every young person to have the greatest opportunity to flourish and we believe creativity plays a vital role in opening space for development, innovation and opportunity. We are proud to come together with OnSide again this year to celebrate the creative projects their youth zones have worked so hard on, and hope the experience gives the young people both a newfound confidence and a greater awareness of their potential.”
"We are proud to work with The Burberry Foundation to give young people from across our network the chance to explore their creativity, build new skills and discover their potential. This event was a brilliant example of what can happen when young people are empowered to dream big and express themselves. We’re incredibly grateful to Burberry for inspiring the next generation and helping us create opportunities that make a lasting difference in their lives."
Since 2023, OnSide has been a member of Burberry Inspire, a global programme, dedicated to providing safe spaces for young people to explore their creativity, develop new skills and build a more positive future. Burberry Inspire channels the power of creativity to cultivate young people’s self-confidence, support mental health and wellbeing and build a greater sense of identity and aspirations for the future.
Learn more about Burberry Inspire here.
Based in London, United Kingdom, The Burberry Foundation is an independent charity (UK registered charity number 1154468) and was established by Burberry Group plc in 2008 as a grant making charity with general charitable purposes. Whilst primarily funded by Burberry Group plc, the Burberry Foundation operates in full independence from Burberry Group plc and its commercial interests.
The Burberry Foundation is committed to improving the lives of young people across the globe. By working with a network of global youth associations, The Burberry Foundation provides opportunities for young people to explore their creativity, build confidence and life skills, and shape a more positive future for themselves and their communities.
The Burberry Foundation’s work is guided by the principles of the Creative Youth Development Partnership’s framework and aims to showcase the importance of creativity to both the development of young people, and to driving wider social impact.
For more information, please visit: https://www.burberryplc.com/impact/burberry-foundation
OnSide is a national charity that believes all young people should have the opportunity to discover their passion and their purpose.
To find out what they’ve got and where it could take them. We fund and build state-of-the-art, multimillion-pound Youth Zones in the country’s most economically disadvantaged areas.
We train the amazing people that run them. We offer continuing support – and the nationwide OnSide Network where they can learn and grow, share their stories and celebrate their success together.
These are brand new, purpose-built spaces fizzing with energy, and crammed with incredible facilities. They offer 20 activities each night ranging from football, climbing and media to skating, DJ-ing, drama and employability training with entry costing just 50p along with a £5 annual membership.
They are staffed by skilled and dedicated youth workers who truly believe in young people – helping them see what they could achieve, and giving them the skills, confidence and ambition to go for it.
Over 50,000 young people are already members across the OnSide network at our 16 open Youth Zones in:
There are six new Youth Zones currently at different stages of development including Barnsley, Crewe, Preston, Grimsby, South Bristol and Thurrock.
Each Youth Zone is an independent charity with its own private sector-led board. This model of local ownership is a key factor in ensuring the financial sustainability of each Youth Zone. The Youth Zone provides a way for local communities to actively support their young people between the age of 8 and 19 (25 for those with additional needs). Visit www.onsideyouthzones.org for more details.
