Jamal Edwards, the 22 year-old entrepreneur behind the UK’s leading youth broadcaster SB.TV, kicked off a new Prince's Trust campaign this week to inspire young people making tough decisions about their future this summer.
Jamal took part in a Twitter question and answer session from The Prince’s Trust Chatham Centre in Kent with HRH The Prince of Wales paying a special visit.
The event marked the launch of The Prince’s Trust Summer Sessions, a series of events to inspire young people who are worried about their exam results, struggling to find a job or feeling hopeless about the future.
Jamal shared his secrets of success with Trust-supported young people, tweeting the session live to include other young people across the UK.
HRH The Prince of Wales joined young people who were taking part in a live session, giving the them a chance to tell The Prince how the charity he founded has improved their lives.
Jamal Edwards said: “There is a big crowd of school leavers out there worrying about what the future holds for them; I know because it wasn’t all that long ago that I was one of them. But what I would say to every one of them is you can do whatever you want; you can make your own future if you want it enough. If you don’t know what your next steps are, The Prince’s Trust is helping young people like you every day to get their lives on track. Give them a call.”
About meeting HRH The Prince of Wales, Jamal said: “I have met His Royal Highness once before and both occasions have been such an honour. We have a lot in common actually, notably a shared interest in young talent and what can be done with it.”
Ben Rist, 19, from Chatham, was one of five young people taking part in the session. The teenager was homeless and had few qualifications when he joined The Prince’s Trust Fairbridge programme, which combines one-to-one support with group activities to help vulnerable young people to turn their lives around. Thanks to the support he received, Ben managed to get a job as a youth worker and now has a place to live.
Ben said: "This has been a fantastic opportunity to meet Jamal, who has featured many of my heroes on his channel. Jamal is someone who can inspire young people to always fulfill their dreams, regardless of their background. On my results day, everyone seemed to have better grades than me. I felt pretty down about leaving school without much to show for it and I was also scared that my whole life was changing and I would lose touch with my friends.
“I did manage to get into college but I ended up dropping out because I struggled with the written work. The Prince’s Trust Team programme and Fairbridge programme got me back on track and very quickly, things started looking up for me. I’m an assistant youth worker now. It’s never too late to turn things around; you just need to know where to go for help.”
The Prince of Wales founded The Prince’s Trust in 1976. The Trust gives disadvantaged young people the skills and confidence to find a job, with three in four young people on Prince’s Trust programmes moving into work, education or training.
The Prince’s Trust Summer Sessions, supported by HSBC, will include a live-streamed Youth Forum on Friday 16th August, featuring Prince’s Trust Ambassadors Jameela Jamil, Naughty Boy and Wretch 32 and host Laura Whitmore.
Source: Prince's Trust
