London was the focus of the last in the series of Mosaic’s Seeing is Believing Visits
Categories: Global, London
Tidjane Thiam, Group Chief Executive of Prudential lead businesses to see at first-hand how the mentoring programmes delivered by Mosaic are helping young people from deprived areas.
A group of senior business leaders from companies including Credit Suisse, Ernst & Young, KPMG, Prudential & UBS joined Tidjane Thiam, Group Chief Executive of Prudential took part in a visit on 11 January 2012 to meet young people and their Mosaic mentors in two schools and a youth centre in London.
The group visited two schools in Tower Hamlets, East London, ranked as the third most deprived local authority in England by the Department of Communities and Local Government. Firstly they went to Central Foundation Girls’ School to participate in a mentoring session with secondary school students. At Central Foundation Girls’ School, delegates heard from Headteacher Esther Holland despite 62% of the students being in receipt of free school meals, the students are overcoming difficulties with the help of mentors to achieve 80% 5 A*-C passes at GCSE.
The business leaders then met with female students and their mothers at Thomas Buxton Primary School. The delegates were very impressed by the unique approach of Mosaic’s Primary School Mentoring Programme which closely involves the mothers of the young female participants. Finally, the group heard from mentors who participate in a bespoke mentoring programme delivered by Westminster City Council for young people who are at risk of offending.
The visit is the culmination of a series led by Mosaic board member Tidjane Thiam, which has seen over 75 company decision makers go on Seeing is Believing visits, raising awareness of the issues facing disadvantaged young people and the power of Mosaic to address them.
Early feedback from the delegates indicates that they were overwhelmed by the challenges some young people face and that Mosaic is doing fantastic work to overcome these issues. Offers of World of Work visits, more volunteer mentors, CV writing and interview skill training have already come from the visit.
Chairman of Mosaic, HRH Princess Badiya bint El Hassan said “Tidjane’s leadership of this series, showcasing Mosaic’s work to over 75 business leaders up and down the country, has been inspirational. Seeing is Believing visits can have a great impact on all of those involved. I have been privileged to lead two such visits. The most recent one, in Manchester in June 2011, resulted in a real appreciation and strengthening of Mosaic’s work in the North West. This, Tidjane-led series has made a significant contribution to the future of Mosaic, meaning we can help yet more young people to fulfil their positive potential. As Chairman of Mosaic, I am so grateful to Tidjane and to all of those who have supported and taken part in these important visits.”
Delegates who took part of the visit:
Leader: Tidjane Thiam, Group Chief Executive, Prudential
Khizer Ahmed, Executive Director, Global Equity Derivatives, UBS
Nighat Awan OBE, Honorary Doctorate, CEO Shere Khan Foods
Charles Donald, Managing Director, UK Investment Banking, Credit Suisse
Tasnim Khalid, Associate, JMW Solicitors LLP
Janet Legrand, Senior Partner, DLA Piper UK
Khawar Mann, Partner, Apax Partners
Siddiq Musa, Partner, KPMG
Neil Pizey, Vice President, UK Investment Banking, Credit Suisse
Toaha Qureshi MBE, CEO, London College of Business Management and Information Technology
Riaz Shah, Partner, Ernst & Young LLP
Tariq Usmani, CEO, Henley Homes
The Prince’s Seeing is Believing Programme
The Prince’s Seeing is Believing is a national programme run by Business in the Community providing insight into responsibility issues most relevant to communities and business. Through a series of unique visits the programme aims to challenge, inspire and engage top business leaders to take action within their individual businesses, through their supply chains and across industries.
Each one of our visits aims to:
- Help business leaders identify the issues most relevant and pressing to communities
- Showcase examples of successful solutions
- Promote change through individual and collaborative business action
The programme helps ensure that corporate responsibility is recognised as an integral part of successful business behaviour and that it remains so with the next generation of business leaders. Since 1990, 7,500 business leaders have participated in The Prince’s Seeing is Believing programme. Over 550 senior business leaders go on Seeing is Believing visits every year and have an opportunity to report back to HRH The Prince of Wales.
Tidjane Thiam, London, Seeing is Believing
