We are incredibly proud to have our work featured in the Financial Times recent 'Architects Of Meritocracy' supplement, published on 7th December 2017.
It was anger at inequality in London that drove Asma Shah to found You Make It. The first years of her life were turbulent, her mother fleeing a violent marriage and taking Ms Shah and her three sisters with her. “We were in a refuge, then we were brought up on a council estate and went to a terrible school,” she says.
Despite that, Ms Shah, who has held management positions at Channel 4, the Roundhouse and Creative Skillset, always believed she would go to university and get a good job. Yet, she says, many black and Asian working class women lack self-confidence and a sense of a “right to the city”.
Eighty per cent of the programme’s graduates are in work or further education. “It is about giving tools for employment but that is secondary,” she says. “We address the stuff that really holds us back — [having] no confidence and no networks.”
Our charity was built on our CEO's strong values and vision for change. Six years on, these attributes remain integral to our work as we continue to empower women to claim a right to their city.
You can read the full article online at https://www.ft.com/content/b7b771be-c638-11e7-b30e-a7c1c7c13aab.
