Award for Tottenham radio show spotlighting the Windrush community

A Tottenham-based radio project focussing on the descendants of the Windrush generation living in Tottenham has won Best Arts Project, in the 2021 Hearts for the Arts Awards. 

N17 radio programme was created by Chloe and Kane, two sixth form students at Harris Academy Tottenham, in partnership with Haringey Council, Kick it Out, Threads Radio, RoughHouse Theatre and playwright, Dougie Blaxland.

With the support of the Windrush Day Grant – the partners worked collaboratively to produce and broadcast a radio programme – N17 – to coincide with Black History Month. N17 celebrates the extraordinary contribution made to British society by descendants of the Windrush generation who settled and brought up their families in Tottenham.

Chloe and Kane conducted online interviews with a wide range of members of the Windrush community who were raised in Tottenham. Their stories were then edited together and broadcast via Threads Radio Station and social media to coincide with Black History Month in October 2020. Some of those interviewed included David Lammy MP, BAFTA-winning actress Letitia Wright and former England cricketer Mark Alleyne MBE. 

The Hearts for the Arts Awards are an annual initiative by the National Campaign for the Arts, celebrating local authority and cultural trust arts champions and creative community projects. The judging panel included broadcaster Mariella Frostrup, comedian Frances Martinez and Paul Hartnoll of dance music duo Orbital. 

Cllr Mark Blake, Cabinet Member for Communities, said:

This award is a testament to the amazing creativity and industry of our young people in Haringey. Congratulations to Chloe and Kane for their hard work on this project, which shines a light on the immense contribution of descendants of the Windrush generation to Tottenham life and culture.