Young people from North Belfast have come together to highlight the positive work that is ongoing within their communities.
Children, aged from 11 to 16, took part in a collaborative project with the end goal securing them a special award at The Youth Service Oscars in Derry. Hailing from Mountcollyer Youth Centre in Tigers Bay and Holy Family Youth Centre in Newington, the young people worked together on a mural, and video to go alongside it.
Speaking to Belfast Live, Jeannine Brady, a youth leader who helped with the programme, hailed the group for their dedication, openness and drive throughout.
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"This area gets an awful hard time, and in the media it seems that the negative news is put out more," she added.
"Coming into the summer months, things start to get a bit negative on the interface. We have the most active interfaces here and we wanted to get the young people involved together, to create something for the area.
"They created two murals, which are two puzzle pieces and inside those pieces is all about what it means to the young people to be a part of the area. A feeling of belonging to the area and going on their own individual journey.
"The young people wanted a say in the area, and for it to bring positivity to the area, so that when they walk past that mural, they can feel empowered by it. It just brings the Good Relations work that we have been doing in the two communities for years.
"Each idea came from the young people. When they came together, they built real connections, genuine connections and it was all very honest. We got an artist involved and basically they sketched out what the young people wanted to portray.
"We are the one community. Although it is Newington and Tigers Bay, we are the Limestone Road community, we are one. The young people wanted to really bring that to life. The artist brought the vision back four or five times, and the young people had a say throughout the entire journey."
Once the young people gave final approval of the artist's drawings, they brought their area to life with two vibrant murals. One is situated at Holy Family Youth Centre, and the other is on Hallidays Road. They link, and if you put both murals together on a page, they'd be one - like our community.
"Young people told myself and the other youth leader BJ, was that when it comes towards summer, too often there is a negative connotation with the area," Jeannine added.
"Our young people are friends, and that is down to the commitment of them, the youth workers and the parents too. Communities can be portrayed negatively in the media, and the positives are very rarely highlighted, that's what we want to do here."
Throughout the mural creation, the youth centres decided to make a documentary on the process - something they could keep forever, and showcase it to family, friends and neighbours.
They took their film to The Youth Service Oscars, which celebrates young people and their passions. When they heard back that they had been nominated in the Good Relations Award, they couldn't believe it. But what happened at the ceremony topped the scales for the group.
"On Monday we went to Derry for the awards ceremony in the Millennium Forum," Jeannine said.
"When it got to our category, we didn't win. We were so happy to be nominated, that was a big deal to us. We got to the end, and the last award was for The Best Film of 2023. Our name came up. We could not believe it.
"It was totally unexpected because we had our heads set on the other award. But to win best overall, that was something we will never forget.
"The young people were overjoyed, they were buzzing. We are all so proud of them and can't wait to continue to work together to bring about positive change in the areas."
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