Young hero who walked away from gangs reveals how he created a new game that’s transforming lives in his community
On the South London estate where Osmond Gordon-Vernon grew up, teenagers are regularly faced with life-changing decisions. The consequences of making the wrong choice can be devastating, says the 24-year-old.
“I was living on an estate where gang culture was prevalent,” he says. “If a young boy of 14 or 15 can provide £1,000 to his household, and it’s available on his doorstep, he might be fooled into it,” he says.
“If you are living on the poverty line, you might even ask yourself ‘Why am I not captain of this ship?' A lot of people I grew up with have been to prison and I’ve seen how it’s affected them. I was tested.”
Osmond resisted the call of the gangs operating in his community when he was growing up. Many don’t, he explains.
“There is a lifestyle choice you can take that will put you on the road to becoming a gang member,” says Osmond. “It’s a difficult choice that young people face. Taking the longer road to get to a more positive destination is the better choice.”
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Osmond says his decision to steer clear of gangs was thanks to a National Lottery-supported project called The Agency, which he joined in 2013, aged 14.
Run by the Battersea Arts Centre, it assists young people who have an idea for positive social change. Osmond spent 24 weeks there developing a board game called Life Is What U Make It.
Inspired by his own experiences, it has been designed to help other young people understand the consequences of making certain decisions.
Osmond and Brenda Edwards, mother of the late entrepreneur Jamal Edwards MBE, play Life Is What U Make It (Roswitha Chesher)Loosely based on Monopoly, which he loved playing with his grandmother, the game has its own money as well as gang zone questions instead of chance cards and karma bricks instead of hotels.
In December 2014, National Lottery funding from The Agency helped make it a reality. Following further funding and trials in schools, Osmond developed a new life-sized version of the game for outdoor festivals, as well as workshops for schools in Wandsworth.
Players are assigned characters and engage in interaction, improvisation, and scene enactment. These scenes are prompted by the situations, scenarios, and decisions they encounter within the game.
“I’m trying to bring about that critical thinking early, and to explain that if these are your circumstances, this is what you’ll most likely be facing,” adds Osmond. “There are other things you can do within the community to avoid the catastrophic situations that can happen to you.
“When I opened my school report card I saw ‘Ds’ posted all the way down. I could have left school demotivated. But the game had a catalyst effect and propelled me to finish strong, regardless of my grades. It gave me the chance to say ‘I know who I am and what I want to be’.
“It also meant I was making good relationships at Battersea Arts Centre and I thought ‘I’m doing something’. I was brought into important meetings and had my voice heard.”
Osmond, who now works part-time for the Battersea Arts Centre, says there has been an enthusiastic response from the young people he plays the game with.
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“They realise it’s something the community needs. It’s about showing people they have a choice.
“It starts with the community here in Wandsworth first, then we want to go to other London boroughs, then perhaps other cities.”
The most recent National Lottery grant will see The Agency work with a further 580 young people like Osmond.
“It’s fantastic to be a National Lottery Young Hero winner. It makes me feel that I can do anything, and become a role model for young black people in London. It’s empowering. It makes me want to do more. Any movement can change the world if you do it properly.”
To find out how your numbers make amazing happen, visit National-Lottery.co.uk/Life-Changing
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