For 18-year-old Jess Moat, the W13 Youth and Connexions Centre is simply a "haven where you've got young people going through the same things as you".
"It's not a place that discriminates. You can come from a different culture, have different fashion beliefs, be a different age - it doesn't matter. You end up making friends." Jess was bullied at school and for a while was mixing with a crowd who took alcohol and drugs in the park. But as she started coming to the project more regularly she found a new identity through fashion and cooking. "When I started doing fashion it became a big part of my personality. I've made a few dresses and now I make my own clothes all the time," she says.
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