StartUp Croydon resident Youth PWR celebrates charity status

We are very proud of our tenant Deola Onigbanjo and his mission to support our next generation, raising aspirations and delivering opportunities. Dee came to the UK from Nigeria as a teenager and felt he had every opportunity to succeed. With a passion for media, he studied at Croydon College, moved onto the University of Greenwich and then did a masters in Media Management at Middlesex University.

With his passion for films, a job to makes ends meet at the local cinema made sense. He quickly rose to the ranks of Manager and led a young team, influencing them and hearing first hand the frustrations and issues young people feel in our area. He was surprised young people are not more driven to succeed and wanted to make a difference.

Towards the middle of 2019, Dee made a decision to give up a salary and pursue his dream of supporting young people full-time through his mission Youth PWR. He moved into Weatherill House towards the end of 2019 and developed workshops to educate and upskill young people within the realms of media and funded the entire process through his Magazine which is available to buy or read online – you can also donate through the page.

As we all know, the country and the rest of the world stopped moving in March 2020 and is yet to fully open. Dee has been burrowing away and amazingly managed to achieve Charity Status in the past month. He has used the downtime to finite his programmes and develop new and exciting opportunities for this summer.

Start-Up Croydon are delighted to be partnering with the charity on a new project, watch this space!

We hope that over the coming years Dee will continue to use us not only as a base for Youth PWR but also for support and advice in growing his business.  Dee had this to say about StartUp Croydon and the facilities at Weatherill House:

“Being a tenant at Weatherill House has been super amazing! As well as providing a flexible and affordable space to carry out our business activities, the super friendly staff have been extremely helpful in supporting our business which has enabled us to grow since joining in 2019. With access to StartUp Croydon’s training and networking events, we are exposed to opportunities that benefits our business. Massive thank you to the wonderful StartUp Croydon team at Weatherill House!”

As a charity, we endeavour to help start-ups and SMEs in any way we can.  Most recently we have changed our workspace format to give better flexibility to businesses in need of a base, including

Short-term Let (1-4 months) :

• Pay monthly for an office at a reduced rate
• No deposit, no business rates, no contract
• Use of a communal kitchen
• Includes utilities and Wi-Fi
• Mailbox service and meeting rooms extra charge

Permanent Office

• Pay monthly on an all-inclusive package
• Free meeting room hire and mailbox service (with an option to register at Companies House)
• Deposit payment options available to spread the cost
• Discounts and tiered rental plans
• Access Monday to Saturday.
• One month’s notice to vacate at any time.

Co-Working Space

• Maximum occupancy 6 persons
• Pay as you go – low prices
• Discounts available for regular usage
• Just bring in your laptop and mobile.

Secure Storage

• Hire a few shelves or space in a room
• Loading-bay at the front of the building (or undercover at the back)
• Lift access to all floors
• Heavy goods trollies on-site