“Did you know that Sutton Life Centre is more than just a building?” It is a hub designed to equip young people with the skills to navigate modern life. The Sutton Life Centre is a community and education center in South London. It cost about 8 million pounds.
Let me tell you more about the Sutton Life Centre. It opened on October 27 2010. Nick Clegg the Deputy Prime Minister opened the centre.
The Sutton Life Centre is a blend of facilities under one roof. It includes an educational experience and a library. You can also find a cafe, climbing wall, eco garden, sports pitch and youth club here. Meeting rooms, event spaces and an IT suite are also available. The IT suite is equipped with Apple Mac computers.
The library is designed to feel like a High Street bookshop. It offers longer opening hours and a self-service facility for borrowing books. The Sutton Life Centre supports Personal Social Health and Economic studies for pupils. It uses surround sound, lighting effects and interactive features to create an immersive virtual world.
Pupils learn about citizenship, personal safety and the environment. They experience real-life scenarios that help them deal with the outside world. The Life Skills Zone is divided into four areas.
First we have the Street Experience. This has a film set feel. It looks like a real street with shop facades. Topics covered include bullying, alcohol and smoking. You will also learn about drugs, peer pressure, knife crime and gang culture.
Next is the Transport Experience. This is designed to look like a railway station. It covers topics related to public transport. These include platform safety and respecting others. You’ll also learn about robbery, personal safety, littering and graffiti.
Then there is the Home Experience. This is a fully fitted apartment with four rooms. These are a kitchen, dining room, living room and bedroom. You will learn about keeping safe at home. Topics covered include nutrition and domestic violence. Also fire safety, cyberbullying and internet safety.
Finally the Virtual Experience is a 360-degree white room theater. It delivers immersive videos about urban hazards and the environment. Topics include exploring derelict buildings and trespassing on the railway. Arson, waste, recycling, climate change and energy efficiency are also discussed.
The Sutton Life Centre is a member of the Safety Centre Alliance. This supports permanent UK safety centers. It does this through development and networking. Many safety centers across the UK deliver educational experiences on safety to children.
Renewable energy on site provides half of the building’s requirement. BREEAM gave it an award of excellence. This was for its use of sustainable energy. The Sutton Life Centre was included in the 2014 Open House London program.
The Safer Sutton Partnership Service won the national Safer Community Award. The Suzy Lamplugh Trust gave the award in 2010. The Life Skills Zone improves personal safety, especially for young people. The Suzy Lamplugh Trust applauds the imaginative approach to these issues.
Sutton Life Centre aims to improve life chances and encourage good citizenship. It is a valuable resource for the community. It prepares young people for the challenges they may face. The Lifezone is a virtual street using film-set technology. It provides an immersive learning environment with surround sound, evocative lighting and interactive features. Pupils are shown real-life scenes from Sutton’s streets to teach them about important topics.
So next time you pass by Sutton Life Centre remember its commitment. It is committed to empowering young people and building a safer community.