Kusheda Mensah, 17, from La Retraite RC School in Lambeth and Aysha Simpson, 17, from Raine’s Foundation School, Tower Hamlets were announced joint winners of this year’s 4^th FAD Junior Awards, which took place at Vauxhall Fashion Scout on Wednesday 17^th September 2008.

Drawing their inspiration from Chinese culture and the urban fashion capital Shanghai, 22 finalists from FAD’s Fashion Futures 2 (FF2) project featured in the one-off catwalk event, which showcased their colourful designs to an audience packed with press, industry and education.

Aysha combined masculine jodhpurs with a feminine ‘fanned’ hood, to create her striking all-in-one, securing herself a placement with top UK designer and FF2 judge, Elspeth Gibson. Kusheda impressed the jury with her sophisticated jersey jumpsuit, winning the chance to work backstage at next season’s Vauxhall Fashion Scout.  

Anne Smith, Dean of Fashion at Central Saint Martins, Designer Elspeth Gibson and Martyn Roberts, Director of Vauxhall Fashion Scout, presented the awards to the delighted winners. Three special mentions were also made – for creativity, Emily McShane from Our Lady’s School (Hackney); for fashion forward design, Felipe Nascimento from Haverstock Enterprise College (Camden); and for research, Grace Wales Bonner from Graveney School (Wandsworth).

The 4th Junior Awards marked the end of an eventful few months for the lucky finalists, who were selected from 100 students to attend an intensive summer school at prestigious Central Saint Martins.  There with the help of a dedicated team of CSM staff and student mentors they had just five days to bring their catwalk creations to life.

The FAD Junior Awards are arranged by Fashion Awareness Direct, an educational fashion charity that provides fashion workshops and competitions where industry professionals work with students to develop their future. The aim is to support creative young people to realise their potential by providing a platform to bridge the gap between school, further education and the industry.

As part of FAD’s volunteering programme, many of the 4^th Junior Award finalists will continue to work as mentors on future FAD projects and initiatives.