Lawrences pin hopes on charity dream

At an event to mark the 18th anniversary of the 18-year-old’s death today, Doreen Lawrence said she hopes the charity set up in his memory continues to improve the prospects of aspiring architects and young people from deprived backgrounds.

Before he died, Mr Lawrence had hoped to one day becoming an architect.

“Stephen was denied his dream so we want to make sure other young people achieve theirs,” said Ms Lawrence at the Stephen Lawrence Charitable Trust Centre in Lewisham, south east London last night.

“Our aim for the next 18 years is to help as many young people as possible.

“The idea is to use the centre as a way to give them some sort of aim in life and use this as a way of achieving whatever it is that they want to achieve.”

Mrs Lawrence told guests the charity has helped to support more than 100 architectural students, including four who have qualified in the Caribbean and another four who have qualified in the UK.

“When I was trying to think of what I was most proud of, I thought of this building,” she added. “To have something as a legacy for Stephen and to have so many young people to come and use the centre is something to be very proud of. Hopefully he is looking down and saying ‘Well done mum’.”

At the event to mark the anniversary, the family of Mr Lawrence let more than 100 white balloons into the sky marked with his signature.

Today marks the anniversary of the day Mr Lawrence was murdered in a racist attack in Eltham, south east London, in 1993. The black teenager was killed as he waited at a bus stop with a friend.

The Metropolitan Police bungled the investigation and the subsequent MacPherson Inquiry found the force guilty of “institutional racism”.

Mrs Lawrence, who is now a grandmother, said she is still grieving. “There are some days that you try and put it to the back of your mind but there is always something that reminds you.

“You see a child that reminds you of when Stephen was young, or you think, ‘What would he be doing now?’, or ‘Would he have a family?’ Those are the sorts of things that you think about all the time.”