PROVING a concrete jungle can be a thing of beauty, young people on a Tottenham housing estate used their urban landscape to perform a dance.

The enthusiatic dancers, aged seven to 14, all live on the recently redecorated Frederick Messer estate. They were enticed into signing up for the 3-week pilot project by IJAD, a touring dance company that wanted to teach to them to view their environment with new eyes while promoting physical activity.

IJAD, also an educational charity, delivers quality dance training to young people who would otherwise not have access to it. It was funded by Bridge New Deal for Communities (NDC), which were also responsible for the revamps on the estate including new playgrounds and more green space.

Lainya Keivani, deputy director of Bridge NDC, said: “It is vital that young people are seen by residents as doing something positive, particularly in communal space, because too often it is felt that they are simply causing trouble.

“Doing this dance will help the young people to respect and appreciate their environment as something to be proud of and perhaps they will be able to help those watching to see that too.”

Going into the estate proved essential to successfully reach out to the marginalised group, the members of whom were found to have been unlikely to sign up to other youth projects happening in Tottenham.

The promenade, dubbed In Situe, was the vision of creative director Joumana Mourad who choreographed a complex routine starting in the playground, where young people performed a mix of breakdance moves.

Then they pranced across the estate's pathways and ended their routine with a unified mass performance on the basketball courts.

Clapping and well-timed banging on lamp posts provided a natural rhythm for the outdoor show, which lured parents and other impressed spectators out of their homes.

Paticipant Jeauvan Etienne, 12, said: “I liked the dancing, the moving around from place to place, but I also liked that professionals came down here to spend time with us.

“When I grow up I want to be a dancer. And an artist.”

Pleased parent Tricia Grant, 29, said: “What they have done here is really good. It has given my daughter something to do every day. She loves dancing and the final performance was great.

"I am very proud of her. It would be good to see this on other estates.”