Hello, everybody, my name is Ibrahim Dogus and I am the Mayor of Lambeth.

I was delighted to be asked here today to help present and celebrate the wonderful results and achievements of Lambeth College’s Level 3 Learners.

Education is such an important part of our lives, which enriches us as individuals, and helps us form part of a strong, caring and progressive society.

Each one of you here today should take a minute to feel very proud of what you have manged to achieve and to recognise what you are all capable of with hard-work and dedication.

The skills you have developed here will help you throughout your entire lives, and introduce you to knowledge, ideas, and concepts upon which your understanding of the world will be built.

But education is also about discovering yourself, who you are today and you would like to be tomorrow. This time you have is precious and your opportunities are boundless.

You have the opportunity to explore and discover everything about the world you live in.

A good education allows you to play a part in the world around you, whichever role you’d like.

But none of this comes easy! What you have achieved, what you have succeeded in, is something even greater than the certificates given out today. You have learnt the value of hard work and the value of perseverance.

And of course, none of this would be possible without the family, friends, teachers and college staff who have supported you and who allow us to be here today. Please join me in thanking them for all their hard work in organising this afternoon’s event, and for the invaluable role they all play in the students’ success.

You have shown yourselves today just how highly you can achieve if you put your mind to it. The people who achieve and contribute the most are those who commit themselves to hard work, and are not disheartened by setbacks. We all experience setbacks. But you are all already doing so well, I know I speak for everyone here when I say I am excited to see what your futures will hold, and what contribution you will make to the UK and to our communities across Lambeth!