I grew up on the 13th floor of a tower block on a rough council estate in Hackney. The estate had one of the worst reputations in the borough. The lifts didn’t work most of the time which meant trudging up and down stairs, often used as toilets, littered with used needles. Our estate was opposite a huge park that we didn’t really go to.

I went to regular primary and secondary schools. I never skipped school or classes but hated it all the same and left with poor GCSEs. Despite this, I always believed I’d work in Canary Wharf or the City of London one day, both were a short bus ride away.