1. art and entertainment
2. shows and events
3. conference

Lambethtalk
monthly information • dates • contacts • events • features • people • places
APRIL 2015
free to your door
Make your mark on Thursday 7 May
Lambeth the Food Flagship Borough
page 8
Celebrating 50 years of the London Borough of Lambeth
Get involved
page 12
page 20
What’s on page 22
A cooperative council
page 7
2 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
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Your vote
Your
life
Your n
decisio
Your
Lambeth
Want to help decide the country’s next new Government?
Make sure you register to vote by Monday 20 April 2015 so that you
can have your say in the General Election on Thursday 7 May.
There are three Parliamentary seats in Lambeth and you can vote for one of them. But if your name is
not on the new register you won’t be able to vote.
To register, visit www.gov.uk/register-to-vote
Registering takes around five minutes and you’ll need your National Insurance Number.
The deadline for postal vote applications is 5pm Tuesday 21 April 2015.
2433 - LBL your vote 215x180 v4.indd 1
06/03/2015 12:38
April 2015 Lambeth talk 3
Welcome
in this issue...
Regulars
News4
Youth Mayor’s 14
positive stories Lambeth Living 16
What’s on
22
Features
Make your mark on 7
Thursday 7 May
Have your say on how the country
is run in the general election.
Lambeth the Food Flagship We’re leading the way in
tackling child obesity and
health and social inequality.
8
20 years of Beaconsfield 9
A look at one of Vauxhalls
historic buildings, now home
to a contemporary art gallery.
Need help getting online? 11
Lambeth Digi-buddies are
here to help.
The Battle of Lambeth 12
London Borough of Lambeth’s
50th anniversary – a look back
at how it came to be.
Hands-on learning 15
with Streetscape
A social enterprise providing
apprenticeships in landscape
gardening.
Coin Street Community 18
Builders
A social enterprise creating a
great place to live, work and
visit.
Give it a go, get involved 20
Examples of great projects that
you could get involved in.
www.lambeth.gov.uk
to the April edition
of Lambeth talk
I’m really pleased and excited to be working
in Lambeth. It’s a borough that’s rich in
history but forward looking. Of course
Lambeth has its challenges, not least the
huge reductions in our funding, but I believe
we can still fulfil the promise of ambition and
opportunity for everyone while supporting the
most vulnerable in our community.
Sean Harriss, Lambeth
Council Chief Executive
The biggest challenge for a new Chief Executive is getting up to speed
with the organisation, the place, the issues and opportunities facing the
borough. What is clear to me already though is that Lambeth has great
staff, clear political leadership, and an excellent foundation of joint working
between the council and local people and organisations. This includes
residents, businesses, community groups and organisations like the NHS
and the police. I want to build on all these relationships as people and local
organisations are our greatest resource.
Success for me is about how we can improve the life chances of all
Lambeth residents. This means continuing the path rooted in fairness and
ambition. Probably one of the biggest challenges is to make sure local
people and particularly the most disadvantaged residents benefit from all
the regeneration and growth taking place in the borough.
On a personal level, I’m enjoying discovering Lambeth, getting to know
people, inside and outside the council and look forward to meeting many
of you in the months and years ahead.
Let us know what you think about any of the features in this edition
on our blog love.lambeth.gov.uk or join in the conversation
@lambeth_council. To contribute stories, events or advertise in
Lambeth talk, email lambethtalk@lambeth.gov.uk
For our monthly enewsletter, sign up to
love.lambeth.gov.uk/newsletters
Contributors Amber Davis, Andrea Stewart, Annamaria Stewart, Barry Norris, Helen
Mannion, Jacqueline Gomes-Neves, Jo Phillips, Joe Coyne, Jon Newman, Lawrence
Conway, Michael Stringer, Patroklos Sesis, Peter Bradley, Peter Green
Design SUE SMITH Editor Christine Loum
For council services:
Visit www.lambeth.gov.uk
Email infoservice@lambeth.gov.uk
Call
020 7926 1000
Sign up www.lambeth.gov.uk/mylambeth
4 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
News
Lambeth builds on
housing pledge
Lambeth’s ambitious Estate Regeneration programme
is now underway with the aim of creating 1,000
desperately needed extra homes available at council
rent levels, and ensuring every property on six council
estates is of a decent standard.
Hundreds
of new
apprenticeships
in Lambeth
Lambeth Council’s aim is to
see at least 300 additional
apprenticeships created in the
borough over the next two years
has gathered pace, with one of
the UK’s leading infrastructure
services companies, FM Conway,
launching a new apprentice
skills programme in Lambeth.
Westbury Estate
Demand for housing is at an all-time
high in Lambeth - there are 21,000
people on the housing waiting
list, 1,800 families in temporary
accommodation and another
1,300 families who are severely
overcrowded. Further, the cost of
renting or buying has stretched
beyond the reach of many local
people.
The Estate Regeneration
programme presents a golden
opportunity to act in the face of this
crisis. It has the potential to see
hundreds of new properties made
available for council rent and, where
needed, existing homes brought up
to a decent standard.
Discussions with residents on the
Cressingham Gardens, Central
Hill, Knights Walk, South Lambeth
and Westbury estates have
already started with options being
developed in partnership with
residents. Work with people living
on the Fenwick Estate in Clapham
shall follow.
The council is guaranteeing that
all tenants on the estates will end
up either in a new home, or a
completely refurbished home. All
homeowners, whose properties
may be replaced, will be given the
opportunity to keep living on the
same estate.
During National Apprenticeship
Week, we launched our campaign
to deliver 300 apprenticeships in
the borough before April 2017 –
an average rate of three per week.
Fifty of the opportunities will be
designed to support vulnerable
young people with additional
needs or who face challenges
to entering and staying in an
apprenticeship opportunity.
To find out more about
apprenticeship opportunities, visit
www.gov.uk/further-educationskills/apprenticeships
Lambeth Park
April 2015 Lambeth talk 5
www.lambeth.gov.uk
Lambeth
launches a
review on
community
engagement
We’re working hard to make
sure we are involving you in the
decisions that are going to affect
you and the places where you live.
We’ve made real progress in recent
years, but we know there is more
we can do.
There are several substantial
regeneration schemes being planned
in the borough. We want to make
Lambeth Council’s
ambition is to involve
people in shaping their
future and the future of
Lambeth. Our research
shows that particular
communities find it hard
to get involved with the
big decisions. Barriers
include language, time and
internet access.
sure everyone has a say in these
changes including the Culture 2020
consultation and others we need to
make as our funding is reduced.
Lambeth Council has set up a
short review to explore how the
council can engage better with
the local community. We will be
asking people what they think, what
works and meeting a wide range
of community representatives.
We welcome your thoughts, so
please get in touch by emailing
communications@lambeth.gov.uk
Childcare report shows help
needed for new parents
The Mayor of London, central
government, local authorities
and employers all have a part
to play in tackling the childcare
crisis facing new parents in the
capital, according to a report
commissioned by Lambeth and
Southwark councils.
Maternal employment in London is
15 per cent lower than in the rest
of the country, and the Lambeth and
Southwark Childcare Commission
report produces a series of
recommendations to make it easier
for new parents to return to work.
The report recommends that both
councils look into the idea of a
childcare matchmaking service
and consider incentivising local
employers to set up workplace
nurseries. It also suggests
Transport for London consider
offering new parents discounted
fares to help make going back
to work affordable, or for the
Mayor of London to look into the
feasibility of providing an interestfree loan scheme so that parents
can pay any upfront childcare costs.
Streatham man
sentenced for
benefit fraud
A 44 year old Streatham man has
been convicted of benefit fraud
after claiming he was in receipt
of sick pay for four years even
though he was working.
Yahya Serar, of Amesbury Avenue,
Leigham Court Estate, was receiving
benefits in 2009 as a result of being
off sick from work. He failed to inform
Lambeth Council benefits service
that he had returned to work in
March 2009 and continued to claim
benefits until 2013.
Serar was overpaid benefits in
excess of £18,000.
Serar pleaded not guilty but was
found guilty at Croydon Magistrates
Court, and sentenced to six
months in custody, suspended
for 12 months. He was ordered
to pay costs of £1,859.28 and a
victim surcharge of £80.00. He was
instructed to carry out 200 hours of
unpaid work, to be completed within
12 months.
The fraud was identified by
Lambeth investigators looking
at benefit claimants in receipt of
long-term sick pay.
Culture 2020 – join
in the conversation
A wide ranging consultation on
the future of Lambeth’s parks,
sports, libraries, archives and arts
is underway. For more information
and to complete the questionnaire,
visit www.lambeth.gov.uk/
culture2020consultation
The consultation ends
Friday 24 April.
6 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
Council crackdown
on anti-social
behaviour
Lambeth Council is considering hiring enforcement
officers to crackdown on fly tipping, littering, dog
fouling and other anti-social behaviour.
The Cameron family, Brixton
Your Shout
Which council services
do you value most?
“We regularly use the Jubilee
centre, and I think local
community spaces (provided by
Lambeth) are very important.”
What would help you – in the
way of new services, events,
or support?
“We’d like to see more information
about what’s on offer and
what’s going on. Too often there
are good services and events
happening, but Lambeth citizens
don’t know about them.”
The council has approved
recommendations that include
reducing the cost to residents of
removing bulky items in an attempt to
cut fly tipping and contracting a private
firm to issue Fixed Penalty Notices
(FPNs) for anti-social behaviour.
In 2014, the council issued over a
thousand FPNs, more than half of
them for littering.
Anti-social behaviour costs a lot of
money to clear up and the council
wants to send a clear message that
this behaviour will not be tolerated.
The recommendations were put
forward by the Environmental Crime
Scrutiny Commission following a
lengthy review of how the borough
tackles such problems.
Lambeth Council recently made the
first successful prosecution in the
borough for spitting in public.
What are the services you’re
worried about losing in light
of financial constraints?
“We’d be particularly worried
about cuts affecting Lambeth’s
maintenance of town centres and
parks, especially parks.”
25,000 reasons to pay by Direct Debit
Lambeth Council has teamed
up with Bacs Payment Schemes
Limited, the not-for-profit
organisation behind
Direct Debit in the
TO
ANCE
UK, to offer council A CH
tax payers the
chance to win
£25,000.
WIN00
£25,0
All you have to do is sign up to
pay by direct debit before 5pm
on 17 July 2015 and you will
be automatically entered.
You can do so via
www.lambeth.gov.uk/
benefits-and-council-tax
by calling 034 5302 2312
or by returning a completed
direct debit form by post.
April 2015 Lambeth talk 7
www.lambeth.gov.uk
Your vote in the UK parliamentary general
election on Thursday 7 May is the best way for
you to have your say on how the country is run.
Make your voice heard at the ballot box.
Make your mark
on Thursday
7 May
How to vote
To vote in this general election,
you must be registered to vote
by midnight Monday 20 April.
To register, visit www.gov.uk/
register-to-vote - registering
takes around five minutes
and you’ll need your National
Insurance Number.
If you want to vote by post you
will have until 5pm on Tuesday 21
April to apply. Contact Lambeth
Council’s electoral services for
more information.
Call 020 7926 2254
or email electoralservices@
lambeth.gov.uk
Registered voters will be sent a
poll card telling you where and
when to vote.
There are three
parliamentary seats in
Lambeth representing
each of our constituencies
and you can vote for one
of them. They include:
Dulwich and West
Norwood, Streatham
and Vauxhall.
The candidate with
the most votes in each
constituency becomes
the MP for that area.
These are just a few
reasons why you
should vote on 7 May:
• Politicians write policies for
people that vote. If you don’t vote
then they may not listen to you.
• How you vote is a message to
the political parties. Every vote
is counted so they will know what
you think.
• Voting is inclusion. If you don’t
vote you are excluding yourself
from an important decision that
will affect you.
On Thursday 7 May attend your
allocated polling station and vote
by putting an X (a cross) in the
box next to your choice, fold your
paper in half and put it in the
ballot box.
As well as voting on 7 May
there are other ways that
you can get involved and
influence decisions on local
issues. For more information
on how to get involved in
local democracy in Lambeth,
visit www.lambeth.gov.uk/
democracy
8 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
Lambeth the Food
Flagship Borough
working towards
a healthier future
By Patroklos Sesis
• Environmental education.
• The creation of new food
enterprises that will trade fruit
and vegetables in our most
deprived areas.
• Delivering a variety of
activities for children
during school holidays.
The programme aims to harvest
the abundance of knowledge
of food in our culturally rich
communities. This is an opportunity
for everyone to get involved in an
effort to improve the provision of
fresh, nutritious, accessible and
affordable food in Lambeth that
supports the long-term health and
wellbeing of our residents.
Healthy Holidays
Eco Food Growing - Holmewood School
Lambeth has been awarded
Food Flagship status and
is one of only two London
boroughs leading the way
in tackling child obesity
and health and social
inequality in an
innovative way.
The programme will work with a
host of partners including residents,
schools, local food businesses,
food-growing initiatives and
charities to cultivate a love for
quality and nutritious food. Lambeth
Council has received over £500,000
from the Mayor of London and the
Department of Education to kickstart this promising and exciting
programme that will transform the
boroughs food environment.
The Food Flagship Programme will
coordinate and support the efforts
of existing and new projects across
Lambeth. This includes:
• Implementing the School Food
Plan in all Lambeth schools, led
by our lead Food Flagship Schools.
• Supporting food growing initiatives.
During the school holidays many
parents due to a lack of money,
time or cooking skills end up
buying foods high in salt, fat
or sugars. These are the types
of foods that in the long-term
contribute to ill health. Lambeth’s
Healthy Holidays programme
will support young people’s
activities in borough by providing
a nutritious meal or snack. The
initiative is funded by the
Innocent Foundation and the
Mayor’s Fund for London.
If you are a local
organisation or community
group that provides
activities for children in the
borough during the school
holidays please get in touch.
Call our community food
coordinator on 020 7735 5802.
For information on healthy eating, visit www.nhs.uk/livewell/healthy-eating
April 2015 Lambeth talk 9
www.lambeth.gov.uk
20 years of
Beaconsfield
By Barry Norris and Gabriela Cala-Lesina
It is 20 years since Beaconsfield
Contemporary Art moved into
the remaining wing of the former
Lambeth Ragged School (a grand
building that opened to the public
in 1851) on Newport Street in
Vauxhall.
The Ragged School as it was in 1851
Improvements to
Beaconsfield’s
entrance
The entrance to
Beaconsfield as
it looks today
Beaconsfield, which is run by
David Crawforth and Naomi
Siderfin, is one of Vauxhall’s most
precious cultural venues. David and
Naomi are artists who have been
organising great grass-roots events
in Vauxhall’s community spaces
since the early 1990s.
It was David and Naomi’s desire to
create something a little different
and fill a niche between the
institution, the commercial, and the
alternative that brought the gallery
to life and made it such a success.
This year Beaconsfield hope to
realise their longstanding ambition
to open up the street wall to
encourage more passers-by to
drop in and visit. This will involve
punching several holes into the
rather intimidating tall wall that
divides the pavement of Newport
Street and the entrance to the
gallery and the Ragged Canteen.
The Ragged Canteen
Other ways to be a part of
Beaconsfield include dining in the
beautiful, and ethically-conscious,
Ragged Canteen which is open
Wednesday - Saturday, 11am to
5pm. Find out more at
www.lovevaux.com/beaconsfield
Birdseye view of the Oval and
Kennington Development Area
Your views on
Oval gas holders
Thank you to everyone who
attended our recent workshops
about the Oval and Kennington
Development Area (OAKDA). Your
suggestions are being used to
shape a masterplan for the large
site between Oval Cricket Ground
and Kennington Lane.
Visit www.oakda.co.uk/
consultation to see a timeline
of next steps as well as
presentations and maps from the
latest public meeting.
To find out more about Beaconsfield and the Ragged Canteen, visit www.loveaux.com/beaconsfield
10 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
10640 lambeth talk MARCH:Mag
19/2/14
10702 my lambeth mylambeth LT advert:Layout
1 9/10/14
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16:47
Page 17
Save
time.
Do
it
online.
www.lambeth.gov.uk/mylambeth
march 2014 Lambeth talk 17
10702 (10.14)
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April 2015 Lambeth talk 11
www.lambeth.gov.uk
Need a buddy to
help you get online?
By Andrea Stewart
Many people find sending
emails or doing their
shopping online easy, but
there are still some of us
who don’t know where
to start.
For those who need support, why
not attend one of our Digi-buddy
sessions where a volunteer can get
you up to speed with everything
online at your own pace.
Free sessions are open to all and
take place every day at various
locations across the borough.
Digi-buddies can help you in many
different ways. We took a peek at
their Twitter account to find out how
- all in 160 characters or less!
Improve your general internet
skills: “I’m new to the internet, but if
you don’t use it you’re out of touch.
I feel happy coming to Digi-buddies.
They’ve really helped me.” Danny
Buy things online: “Digi-buddies
are great. They’re patient with me.
Today I found and brought two of
my favourite CD’s online.” John
Find out what’s happening in the
world: “It’s my first week here and
the Digi-buddies are very helpful.
I’m reading news from my home
country Jamaica, amazing!” Daphne
Regain your computer
confidence!: “I love Digi-buddies! I
hadn’t used a computer in nearly
10 years and everything has
changed a lot!” Ifuela
Jacqueline Morgan was supported
by a Digi-buddy which helped her
conquer her fear of going online.
Connect with friends:
Digi-buddies
helped me
conquer my fear
going online. I can
send email now &
I hope to get one
back soon!
Jacqueline
Become a Digi-buddy volunteer:
“It’s great when people get it and
go away to use it by themselves we’ve done our job.” Mary,
Digi-buddy volunteer
For more information about
how Digi-buddies can help you,
where sessions are held or how
you can help your fellow residents
by becoming a volunteer Digibuddy, call 020 3691 5111 or email
erhelpdesk@thamesreach.org.uk
Visit love.lambeth.gov.uk to find
Save time and
do your council
business online
Digi-buddies can also help you
sign-up for a mylambeth account,
where you can order recycling
bags, arrange garden waste
collections, manage your library
and housing benefit accounts,
access registrar services and
much more online. Instead of
queuing in our customer centre
or waiting on the phone, why
not save time and do it online.
Visit www.lambeth.gov.uk/
mylambeth for more information.
out more about
how our residents
are learning and
giving through
the Digi-buddies
scheme.
12 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
From Lambeth Archives
The battle
of Lambeth
By Jon Newman
This month it is the 50th anniversary of the
creation of the London Borough of Lambeth.
Later this year it is also the 200th anniversary
of the Battle of Waterloo. But how many
Lambeth residents recall the battle that was
fought in the years leading up to 1965 over
the identity of this part of south London?
There may have been no deaths, but feelings
ran very high.
New look
for Lambeth
and London
Map showing the new borough.
Lambeth increased in both size and
population by 50 per cent and with
340,000 residents in 1965 was the
largest of the new London boroughs
in terms of population.
The new borough that came into
being on 1 April 1965 was half as
big again as the old metropolitan
borough of Lambeth. Thanks to the
addition of Clapham and Streatham,
and with 340,000 residents,
it became the largest London
borough in terms of population.
The previous five-year build up
to this had not been a universally
happy time. The findings of the
1960 Royal Commission on London
Government had set up a dramatic
programme of change enshrined
in the 1963 London Government
Act: London would quadruple in
size from 125 to over 600 sq. miles
and incorporate areas of Essex,
Surrey, Kent and Middlesex with
former market towns like Croydon,
Kingston and Barnet becoming
brand new London Boroughs,
while the new London authority,
the Greater London Council would
provide regional government.
This was no more than belated
recognition of the fact that
Geography
lesson from a
Lambeth Pearly
King; Councillor
Carr, chair of the
new borough-inwaiting admires
a visual display
at Lambeth Town
Hall in 1964.
London had grown massively in
size. But a second consideration,
paradoxically, was that the
population of inner London had
shrunk. War-time bombing and
better housing opportunities in
‘new towns’ and the lure of the
suburbs had emptied out inner
London boroughs like Shoreditch
and Finsbury. The solution was to
bundle together groups of smaller
authorities into new larger ‘London
Boroughs’, so neighbouring
Camberwell, Bermondsey and
Southwark were combined to
become the London Borough of
Southwark.
The rest of inner London was
tidied up in this way, but the
Metropolitan Boroughs of Lambeth
and Wandsworth defeated the
planners. They were the two
largest of the old boroughs, yet
neither was quite large enough
to become a London borough in
its own right. Emergency surgery
was called for, and for many it was
painful. Clapham and Streatham,
the southern and eastern districts
of Wandsworth, would be added
on to Lambeth, while the small
depopulated borough of Battersea
would be added on to the rump of
Wandsworth.
Like all messy compromises it was
greeted with horror, particularly
by residents of Clapham and
Streatham. Part of the problem was
April 2015 Lambeth talk 13
www.lambeth.gov.uk
For residents of the old
Lameth it all meant rather
less; after all they were
keeping their name and their
identity while their borough
simply became larger. As the
‘Lambeth Serves’ booklet put
out by the Lambeth Municipal
Officers Guild that year noted,
it “will mean a very great
deal to some people and
be hardly discernible by
others”.
Lambeth did not only grow physically in size and population, the local
authority also acquired whole new areas of responsibility like social services,
child protection and old people’s welfare. Seen here is the home at Elliott
Road Brixton, one of many old people’s welfare centres that Lambeth started
constructing in the 1960s and 70s.
about identity and the merging
of two proudly distinct parishes
into a larger whole. Another was
undoubtedly that old English
difficulty with class. Clapham and
Streatham were wealthier, more
middle-class areas than Lambeth which with all the gritty authenticity
of Vauxhall, Waterloo and Brixton,
prided itself on its working class
credentials. Consultations and
public enquiries were held; the
Streatham Ratepayers Association
and the newly-formed Wandsworth
Preservation Society led the
opposition campaign, but by
March 1963 Keith Joseph, the
Conservative Housing Minister
was piloting the bill through the
Commons and the headline in the
Give us your
support and
we will defeat the
dictators in their
infamous designs
Wandsworth Preservation
Society motto
Streatham News said it all,
“STREATHAM MUST GO”.
Councillor Green, the member for
Streatham, lamented that they
were “allowing a great and proud
borough to slip to its doom down
the slippery slope of oblivion.”
The London Borough of Lambeth
received its charter in May 1964
when Councillor Carr was created
its Chairman. However, the old
Metropolitan Borough continued
to exist alongside the new with
Councillor Lawrence only standing
down as its last Mayor in March 1965.
Then in April Councillor Carr (seen
here) was made Mayor of the new
London Borough.
14 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
Youth Major’s
positive stories
By Jacqueline Gomes-Neves,
Lambeth Youth Mayor
I recently had the privilege of sitting
on MyLifeMySay’s (an organisation
that engages young people in
politics) inspirational female led
panel, at their first #BeTheChange
young people’s question time in
Parliament.
In the lead up to the
General Election on
Thursday 7 May,
MyLifeMySay are
making sure young
people are at the
heart of the debate
by hosting a series
of discussions
on topics such
as education, health, inequality
and employment. Their campaign
focuses on encouraging youth
participation in politics and
increasing awareness of the key
issues - enabling young people to
make informed and responsible
political decisions.
Each month I receive many
amazing stories about
outstanding young people. Please
carry on sending your stories in
and inspiring other young people
to create their own.
Dotun Abeshinbioke
16 years old, from
Brixton Hill
Dotun is currently studying for her
A levels whilst running her own
online jewellery business, URBXN
FINDS. Dotun has bought handmade
jewellery from Nigeria and China and
is keen to develop her own distinctive
range of fashionable Nigerian
designed and made jewellery. She is
also planning on introducing a range
of fashion caps and clothing.
She has promoted the business
and built up her own customer
base through social media websites
such as Facebook, Twitter and
Instagram which has helped to keep
costs down and spread information
about the business much faster and
efficiently.
She is keen to go to university in the
USA and that’s what the sales
Dotun Abeshinbioke
from her business will finance.
She is definitely a young female
entrepreneur to celebrate.
To find out more about Dotun and
her fabulous jewelry, visit
www.urbxnfinds.com
I would encourage young people
to also get involved in the If I were
PM for a day campaign on Twitter,
by tweeting @mylifemysay with a
short summary of what you would
do if you were the Prime Minister
for a day.
To find out more about
MyLifeMySay, visit
www.mylifemysay.org.uk
Urbxn Appeal, inspired by individuality
If you’re a young person who has a positive story to share, email youthmayor@lambeth.gov.uk
with the subject ‘Positive Story’. You can also follow Jacqueline @lamyouthmayor
April 2015 Lambeth talk 15
www.lambeth.gov.uk
FROM THE COMMUNITY
Streetscapes current project in
Clapham will see the old bin store
on Solon Road dug out and a space
with planters created where residents
can grow salad and vegetables.
Hands-on learning
in an improved
landscape
Streetscape apprentice, Tamsyn
Heenan, says: “Children who don’t
even know carrots grow in the
ground will see where food comes
from. Instead of video games and
technology, this gets them out in
the fresh air, getting in touch with
community spirit. I never think of it as
just a project, I think of the impact on
someone like my mum, or Adele who
brings us cups of tea on site.”
Recruitment day attendee, Alex
Cooper, said: “It’ll be great when
people leave their homes and see the
garden. Just a few of us can make a
difference for lots of people.”
By Peter Green
Myatt’s Fields based Streetscape, are an
award-winning social enterprise that provide
apprenticeships in landscape gardening to long-term
unemployed 18-25 year olds. They and their team of
apprentices have been busy creating an edible living
space in an area on Solon Road, Clapham, which was
once a hot spot for fly tipping.
Senior Landscaper and site
manager, Keith Whitmore explains:
“The apprentices we recruit are
young people who want to make
a success of life. To apply for the
apprenticeship, they attend our
recruitment day. This is a great way
to learn more about the landscaping
industry, and Streetscape. So far,
we’ve had eight young people
graduate having completed their 12
months training.”
Streetscape has developed a set of
core standards that sets out what
they expect from their apprentices.
This includes excellent punctuality,
enthusiasm, and commitment to
learning.
Their apprenticeships include three
months training on soft landscaping
(planting, mowing and pruning) and
three months on hard landscaping.
For the remaining six months,
apprentices then choose which area
they’d like to focus on. This gives
apprentices experience in both areas
of landscaping to ensure a thorough
understanding of the industry.
If you’re a young person
looking for a future in
landscape gardening
or a business or homeowner needing regular
garden maintenance get
in touch.
Visit www.streetscape.org.uk
email info@streetscape.org.uk
or call 020 3542 3464.
16 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambethliving.org.uk
Helping
you get
work
wise
Community
Pride Awards
If you’re a Lambeth Living
tenant and can answer yes
to the questions below,
Work Wise can help you
back into employment.
The awards support the great work
our residents are doing to keep
their estates and local community
looking and feeling great:
•H
as your Housing Benefit
been reduced due to having
a spare room?
on the programme. This will cover
essential items such as work boots
or bus fares to interviews.
•D
o you receive Jobseeker’s
Allowance (JSA), Employment
and Support Allowance (ESA),
Income Support or Income
Capacity Benefit?
Work Wise launched in February
and over 60 tenants benefited
from the help available, including:
business start-up advice; ‘Roll
on Monday’ job matching;
apprenticeships; skills support
(literacy, numeracy, IT); trainingfor-trade schemes and our
‘Learning Works’ programme.
We’re running Work Wise with
St Mungo’s Broadway, funded
by the Department of Works and
Pensions, to help our tenants into
employment or training.
There will be advice and tailored
support to help you build the skills,
knowledge and confidence you
need to get into work. We’ll help link
you with a wide range of services
that can support you and match you
with relevant job opportun-ities.
We have secured a £10,000
progression fund which means
we’ll be able to give practical
financial assistance to our tenants
Tenants met representatives from
our contractor, Breyer Group,
and two apprentices shared their
stories about how Work Wise had
benefited them.
To find out more contact
Pete Murphy on
020 7926 9311 or email
pmurphy@lambeth.gov.uk
• Estates in Bloom for the best
in community gardening.
• Homes in bloom for private
gardens including window
boxes and hanging baskets.
• Best recycling initiative or
community art or recycling
project.
• Edible Living for the best food
growing project.
• Innovation of the year for the
best TRA or community group
initiative.
• Resident of the year - someone
who has contributed to their
community and made a
difference locally.
• Young resident of the year – a
tenant under 25 who has made
a difference to their community.
Start planning now.
For more information call
020 7926 8319 or email
gettinginvolved@lambeth.gov.uk
April 2015 Lambeth talk 17
www.lambethliving.org.uk
Lambeth
Housing Service
improvement
works
Miss P in her kitchen
Miss P from Wyvil
Estate explains how she
managed works to her
kitchen alongside being
a busy mum during the
school holidays.
“When they first came round they
said my kitchen was so clean and
tidy it wouldn’t need updating, but
the Resident Liaison Officer said I
obviously needed extra work space.
“A new baby takes up all the
cupboard space you have. Before
this, there was just that built-in
cupboard with the boiler in and a
little bit of worktop.
“A lot of people cancelled because
they didn’t want work done during
the school holidays. But I worked
out a plan to keep the kids out of the
way. I made sure everyone was up
and breakfasted. I had the fridge in
Annual gas
servicing keeping
you safe in your
homes
It’s not just your car that needs a
yearly MOT your home also needs
an annual gas safety check.
If we can’t arrange a suitable
time or you refuse to let our
contractors inspect your boiler
we can take court action against
you. We can do this very quickly.
It’s not unusual for our officers to
attend Court in the morning, issue
warrants in the afternoon and get
access to your home the next day
to complete the servicing.
the hall with the microwave on top.
“All the work was finished two
weeks before the end of the school
holidays.
“The guys doing the work said
not everyone bothers to move the
washing machine out and make
space for them, let alone make
them a cup of tea – but it seemed
right to me.”
I worked out
a plan to keep
the kids out of the
way and give the
builders space to
get it done.
We work closely with vulnerable
and elderly residents and their
housing officers to arrange
suitable times to visit and carry
out the survey without too much
disturbance.
We usually complete gas services
for 22,800 homes per year, which
is about 438 homes per week,
and so far we are achieving 100
per cent gas inspections.
To contact Lambeth Living, email CITenquiries@lambethliving.org.uk or call 020 7926 3713,
020 7926 0262 or 020 7926 0282.
18 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
from the community
Coin Street
Community Builders
a community
working together
By Amber Davis
Coin Street Community Builders (CSCB) is a social
enterprise and our aim is to make our neighbourhood
a great place to live, work in, and visit.
Campaigning for
a better future
future, one including social housing,
a park, managed workshops and
leisure facilities. In 1984, after
seven years of
campaigning and
two public inquires,
members of the
action group formed
the not-for-profit
organisation Coin
Street Community
Builders to purchase
the site, and the
transformation
began.
The Coin Street
area of London
lies between
Waterloo Bridge
and Blackfriars
Bridge on the
South Bank of the
River Thames. In
1977 developers
proposed the
construction of
Europe’s tallest
hotel and over one
million square feet
of office space
on this site. This
The Coin Street Action Group
development would
have divided the
area in two, blocking
the community from access to the
river.
If it wasn’t for the local people who
spent years campaigning to save
this largely derelict 13 acre site, it
wouldn’t be the thriving, mixed-use
neighbourhood it is today.
The Coin Street Action Group
formed to fight for an alternative
Coin Street neighbourhood centre
At the Coin Street neighbourhood
centre, built at the heart of our
site, is the Coin Street family and
children’s centre, which is rated
outstanding by OFSTED. The
children’s centre provides an 84place nursery and holiday play
schemes as well as a variety of
family support sessions and access
to training and employment advice.
Our free and affordable community
programmes include youth clubs,
over 50s art classes, film clubs,
community gardening project
and contemporary dance classes
by Rambert at their new studios.
Special events, such as our annual
seniors party, are hot ticket events.
The neighbourhood centre is
also a popular conference venue,
welcoming 25,000 delegates
annually. The hire of our commercial
spaces has enabled us to develop
and maintain the South Bank
Riverside Walkway, Bernie Spain
Gardens and Gabriel’s Wharf. It also
contributed to building 220 affordable
homes, and the refurbishment of one
of London’s most iconic landmarks,
Oxo Tower Wharf.
April 2015 Lambeth talk 19
www.lambeth.gov.uk
View of Coin Street land 2013 (Gabriel’s
Wharf, Bernie Spain Gardens, Oxo
Tower Wharf)
Bringing Oxo Tower
Wharf back into use
Today, Oxo Tower Wharf is
home to over 20 retail studios
where designers make and sell
contemporary fashion, interiors
and accessories; restaurants,
cafes and bars; as well as 78 cooperative flats. Visitors can enjoy
river views from the 8th floor public
viewing platform, treat themselves
to a fine dining experience at OXO
Restaurant, shop at design studios
and enjoy a free exhibition at
gallery@oxo and Bargehouse.
The current
exhibition
at gallery@
oxo, Jamaica
Hidden
Histories
(open 11am
-6pm daily
until 17 May,
Jamaica Hidden
admission
Histories exhibition
free) features
a variety of artefacts, photographs
and video installations on the
cultural and historical links between
Britain and Jamaica, as well as
a diverse programme of talks,
screenings and workshops.
Easter sports camp
Free and affordable
community activities
Many of our community
programmes are delivered at the
Colombo Centre. With an indoor
gym, studios, outdoor football
pitches and multi-sports courts,
we are able to offer a diverse mix
of sport, fitness and workshop
sessions to suit people of all ages
and abilities.
During evenings and weekends
the football pitches at Hatfields
benefit around 300 local young
people through sports groups such
as Oasis Hub, Kidz Company,
Waterloo Sports and FC, Millwall
Community Trust and La Liga
Women’s Football. The commercial
hire of the pitches during the day
subsidises community use during
evenings and weekends.
Our Easter sports camp is currently
in full swing, offering 50 local
children a week of sporting activities
and days out, at an affordable price.
Throughout the year, children and
young people enjoy football, netball,
Saturday Stay’n’Play
tennis and self-defence classes as
well as social and youth steering
groups focusing on making friends,
leadership skills and building
confidence.
Future plans include a 25 meter,
eight lane public indoor swimming
pool and leisure centre as part of
our Doon Street scheme.
Every day
84 children access the nursery.
220 co-operative homes are
enjoyed by local people.
During school holidays
32 children access the
Holiday Play Scheme at the
neighbourhood centre. 50 children
and young people access our
Easter sports camps
In one month
Over 500 local people of all ages
access fitness programmes such
as football, aerobics, Soccertots
and self-defence at the Colombo
Centre. Over 9,000 attend
exhibitions and events at gallery@oxo
To find out more about programmes and activities and to sign-up to the Coin Street newsletter,
visit www.coinstreet.org
20 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
from the community
Give
it a go
and get
involved
Join the hundreds of
people in Lambeth who are
contributing their time and
skills to improve their local
community. They make
a real difference and you
could too.
Here are a few examples
of some great projects that
you could get involved in.
Annamaria in El Salvador as part
of the International Citizen Service
themselves. Recent graduate,
Annamaria Stewart from
Brixton, thought her dreams of
volunteering abroad would remain
just that. But through Progressio,
last year she was able to travel
to El Salvador as part of the
government-funded International
Citizen Service (ICS), where she
worked on conservation and
education projects.
Progressio International Citizen
Service By Annamaria Stewart
Progressio, based in Stockwell,
is an international development
charity supporting poor
and marginalised people,
especially women, to empower
Annamaria explains: “I was always
interested in volunteering abroad,
but most of the charities that offer
this type of programme are very
expensive. Thinking that it would set
me back thousands, I parked that
idea a few years ago. Then I came
across the ICS programme.
“I first applied for the volunteer role
but in my interview Progressio saw
my potential and encouraged me
to go for the team leader position.
I never believed I had the skills to
lead a group formally.
“In El Salvador, the main challenge
was being away from my family,
but I had a great host family who
supported me, fed me and loved me
which helped me get through it.
“As a group leader, I had to be the
leader, the big sister, the mum,
agony aunt and defender. We
often have misconceptions about
our abilities, but when you’re in a
different environment, with no access
to your luxuries, you realise you
won’t brake if you’re pushed further.
“Now I’m back I’m doing more
things that I would have avoided
before. I’ve learned to have more
April 2015 Lambeth talk 21
www.lambeth.gov.uk
Advice Guides - One
Lambeth Advice
By PETER BRADLEY
Advice Guides, volunteers
trained by Merton and Lambeth
Citizens Advice Bureaux,
are based in community
locations across Lambeth
such as council offices and GP
surgeries. They are the public
face of Citizens Advice in
Lambeth, impossible to miss in
bright yellow t-shirts. Their role
is to support people to access
resources to help them resolve
problems. They guide people to
find the right information and
signpost to other organisations.
faith in my abilities. I now say ‘I can’
and own it confidently.
“I now want to make sure young
people from communities similar to
mine are aware of opportunities like
this. I want that young boy or girl
who is lost or misguided to take a
chance with this programme, give all
they can and get everything back.
I know that it has changed me for
the better, mainly because now I
understand that I am stronger than
I thought.”
Interested?
If you would like to find out more
about the work of Progressio, visit
www.progressio.org.uk/ics or
email carlos@progressio.org.uk
or call 020 7733 1195.
Working with the
public is both
rewarding and
challenging.
When people
are in difficulty
they may well be
upset, frustrated. English could be
a second language or they could
find it hard to use the telephone
or internet. In addition to helping
others, volunteering as an Advice
Guide is a great way to develop
customer skills, communication
skills and to work as part of a team.
Last year nearly 40 CAB volunteers
gained paid employment.
Jan, an Advice Guide, explains:
“Every person has their own
particular need that they want
to sort out. We give them phone
numbers, websites or the contact
details for an agency where they
can get some help. Often just
talking through the problem enables
the person to have the confidence
to tackle their situation.
“I have enjoyed meeting a wide
variety of people…I learn
something new every day,
especially from the other Advice
Guides who I enjoy working
alongside. Most customers are very
grateful for any help that we are
able to give which makes the role
very rewarding.”
Want to get involved?
We provide full training – a mixture
of classroom learning, observations,
distance learning and on the job
training. You’d be supported by a
team leader, your travel expenses
will be reimbursed and you’ll get a
certificate at the end of your training.
To find out more visit www.mlcab.
org.uk or email volunteering@
mertoncab.org.uk
There are many ways you can get
involved locally. Get in touch with
Volunteer Centre Lambeth who
will help you find opportunities to
suit your availability, interests and
skills. Call 020 7326 5480 (10am
- 4pm, Monday to Friday) or email
volunteering@vclambeth.org.uk
22 Lambeth talk April 2015
www.lambeth.gov.uk
A guide to
what’s on
in Lambeth
There are lots of interesting
things to do and places to visit
in Lambeth. In this section you’ll
find a few suggestions to suit a
range of interests.
If you would like to have your event
listed in this section, email us at
lambethtalk@lambeth.gov.uk
City Read
London
Throughout April,
FREE.
Lambeth Libraries
are excited to
be joining up
with Cityread
London, an annual
celebration of literature that aims to
bring reading to life for the whole
capital. Each April, Cityread asks
London’s readers to pick up a
book – the same book - and read
it together. Taking the chosen
novel as a starting point, a monthlong programme of book groups,
film screenings and other events
take place across all 33 London
boroughs in libraries, bookshops,
museums and other venues.
of the London
Ceramic Circle
and Morley
College ceramics
students
exploring the
theme of Past
Matters: 125 years of industrial
manufactured inspiration.
MADE 2015 Ceramics
Thursday 16 – Thursday 30 April,
11am to 6pm (Mon to Fri), FREE.
An exhibition of works by members
To register contact Vanessa
Miller on 020 7802 3216 or email
vanessam@lullabytrust.org.uk
Morley Gallery, 61 Westminster
Bridge Road, SE1 7HT.
For more information, visit
www.morelycollege.ac.uk/gallery
First Draft
Deadline for applications
Thursday 23 April, midnight, FREE.
Miles in Memory Walk
You can also register or make
a donation using the reference
‘London Miles in Memory’, by
visiting www.lullabytrust.org.uk/
london-walk
A playwriting competition giving
Lambeth’s emerging writers the
opportunity to showcase new work
over two nights at Brixton Library. The
selected plays will be rehearsed with a
professional cast and director as part
of the Lambeth Readers and Writers
Festival. Entries welcome from anyone
who lives, works or studies in Lambeth.
To apply, visit www.sixteenfeet.
co.uk/portfolio/first-draft-2015
This year’s book is Rivers of London
by Ben Aaronovitch. Pick up your copy
from your local library and read along. London Miles in
For more information, visit
www.cityread.london. For details
about events in Lambeth, visit
www.lambeth.gov.uk/events
unexpectedly in the UK by joining
their fundraising event, the London
Miles in Memory Walk, on Clapham
Common SW4.
Memory Walk
Saturday 9 May, from 10am, FREE.
The Lullaby Trust provides specialist
support for bereaved families,
promotes expert advice on safer
baby sleep and raises awareness
of sudden infant death syndrome
(SIDS). You can help us move one
step closer to finding out why five
babies every week die suddenly and
The Friends of
Ruskin Park Photography
Competition 2015
Competition closes Friday 26 June.
This year the theme is Park Life.
Take a photograph of what you do
when you go to the park, or what
other people do. What do you like
most about Ruskin Park? What
time of day is the best time to visit?
For this competition, if changing
the image in a computer is going
to make it a better image that’s
fine. Printing, framing or mounting
can be part of the creative process
as well. Explore the medium of
photography, use as many of its
possibilities as you wish to make an
image that says “This is how I see
Park Life”.
For more information and an entry
form, visit Carnegie Library, Herne
Hill Road, SE24 or visit
www.friendsruskinpark.org.uk
April 2015 Lambeth talk 23
www.lambeth.gov.uk
Jamaica Hidden Histories
Until Sunday 17 May, 11am to
6pm, FREE.
This exhibition,
supported by the
Heritage Lottery
Fund, is the
culmination of a
two-year project
to uncover
and showcase
cultural and
historical links between Britain and
Jamaica. Departing from Oliver
Cromwell’s taking of the island
in 1655, and navigating its way
through 1962 independence and
into the present day, the display
charts Jamaican influence on British
culture and its economy.
Oxo Tower Wharf, Bargehouse
Street, South Bank, SE1 9PH.
For more information, visit
www.jamaicahiddenhistories.com
Volunteering
Home-Start Lambeth
Volunteer training course
starting Monday 11 May.
Could you
help a family
with young
children?
We train
volunteers
to visit
families in
their homes
for two to
three hours
each week to provide support and
practical help. Volunteers need
to be parents or have parenting
experience and live in Lambeth.
For more information,
call 020 7924 9292, email
info@homestartlambeth.co.uk or
visit www.homestartlambeth.co.uk
Have your say on the future of
sports, libraries and archives,
parks, events and the arts
We’re proposing significant changes to some
services and your opinion matters.
The consultation closes Friday 24 April 2015
lambeth.gov.uk/culture2020consultation
@Lambeth_council #Culture2020
Culture2020@lambeth.gov.uk
020 7926 2623
To find out more
about volunteering
opportunities in
Lambeth, get in touch
with the Lambeth
Voluntary Action
Centre (LVAC).
Call: 020 7737 1419
Email: lvac@
lambethvac.org.uk
Visit: www.
lambethvac.org.uk
advertisement
www.lambeth.gov.uk
The education of a
gardener: The life and
works of Russell Page
1906 to 1985
Until 21 June, 10.30am to 5pm
(Mon-Fri) 10.30am to 4pm
(Sat), £7.50.
Kids dance classes
Every Saturday, £1.
Join the street dance and ballet
session on Saturdays. No booking
required.
Ballet session: four years old plus
- 3 to 3.30pm. Street Dance: four to
nine years old – 3.30 to 4.30pm, 10
to 14 years, 4.30 to 5.30pm.
Ferndale Community Sports
Centre, Nursery Road, SW9 8PD.
For more information, call
020 7738 6834.
Garden Pepsico
Russell Page is one of the greatest
garden designers of the modern
period. He trained as an artist and
brought a painters eye for form
and style to the many gardens that
he made. The exhibition includes
over 50 paintings, photographs and
drawings from Russell Pages’ own
archive, the collection of the RHS,
Public and Private Collections in the
USA and Europe.
Garden Museum, 5 Lambeth Palace
Road, London SE1 7LB.
For more information, call
020 7401 8865 or visit
www.gardenmuseum.org.uk
Silverfit Tuesdays at
Brockwell Park
Every Tuesday, 1pm,
from £1 per session.
Silverfit, a charity which encourages
people to regain or maintain
lifelong fitness, have launched new
sessions at Brockwell Park. Join
them for a walk through the park or
some Nordic Walking or Pilates.
For more information, call 07721
419 518, email info@silverfit.org.uk
or visit www.silverfit.org.uk
Fit to work
Every Tuesday and Thursday from
4 to 5pm, FREE.
Loughborough Junction
World War 1 app
Discover three
unfolding
augmented reality
stories about
Loughborough
Junction during the Great War.
Each of the three stories has a trail
of distinctive colour-coded paving
slabs that take you through the
streets of Loughborough Junction.
The app visually recognises each
paving slab in the trail and each new
slab reveals the next new chapter
in that story, downloading it in
stages to your mobile device and
leading you towards the Cambria
Bridge, where each trail ends.
For more information and to
download the app, visit
www.ljww1.org
Muddy Dog Challenge
Miguel’s Boxing Gym
Fit to work is a local community
based initiative run by London Fire
Brigade in conjunction with Miguel’s
Boxing Gym. It is primarily aimed
at Lambeth residents aged 16 – 25
who are not in full-time employment.
The initiative delivers a twice
weekly class focusing on fitness,
motivation and confidence, there is
also an opportunity for individuals
to seek employment advice such as
interview skills and CV presentation.
Miguel’s Boxing and Fitness Gym,
261 - 262 Hardess Street (off Herne
Hill Road), SE24 OHN.
For more information, call
07931 231 291 or 020 7733 1933.
Sunday 10 May, 9am to 2pm,
registration fee from £27.50 for
adults and £8.50 for dogs (group
discounts available).
The Muddy Dog Challenge is a dogfriendly obstacle course that will
put runners, both two-legged and
four-legged, through their paces.
Participants can choose to scamper,
jog or walk round a 2.5km or 5km
course and will get the opportunity
to crawl under nets, jump over
tyres and squelch in mud. A fitting
challenge to raise money for
The Battersea Dogs
& Cats Home.
Brockwell
Park, SE24.
To register, visit
www.battersea.org.uk/
muddydog
Lambeth talk is published by Lambeth Council. All information in this magazine is correct at time of going to print.
For enquiries, please email lambethtalk@lambeth.gov.uk or phone 020 7926 0023. This magazine is printed on recycled paper.
Please recycle it when you have finished with it.
PRODUCED BY LAMBETH CAMPAIGNS AND COMMUNICATIONS DEPARTMENT
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