Southwark magazine #17

Come together Partners in the private and public sectors working to deliver benefits for communities

See Emily play Not just for kids – facilities in parks and open spaces keep adults fit and healthy too

Let’s dance Live music is thriving in Southwark’s established venues, with new kids arriving on the block

Skills to pay the bills Employment rates are rising, as residents take up opportunities to gain the skills for employment

This must be the place Canada Water, Nunhead, Elephant Park and St Mary’s Quarter – new places in development

southwark Issue 17 Summer 2017

MOVE, GROOVE, TRAIN, WORK

Places to perform and spaces to play, training for fitness and employment, pathways to skills, chances to chill

A taste of luxury at One Tower Bridge One Tower Bridge offers a five star living experience on the South Bank, with one of the world’s most iconic landmarks as its backdrop. A plethora of exciting new retail and commercial signings will make it the most sought after destination in London.

Welsh chef and ‘Masterchef’ finalist Tom Simmons opens his restaurant on 15th July, followed on 26th July by The Ivy Brasserie, a new venture for one of London’s most iconic dining spots. In addition, One Tower Bridge is the location for the Bridge Theatre, London’s largest new theatre in 40 years.

1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments available. Prices from £1,450,000 For more information or to book your appointment call 020 3773 9158 or visit: www.onetowerbridge.co.uk

www.onetowerbridge.co.uk Proud to be a member of the Berkeley Group of companies

One of the leading expert consultancies in planning, development and regeneration in the UK.

100 Pall Mall London SW1Y 5NQ Reception: 020 7004 1700 Website: www.dp9.co.uk

southwark

contents 18 music venues From intimate venues opening under railway arches, to thriving club venues, the live music business is booming across Southwark, bucking a national trend of decline.

09 contacts Who to speak to about regeneration in Southwark.

45 skills How is the council addressing the borough’s skills shortage?

12 news Latest updates on development projects and plans.

50 public private partnerships What benefits do the private and public sectors working together bring for Southwark residents?

29 map and projects Locating key schemes and summarising their progress.

58 sitematch Opportunities for developers abound at South Dock Marina.

36 play in parks Plenty of outdoor space for local residents is key to boosting health and prosperity.

EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Siobhán Crozier EDITOR-IN-CHIEF James Wood NEWS AND DIGITAL EDITOR Marco Cillario DESIGN Smallfury PRODUCTION MANAGER Christopher Hazeldine BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Paul Gussar PROJECT MANAGER Sue Mapara SUBSCRIPTIONS MANAGER Simon Maxwell MANAGING DIRECTOR Toby Fox PRINTED BY Tradewinds COVER IMAGE Omeara Live Room by Georgina Jackson IMAGES John Sturrock, Peter Durant, Morley von Sternberg, Iwan Baan, Tim Soar, British Land, Carl Turner Architects, Maggie Koo, Corsica Studios, Mark Allan, Doodle Bar, Delancey, Notting Hill Housing, Land Securities, SPPARC, Panter Hudspith Architects, WilkinsonEyre, Robin Compston, Paul Upward Photography, Everyone Active, David Tothill, Matt Clayton, Jason Hawkes, James Jones, Southwark Council PUBLISHED BY Sunley House, Bedford Park, Croydon CR0 2AP T 020 7978 6840 W 3foxinternational.com SUBSCRIPTIONS AND FEEDBACK southwarkmagazine.com southwarkmagazine.com

©3Fox International Limited 2017 All material is strictly copyright and all rights are reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without the written permission of 3Fox International Ltd is strictly forbidden. The greatest care has been taken to ensure the accuracy of information in this magazine at time of going to press, but we accept no responsibility for omissions or errors.

The views expressed in this magazine are not necessarily those of 3Fox International Ltd.

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17 summer 2017 7

London is an ever-changing city.

Always growing. Always evolving.

Over the next 20 years it will be home to 10 million people, placing unprecedented demands on our places and communities.

Grosvenor is developing plans for a burgeoning new neighbourhood in Bermondsey, south-east London, which embodies the energy and life of its location, celebrates its past, connects its communities and creates new opportunities.

Our ambition is to deliver around 1,500 new homes. These homes, principally for rent, would knit communities together by being available to a wide range of people, and would come with a new secondary school, high-quality open spaces and better physical connections for this five hectare site.

Grosvenor and Bermondsey working together www.belonginbermondsey.com

southwark RECIPE FOR SUCCESS Being excited about where you live takes a lot of ingredients. In the last edition of Southwark we looked at the eight new theatres which are set to open by 2018. This time we focus on the wide range of live music venues across the borough with a spotlight on Omeara, which has recently opened at Flat Iron Square in Bankside.

It is now just over a year since the state-of-the-art Castle leisure centre opened and over 455,000 visitors have now passed through its doors, 100,000 of whom have enjoyed access to the council’s policy of Free Swim and Gym for local residents. As well as new leisure centres, we are also investing heavily in our parks and in this edition we focus on some of the beautiful new open spaces that are being created, with an amazing team of community partners.

Creating jobs and opportunities through regeneration is my passion and I am proud to update you on the real progress made at our new construction skills centre and through our employment programmes.

I’m also excited to reveal our joint plans with London South Bank University to convert the historic Passmore Building on Borough Road into a new hub for higher professional and technical education, creating hundreds more high-quality apprenticeships.

Exciting new music venues, beautiful parks, and thousands of job opportunities: what’s not to like?

Councillor Peter John Leader of Southwark Council

CONTACT Dan Taylor / Chief Executive’s Department Southwark Council / 160 Tooley Street / SE1 2QH regeninfo@southwark.gov.uk / 020 7525 5450 southwarkmagazine.com

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17 summer 2017 9

A MAJOR PARTNERSHIP FOR LENDLEASE AND SOUTHWARK

Our partnerships enhance our performance, spark innovation, sustain our communities and deliver lasting value. This has guided us to create successful partnerships based on trust and mutual understanding.

At Elephant Park, Lendlease is proud to be Southwark Council’s regeneration partner as we re-establish Elephant & Castle’s status as a desirable and successful Central London destination.

Together at Elephant Park, over the next 10 years we are delivering:

11 acres 3000 of high quality public space

new tenureblind homes

6000 1 of 19 £125,000 40+

new jobs plus Construction Skills Centre

Climate Positive developments worldwide

contributed to Elephant & Castle Community Fund

temporary business spaces at Artworks Elephant

For more info visit:

elephantpark.co.uk

“LENDLEASE HAS PROVEN ITSELF TO BE A KEY PARTNER OF THE COUNCIL, WITH THE CAPABILITY AND SKILL SET TO DRIVE THE PROJECT FORWARD AND DELIVER OUR SHARED VISION.” Eleanor Kelly, Chief Executive, Southwark Council

News

the news

WHAT’S NEW AND HAPPENING IN SOUTHWARK SOUTHWARK SUCCESS AT RIBA LONDON Developments across Southwark have won a RIBA London Award, one of the most prestigious architecture accolades.

Guy’s Cancer Centre (top), Tate Modern’s Switch House (bottom left), The Green in Nunhead (bottom right) and The Laboratory at Dulwich College were among the schemes recognised for their design quality during a ceremony at 66 Portland Place in May. A record 85 buildings were shortlisted, including Queen’s Court in Bermondsey.

The £260 million, “pyramid-like” Switch House, opened in June 2016, was designed

by Herzog & de Meuron and increased the art gallery’s capacity by 60%, adding 2,000sq m of space.

On the top floor, a roof terrace offers a 360-degree panoramic view over London.

Designed by AOC architects, Nunhead’s The Green opened in January 2016 to host events and workshops. It provides acoustically separate spaces to accommodate different activities simultaneously and a natural ventilation system to keep heating and airconditioning costs low. Southwark Council commissioned and funded the building, and the community was involved in the design process and now runs the facility.

Both Switch House and The Green were also shortlisted for a design award last year.

The £160 million, 14-storey Guy’s Cancer Centre opened its doors at Great Maze Pond in autumn 2016. It is the first cancer centre in Europe to provide radiotherapy treatment above ground level, after patients said this would make a huge difference to them, giving them more access to natural light.

It was designed by architect Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partners and specialist healthcare architect Stantec, with Arup providing integrated design engineering services.

The Laboratory is a science lab for Dulwich College, designed by Grimshaw. Judges said it “successfully balances and complements” the 1870s New College by Charles Barry Junior “by picking up on the red bricks and beige stone colours in a panelled facade”.

Also shortlisted were Queen’s Court, Peckham Town Hall and Theatre Peckham.

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News

Read up-to-date news stories about Southwark’s regeneration online at southwarkmagazine.com

PASSMORE CENTRE PLANS APPROVED Southwark Council’s cabinet has approved plans for an initiative to support the creation of apprenticeships and help residents into jobs.

The local authority will invest £5 million to establish the Passmore Centre, it was announced on 21 March 2017.

In partnership with London South Bank University (LSBU), the council will oversee the project to refurbish the Passmore Building on Borough Road, establishing it as the hub for the new Institute for Professional and Technical Education.

“What is good about the location is that it is at the edge of the campus, and this means that students will have easy access to the building,” said Johnson Situ, cabinet member for business, culture and social regeneration.

It is estimated the centre will start operating in summer 2018.

Its focus will initially be on STEM subjects (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), mainly to prepare students for a career in the construction industry and health-related professions.

But later it will broaden its range to include training programmes for other industries such as hospitality and management.

“We are interested in supporting residents not just into Level 2 and 3, but also 4, 5 and 6,’” added Situ. “We are fortunate that LSBU has similar ideas.”

By 2020, 2,000 students are expected to be taking courses at the Passmore Centre, with an intake of at least 500 per year.

The aim is to have 1,000 Southwark residents graduated from one of the apprenticeship programmes by 2023.

“Crucially, we want to show that apprenticeships are not simply a way to get into work in the short term, but are also the start of a longer-term career path for residents,” Situ said.

HOUSING MAGAZINE TO BE PUBLISHED Producer of Southwark magazine, 3Fox International, has announced a new publication focusing on housing delivery in the borough.

Housing in Southwark will explore how the biggest social landlord in the capital is dealing with the challenges posed by the housing crisis and the role of partnership in improving the area’s housing stock.

The council aims to not only supply the number of homes needed, but to achieve high-quality design and comfortable, affordable living for residents that adheres to health and safety guidelines. southwarkmagazine.com

COMMUNITY CONSIDERS CANADA WATER PLANS An updated draft masterplan for a 19-ha site at Canada Water has been shared with the community during a series of consultation events.

In May, developer British Land presented a new project to more than 1,500 people, to provide up to 3,500 homes, around 200,000sq m of workspace and 100,000sq m for retail and leisure uses at SE16.

The development area covers Surrey Quays Shopping Centre, Surrey Quays Leisure Park, SE16 Printworks and the Dock Offices.

The scheme could create 20,000 jobs when completed.

Southwark Council and the Greater London Authority (GLA) have identified the land between Surrey Quays and Canada Water as an Opportunity Area and a Housing Zone, meaning transport and social infrastructure will be in place to facilitate the creation of homes and jobs.

British Land said in a statement that the feedback received during the consultation events in May “will help inform more detailed development of the proposals”.

“We’ll be back in the coming months to discuss key topics and share the plans again. All feedback will be databased, analysed and compiled into a public report that we will share back for community review.”

A planning application for the development is expected by the end of 2017: it will seek detailed consent for phase one and outline permission for the remainder of the site.

Plans will be considered by Southwark Council, the GLA and Transport for London, with a decision expected in summer 2018.

If permission is granted, construction should start in early 2019 and the scheme will be delivered in phases over the following 15 to 20 years. issue

17 summer 2017 13

News

OCCUPIERS REACH FOR PECKHAM LEVELS The team behind the Peckham Levels project has begun selecting members to rent the creative workspaces.

Work is proceeding on the redevelopment of the sevenstorey car park in Peckham, which will provide emerging businesses and artists with space and the opportunity to connect with the community around them.

The 1,858sq m of converted space will consist of private studios, shared workspaces, creative facilities, community areas, independent businesses, markets, events and exhibition space.

Peckham Levels received 293 applications for studios and office spaces, while 56 were for other kinds of businesses who want to set up at Peckham Levels, including food outlets, cafes, event venues, print studios, shared workshops, photography studios and yoga centres.

The applicants will be chosen based on a selection of criteria, with priority given to those who are local to Peckham, with the aim of providing 80% of the space to Southwark residents.

Also considered is the applicants’ commitment to the collaborative nature of the Peckham Levels project, how much the community will benefit, how companies intend to utilise the space and their potential growth.

Fifty studios will be available to rent: small studios (12sq m) will cost from £255 per month and large studios (24sq m) will cost from £550 per month.

The project will offer 20% subsidised rates to ensure talented lower income locals can also access the facility.

These ‘supported spaces’ will range form £55 to £130 per month. Applications for these closed on 30 April.

It is still possible to apply for large office spaces (150sq m), which can house teams of up to 30.

14 issue 17 summer 2017

HOMES PARTNERSHIP A housing association and a team of architects will work with Southwark Council to deliver hundreds of new homes, commercial premises, community facilities and a school.

Part of the Southwark Regeneration in Partnership Programme (SRPP), the council announced in May 2017 a partnership with housing association Clarion Group to deliver more than 600 new homes in the borough.

Nearly half of these will be owned by the council and let at council rents.

Conran and Partners will act as architects and masterplanners for Clarion, working with delivery managers Martin Arnold Associates.

The homes will be built on sites identified by the council as Lot B, in the centre and south of the borough: Copeland Road Car Park, Peckham Square, Old Kent Road petrol station, Melon Road off Sumner Road, 21-23 Parkhouse Street, Angel Oak Academy, Wyndham Road, Sumner House, Fred Francis Centre and Wickway Community Centre.

The sites identified as Lot A are currently in the process of being re-tendered.

At least 284 of the new homes will be council owned, and a further 94 available for low-cost ownership, with the remainder sold as private homes to pay for the building.

PECKHAM SQUARE PLANS APPROVED Plans have been approved and a developer appointed to transform Peckham Square.

Southwark Council announced Clarion Group will work as the local authority’s partner on the southern side of the square, which includes 91-93 Peckham High Street, to create two buildings of four and six storeys.

Plans designed by Carl Turner Architects to redevelop the square involve the removal of Peckham Arch, as well as disbanding an existing temporary pavilion, which currently houses Peckham Platform, a public gallery used by local artists.

This will make way for 19 homes, 225sq m of new gallery space, 201sq m of co-working space and 82sq m for offices or retail.

Plans were approved in November 2016, subject to a section 106 agreement, which is now awaiting final signoff. Conditions include the provision of a communal lift and 24/7, full-year wheelchair access to one of the flats.

Work is to start in autumn 2017 and is expected to take 18 months to complete.

News

CURTAINS UP FOR THEATRE’S PECKHAM MOVE Work has started on providing Mountview Academy for Theatre Arts with a multimillion-pound new home at Eagle Wharf next to Peckham Library.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held on 16 May as the first stone was placed on the 9,500sq m development, which will include training facilities, 18 dance and acting studios, two public theatre spaces, two TV studios, a radio suite and production facilities.

A commercial rehearsal space and co-working space will also be provided when the scheme completes in autumn 2018, along with a cafe, bars and a rooftop restaurant.

The academy’s principal and artistic director Stephen Jameson said the project will “secure the future of Mountview”.

Harriet Harman, MP for Camberwell and Peckham, praised the “incredible speed” at which the development was proceeding.

The first discussion between Mountview and Southwark Council dates back to February 2015, meaning the scheme will southwarkmagazine.com

complete three and a half years after the idea was conceived.

“Three and a half years from the first meeting to opening: it shows you what we can do when people are united in a common vision,” said leader of Southwark Council, Peter John.

Mountview Academy is 72 years old, and for the last 30 it has been based in temporary accommodation on an industrial site in Wood Green, north London.

Rated ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted in 2015, the theatre offers courses in musical theatre, classical acting and production arts. It also trains producers, musical directors and directors.

Around 400 students from more than 30 countries are enrolled on courses at the academy, which receives around 2,500 applications every year. Alumni include Eddie Marsan (Ray Donovan, Still Life), Ken Stott (The Hobbit, Fever Pitch) and Rebecca Trehearn (Showboat).

Students currently enrolled for their first year will be the first to move into the new premises in September 2018.

“The new site will mean that, for the first time, our entire community will be under one roof,” Jameson told Southwark magazine.

“At the moment we do not have our own theatre. Having one will make life so much easier for our production arts students.”

A number of initiatives will be organised to engage with Peckham residents and local schools.

“In the last few years, Peckham has experienced a renaissance and the arrival of Mountview is the next chapter in this,” added John.

He predicted that the theatre’s move would “bring local jobs to an already growing economy”.

“We are absolutely confident that Mountview will deliver and we are hoping this will open the eyes of residents on the opportunities arts and culture can bring.” issue

17 summer 2017 15

Working with the London Borough of Southwark to create an exciting mixed use development at Canada Water

Find out more at: www.canadawatermasterplan.com www.britishland.com www.surreyquays.co.uk

18 issue 17 Summer 2017

MELODY MAKERS With news of a declining live music scene across the UK, one London borough is determined to buck the trend.

Established venues, clubs surviving – and thriving – amid redevelopment, and smaller capacity performance spaces are finely tuned to bring big benefits to Southwark.

James Wood reports

southwarkmagazine.com

THE TIGHT-PACKED CROWD jostles for position, necks craned with the vain hope of a better view of the stage where the band will soon appear. Roadies test instruments, murmured “one-twos” into microphones answered by eager cheers from the dimly lit pit – where the hum of anticipation drowns out the background pulse from the speakers.

Then the house lights drop and a roar signals the start of an event that could be transformative, not only to become engraved in memories but capable of shaping identities.

“These are the moments that make us,” says Shain Shapiro, CEO of Sound Diplomacy, which seeks to persuade influential bodies how live music can diversify places, boost economies, build skills, create jobs and contribute to the development of an area.

In recent years, many venues have been forced to close their doors for reasons ranging from wage stagnation – with people no longer able to afford regular nights out – to public sector cuts to the arts. But as Shapiro points out, live music will always be in demand and in Southwark, its importance is valued.

“Southwark [Council] is very good at what it does,” says Shapiro. “They have a sense of what is needed: creating varied platforms for a diverse community. Its cultural register is strong and that’s rare for a local authority.

They know people need to feel excited about where they live, seem able to resolve issues and are malleable to the demand of live music without impeding housebuilding priorities.”

Measuring Music 2016, the UK Music report on the economic value of the industry, calculated the total GVA contribution to the UK economy in 2015 as £4.1 billion, of which £907 million was generated by live music, a business which was then employing 25,150 people. Director of government and public affairs at UK Music, Tom Kiehl, says: “Not only that, but we are now analysing the influence of Brexit on the industry. If bands are prevented from playing in mainland Europe, it becomes more important that there are enough places for musicians to perform in the UK and that these places are up to scratch.

“London is intrinsic to this. Our report shows that this is the first year in a long time that the decline is reversing. This country has a very broad live music appeal and as a consequence, more venues are opening.”

Several of these are in Southwark. They range from established club venues and fashionable hangouts for a young population, to specialist performance spaces supporting grassroots acts across a range of genres.

Live music boosts the night-time economy.

“You have iconic venues like the Ministry of Sound here,” points out Shapiro. “Experiences there might create memories that last forever and that can’t be underestimated.” issue

17 Summer 2017 19

music PREVIOUS PAGE: Eva Lazarus gets the crowd moving at Bussey Building’s CLF Art Café.

LEFT: Revellers pack out the dancefloor at Corsica Studios.

BELOW: Gorillaz at Printworks.

FAR BELOW: Once used as a printing press – now a clubbing venue praised for its sound and light show.

CORSICA STUDIOS Behind Elephant and Castle shopping centre, based in two interconnecting railway arches, is one of the most respected music venues in London, attracting big-name acts such as Bjork and Thom Yorke.

Corsica Studios was co-founded in 2002 by Adrian Jones and his partner Amanda Moss, the latter of whom tragically died this year after being diagnosed with ovarian cancer. Tributes were widespread following her death at the beginning of April: Moss was widely regarded as an instrumental figure in London’s club scene for many years.

Fabric – perhaps the capital’s best-known nightclub – released a statement following the sad news, sharing the opinion that Moss had helped create “one of the most important venues in London” – a view shared by musicians, gig-goers and promoters alike.

Beginning by setting up short-term art and music studio spaces in Kings Cross and north London, Jones and Moss fulfilled a long-term goal with Corsica of establishing a permanent independent venue.

Success is achieved through careful curation: “We only book and program the music we believe in and we try and treat artists – DJs, bands – well, so everyone feels appreciated,” explains Jones.

“As a venue, we have a well-established musical identity and a strong DIY ethic and I think that everyone who plays here identifies with that and understands that we all really care about what we do.”

The evidence certainly supports this.

When The Guardian asked artists to pick 20 issue 17 Summer 2017

their favourite London music venues, Corsica was the DJ DEBONAIR’s pick. She told the newspaper: “Corsica Studios has to be the best club in London... It’s the only place I’ve always kept going to for all the time I’ve lived here. A broad crowd goes, but the common theme is that everyone has a passion for music.”

Careful consideration goes into which acts play Corsica: “Overheads for venues are always increasing so inevitably decisions need to be made about what bands to book, what fees can be paid and what sort of audience size they will attract to ensure that everyone gets paid,” Jones explains.

“But we will always try and bring new acts through by supporting larger established bands. The fact that we also have a weekend club side to our operation means that we can subsidise a lot of the live music nights, which just wouldn’t be possible otherwise.”

There are challenges for Corsica to overcome. Its location in the middle of a large residential and commercial development site presents concerns over the venue’s future.

Luckily, Jones says Southwark Council’s licensing and regeneration teams are supportive and he appears confident that talks with the local authority, developer Delancey, Network Rail and the Greater London Authority will help secure its future.

Corsica’s excellent reputation as a club venue will surely continue to allow it to support artists and convince the necessary parties of its value, helping it remain one of the capital’s most successful live music stories for years to come.

PRINTWORKS Canada Water is not necessarily the first place those looking to go clubbing in London would think to visit – the area of the Docklands is famed more for its residential development, with plans afoot for a new commercial centre.

But those perceptions are changing thanks to a new 6,000-capacity venue opening in January 2017 on a site where the London Evening Standard and Daily Mail newspapers were once printed.

After being used for special Secret Cinema screenings of films such as Star Wars and 28 Days Later, developer British Land, which is overseeing the masterplan for the area, has now leased the building to The Vibration Group. Its music programme is curated by LWE – which puts on shows at Tobacco Dock – and Broadwick Live, which runs Field Day festival in London’s Victoria Park.

Simon Tracey, CEO of Vibration Group, says: “The promoters are skilled at giving new talent the stage to perform. We’re selling

southwarkmagazine.com

out events across the board and events being streamed in Mixmag and Time Out really helps give acts more exposure.”

Planning permission for the site was granted on 19 December 2016 and a launch event was headlined by house DJ Seth Troxler at the beginning of February this year.

Since then Printworks has been used for a one-off, secret show by Gorillaz, to launch their latest album Humanz. Led by singer Damon Albarn, the band were joined by hip-hop acts including De La Soul and Danny Brown and even a guest appearance from Albarn’s one-time nemesis Noel Gallagher.

Set over 1,115sq m on multiple levels, the six spaces are also used for events such as Mulberry and Adidas fashion shows, a Triumph bike show, drag racing and corporate events. “Music is obviously at the centre of things though,” Tracey makes clear.

A carefully curated series of daytime clubbing events have the seen the likes of

iconic German DJ Paul Kalkbrenner perform.

Tracey says: “The space is about the same size as the Turbine Hall at Tate Modern, but the sound doesn’t bounce around as much.

It really is a place like no other, from the sound to the light show. Feedback has been incredibly positive.”

In the future, could it be Printworks which acts as the area’s catalyst for change? “It might lead to Canada Water becoming one of London’s best kept secrets, its hidden gems,” says Tracey. “It will be down to British Land to determine a great deal of the area’s legacy, but they are very supportive of what we’re doing here. It’s about creating places. What we’ve basically done is taken an iconic building with an impressive history and put in some really cool content.”

With September shows announced and events selling out, Printworks has wasted no time in establishing itself as one of London’s most popular new clubbing venues.

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17 Summer 2017 21

music BELOW: An intimate space in arches under London was ideal for Omeara.

FAR BELOW: Ben Lovett of Mumford & Sons set up the venue.

RIGHT: Singer-songwriter Seramic performs at the venue in March 2017.

FAR RIGHT: The Doodle Bar.

OMEARA One of London’s newest music venues, Omeara, is tucked into three arches under the railway line approaching London Bridge in Southwark. The 350-capacity spot in Flat Iron Square, which also features street food traders and bars, is the brainchild of Ben Lovett from one of the UK’s most successful bands in recent years, Mumford and Sons.

The band headlined Glastonbury in 2013 and like most acts afforded this honour, years of gigging and self-promotion were necessary to get there. It was these experiences that inspired Lovett to create Omeara.

Lovett tells Southwark: “It’s exciting to think new acts playing London for the first time might do so in Omeara. I’ll never forget our first headline performance and the feeling it gave me and it’s amazing that we have the chance to replicate that for others.”

The long search for premises began about four and a half years ago, when Lovett’s band were at a commercially successful peak and venues were closing their doors across 22 issue 17 Summer 2017

THE DOODLE BAR

London. Lovett believed the time was right to create somewhere new for them to play. “A whole raft of amazing new musicians were coming through,” he explains.

“It took ages to find the right space but about two years ago we discovered the arches at Flat Iron Square. It seemed ideal, with only a bit to do on soundproofing the space because of the trains rattling overhead. This wasn’t so much of a problem on music nights but we also want to run live comedy events, where there could be interference.

“The location is incredibly convenient for people all over London and those visiting too,” he adds.

With an aim of giving performers and punters “a flawless experience”, was there a place Lovett played with Mumford and Sons that inspired Omeara? “We had probably played about 1,000 shows as a precursor to forming the plans, so obviously you learn a lot about what works. The Washington 930 club in DC springs to mind, which is just one of the southwarkmagazine.com

best club venues in the world and the pinnacle in knowing what it means to put on the right show and give people the best experience.”

“That’s as much about making sure the toilets are in a good state and creating good interaction with bar staff as carefully considering bookings,” he adds.

Omeara’s opening night in October 2016 was headlined by The Pretenders.

It was a proud moment for Lovett, who is an admirer of lead singer Chrissie Hynde.

This was capped when she declared to the audience: “No one likes playing arenas. I wish all gigs were like this.”

With Omeara selling out 85% of its shows in its first three months, Lovett is optimistic about the industry’s future. “People can be very quick to be all doom and gloom about the UK’s live music scene but there are a number of places opening up which are proving really popular and it shows the appetite is still there.

I really don’t see a declining culture. This is a big time for London’s nightlife.”

Music venues that support both established artists and bands just starting out are important, but for those who enjoy playing music as a hobby, venues like The Doodle Bar are an asset.

Talented amateur musicians and jamming nights take place in the rough arches at the back of the bar’s new home in Bermondsey, which has become one of Southwark’s most popular night spots since its move from Battersea in August 2016.

Conceived as a pop-up bar in 2008, when the trend for temporary venues first emerged, The Doodle Bar was so-named because the founders encouraged patrons to draw on the furniture and walls, providing a “blank canvas” for people to express their creativity – a concept it has retained in its new base.

The Doodle Bar moved when its former home inside a Victorian dairy warehouse in Battersea was sold for redevelopment The prospect of moving was daunting but for general manager Jasmin Ford, there have been many advantages: “There’s better public transport,” she says. “We’re much more centrally located in London now and it’s great working with Southwark Council who are very supportive and enthusiastic, inviting us to networking events where we meet with illustrators and other people who might have something to offer.”

Ford has seen an eclectic, diverse clientele in the bar since the move. Whether its sketching or live music, she believes the appetite for arts in the area is strong. “We have a great music night, set up by a really enthusiastic young guy and a lot of local talent keen to get involved,” she says.

“There is definitely a desire for this sort of thing and we exist to give people the freedom to experiment and help struggling artists get where they want to be.”

Capturing The Doodle Bar is another scoop for Southwark, where the range and quality of cultural destinations is diversifying and improving all the time. issue

17 Summer 2017 23

music

LEFT: Yaaba Funk bring their funk Afro fusion sounds to the CLF. RIGHT: Lady Wray, who has recorded with Missy Elliot, takes to the stage.

BELOW: Dirty Dozen Brass Band perform at The South London Soul Train night in March.

CLF ART CAFE, BUSSEY BUILDING In 2015, one of Peckham’s most popular music venues – the CLF Art Café at Bussey Building – faced closure. But the fight for its future on the Copeland estate took just five days to gain enough support to stop the site being redeveloped into luxury apartments.

It was not the first time the building had been under threat. The Bussey Building – so-called because it was once used to advertise sporting goods manufacturer Bussey and Co – was subject to demolition in 2009, when a planning application by Transport for London was put forward to turn it into a tram depot.

A much-publicised campaign to save it was led by community engagement group, Peckham Vision, which the CLF Art Café’s creative director, Mickey Smith, has high praise for: “It makes such a difference to have groups who are supportive of what we do,” he says. Smith continued to develop the venue and in 2011 secured a license for the premises for the next three to four years.

Established in 2007, the CLF Art Café’s success was instantaneous. One of its first events late that summer saw 120 bands play over three days attracting around 2,000 people from the area and beyond.

Since then it has become a much-loved part of Peckham’s nightlife – so what is the secret to this longevity? “From the very beginning it was really important to create an environment where people felt happy, relaxed and safe,” explains Smith. “We think very carefully about the music we curate.

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There’s a natural inclination for people who are attracted to the sort of thing we put on to be very positive, so the vibe of the place has just grown from that. We’re not driven by profit and there’s a lot of love that goes into programming and scheduling because we’re so passionate about what we do.”

Talk of gentrification has been applied to Peckham, but Smith doesn’t see it that way.

“When we started, gang members would turn up, but as soon as they realised that the vibe in the room was completely unthreatening, they found it wasn’t for them.

“I suppose some might say the place has lost a bit of its edge, but the way I see it is that if you create something positive, then you’re going to attract the right sort of people and that change is a positive thing. Peckham has always been at the forefront of different trends and fashions.”

The CLF Art Café is home to what some regard as the “world’s biggest soul night”, The South London Soul Train. Jazz has been a mainstay too, with Smith booking star names including Brian Jackson and Soweto Kinch.

His excitement is building over grassroots musicians coming forward.

“There are so many talented people recording and performing right now,” he enthuses. “It’s brilliant to be able to give them a platform.”

This positive ethos, says Smith, has secured the CLF’s future: “If you look after people, success is likely to follow.”

EDUCATION TO PERFORM Music students are benefitting from new Southwark facilities such as the London College of Creative Media’s (LCCM) new home, The Music Box, which is being developed by Taylor Wimpey. This will open in October 2017.

It will provide music students at the Union Street college with a 200-capacity venue, to be used for lectures, performances, recitals and tuition.

Geoff Hemsley, head of resources at LCCM, explains: “The space will allow our students to perform gigs and deliver recitals, but will also be a platform for music to be heard from songwriters and new bands.”

What can people expect to hear at The Music Box? “Expect a cross-section of music and performance,” says Hemsley.

“LCCM is a broad-minded college. If it’s good, it will be heard.”

Southwark is an attractive proposition for those studying music. London South Bank University opened its microsite for Elephant Studios in SE1 in 2016, for use by students and media professionals working in film, music and photography.

Another music venue is planned for the University of the Arts’ London College of Communication, which, according to the masterplan by architect Allies and Morrison, will feature performances to audiences of up to 500 people.

New small capacity venues proposed for Elephant and Castle include another 500-capacity jazz venue inspired by Ronnie Scott’s in Soho, proposed for Black Pearl’s development at 18 Blackfriars. A planning application and further details are expected soon.

Lost Rivers Brewing Company has recently established yet another place for music lovers in Elephant and Castle.

Constructed from recycled shipping containers, the venue is split over different levels and hosts live bands, DJs, art, comedy and urban theatre.

As well as buildings, the council is keen to promote live music with festivals and events across the borough.

Examples this year include the live stages at the MERGE festival, the Peckham Rye Music Festival in Copeland Park across two weekends in May, and Plaza Latina, with acts from 19 different Latin American countries performing in Nursery Row Park. southwarkmagazine.com

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Creating tomorrow’s spaces

Since 2009, we have completed seventeen schemes, delivering 1.5 million sq ft at a 38% profit on cost.

The current development pipeline comprises fourteen schemes, covering a record 43% of our existing portfolio. All of it is within a five minute walk of a Crossrail, mainline or tube station.

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Unlocking potential

Projects

projects A milestone has been reached for Elephant and Castle town centre plans and development projects throughout Southwark are making significant progress

Blackfriars Bridge

9 Waterloo East

Waterloo

Bankside 3

6

London Bridge

5

Southwark

Rotherhithe

Borough

4

1

Canada Water

Bermondsey

Elephant and Castle

7

Kennington

South Bermondsey

2

Burgess Park Oval

8

Camberwell

New Cross Gate

Peckham Queens Road

Peckham Rye

Featured project Rail / underground / overground station

1. ELEPHANT AND CASTLE TOWN CENTRE

6. VINOPOLIS REDEVELOPMENT

2. AYLESBURY SQUARE

7. 1-3 ODESSA STREET

3. LANDSEC BANKSIDE SCHEMES

8. PECKHAM LIBRARY SQUARE

4. CANADA WATER

9. 18 BLACKFRIARS ROAD

5. 25 LAVINGTON STREET southwarkmagazine.com

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Projects

ELEPHANT AND CASTLE TOWN CENTRE Developer Delancey, working with Southwark Council, has submitted an application to continue its plans to create a new town centre for Elephant and Castle.

According to the developer, the new destination will have up-to-date transport links, premium shopping, new homes to rent, enhanced public spaces and cultural offerings, “alongside a new cutting-edge campus for use by the University of the Arts London’s (UAL) College of Communication”.

The new town centre will be the focal point and cornerstone of the wider £3 billion regeneration in Elephant and Castle.

Integral to Southwark’s wider regeneration plan, the redevelopment includes the creation of a new pedestrianised town centre, a market square, 5,000 new homes, new retail, educational and leisure space, an integrated public transport hub and new green space.

The shopping centre (phase two) will 30 issue 17 summer 2017

be redeveloped to include a range of high street and independent retailers, enhanced restaurant and leisure opportunities as well as the campus for UAL’s London College of Communication.

This will sit alongside a new Northern line tube entrance and ticket hall and will connect the new Elephant and Castle town centre and the wider developments underway in the area.

Plans also include 1,000 new homes for the rental market, with part of this ambition already underway on Elephant Road.

The shopping centre is owned by a 50/50 joint venture between Delancey’s client fund, DV4 and APG, which is a Dutch pension fund asset manager.

APG manages €439 billion (January 2017) in pension assets for its clients. The Elephant Road site is owned in a consortium between Delancey’s client fund, DV4, APG and Qatari Diar.

Projects

AYLESBURY SQUARE Notting Hill Housing Trust, in partnership with Southwark Council, is progressing with the Aylesbury estate regeneration, following the signing of a new delivery agreement.

Demolition is currently under way across two sites for the first phase, which will deliver 900 new homes and community facilities.

Overall, the masterplan is for 3,500 new homes, 50% of which will be allocated as affordable, with 75% of the affordable units to be let at social rents when completed in 2032.

Aylesbury Square, located within the central northern section of the Aylesbury estate, will create a community and retail hub centred on a new civic square.

Together with 122 new homes, some of which are dedicated to the over 55s, there will be a health centre, library, early years nursery, retail units and community facilities all designed to the highest architectural quality.

southwarkmagazine.com

133 PARK STREET AND 105 SUMNER STREET, BANKSIDE On land at the back of the Tate Modern, and near the historical site of the Shakespearean 16th Century Rose Playhouse, developer Landsec has recently secured planning consent for a commercial scheme in two buildings: one of nine, and one of 10 storeys.

The site at 133 Park Street and 105 Sumner Street is currently home to a single storey warehouse, open car park and one building of three and four storeys.

Landsec’s proposed new development would be arranged around a central courtyard creating a special landscaped space for office workers. Similarly to Neo Bankside and 185 Park Street, it would provide a public route through the site to provide another key connection to the river.

Natalie Essa, Landsec development manager, says: “We haven’t developed in the Southwark area since we completed Bankside 123 in the early 2000s, and since then a lot has changed.

“The area is now a destination in its own right and benefits from great transport links and amenities. We expect the scheme to appeal to a diverse occupier base, ideal for those businesses looking for a workplace outside of the City or West End, and one that is fit for the future.”

Landsec is working on the scheme along with architects Piercy&Company.

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Projects

CANADA WATER One of London’s largest regeneration projects, British Land’s masterplan to redevelop 18.6-ha (46 acres) at Canada Water, is entering its final phase.

In May, drop-in exhibitions for the masterplan were held in Surrey Quays shopping centre, the heart of the £2 billion scheme. It aims to create a new waterfront town centre, 3,500 homes, offices, shops, restaurants, public spaces – including a 1.2-ha park – a cultural and leisure centre and a new campus for King’s College London.

Along with the shopping centre, the site, which took over five years to assemble, is made up of the Surrey Quays Leisure Park, and also the SE16 Printworks – a site where the London Evening Standard and Daily Mail newspapers were printed, which is now a music and arts venue (see page 21).

This latest consultation follows the February 2016 Draft Masterplan Consultation, and discussions with key statutory stakeholders and potential future occupiers.

At the various stages of the masterplan review, changes were made to the plans to get, what the British Land website describes as “the most of the opportunities that

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the combined site provides; challenging earlier design assumptions, looking at ways to respond further to consultation and researching new innovative approaches.

“In this time, the team has also been speaking to potential occupiers, has purchased the historic dock offices and has been working on some exciting projects locally.”

Overall, the development has the potential for 550,000sq m of mixed-use space that will be delivered in a number of phases.

As a designated London Opportunity Area, Canada Water will benefit from transport upgrades including a cycling and pedestrian bridge across the Thames to Canary Wharf.

British Land hopes to submit planning by the end of this year.

In a separate development, Sellar, in partnership with Notting Hill Housing, is building a mixed-use scheme of 1,000 homes and retail on 3.2ha as part of the wider Canada Water regeneration.

Proposals are to redevelop the Decathlon site, which will give a town centre focus for Canada Water and is set to include more retail, a cinema, open space, children’s play areas as well as residential.

Projects

25 LAVINGTON STREET The proposed development by Gaterule, and architect Allies and Morrison, is for a mixed-use 0.6-ha site which sits alongside the recently developed Crane Building , Citizen M, Metal Box Factory and Pure Bankside.

Plans include 171 apartments spread across three buildings ranging in height from eight, 13 and 21 storeys. Three three-storey mews houses are also part of the residential element.

The development delivers more of the classic Bankside mixed-use formula, with buzzy ground floor restaurants and retail, a significant new office address and highquality homes. Crucially, the development enables the further opening up of the Low Line, Southwark’s answer to New York’s High Line, with new public routes and piazzas opening up connections to the viaduct.

The site is a key opportunity, on a former print works building constructed in the 1950-60s, converted for offices, with a large area of surface car parking.

VINOPOLIS Plans for the redevelopment of Vinopolis, close to London Bridge, were approved in July last year, after the site closed its doors at the end of 2015. This April, the Section 106 agreement was signed, with work now starting on site.

Since opening in 1999, the one-hectare wine experience and event space underneath railway arches on the edge of Borough Market has hosted 1,280,000 visitors, including former prime minister David Cameron, actors Sir Michael Caine and Kevin Spacey and comedian James Corden, serving 560,000 bottles of wine from across the world.

The site’s owners – pan-European retail property investment manager Meyer Bergman, which has joined forces with developer Sherwood Thames Ventures – is investing £300 million into the scheme.

This will include the surrounding rail southwarkmagazine.com

arches, car park and an old warehouse.

Working with architect SPPARC, the plans are to develop a mixed-use scheme featuring a two-screen cinema and a gallery, 10,369sq m of retail space, 1,053sq m of leisure provision in the railway arches and the former Vinopolis building, as well as a new 5,761sq m office building at Thames House.

Around 1,000 jobs are expected to be created with several historical local street names revived, including Dirty Lane, Soap Yard and Clink Yard.

The new Dirty Lane will run from Clink Street in the north (through the former Cantina Vinopolis restaurant) and emerge next to Thames House in Park Street creating another vital section of Southwark’s Low Line walkway alongside the viaduct.

The former Brew Wharf on Stoney Street will become Soap Yard and provide a link to Dirty Lane through the arches. issue

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STREET VIEWS V ie W Do Wn C o M M eR C ia l P ie R W Ha R F

Projects

1-3 ODESSA STREET Commercial and residential developer Hollybrook has won planning permission to redevelop this key site, overlooking the water towards Canary Wharf. The development will enable delivery of the final piece of the Thames Path on the Rotherhithe peninsular, providing an uninterrupted route for pedestrians and cyclists.

The scheme, arranged over two buildings across a communal garden and ranging from four to 11 storeys, will provide 74 new mixedtenure homes and a restaurant/cafe. The affordable element has been purchased by the council and will be let at council rents with 50% allocated to local residents.

STREET VIEWS

V i eW aC Ro ss P o C k e T P a R k To Wa R D C a F e

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Design & Access stAtement : June 2016

1-3 ODESSA STREET, Rotherhithe

PECKHAM LIBRARY SQUARE A planning application for a new square, shopping area and 19 homes in front of Peckham Library has been submitted to Southwark Council.

Proposals involve the removal of Peckham Arch and the construction of two new buildings of four and six storeys facing Peckham High Street, with a landscaped public space in between.

One of the buildings will host 255sq m of gallery space on the ground floor and homes on the upper floors.

The other will contain 201sq m of coworking space, 82sq m of office space on the ground floor and new homes located on the other floors.

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The council states over 35% of the new homes would be allocated as affordable.

Councillor Mark Williams, cabinet member for regeneration and new homes, said: “We know there are strong feelings about the arch, which has been a landmark for the town for many years.

“When we looked at the long term plans for Peckham and the acute need for new homes, especially bigger homes for families in social housing, and affordable office and workspace, we concluded that removing the arch was the best way forward.”

The council worked with Carl Turner Architects to design the scheme, involving the local community in the process.

Projects

18 BLACKFRIARS ROAD What was formerly 20 Blackfrairs Road, and is now 18 Blackfriars Road – the mixed-use development by Jersey-based Black Pearl, and designed by WilkinsonEyre – is to add more towers to Southwark’s growing collection.

With the application submitted in February, the project will be a mix of residential, affordable housing, an office tower, retail and cultural spaces.

Proposals are for four levels of basement and six buildings ranging from five to 52 storeys providing: 34,606sq m of office space; a 548-room hotel; 288 residential units; 3,320sq m retail and a restaurant; a music venue (see page 25); storage; new landscaping and public realm; reconfigured vehicle and pedestrian access along with associated works to public highway; ancillary servicing and plant, car parking and associated works.

The 0.8-ha site is surrounded by Stamford Street, Colombo Street and Christ Church, Blackfriars Road and Paris Gardens.

According to the WilkinsonEyre website, the improved public realm around the buildings is intended to create a new cultural hub within Southwark, and form part of a chain of public spaces along the south bank of the River Thames.

WilkinsonEyre’s involvement in the development of 20 Blackfriars Road began in 2002 when J Sainsbury Developments appointed the firm to investigate the redevelopment potential of two buildings on Stamford Street. When this land and an adjoining plot fronting on to Blackfriars Road was acquired by Landsec in 2003, WilkinsonEyre was retained as architect and briefed to develop a commercial office tower.

The site has an extant planning consent granted in March 2009 for a mixed-use commercial and residential scheme of two towers: a 23-storey office tower and 42 storey residential tower and lower rise buildings of up to seven storeys.

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Play in parks

FITTER, HAPPIER

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Play in parks

Promoting healthy lifestyles is high on the agenda in Southwark, where the council has spent millions creating, upgrading and maintaining open spaces to help residents and workers to lead a more active life.

Noella Pio Kivlehan looks at the results

EVERY SATURDAY AT 9AM, come rain or shine in Burgess Park, hundreds of runners tighten their trainers to take part in Parkrun.

In Southwark, the free nationwide running club meetings are held in Burgess, Peckham Rye, Southwark, and Dulwich parks.

And on the Saturday before April’s 2017 London marathon, a field of 1,500 runners flowed around these four flagship green spaces. It was a record for the runs, and what Chris Raveney, event director for Burgess Parkrun, calls “the marathon effect”.

But it was not just the marathon attracting runners. It is the level of the parks’ facilities, layout, wardens and maintenance, which Raveney likens to those of a Royal Park.

Heaping praise on the council, Raveney says: “Burgess is a beautiful park and the lake is fantastic to run around. The council is really good at finding out what the public needs and presenting parks that are absolutely brilliant.”

In and out of recession times, Southwark Council has been consistently supporting open spaces of many size and shapes. There are 130 parks and open spaces in Southwark, making it one of the greenest London boroughs. Of these, 25 hold Green Flag Awards. (see panel, page 43) Investments go beyond parks and open areas themselves, to support for other schemes in the borough including Bankside Outdoor Spaces Trust and Grow Elephant – a community garden and cafe on the site of the now demolished Heygate estate at Elephant and Castle. southwarkmagazine.com

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Play in parks

THIS PAGE: Runners in Burgess Park (top) and new gym equipment with views of The Shard in Mint Street Park (bottom).

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The reason for the continued investment and support is clear: promotion of the health and well-being of local residents – adults and children alike – by providing top quality outdoor space.

Southwark suffers from one of the highest overweight and obesity rate levels in the country. In May the council’s Health and Wellbeing Board considered a report which stated 56% of adults and 42% of children (year 6) were classified as obese or overweight.

Last year obesity costs to the borough and local economy were predicted to be £127 million, a 21% increase on 2015.

Solving the problem has become a priority for council leader Peter John, and his colleagues.

Councillor Maisie Anderson, recent cabinet member for public health, parks and leisure, has said: “Everyone has a role to play in empowering our residents to be healthier.

Southwark should be a place in which ‘the healthy choice is the easier choice’. Tackling healthy weight truly is everybody’s business.”

“The council recognises the value of green spaces and strives to fund them,” says John Wade, principal service development manager at Southwark Council. “We have faced cuts, but not significant cuts compared to other boroughs, because the council knows the importance of mental health and wellbeing and we know the majority of people in the borough don’t have their own gardens.”

Continued regeneration in the borough over the last few years has not only helped in getting additional money from developers, but also in creating new green spaces, such as Elephant Park at Elephant and Castle.

“We are lucky in that we have regeneration and can use funding and capital to make improvements,” says Wade. “We also have very good officers, and a very good contract in terms of maintenance – there’s no point spending all that money and not looking after the areas it is spent in.”

Some of the council’s most recent standout upgraded areas are Nelson Square, just off Blackfriars Road, St Mary’s Churchyard, Burgess Park, Mint Street park, the Peabody Square estate at Blackfriars, and Peckham Rye Park.

When it comes to open spaces, Southwark could be described as a borough of two halves: the north is more densely populated with little green space; the south is home to the major four parks, and many other green areas.

For this reason, the redevelopment of Nelson Square in the north of the borough was critical.

Costing £650,000 of section 106 funding from nine different agreements, work on the square centred around new play areas and adventure equipment.

Play in parks

THE COUNCIL RECOGNISES THE VALUE OF GREEN SPACES AND STRIVES TO FUND THEM

Overseeing the project, Max Nakrani, park services development officer at the council, says: “The demographic in the square is quite mixed, particularly for the younger residents – so the need ranged from zero to teens. You have an under-five’s play area, then something for the older children such as football and basketball. There is an outdoor gym, which is a new addition. There is a table tennis table, as well as a sunken trampoline.”

Further money will be invested into the north of the borough with a new athletics track and cafe to be installed in Southwark Park. This is part of the local authority’s “Top Quality Play Pledge”, which includes investment of £2 million for an urban games area in Burgess Park and general improvements to Leyton Square.

A mile from Blackfriars Road, the building of Lendlease’s 37-storey One The Elephant, a residential tower block at Elephant and Castle, helped fund the £20 million stateof-the-art leisure facility, The Castle Centre.

Opened in October last year, the centre offers free swim and gym for local residents on Fridays and at the weekend.

One The Elephant is part of St Mary’s

THIS PAGE: Children enjoy the play equipment in the Peabody Square estate, Blackfriars (top), while the Castle Centre gym (above and right) is a draw for adults. southwarkmagazine.com

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Play in parks

Quarter – one of the first phases to be completed in Elephant and Castle town centre. Meanwhile, the green space next to the leisure centre, St Mary’s Churchyard, was newly landscaped, transforming a spot of urban decay into outstanding public realm – and a source of local pride.

At Burgess Park, upgrading work is happening in three phases. The initial £8 million stage was completed in 2012, with improvements to the north and east sections.

Phase two saw the opening of the famed BMX Track London. The third phase, currently under way, sees toilet improvements, a new urban sports centre being developed, and two further play areas being added.

“Burgess Park has been transformed from a place that was badly under-used and where many parts were unsafe and deserted at night,” says Rupert King of LARK Landscape Design. “But since the investment and upgrade, the number of people using the park is incredible.”

A new adventure playground is to take centre stage in the Mint Street £500,000 redevelopment of its open space, which was due to go on-site during summer 2017, with new structures funded by the Big Lottery.

It was very much a residents’ affair with the £145,000, 18-month refurbishment of the play space and outdoor gym at the Peabody estate at Blackfriars, which reopened in April. Elizabeth Connelly, project manager, landscape regeneration and asset management for Peabody, says: “Land Use Consultants worked closely with residents to develop the scheme, ensuring the proposals provided a vibrant area the whole community can enjoy and reflected their aspirations for the estate.”

At Peckham Rye Park and Common, there has been an ongoing regeneration programme since 2015, running until summer this year, that will include work on the car park, play area, play room and landscaping.

Among the myriad of changes at Elephant and Castle is the development of performance space and a new adventure playground, which feature in plans for Elephant Park.

The council’s delivery of redevelopment is evident. But are the residents happy to use the new areas and facilities – and will it make a difference to health, particularly among children? Given that in three years, the aim behind the Southwark Healthy Weight Strategy 2016-2021 is to cut obesity for children in reception year from 26.4% to 23.6% and from 42.7% to 24.9% in the year 6 cohort – it is a heavy challenge.

While it might take four more years to see weight loss results, the parks are popular. The council’s twice-yearly satisfaction survey asks residents what they think of open spaces and 40 issue 17 summer 2017

efforts the council is making. “Our satisfaction rates are around 90%,” says Wade.

Fiona Dean, head of service parks and leisure, adds: “There is a massive programme of events and activities that take place in our parks. Burgess Park is extremely busy every weekend, while Parkrun is a keen supporter.

There’s a challenge for an inner city green space to meet the needs of all communities.

You have active recreation, people who want to go somewhere for quiet contemplation, people that might just want to walk or meet their friends. It’s a balancing act.”

“The key thing is, are our parks busy – are people using them? And the answer is ‘yes’.”

THIS PAGE: Communal gardens are part of the Grow Elephant initiative to improve the local environment and foster community spirit.

GROW ELEPHANT At Grow Elephant on the Old Kent Road, the sun is shining and inside Tropics Café, Roy the black cat – official vermin controller – is snoozing on a worn leather sofa.

The site is a pop-up community garden featuring outdoor loos, abandoned toilet bowls filled with plants, a multitude of micro allotment plots, and managed in large by volunteers.

Sitting in the sunshine at Tropics, alongside customers swigging from £3 bottles of beer, is one-third of Grow Elephant’s founders, Dublin-born but Elephant and Castle resident since 2004, Paul McGann.

Landscape architect McGann is passionate about the project, which has been going since September 2015 on land left by demolition of the Heygate estate in 2014. It has been nominated in the “Meanwhile” category at the New London Architecture awards, which were due to take place as Southwark magazine went to press. The category recognises the best temporary uses of development sites.

But there is a sense of an ending in the conversation: the site, used by local residents without gardens to grow their own vegetables in 80 1.5m x 1.5m plots, while doubling as a music, cooking and general gathering venue, has to pack up and leave in September.

Developer Lendlease, a great supporter of the community project, as is Southwark Council which pays the rent for the site on behalf of Grow Elephant, is a year ahead of its plans for the redevelopment in the area – and Lendlease needs the land.

Part of the Elephant and Castle’s regeneration, Lendlease is working with the council on delivering a £2 billion scheme on just over 11ha. Being developed in phases, Elephant Park will have 2,500 homes, a performance space, park, and adventure playground, when the final phase is finished in 2025.

Given the temporary nature of Grow Elephant, McGann is philosophical about

SINCE THE INVESTMENT AND UPGRADE, THE NUMBER OF PEOPLE USING THE PARK IS INCREDIBLE

Play in parks

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Play in parks THIS PAGE: Tropics Café at Grow Elephant sells bottles of beer for £3 (left) and peace and quiet at Red Cross Garden (main).

OPPOSITE: Strolling through Mint Street Park (top) and a shady spot at St Mary’s Quarter (bottom).

the upheaval. It was always coming, although not so soon – they were originally to have the land until 2018. Now the race is on to find a new Elephant and Castle site, the area where McGann and his Grow Elephant co-founders have run community gardens for six years.

McGann, Chris Mead and Richard Reynolds came together in 2011 to establish Mobile Gardeners, a not-for-profit enterprise created to take up the invitation by Southwark Council and Lendlease for local residents to operate a community garden in a portion of this large redevelopment zone.

Grow Elephant was another arm of Mobile Gardeners until April 2016 when the two split to allow a change in focus for the founders.

“My drive in setting up Mobile Gardeners, and Grow Elephant is that I didn’t have a garden, but wanted one,” says McGann. “We wanted the space to work as not just a garden, but a social space where people could come and have parties, gatherings and events.”

Getting a grant in the project’s first year from Southwark-based United St Saviour’s charity – the 634-year-old charity previously known as the Corporation of Wardens – allowed McGann to dedicate two days a week to Grow Elephant. The cafe now allows McGann and one other person to work onsite full time.

It is, however, what the garden has given back to local people, that has become the focus. McGann says: “Being part of the garden is free and we provide materials and tools.

People pay only for the seeds with a promise they are definitely going to use their plot. We also put on many different events. A lot of the garden is communal and every year we make a communal wild flower garden. We ask that people get involved.”

Outside of the garden, Grow Elephant, with Mobile Gardeners, has been helping other local groups – tenant’s associations, 42 issue 17 summer 2017

schools and even a club space – with their landscape, providing design advice and hands-on workshops.

Clearly, staying in the area is important.

And moving to the Bricklayers’ Arms roundabout, 100 yards from its current location, is the only site which would enable the garden to stay in Elephant and Castle.

“The council is very supportive of the proposal,” says McGann. “We are trying to see if we can agree that site – and get Transport for London’s (TfL) agreement, to have a seamless move in the autumn and keep on doing the work locally.”

McGann adds it is the last hope for a move within Elephant and Castle. “For the project to continue, we are going to have to look beyond the local area, which would be really sad because we have spent so long working

here and we have made great connections with the local estates and communities.

“But, I’d rather take the project to somewhere else than stop doing it because we know how it works, and it’s a good model. I think it could be done in lots of other places – not just by us. There could be a community garden like this in every neighbourhood – something people expect to have rather than being unusual. And that could be a great way forward for people in London.”

BANKSIDE OPEN SPACES TRUST A small group of Bankside residents and workers came together in 2000 to form environmental and volunteering charity, Bankside Open Spaces Trust (BOST).

Its mission was to clean up and make safe some 45 individual parks and green spaces

Play in parks

GREEN ZONE Green Flags recognise and reward the best parks and green spaces in England and Wales. The scheme is managed by a consortium, consisting of Keep Britain Tidy, British Trust for Conservation Volunteers and GreenSpace. It is open to any freely accessible park or green space.

that had become, in some cases, dangerously neglected. It continues to do this, by working with local people to design, maintain and protect public parks and gardens, as well as other open spaces.

“A decade ago Mint Street Park, Red Cross Garden, and Little Dorrit playground were appalling, with rough sleepers, syringes and even a burnt-out car,” says architect Tim Wood, chair of BOST. With an annual £40,000 council grant, turned into £500,000 through events, fundraising from local businesses and other bodies, the money is channelled back into the open spaces.

Such has been the success of BOST that in 2013, and 2014, the charity won the London in Bloom Champion of Champions Award for its community gardening work. In 2016 southwarkmagazine.com

the Royal Horticultural Society awarded Red Cross Garden the best small park in London, out of 2,000 in the capital.

For the local population, the benefits have been clear. Last year 6,000 hours were spent volunteering and Wood expects that to rise to 9,000 in 2017. “There’s a wellbeing aspect of getting healthy,” he says.

Part of BOST’s ongoing strategy is identifying more free land. One is the hope to turn the 0.8-ha Grotto site, part of the planned redevelopment of the Old Southwark Fire Station, on Southwark Bridge Road, into green space. “That will be a massive benefit, as it’s close to Mint Street Park,” says Wood.

Other possible sites have also been earmarked, as Wood puts it: “We are just building so much that we have to create more space for the people.”

Southwark has 25 Green Flag spaces – dates indicate how long the awards have been held: Southwark Park – 2006 Dulwich Park – 2007 Peckham Rye Park – 2007 Bermondsey Spa Gardens – 2008 Sunray Gardens – 2008 Russia Dock Woodland – 2009 Paterson Park – 2009 Brimmington Park – 2010 St Mary Frobisher park – 2011 Brunswick Park – 2011 Geraldine Mary Harmsworth Park – 2012 Leathermarket Gardens – 2012 Nunhead Cemetery – 2012 Warwick Gardens – 2012 Burgess Park – 2013 Tabard Gardens – 2013 Belair Park – 2013 Nursery Row Park – 2014 Surrey Square Park – 2014 Goose Green – 2015 Nunhead Green – 2015 Salisbury Row Park – 2015 King's Stairs Gardens –2015 Pasley Park – 2016 Victory Community Park – 2016

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17 summer 2017 43

BUILDING CONTROL SOLUTIONS Whether you’re building a dwelling extension or a complex skyscraper, Southwark Council’s building control team can help you. ►► We have dedicated and experienced building control surveyors ►► We provide advice and support for our clients and design teams ►► We take the complexity out of the technical ►► We promote and support innovative design solutions Stephen Rizzo Head of building control 020 7525 5588 Simon Harvey Group manager 020 7525 5586 Bruce Paige Group manager 020 7525 5052 building.control@southwark.gov.uk

Southwark’s regional winners in the 2017 LABC London Building Excellence Awards were the Guys Cancer Centre and South Bank Tower projects.

Skills for employment

MAKE IT WORK

How is Southwark Council delivering on its 2014 pledge to guarantee education, employment or training for every school leaver in the borough?

Marco Cillario finds out FOUR MONTHS INTO COLLEGE, Louie Meates realised it wasn’t for him and left.

Walking down Heygate Street, a few minutes from his house in Elephant and Castle, he noticed a bright orange and yellow building, standing out against the grey construction site behind it. Seeing a sign which read “Construction Skills Centre”, he decided to walk in.

Meates now spends most of his week at the centre as part of a one-and-a-half year apprenticeship, working towards a Level 2 diploma in construction operations and southwarkmagazine.com

civil engineering services in highway and maintenance.

Since Southwark Construction Skills Centre (SCSC) at Elephant Park opened in July 2016, more than 1,500 people have enrolled on apprenticeships, pre-employment courses, short-term construction qualifications and NVQs (National Vocational Qualifications).

“We really are employment led,” says the centre’s general manager, John White. “Employers tell us what they need in terms of skills and we make sure they get it.”

ABOVE: Marcel & Sons’ popular Mauritian restaurant is based in a shipping container at The Artworks Elephant.

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Skills for employment

White can already cite many examples of people who were unemployed for a long time when they enrolled and found a job within weeks of joining the centre.

The initiative was conceived as a response to one of the biggest challenges affecting the property and construction industry at the moment: skills shortages.

“There is around £12 billion of projects in the South London Tri Borough – Southwark, Lewisham and Lambeth,” says White. “At the moment we are about 25,000 skilled people short.”

Southwark Council decided to invest in the project.

Lendlease, selected as developer for the £2.3 billion, 3,000-home Elephant Park, agreed to put some land aside for the skills centre during construction at the 11.3-ha site and helped with funding.

One of the first things White did after setting up the centre was to invite local contractors: “We had them all here for an open discussion to ask them ‘what is your shortage, what do you need? Let’s sit down and put a little programme together.’”

Courses span from site carpentry to groundwork, dry lining and steel fixing.

A survey showed that pre-employment courses at SCSC have a 96% success rate, with 64% of people going into jobs or apprenticeships. White recognises there is room for improvement, but says that as a result of employers’ involvement in setting up and running the courses, success is much higher than that in traditional colleges.

Short courses and NVQs have a 92% success rate. As for apprenticeships, the centre hasn’t lived long enough yet to allow for data to be collected, but White makes the ambition clear, saying it would be considered a failure if the employment rate was not over 90%.

RIGHT: Louie Meates (middle) talks to tutors at the Southwark Construction Skills Centre (SCSC).

FAR RIGHT ABOVE: The centre’s general manager, John White.

FAR RIGHT BELOW: Those enrolled at the SCSC benefit from hands-on guidance.

46 issue 17 summer 2017

FIGHTING UNEMPLOYMENT The SCSC is part of a bigger picture. The unemployment rate in Southwark has dropped from 12.1% in December 2011 (when 18,400 residents had no job) to 7.5% at the end of 2016 (13,900 people), as shown by the most recent data (see graph, page 48).

This is still considerably higher than the national figure: unemployment in Britain hit its recession peak at 8.5% in November 2011 and was at 4.8% at the end of last year.

Yet things seem to be quickly changing: the Southwark figure fell by 1.6% in the two years to December 2016 alone (down from 9.1%) – and the UK figure decreased by 0.9% over the same period.

As part of the Council Plan 2014-2018, in July 2014 Southwark cabinet established 10 “fairer future promises”, one of which pledged to “guarantee education, employment or training for every school leaver, support 5,000 more local people into jobs and create 2,000 apprenticeships for people”.

One initiative to achieve this is Southwark Works.

Based at Elephant and Castle Shopping Centre, the employment support programme helps unemployed, young and vulnerable people find jobs by offering training, guidance and support in preparing applications.

Councillor Johnson Situ, cabinet member for business, culture and social regeneration, says more than 3,700 residents have been supported into work “and we are confident that we will deliver on that 5,000 pledge by 2018,” he adds.

Another initiative, Southwark Employment Enterprise and Development Scheme (SEEDS), is aimed at promoting apprenticeships to young people.

As part of SEEDS, if an organisation wants to take on

Skills for employment

someone aged between 16 and 25 on a one-year contract or apprenticeship, it receives a subsidy of up to 50% of that person’s salary from the council towards the £9.75 per hour wage (see graph, page 48).

In March 2017, cabinet approved another initiative to support the training of local people, announcing the council will work in partnership with London South Bank University to establish the Passmore Building on Borough Road as the new Institute for Professional and Technical Education (see news, page 13).

LOCAL JOBS

EMPLOYERS TELL US WHAT THEY NEED IN TERMS OF SKILLS AND WE MAKE SURE THEY GET IT

The number of Southwark-based jobs has increased steadily over the last few years, from just over 150,000 in 2002 to 288,000 in 2015.

Andy Ng has been a resident for 20 years and used to work in advertising as a creative director in Canary Wharf and later Soho.

Seeing an advert one day outside a petrol station in front of the Heygate estate, Ng spotted an opportunity for residents to start their own business as part of a new initiative next to Elephant and Castle tube station.

Just like SCSC, The Artworks Elephant was conceived in 2013 to bring into temporary use part of the Elephant Park site, but as a hub for mainly local businesses, hosted in shipping containers.

Together with his nephew Randy Tsang, Ng decided to take the opportunity. He says: “We always wanted to start our own business and what better place than Elephant and Castle? We live here – we want to work here.”

Charlie Fulford, who runs the venue, asked Ng and Tsang to draw up a business plan. A few hours later, the plan for Marcel & Sons, currently the only Mauritian restaurant in the area, was ready.

Up until that point, Ng and Tsang had only cooked for southwarkmagazine.com

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17 summer 2017 47

Skills for employment

ABOVE RIGHT: The SCSC is helping address Southwark’s shortage of employable people in hands-on, skilled professions.

themselves and relatives, but, with approval from Fulford, they decided to quit their jobs and fulfil their ambition to set up the restaurant.

“We had been thinking about doing this for years, but it was only when we found this spot that it became feasible,” says Tsang.

Customers can choose between four plates at the restaurant, including a vegan option and finger food – cuisine which takes influences from different places.

“Mauritian food is a melting pot of many nationalities,” Ng explains.

Sourcing ingredients from shops and traders all over Southwark, Ng travels on his bike when collecting what he needs to run the business.

Marcel & Sons was named “most loved restaurant in Elephant and Castle and Kennington” at the Time Out Love London Awards for two consecutive years in 2015 and 2016, as hundreds of thousands of people voted for their favourite venues in each area of the capital.

People now come to the restaurant from all over London and many are surprised to see how small it is – the shipping container where Marcel & Sons is based features just a few tables inside and a couple outside.

Affordability is another major draw for customers: “For the time being this is our strategy: we want to show that you can eat good food for £5-6,” says Ng. The restaurant currently has 39 neighbours – 38 businesses and a library – at The Artworks Elephant.

About 130 jobs have been created so far. Around 40% of the businesses were started by Southwark residents and about the same percentage of people employed on the site live in the borough.

Ng adds: “Elephant and Castle used to mainly be a roundabout: you wouldn’t stop here unless you were going to the Ministry of Sound or you lived here. But we are part of that movement to make people stop in the area.”

The Artworks Elephant will be in place until 2019, when construction of Elephant Park reaches that side of the site. Ng and Tsang are not sure what will happen next, but the lease they have signed says they will be helped to find new premises and move there when the time comes.

RACE TO THE TOP From young people pursuing careers in construction, to residents following their dream of bringing exotic food to their area, much is happening in Southwark.

48 issue 17 summer 2017

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE IN SOUTHWARK

Percentage, Office for National Statistics (April 2017)

14 12 10 8 6 4 2 0 2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

2016

SOUTHWARK BASED JOBS In thousands, ONS jobs density data

350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 2010

2011

2012

2013

2014

2015

The Department for Communities and Local Government ranked the borough the 17th most deprived out of 326 areas in England in 2004. Thirteen years later, it is ranked 40th. This improvement is mainly due to the progress in providing training for local people: Southwark is ranked as the 68th best area in England for education, skills and training.

In total, 4,500 more Southwark residents have gone into jobs or training over the last five years.

The target of guaranteeing education, employment or training for every school leaver might not have been reached yet, but it could soon be in sight.

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We have selected the London Borough of Southwark for two forthcoming high quality developments.

London Square Bermondsey regenerates the Rich Industrial Estate with an exciting scheme that combines homes of all tenures, public realm and a commercial hub. London Square Canada Water will be a stunning collection of 1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments, less than 10 minutes’ walk from Canada Water station.

With a £2 billion development pipeline, we are on target to dominate the London market, building 1,000 homes a year, ranging from homes for first-time buyers, to cool city apartments, smart family homes, grand restorations and conversions. Each scheme is bespoke, combining inspiring architecture, clever design and specification, and the highest standards of energy efficiency.

For more information on our portfolio or to join our award winning team, please contact us.

CALL 01895 627333 OR VISIT WWW.LONDONSQUARE.CO.UK

www.londonsquare.co.uk Computer generated images depict London Square Bermondsey, London Square Canada Water, London Square Caledonian Road and are indicative only. Details are correct at time of going to press – July 2017.

Public private partnerships

PARTNERS IN TIME It is aimed that people at the heart of Southwark will be the true beneficiaries of regeneration, with new facilities delivered through crucial and constructive partnerships between private companies and the public sector.

Lucy Clarke reports

BY TAKING CARE TO FIND the best developer for the job, communicating with potential investors and engaging with residents, Southwark Council wants to maximise the benefits of regeneration projects for families, couples, and students.

“The council can’t take on massive projects without working with the private sector because it wouldn’t be able to raise the massive amount of sums required,” Councillor Mark Williams, cabinet member for regeneration and new homes, tells Southwark magazine.

“We want to maximise the benefits of our schemes – and this will be done by partnership working.”

Williams, alongside the key investors behind some of Southwark’s most ambitious projects have big plans for the future of one of the oldest areas of London.

50 issue 17 summer 2017

Public private partnerships

PICTURED: Berkeley Homes’ plans to build more than 1,000 homes on Old Kent Road, as well as developing commercial and retail space and a public piazza.

southwarkmagazine.com

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Public private partnerships

BERKELEY HOMES The Grand Surrey Canal – built in 1807 as a trade route to the docks – is proposed as the route for a new green corridor. Opened in 1826 to transport timber to the Surrey Commercial Docks, the canal was concreted over in the 1970s to become an industrial estate that has since shut.

Berkeley Homes now aims to link the Old Kent Road to Burgess Park along a section of the old canal route, as part of a project to build new homes and make the area more accessible for people.

The developer owns Surrey Wharf, Acorn Wharf and the old Hygrade meat factory. The site – known as Malt Street – is approximately 2.2ha in size, comprising a variety of warehouse buildings.

The Old Kent Road and its surrounding area has a diverse mix of land uses. Malt Street is no different, with industrial, storage and big box retail uses to the east and west, an ASDA supermarket to the north, and the Unwin and Friary estate and Northfield House to the south.

The area is home to an active community, many of whom witnessed the transition of the area since the days of its thriving industry ended in the 1970s when the Grand Surrey Canal was filled in.

Managing director of Berkeley Homes (South East London), Harry Lewis, spoke to Southwark about development plans, which stem from London-wide planning objectives aimed at “stimulating the regeneration of the Old Kent Road and providing much-needed homes and jobs within London”.

The Old Kent Road is an area that has long been in decline as an industrial zone and there are large tracts of land which are underused.

Thanks to changes in planning policy, Lewis says Berkeley has an opportunity to bring forward a high-quality, mixed-use development which would provide homes and jobs, but also significantly improve the area for those already living and working there.

The four new stations in Transport for London’s plans will create what Lewis describes as “a zone of regeneration” across this part of south-east London.

“Over the last two years Berkeley has been in regular dialogue with the London Borough of Southwark and the Greater London Authority to bring forward a residentialled, mixed-use development at Malt Street comprising more than 1,000 homes, a landscaped linear park with public piazza and new commercial and retail space,” Lewis says.

“We have continually consulted with the local community and have held two, well-attended public exhibitions as well as workshops with local residents.

52 issue 17 summer 2017

“Berkeley is excited to be progressing its proposal at Malt Street. It will be the first large development to come forward along the Old Kent Road and will provide the design and quality benchmark for future projects in the area,” he adds.

“Our proposals will deliver a significant number of much-needed new homes for Londoners. In addition to these new homes, we will create over 200 new permanent jobs and over 1,000 jobs, including 40 training apprenticeships, during construction.

“More than 50% of the site will be given over to high-quality, vibrant public open space to benefit new and existing residents alike and provide a pedestrian-friendly haven away from the Old Kent Road.

“This will include a 250m-long linear park to link Burgess Park with the Old Kent Road, as well as a large public piazza.

“Berkeley looks forward to working with the local community and Southwark Council to bring forward an exemplary development which will act as a true catalyst for regeneration in the area.”

Lewis says Berkeley Homes will submit a planning application to Southwark Council later this year.

ALUMNO Alumno Developments’ work with universities, colleges and other stakeholders in Southwark continues to enrich the area.

The developer’s relationship with Southwark goes back to 2012, when it successfully redeveloped a series of Grade II former council office buildings on Peckham Road, close to Southwark Town Hall, for Camberwell College of Art students.

Alumno also delivered modern student residences for University of the Arts London (UAL) at Hampton Street, Elephant and Castle in 2013.

As a result, when it came to the redevelopment of Southwark Town Hall, Alumno was the natural partner to give the site a new lease of life by creating student accommodation.

Crucial to this task would be to retain the building’s historic character as well as enhance the area’s emergence as an arts hub and cultural destination.

“Our proposal for the town hall took a fresh approach, which respected the history and character of existing buildings, but aimed to mark a new phase of history for this important site within the local community,” says Alumno Developments’ managing director David Campbell.

However, Alumno’s plan went far beyond providing a high quality and practical student living environment and preserving the

character of the old town hall building, it has also provided major benefits to the local community.

To create local jobs and investment opportunities, artists’ studios are located on the ground and lower ground floor levels for use by students and local creatives.

They feature plenty of natural light, easy access from the street, high ceilings and lots of floor space.

In addition, student residents and the passing public are able to gather in the cafe gallery, situated on the ground floor level of the main town hall building, which is run by a local arts and community organisation. This is operated by Spike + Earl, which also has an outlet in Peckham Rye, The Old Spice.

Alumno also joined forces with nearby Theatre Peckham, which offers performing arts classes to three to 18 year-olds, to improve its facilities. Alumnus include John Boyega, who has achieved stellar fame with Star Wars and now Woyzeck at The Old Vic.

Public private partnerships

LEFT AND ABOVE Alumno Developments has transformed the former Southwark Town Hall into space for arts students in the area.

BELOW: Communal space allows for collaboration and co-working at the site.

Plans included providing improved access to the venue, two new studios, a box office, new visitor facilities, offices, an entrance foyer and a refurbished performance space, while enhancing its overall presence.

“The new theatre will be great for the local community and is bound to increase interest in the arts,” said Theatre Peckham’s artistic director Teresa Early.

“What’s more, our historic buildings are very important, so I welcome the renovation of the town hall and look forward to having a pool of young artistic talent on our doorstep, who I think should have a natural affinity with our theatre.”

Campbell said: “A lot of our initial projects really got off the ground because the council was prepared to give us the time, a platform and space to develop our ideas.

“As a young developing business at that time, it was critical to our success and I would hope other people would have that experience as well.” southwarkmagazine.com

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Public private partnerships

ST MARY’S QUARTER St Mary’s Quarter has been transformed with the newly landscaped St Mary’s Churchyard and the state-of-the art Castle leisure centre gym, alongside two new developments at One The Elephant and 80 Newington Butts.

On 7 March 2017, final figures were released around the sale of a brand new building at Elephant and Castle and the council confirmed it will receive £22 million from the deal.

One The Elephant is a landmark, 37-storey building on the southern junction at Elephant and Castle, built by Lendlease as part of the overall regeneration of the area.

As part of the deal with Lendlease, Southwark Council agreed not to demand affordable housing on the site but instead take a share of the profits to pay for a leisure centre for the community.

Originally the deal was expected to raise around £12.5 million to go towards payment 54 issue 17 summer 2017

of the new leisure centre. But between the sale of the land, Section 106 agreements and the overage amount, Southwark Council has received enough to pay for the entire £20 million Castle leisure centre, and an extra £2 million that will be added to the council’s budget for new council homes.

Councillor Mark Williams says: “The pool at the old leisure centre was out of action from the mid-1990s and the rest of the centre was on its last legs. With local people crying out for a new pool and leisure centre, we decided the best way to ensure local people benefited from the development was to agree the profit share, with the funds going directly to pay for the much-needed new leisure centre.

“It’s now fantastic to see The Castle leisure centre open with so many people using and enjoying this public facility.

“The agreement with Lendlease for One The Elephant was based on the same principles as our agreement with them on the former Heygate site development, and

it clearly paid off, as we not only covered the costs of our new centre, but have additional funds to help us build new council homes in the Elephant and Castle area.

“We truly want to put the streets back and put the town centre back. The area used to be the Piccadilly of the south but we lost that in the 60s. Now we have an inward-looking place and we want to stitch it back into the area,” adds Williams.

“We want people to walk out of the brand new tube station and filter through this fantastic open air shopping area, or go under the railway duct and into the biggest park created in 70 years.

“St Mary’s Quarter is the first part of the puzzle and it’s through a robust partnership with Lendlease that we can make it happen.

“We are the planning authority so we set the rules but we’re also the regeneration team.

We want to maximise the benefits from this scheme, including jobs – and that is done through partnership working.”

Public private partnerships

ABOVE: St Mary’s Quarter has seen a leisure centre and housing built, delivered in a parternship between Lendlease and Southwark Council.

RIGHT: The 37-storey One the Elephant residential tower is located across from the shopping centre.

southwarkmagazine.com

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17 summer 2017 55

Public private partnerships PICTURED: Meyer Bergman is planning the latest Bankside destination.

MEYER BERGMAN Elsewhere in the borough, real estate investment and fund management firm Meyer Bergman has been granted planning permission for a mixed-use development of the former wine-tasting venue Vinopolis, based in Bankside.

The development site spans the railway arches bounded by Thames House, Stoney Street, Clink Street and Park Street, as well as the land between the railway viaduct and Wine Wharf.

The scheme includes offices, shops, restaurants, a cinema and gallery space.

In addition, a network of new pedestrian routes, including covered walkways, will run along the railway viaducts at the north-south route, linking the offices and shops.

The redevelopment of Vinopolis and Thames House is set to enhance the exciting 56 issue 17 summer 2017

regeneration of London Bridge and Bankside, a destination which already features landmark buildings such as the Tate Modern art gallery and The Shard.

The scheme intends to provide an attractive mix of retail and leisure that aims to complement neighbouring foodie hotspots such as Borough Market.

George Walsh Waring, principal at Meyer Bergman, says: “The redevelopment of the Vinopolis site is being undertaken with Southwark residents and local workers in mind.

“Much care and respect is being paid to the area’s unique character, and we are working to curate the tenant mix in a way which will complement the local offering.

“We envision that the area will become an inviting social space for residents and visitors alike, providing an array of amenities to suit all needs.”

BAKERLOO LINE With public consultation having ended in April 2017, the extension of the Bakerloo line from Elephant and Castle to Lewisham – with two new stations in Old Kent Road – is set to propel a rather unglamorous swathe of Southwark to property hotspot status.

If a decision is made to implement the scheme and funding is secured, construction could start in 2023 with services running by around 2029.

“An extension of the line to Lewisham via the Old Kent Road and New Cross Gate has been chosen as the best option,” a Transport for London spokesman told Southwark.

“The route would receive a frequent tube service, improving journey times for customers and providing better connections.

“Elephant and Castle needs a larger station to accommodate the increase in services.”

THE TRANSFORMATION OF THE FORMER SOUTHWARK TOWN HALL AND THEATRE PECKHAM

BY ALUMNO DEMONSTRATES THAT PLACEMAKING BELONGS TO EVERYONE Alumno and their main contractor HG Construction have completed the radical and visionary redesign of the former Southwark Town Hall, now known as the Alumno Building. The images highlight how this approach to placemaking, drives a process through which we work together to shape our public spaces. The Alumno approach is rooted in community-based participation, and involves the planning, design, management and programming of shared use spaces. We have successfully delivered student housing and mixed use developments throughout the UK for the past 10 years and we have used this experience to fully realize the potential of the town hall building.

Alumno more than just designed the spaces, our placemaking strategy for the town hall brings together diverse people and organizations to improve a community’s cultural, economic and social offering. We have ensured that the key principles are adhered to; making the building visionary, adaptable, inclusive, creating a destination, and putting function before form.

The town hall aims to make a place and demonstrate that people of all ages, abilities, and socio-economic backgrounds can not only access and enjoy a place, but also play a key role in its identity, creation and ongoing sustainability.

The Alumno Building opened in September and provides a new home for students studying at the world famous Goldsmiths, University of London and affordable artists studios managed

by SPACE studios. The building also provides a new, modern and state of the art children’s theatre for “Theatre Peckham”. This includes a fully functional auditorium and theatre space and new large rehearsal studios. Theatre Peckham will continue to provide and run courses and workshops which offer significant opportunities to local young people to engage with the creative arts from an early age.

Alumno Developments Ltd 2nd Floor, 10 Frith Street London W1D 3JF T. 020 7434 2384 www.alumnodevelopments.com

Sitematch

LIFE AT THE DOCKS

The redevelopment of South Dock Marina SE16 will create homes, retail, public space and improved boat facilities.

Marco Cillario reports

SHIPSHAPE: Subject to public consultations, plans to transform the South Dock Marina will improve facilities and see new homes created.

Southwark Council is looking for a development partner for South Dock Marina to create around 200 homes and improve the boat yard facilities at the site.

Part of the Southwark Regeneration in Partnership programme, the scheme would also include retail and parking space.

The homes would be of mixed tenure including units for private sale, social rent and intermediate housing.

A statement released by the council said that key to the proposal is the requirement to protect the boatyard’s operation and provide a new public park and marinarelated workspace.

Since July 2015, a series of public consultation events have been held on the designs by Adam Khan Architects.

According to the latest proposals on show, the plan would deliver 193 homes in five buildings between three and seven storeys and a 28-floor tower.

The proposed mix of tenures envisages 49 homes for social rent, 20 for intermediate rent and 131 for sale. One, two and three-bedroom flats are expected to be delivered, including wheelchair units.

As part of the plans, St George’s Square would be extended to become a riverside urban park. A new restaurant, cafe and store would open on the site.

58 issue 17 summer 2017

Improvements are proposed for the Plough Way roundabout and the Thames footpath.

The marina would also be improved, with modernised facilities for berth holders, a new community space with a roof terrace and a business and enterprise hub.

The redevelopment would address the impact on residents from boatyard noise, dust and fumes.

This version of the plans was the subject of a drop-in exhibition in September 2016.

During the event, stakeholders made comments on the density, the design, parking, the public realm and the commercial viability of the boatyard.

A spokesperson for the council said all comments had been recorded and will be considered after a developer is appointed.

An invitation to tender was about to be issued as Southwark magazine went to press. A contract will be awarded by November 2017.

The appointed developer will be expected to take the lead in further consultations and the detailed design of the scheme.

For more details, please contact Southwark housing regeneration manager, Prince Kamanda: prince.kamanda@southwark.gov.uk

...brokered 324 meetings with 27 public sector landowners in 2017, stimulating London’s growth.

SITEMATCH LONDON 2017 WAS THE BIGGEST AND BEST EVER. 2018 Here’s what our delegates have to say:

will be

bigger Are you confident the event will lead to further meetings/discussions?

than ever.

Did you make new and useful contacts?

Did you discover new sites/developers of interest?

Don’t be the missing piece.

93% YES

7% NO

100% YES

86% YES

14% NO

– 16.30, 8 February 2018place at The next08.30 Sitematch London is taking 155 Bishopsgate, London,8EC2M 3YD 2018.

155 Bishopsgate on Thursday February

SITEMATCHLONDON.COM

To find out about booking meetings with local authorities, networking passes and attending briefing sessions contact Josie Brewer josie@3foxinternational.com To attend as a local authority, become an adviser or sponsor

To find out about booking meetings with local authorities, contact Paul Gussar networking passes and attending briefing sessions paul@3foxinternational.com contact Josie Brewer: josie@3foxinternational.com To attend as a local authority, become an adviser or sponsor contact Paul Gussar: paul@3foxinternational.com

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