Southwark magazine #20 by 3Fox

southwark

Committed to London’s future

Protect and preserve In a fast developing borough, heritage matters – retaining and restoring a proud history

Top of the table Famed buildings, creative culture, passionate people: the best of Southwark

Alternative view Seeing Southwark differently: the lesserknown side of a towering tourism offer

World’s a stage Mountview Theatre Academy opens in Peckham, inspiring opportunities abound

southwark

We create in-demand London spaces that people want to be part of; helping our occupiers, local communities and the city to thrive.

Issue 20 Winter 2018

www.gpe.co.uk

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Bakerloo backing Proposals to extend the London Underground line could mean three new Southwark tube stations

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RETROSPECTIVE RENAISSANCE

Looking back on the impact of development; ambitions for future growth, investment in infrastructure

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MALT STREET LONDON SE1

An exciting new green place for everyone www.berkeleygroup.co.uk Proud to be a member of the Berkeley Group of companies

Prices and details correct at time of going to press. Computer Generated Image is indicative only.

Berkeley are passionate about creating amazing new spaces to live, work and enjoy.

Our plans for our new site along the Old Kent Road will deliver up to 1,300 new homes, many of them affordable homes, alongside 75,000 sq ft of industrial, commercial and retail space and a 250m long brand new linear park for the whole community to enjoy. Over half of the site will be public open space with a large central piazza and green streets to enhance pedestrian and cyclist permeability in the area. We are also creating generous new employment spaces to provide a 400% increase in jobs on site. We are proud to be working with Southwark Council to create a fantastic new place for all.

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Working with the London Borough of Southwark to create a vibrant, inclusive, mixed-use development at Canada Water

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Find out more at: www.canadawatermasterplan.com www.britishland.com

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Grosvenor: A long term partner for Bermondsey Drawing on over 300 years of expertise and commitment to London, we want to help create in Bermondsey one of the capitalâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s greatest neighbourhoods for people of mixed incomes, backgrounds and life stages. We have a ÂŁ500 million investment plan for the site of the former Peek Frean Biscuit Factory and Lewisham and Southwark College to host up to 1,343 new rental homes for locals and Londoners alongside a new school as well as employment, retail, cultural and open spaces.

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contents 40 hidden attractions From inspired engineering, surgical history and prison museums – to hangouts for arcade game devotees and city farms, some of Southwark’s best kept secrets are revealed.

09 Introduction Southwark’s 20th edition. 12 news Updates on awards, art, housing and refurbishments. 29 tube extension Plans to extend the Bakerloo line into Southwark, with three new stations proposed. 34 ways to work The way we work is changing – how is this being facilitated?

46 heritage Regeneration is not just about the new – how can Southwark’s heritage best be retained for the future benefit of residents? 51 projects A look at the major development schemes under way and how they are transforming Southwark. 60 theatre Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts has opened in Peckham – we speak to the facility’s executive director and joint CEO.

18 retrospective How has Southwark transformed since the magazine was first published in 2005?

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF James Renoux-Wood NEWS AND DIGITAL EDITOR Natalie Vincent 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 Renzo Piano handmade sketch of the Shard by Renzo Piano Building Workshop IMAGES Lars Plougmann, Farrells, Phil Goodson, Morley Von Sternberg, Renzo Piano Building Workshop, Nathan Clarke, Iwan Baan, Everyone Active, Tim Crocker, David Tothill, Paladar, mauritius images GmbH / Alamy, Make Shift Community, Ark Globe Academy, James Smith / Featureflash, Southwark Council, Alan Camp Architects / Brisac Gonzalez / Glass Canvas, Lewis Khan, Workspace, Edmund Sumner, James Jones, Andy Rogan, Old Operating Theatre Museum, Kirkaldy Testing Museum, Steve James (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0), Alex Wright, The Clink, Peter Taylor Associates Ltd, Peckham Platform, Rod Williams / Alamy, Classic Images / Alamy, Ed Reeve / SPPARC, WilkinsonEyre, Meyer Bergman, Native Land, Ellie Ramsden Sunley House, Bedford Park, Croydon CR0 2AP PUBLISHED BY T 020 7978 6840 W 3foxinternational.com SUBSCRIPTIONS AND FEEDBACK southwarkmagazine.com southwarkmagazine.com

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FSC CARBON NEUTRAL ©3Fox International Limited 2018 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. issue

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PROUD TO BE INVESTING IN SOUTHWARK INTRODUCING LONDON SQUARE BERMONDSEY

London Square focuses on prime locations with good transport links – places where people want to live. London Square Bermondsey is a perfect example, regenerating the Rich Industrial Estate with an exciting scheme that spans 4.7 acres, and combines homes of all tenures, public realm and a commercial hub. The Sales Suite and Show Apartments are now open and showcase the new build and warehouse style 1, 2 and 3 bedroom apartments exceptionally. 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. For more information on our portfolio or to join our award winning team, please contact us.

CALL 01895 627 333 OR VISIT WWW.LONDONSQUARE.CO.UK Computer generated image depicts London Square Bermondsey and is indicative only. Photography depicts the Sales Suite and The Crosse Show Apartment at London Square Bermondsey. Details are correct at time of going to press – November 2018.

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southwark

FACTS NOT OPINIONS “Facts not opinions” is a motto inscribed by David Kirkaldy above his 99 Southwark Street workshop. The Scottish engineer dedicated his life to ensure that building and construction materials were rigorously and objectively tested – to build on fact and not opinion. One-hundred-and-forty-five years later, the carved motto proudly welcomes visitors, and in 2018, this advice feels for more relevant than ever. In this edition, we shine a spotlight on our approach to heritage, and the unique buildings which contribute to making Southwark so distinctive. We are extremely proud to welcome the arrival of Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts to its new state-of-the-art home in the heart of Peckham. We have developed a strong partnership with Mountview, with an exciting range of ways that local residents can learn, work or visit a dynamic academy, whose actors go on to perform in 70% of all West End shows. Regeneration is an organic process which rightly takes time, and in this special 20th edition, we take a look back at some of the changes since the first issue was produced back in 2005. A key common thread which has enabled projects to happen over the last 20 editions has been the Jubilee Line extension. We are now working hard to bring the Bakerloo line extension to the Old Kent Road, and we bring you up-to-date on our campaign to open three new tube stations, and how this will directly improve the lives of our residents. Who knew that SE1 has the densest concentration of clean tech startup businesses in Europe? We focus on the variety of affordable workspaces which have been created across the borough, and the exciting sustainability cluster emerging around London Bridge. From theatres to tube stations to affordable workspaces: everything we do is to enable our residents to have access to world class opportunities. Councillor Peter John OBE Leader of Southwark Council

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

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ADVERTORIAL

The New Address That Means Business There’s a real buzz around Elephant Park, the new neighbourhood rising up in the heart of Elephant and Castle. To those who know it, the Elephant is one of London’s richest gems. But tell someone who isn’t familiar with this spot south of the river, and they’re always surprised it’s inside Zone 1. Now, the developers of Elephant Park are doing everything they can to put it firmly on the map… and in the minds of London’s budding retailers. Elephant Park is a £2.3 billion regeneration project that is breathing new life into this special part of Central London. With 3,000 new homes, £30m investment in strategic transport improvements and over 100,000 square feet of retail floorspace on offer, it’s going to be an address that means business. Just ask any of the retailers that have already moved in. Caitlyn Badham-Thornhill, co-founder of Cupcakes and Shhht says “The area is so up and coming. It’s growing all the time and that means we’re getting busier”. In fact, since they opened their doors, she says “there has been growth every single day.” Creatives and entrepreneurs looking to put down their roots and expand in Central London, will sit alongside established brands and existing local traders.

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Mauritian Restauranteurs Marcel & Sons have set up shop there. They know the area well and were attracted by its potential. They say “it’s the perfect space to create our own story”. But Mauritian streetfood and cupcakes aside, what else is there to tempt new businesses? Well, they can choose from four curated retail zones, with tree-lined streets and the feel of a traditional London neighbourhood. They’ll be part of an exciting and diverse blend of 50 shops, bars and restaurants. They can enjoy the largest new park in Central London for over 70 years, at over 9,000 square metres. And they can take advantage of all the passing trade that comes from a 24/7 economy, catering for everyone from office workers, nightclub revellers, to hungry students from the two nearby universities. With two underground lines, Thameslink and 28 bus routes intersecting through Elephant & Castle, there’s no shortage of customers looking for dinner on the way home, a quick gift or after-work drinks. Southwark is one of London’s fastest growing boroughs and has an ever-growing claim to be the foodie quarter of London.

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ADVERTORIAL

Along with Borough Market, Bermondsey Street and Flat Iron Square, Elephant Park will no doubt offer more opportunities in the food and beverage retail sector. Which for the foodies among us, can only be a good thing.

So if you’re a budding new start-up retailer, food and beverage, or health and wellbeing business looking to find your feet in Zone 1, Elephant Park could be your next step. Lendlease is currently offering a number of support packages, including affordable retail space, to assist local businesses.

Be part of it:

| elephantpark.co.uk/retail

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News

the news

WHAT’S NEW AND HAPPENING IN SOUTHWARK

HOUSING APPROVED FOR OLD KENT ROAD Southwark Council has voted in favour of Old Kent Road’s £500 million, 1.42-ha Ruby Triangle development of three buildings, one to be a 48-storey skyscraper. Designed by architect Farrells for developer Avanton and housing association A2Dominion, 40% of the 1,152 homes have been allocated as affordable (intermediate and social rent) and will also feature residential and communal amenities, commercial spaces, a sports hall and accessible open space. Design partner at Farrells, Russ Hamilton, said: “This detailed consent through the planning process now allows us the opportunity to continue to support our client, Avanton, with its endeavour for the positive

regeneration of the Ruby Triangle area. “The design of these buildings and the Ruby Triangle scheme generally, all within Southwark’s wider vision for the area, has been a rewarding challenge for Farrells.” The development will form part of the Old Kent Road Opportunity Area, where Southwark aims to provide around 20,000 homes, support 10,000 jobs, community facilities, public spaces and parks over the next 20 years ahead of the planned extension of the Bakerloo line to Lewisham, via the Old Kent Road. Johnson Situ, cabinet member for growth, development and planning, said: “We recognise the concerns of some local

residents, especially around the height of buildings. But we welcome the decision that this development offers the right balance of benefits for local people and will complement the area as part of our wider work.”

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News

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

TOWN HALL PLANS ENTER SHORTLIST STAGE Three organisations have been shortlisted as candidates to revitalise Walworth Town Hall, as part of a year-long tendering process. After receiving several bids, Southwark Council narrowed it down in October 2018 to fund manager Castle Forge Partnership, developer General Projects and retail investment trust Milligan Creative Trade, which must now submit full proposals for regenerating the site. Southwark Council approached arts and culture groups and organisations at the end of 2017 for ideas on how to transform the Grade II-listed building, which was home to the Newington Library and Cuming Museum until it was gutted by fire in 2013. The final decision will be made in spring 2019, with the selected proposal to be given a long leasehold interest and permission to start planning. All three proposals combine spaces for creative business start-ups, with the council’s required space for cultural activities and public access. Johnson Situ, cabinet member for growth, development and planning, said: “We were excited to see the range of proposals that came forward following last year’s call for ideas and we believe the three we have chosen will offer a strong and sustainable option to bring this historic building back into use. I look forward to seeing their full proposals and ensuring this building is brought back to use for the local community as soon as possible.” The three proposals were due to be submitted to the council, as Southwark went to press.

HAMLET HEADING HOME A deal has been struck that will allow Dulwich Hamlet Football Club (DHFC) to return to its Champion Hill ground following an eight-month dispute with developer Meadow Residential. A new agreement to lease the stadium was reached after a meeting at the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on 22 October, chaired by sports minister, Tracey Crouch MP. The new deal will allow DHFC to use and manage the AstroTurf pitch for all its sporting uses, including match days and community events. Dulwich Hamlet won promotion to the National League South last season, the sixth level of the football pyramid. southwarkmagazine.com

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NATIONAL TRANSPORT PRIZE FOR SOUTHWARK Southwark Council took home the top prize at this year’s National Transport Awards in October 2018, fighting off competition from Waltham Forest, Aberdeenshire and Gateshead councils. The Transport Local Authority of the Year award was presented at a Westminster Park Plaza Hotel ceremony, which was hosted by broadcaster, presenter and journalist Jeremy Vine, and attended by more than 600 transport professionals. Southwark Council and Transport for London (TfL) are investing over £30 million in cycling infrastructure to 2020, to meet the council’s target to more than double the level of cycling in Southwark over the next 10 years. This would add more than 40,000 additional trips by bike, every day. Councillor Richard Livingstone, cabinet member for environment, transport management and air quality, said: “Our highways team works closely with communities across Southwark, making our roads safer, more attractive and open to a number of different users. It is wonderful to see them gain this esteemed recognition of their past successes and innovative future plans.” The award came on the same day that the latest section of TfL’s London-wide Quietway cycle network opened in Southwark. Quietway 14 runs from Blackfriars Road to Tower Bridge Road, making use of back streets. issue

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News

REFORM MEMORIAL LANDS PERMANENT HOME A memorial ‘folly’ recognising social welfare reformer Octavia Hill’s contribution to Southwark has found a permanent home in Red Cross Garden. The porcelain planter was designed by architect Cove Burgess and tile manufacturer Pentagon, as part of a design exhibition earlier this year, drawing on the amount of green space she dedicated to the people of Southwark. Considered too delicate to move premises, it was at threat of destruction if a permanent home could not be found. However, Bankside Open Space Trust (BOST) found a space for it. BOST chairman, Tim Wood, said: “The folly is a daily reminder to those walking through to Red Cross from Ayers Street that green spaces are for all to enjoy. Whether to sit in or stroll through, gardens like Red Cross are the green lungs of our city and its thanks to campaigners like Octavia Hill that we have so many of them to enjoy.”

MARBLE EFFECT A permanent street art installation which recycles surplus quarried marble has opened on a secluded Southwark street. Co-curated by London Design Festival and Lisbon-based organisation experimentadesign – and designed by Michael Anastassiades Studio, the “Landmark” project on Mint Street was paved in a carpet of recycled marble, provided by Portuguese marble companies Mármores Galrão and Dimpomar.

Marble with minor flaws is often disregarded by those in the building industry, as Ben Evans, director of London Design Festival, explained: “Much of marble quarried is rejected as imperfect by contractors, architects and designers. It is a scandalous waste of a beautiful raw material. “This project shows what can be done, by creating a new permanent street of rejected marble.”

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FULL REVAMP FOR LEDBURY TOWERS Four high-rise tower blocks making up the Ledbury Estate are set to undergo a complete refurbishment, which will include strengthening works, new lifts, windows, roofs and lighting required to make the necessary improvements to the buildings. Southwark Council’s cabinet members recommended on 30 October 2018 that the Ledbury Towers be refurbished rather than demolished, and new homes built on land next to them – at least half of which will be council homes – to help finance the refurbishment costs and help meet housing objectives. Councillor Stephanie Cryan, cabinet member for housing, said: “We know it has been a difficult time for many people but I feel we are at a point where we can start moving forward and get this work done to fix the homes in the four tower blocks, and use this opportunity to build new, family homes on the estate to help meet costs and help local families living in overcrowded conditions. “I want to extend my thanks to the residents in the tower blocks and the wider estate, members of the Resident Project Team and the Ledbury Tenants and Residents Association for their invaluable help and commitment to the future of the tower blocks. “We very much hope that we continue to work together as the works progress to ensure the right outcomes for the Ledbury community.” The rest of the costs would be met from Southwark Council’s ring-fenced housing fund. The refurbishment would be done in phases allowing those residents still living in the towers to move into one of the empty homes temporarily while their blocks are completed. Just over 150 tenants have already moved out of the towers, with the choice to return if they wish once the refurbishments are completed. southwarkmagazine.com

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WAR MEMORIAL UNVEILED A new war memorial commissioned by Southwark Council was unveiled in November 2018 at Walworth Square, which forms part of the Elephant and Castle regeneration area. The bronze sculpture, created by Scottish artist Kenny Hunter, depicts an anonymous 12 year-old boy standing on a giant upturned ash tree, inscribed with an excerpt from a second world war poem by Hamish Henderson. issue

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E G R B U

LA Y

â&#x20AC;&#x2122;S

P A

A E N L O D EP R C T H A HA E S R T N N L T LI E N

SOUTHWARK COUNCIL BACKS THE BAKERLOO

BETTER TRANSPORT LINKS

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THOUSANDS OF NEW JOBS AND HOMES

IMPROVED ACCESSIBILITY

REDUCED POLLUTION AND CONGESTION

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O V

A H

LL LA

Southwark Council is working with the Mayor of London and Transport for London to make a strong case for the extension and needs your support.

D Y

Extending the Bakerloo line down Old Kent Road will make a huge difference to people in the area. It will help create thousands of new jobs, genuinely affordable homes and better connect Southwark with the rest of London.

R O

G S R G O U A N T D E

The Bakerloo line extension from Elephant & Castle to Lewisham will transform the lives of thousands of people living and working in Southwark and Lewisham.

F O

@southwarkcouncil

facebook.com/southwark

LO W

@lb_southwark

oldkentroad.org.uk

C A T

BacktheBakerloo.org.uk #BacktheBakerloo

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Retrospective

Since 2005, when the first issue of Southwark magazine was published, the borough has seen unprecedented change, not least because of the forward-thinking vision for using landmark buildings to create places for people and business. Having reached its 20th issue, Sarah Herbert and Noella Pio Kivlehan look back at the influential developments, cultural initiatives, businesses and people to have influenced these changes, how they have grown, and the ways in which being in Southwark has allowed them to do so

LOOKING BACK... MOVING ON...

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Retrospective

FIVE STARS: IMPACTFUL DEVELOPMENTS THE SHARD Completed: 2012. Big names: Renzo Piano, architect. Irvine Sellar, developer and joint owner. First featured: February 2005. What started as a sketch on the back of a menu has become the outstanding architectural icon, not only of Southwark, but for the whole of London. Yet when property developer Irvine Sellar put his ambitious vision for a vertical city to architect Renzo Piano over lunch in Berlin, the reaction wasn’t promising: “I hate tall buildings – they are arrogant and aggressive”. But Piano soon turned over his menu and drew, in seconds, the bare bones of what is now western Europe’s tallest building. First, however, was a lengthy planning process, high-profile public inquiry, and global economic crash. Even after the state of Qatar became a partner in 2008, assuring its future, the challenge continued, with the construction facing sub-zero temperatures, gale force winds and the Thames breaking through the protective dam. Today, it has 13 storeys of apartments, 19 storeys of the five-star Shangri La hotel, three storeys of high-end restaurants and bars, and 27 storeys of office space, for corporations ranging from Al Jazeera to Tiffany, many operating for 24-hours-a-day. The two viewing platforms – the top one 244m above street level – offer 360-degree, 40-mile views across the London skyline and beyond. After opening in February 2013, it welcomed one million guests in its first year, and continues to be one of the city’s most popular attractions. Further down, 6,000 people a day visit The Shard’s restaurants and bars, and tens of thousands are expected to rest their heads at the Shangri-La hotel. This high-end bolt-hole is also a community employer, with fixed targets to employ people with disabilities in all its locations. This attitude extends to the rest of The Shard. A partnership with social enterprise GoodPeople – involving masterclasses and work placements – helped 447 previously unemployed local residents into work in over 200 companies in the area, including almost 100 in The Shard itself, in the viewing platform, Shangri-La hotel, Aqua Shard and Hutong restaurants, Tiffany & Co., Warwick Business School – as well as in IT and housekeeping. southwarkmagazine.com

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GUY’S CANCER CENTRE Opened: autumn 2016. Big names: Rogers Stirk Harbour + Partner, architect. Stantec, specialist medical architect.

PICTURED: The Shard as it stands today ( far left) and one of Renzo Piano’s initial sketches of the building (left); Guy’s Cancer Centre (above & below).

World renowned in its field, the £160 million Guy’s Cancer Centre brings all cancer care under one roof, alongside groundbreaking research and clinical trials, helping to improve cancer treatments and outcomes. From the outset, and architect’s brief, the centre had three goals: patient-centred design, research-driven care and clinically led innovations in cancer management. To meet these goals, the architect based its design around a series of ‘villages’ that give the 14-storey building a human scale. Each village offers clinical and complementary care spaces, and has its own distinct identity and colour theme inside and out. The centre can treat 6,500 patients each year, and deliver 80,000 radiotherapy treatments, up from 47,500 previously, partly due to being the first place in Europe to offer radiotherapy above ground level. But the centre also has one of the UK’s biggest and most productive cancer centres, the Innovation Hub, linking laboratory research with cancer care delivery. As the hub for Guy’s Cancer research and clinical trials, working closely with researchers at other organisations such as King’s College London, it features a “bio bank” – a collection of cancer tissue samples to help researchers understand how different cancers behave and bio informatics – applying IT to biology and medicines and clinical trials. Working with King’s College London, the centre runs up to 150 trials at any one time, to improve cancer treatments available now and in the future. issue

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Retrospective

Completed: summer 2016. Big names: Herzog & De Meuron, architect. First featured: summer 2016, issue 16.

THIS PAGE: Completed two-and-ahalf years ago, Tate Modern’s Switch House has extended what is perhaps the UK’s most popular art gallery.

The transformation of Bankside power station into Tate Modern could be seen as the catalyst for the transformation of the whole area. Opening in summer 2000, it is now one of London’s top tourist attractions, with 5.7 million visitors last year, more than double the number it was designed for. To both expand capacity by 60% and show exhibitions that would not have previously been possible, the gallery commissioned an extension – the 10-storey Switch House, which was named after the erstwhile part of the power station. A folded and latticed exterior encloses 2,000sq m of above and below-ground galleries – including three underground concrete oil tanks, converted into performance spaces back in 2012 – as well as a roof terrace. Key to the new design is the absence of columns, plinths and barriers, providing a huge amount of flexibility in displaying artwork, while sculptures can be freely walked around, so as to be enjoyed as the artists originally intended.

As well as allowing the gallery to totally re-hang its free collection – displaying 800 works by more than 300 artists from over 50 countries – Switch House also integrates digital technologies more fully into the experience, with new interactive spaces, the Timeline of Modern Art touchscreen and the Digital Drawing Bar.

SWITCH HOUSE AT TATE MODERN

Also increasing the gallery’s reach is the experimental Tate Exchange programme, occupying an entire floor. This collaboration with 50 organisations runs events and projects using art to address wider issues in the world and bringing artists together with charities, community radio stations, universities and healthcare trusts.

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THE CASTLE Opened and first featured: spring 2016. Big names: Lendlease, developer. Though it only opened in 2016, The Castle Leisure Centre is already central to the Elephant and Castle regeneration, and the source of much pride. The state-of-the-art facility was funded without the use of public money, but through land receipts gained from the construction by Lendlease of One the Elephant next door. Its £20 million redevelopment introduced a sports hall – with courts – brand new gym, group exercise studios and swimming pools. There is also an indoor cycling studio, a cafe, a luxurious spa and changing facilities and a creche. These facilities enable a range of activities, including badminton and netball in the sports hall, alongside group exercise classes, group cycling, swimming lessons and other water-based activities. Southwark is committed to improving the health and wellbeing of its residents. The borough’s population is relatively young and some areas are deprived. An average resident will spend a third of their life in ill health, worse than the London average, so providing inclusive and accessible facilities for residents to participate in exercise is vital in closing the inequalities gap and creating healthier communities. In 2017’s Annual Public Health Report, the director of health and wellbeing, said: “Regeneration is too often only considered in terms of the built environment and the physical conditions in which we live. In Southwark, our approach [is that it] has a fundamental role in improving the health, wellbeing and life chances of communities.” To achieve this, communities need to be southwarkmagazine.com

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engaged from the earliest point, their needs identified, and services brought closer to communities, providing opportunities for integration and co-location. This approach is bearing remarkable fruit at The Castle. Almost half a million people visited in its first year alone, with more than 25,000 people registering for the free swimand-gym scheme.

CANADA WATER LIBRARY Completed: 2011. First in Southwark magazine: issue 9, autumn 2012. Big names: CZWG, architect. When CZWG’s sculptural bronze library opened to the public, like an alien being

landing to scope out this unloved area of docklands, it sent a signal about the intention of this area’s transformation. As the architect says, the idea of a freestanding object in space is quite appropriate for a library, since it is a portal to the discovery of other worlds. But it’s not only a library: its position in the scheme binds together a tube station, a stretch of open water and a plaza on the outside, and contains a readily accessible cafe, performance space, internet points and popular books within a small footprint at ground level. Above, the expanding space at the top of the inverted pyramid enables the containment of the main library within a single, galleried, sky-lit double-height space. The top floor, with panoramic views across Canada Water, holds six rooms for private hire, for eight to 60 people, with built-in projection and IT facilities. The inclusion of a range of cultural and community facilities reflects Southwark Council’s ambition to put libraries at the heart of community life. For children of all ages, there are weekly reading, games and art clubs, while adults can enjoy author talks or creative writing classes, alongside help with job-hunting, using computers and English language skills. But what’s really unusual for a library is its culture space. The 150-seat Canada Water Theatre is managed and programmed by The Albany, a leading performing arts venue. The versatile space is equipped for all kinds of performances, conferences and workshops, with sound system, theatre lighting and projection facilities.

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Retrospective

BUSINESS BRAINS THE KERNEL First featured: Issue 11, summer 2014. With its small wooden sign partially hidden in flowerpots by the door, it is the smell of the hops that leads visitors to The Kernel. Inside the cavernous railway arch of the microbrewery – the first in a small line of arches in Bermondsey’s Spa terminus, housing a host of like-minded food and drink producers – The Kernel’s owner Evin O’Riordain, offers a friendly greeting. The microbrewery continues to be one of the most popular amid a growing number of beer producers in the capital. A Waterford native from the Irish Republic, O’Riordain has had his beer brewing business in Southwark since he established it in 2009 in Druid Street, after running a cheese stall in Borough Market. The brewery moved to Spa Terminus in 2012. So successful is the brewery – which now employs 11 people including O’Riordain – it produces over 900,000 litres of beer a year.

O’Riordain also doesn’t market or promote his product: success has come from word-ofmouth (or taste-of-mouth, if you will). Having now been in Southwark for nearly a decade, O’Riordain tells us he is happy for his brewery to stay in the borough for the foreseeable future.

PALADAR Opened; 2017. Southwark magazine has featured many of the borough’s top culinary choices through the years, but relatively new on the scene is Paladar, bringing a taste of Latin America to the borough. It was only a year old in October 2018, but already Paladar has garnered top accolades from customers, food critics, and the local Southwark business community. Out of 18,960 London eateries, the restaurant on London Road is currently among the top-rated restaurants on TripAdvisor. In June 2018, it won Best New Start-Up at the 2018 Southwark Business Excellence Awards.

Unsurprisingly, owner and founder Charles Tyler is a proud man. “We’ve been bowled over by the response,” he says. The dual mission to be an excellent neighbourhood restaurant, and showcase the best of Latin America to London has been a contributing factor to its success. Tyler, who has travelled widely throughout South America, says: “You don’t hear enough about the great food they have in South America, or the fantastic wines coming out of Chile, Argentina and other countries, [as well as the] music and contemporary art. There’s a lot going on that people just don’t know enough about.” With Paladar pulling in more and more punters, Tyler is proud to be bringing the tastes, colour and thrills of Latin America to Southwark’s streets in abundance.

ALEX MONROE First featured, issue 13, summer 2015. When a 2018 regenerating space travelling time lord is wearing your latest creations, it is probably fair to say your work has made a mark on this planet. So is the case for Southwark-based jeweller, Alex Monroe. The new Doctor Who, played for the first time by a female – actor Jodie Whittaker – wears Monroe’s ‘Galaxy InLine’ ear cuff on the current BBC1 series. It is just another coup in a long line of global pop stars, actors and supermodels whose necks, wrists and ears Alex Monroe jewels have bedecked. As covered by Southwark magazine in summer 2015, Monroe established his business in the borough almost 30 years ago, and since setting up his workshop in 2016, continues to produce statement pieces including the Beekeeper and the Dragonfly, which have taken on iconic status within the fashion industry.

THIS PAGE: The Kernel microbrewery (top left); South American restaurant, Paladar (left) and renowned jeweller Alex Monroe (above).

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Retrospective

FOOD FOR THOUGHT SPA TERMINUS First featured: 2010. Evin O’Riordain, owner of The Kernel brewery at the Spa Terminus (see page opposite) regards the other businesses around him as more than just friends – they’re also his suppliers. As he speaks to Southwark, O’Riordain enjoys his Friday morning croissant, which comes from The Little Bread Pedlar nearby. And Spa Terminus offers more than just breakfast: there is London Honey, jam from England Preserves, the Cheese & Ham company, Neal’s Yard Dairy, Monmouth Coffee, and vegetable supplier Natoora. Opened in the summer of 2010, it would be tough to find such an impressive community of artisan food producers and wholesalers working, creating and trading within such a unique setting as railway arches leading from London Bridge station.

MALTBY STREET MARKET First featured on opening: 2010. Quite simply, the success of Maltby Street market, where operators first started trading in 2010, is its variety and quality of produce offered to thousands of yearly visitors. Open on weekends and every Friday in December, the 31 traders and five rotating guest traders, range from sauces at African Volcano, Bad Brownies (the evidence on tasting is to the contrary) and The Cheese Truck. Starting out as an overspill from Borough Market – the flight to the street first came about as traders sought out less touristy destinations while maintaining their presence in the area.

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THIS PAGE: The continual redevelopment of Peckham’s multistorey car park is one of London’s best examples of success in regeneration.

CREATIVE COMMUNITIES: MAKING A MARK PECKHAM: MULTI-STOREY CAR PARK - BOLD TENDENCIES/FRANK’S BAR/PECKHAM LEVELS Peckham Levels opened: 2017. It is perhaps the most featured of destinations in Southwark magazine, where people have been coming for years to the bars, art galleries and creative spaces of a former multi-storey car park in Peckham. Not only one of London’s most fashionable places to hang out, it is also one of the capital’s

most successful regeneration stories. Not bad for a Brutalist-style building, built on Rye Lane in 1983 for a Sainsbury’s supermarket. Art gallery Bold Tendencies, founded in 2007, has hosted the likes of the BBC Proms there, as well as a myriad of other events. Frank’s Café, on the rooftop, is called the ‘flagship architectural commission of Bold Tendencies’, and has been a summer staple since 2009. Meanwhile, Peckham Levels, which opened in 2017, is spread over seven storeys. The scheme has office space, bars, cafes, street food, a market selling fresh produce on the ground floor, events space and a yoga studio.

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Retrospective

SOUTHWARK’S FAMOUS FOLK AT A GLANCE Charles Dickens Perhaps England’s bestknown Victorian novelist (pictured, top left) (southwark) Charlie Chaplin Actor, comedian and filmmaker and an honouree of two Academy Awards (walworth) Rio Ferdinand Former England footballer (peckham) Michael Caine Actor, recipient of two Academy Awards, a BAFTA and four Golden Globe awards (rotherhithe) Mary Wollstonecraft 18th century author and feminist (newington butts) Michael Faraday Chemist and physicist who invented the electric motor (newington) John Boyega Star Wars Rogue One film actor (pictured, top right) (peckham) Anthony James Leggett Recipient of the 2003 Nobel Prize in Physics for work on superfluidity (camberwell) Terry Jones Comedian, actor and filmmaker, best known as a member of the Monty Python team (camberwell)

THIS PAGE: Ark Globe Academy is one of Southwark’s most successful schools, with students going on to achieve big things.

BRIGHT MINDS ARK GLOBE ACADEMY Opened: May 2012. As documented by Southwark magazine over the years, the borough’s schools are constantly improving and Ark Globe Academy is testament to this. Former professional footballer, Matt Jones, has been principal of the academy, which is just off Old Kent Road, and east of Elephant and Castle, since May 2012. Jones is extremely proud of the fact that in 2016, 100% of Ark Globe’s sixth form students received a university offer. Writing in his online blog, Jones reveals 62% went to a ‘top third’ university and 48% to a Russell Group university. The school has almost 1,300 pupils.

Boris Karloff Actor, best recognised as Frankenstein’s monster in the 1931 film Frankenstein (camberwell)

There is no simple answer to the school’s success, says Jones, which has enjoyed excellent Ofsted reports. He adds: “We have worked hard to create a culture of aspiration and high expectations. This is reflected in Ark Globe’s mission statement: ‘preparing our students for university and to be leaders in their community’. “The fact is that being ambitious and earning strong exam results are not enough,” Jones adds. “Young people also need access to opportunities and the cultural capital required for university access and success. At Ark Globe, we also work to provide some of the same opportunities for our students that pupils from more financially advantaged backgrounds get to enjoy. These include university visits, networking days and mentoring sessions.”

Isambard Kingdom Brunel Victorian engineer, who designed the Great Western Railway and SS Great Britain (rotherhithe) Chiwetel Ejiofor Actor, best-known for 12 Years a Slave (camberwell) Tim Roth Actor and director (dulwich) Siouxsie Sioux Singer-songwriter of Siouxsie and the Banshees (southwark) Tommy Steele Musician (bermondsey) Florence Welch Singer-songwriter, of Florence + The Machine (camberwell) Charles Babbage Mathematician, inventor of the first mechanical computing machine (walworth) David Haye Boxer, former heavyweight champion (bermondsey) Enid Blyton Children’s author (dulwich)

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BEST OF SOUTHWARK

MOST INFLUENTIAL PROJECTS The Shard The Tate Jubilee Line Extension London Bridge Station Overground

BEST MIXED USE SCHEMES 1 One Tower Bridge 2 Bermondsey Square 3 Elephant Park 4 Old Union Yard Low Line — two theatres + retail 5 Sea Containers House

BEST PUBLIC BUILDINGS 6 Guy’s Cancer Centre 7 The Castle leisure centre 8 Nunhead Community Centre and high street regeneration 9 Canada Water Library 10 Globe Academy

BEST COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS/SCHEMES 11 Spa Terminus and Maltby Street on the Low Line 12 240 Blackfriars 13 Bankside 123 14 53 Great Suffolk Street

15 Peckham Levels southwarkmagazine.com

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BEST RESIDENTIAL 16 Aylesbury Estate Phase 1A 17 Trafalgar Place 18 Bear Lane 19 Blackfriars Circus 20 251 Newington Causeway

BEST PUBLIC REALM/PARK 21 Burgess Park 22 St Mary’s Churchyard 23 Flat Iron Square 24 Pottersfield Park 25 Peckham Rye playground

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Invest

“A high quality, very focused issue that truly reflected our regeneration and growth ambitions.”

Waltham Forest Encouraging investment in Waltham Forest

ISSUE 4

Ways to connect

With support

elf-employed people in Waltham Forest are new ways to work finding in a crucial step forward and business-mindedfor entrepreneurs residents.

Waltham Forest Council on Invest Waltham Forest #4

Collaborative organisations such as the co-operat ive working space Indycube and the Blackhorse Workshop public facility are intent encouraging freelance on success across the borough.

Festivals, film, focused design

Summer 2017

UN DE R STA RT ER S OR DE RS

GA R D E N C I TY

B R I C K BY B R I CK Establishing the UK’s first garden city for more than 100 years

Nearby shop behemoth, Blueping is 20 years oldwater, this year. It has 330 stores, three anch stores, 40 cafe or s restaurants andand 13-screen cine a ma

L I VE New communities are forged 18 as first-time buyers flock to Ebbsfleet

Private/public: pulling forces

“A delight to work with such professionals across the whole team.”

Work is now under City, starting the way on the ambitious Ebbsf leet Garden timer tickin numbers speak g towards completion. The for themselves The site’s first primary scho ol at Castle Hill, will open in Septe mber and operated by the Leigh Acad will be emies Trust

B UIL D

Evening economy, established enterprise

The Labour MP for Walthamstow, Stella Creasy, hopes projects run by organisations like these gateway for promotin will act as a membership among g trade union north-east London the 16.5% of her work for themselve constituency who s. Indycube, in partnersh ip with the community trade union, is helping support Waltham to stow’s growing employed communi selfty.

EBBSFL EET GARDEN CITY FACTS & FIGURE S

Issue 2

With the first tranche of homes already built, thousands more are planned

Above: Indycube seeks to unionise self-employed people – such as graphic designers – to provide workers’ rights support.

from

models of working a local MP and the council, from risks attache are helping with problem co-operative s in Waltham Forest, workshops and d to self-employment to the cost of food production. renting Lucy Clarke reports

L E A RN

Industry experts collaborate to bring the project forward, as the first school opens

600 homes started in 2016/17 with over

Ebbsfleet Development Corporation on Ebbsfleet Garden City #2

YEARS

300

since Ebbsfleet Development Corporation – oversee the Implementatio ing n Framework – was established

completed

S U MMER

201 7

•ORRERY•

I ssu e O n e

•O Photo finishes

“They understood what we wanted to create from day one, and have delivered a quality product.” Marketing Derby on Orrery #1

RRERY Ones to watch

•

J O U

minds behind the success of s premier pho one of the tography fest ivals, FORMAT

Global connections UK’

Fighting to break down the hierarch ies of an industry while working with some of its most respected represe ntatives is a challeng ing prospect. For Louise FedotovClements, artis tic director of QUAD, Derby’s centre for contem porary art and and co-founder/dire film ctor of Derby’s international photography and related media festival, FORMA is what makes T, it the event unique. Collaboration with photographers, other artists and organisations in Europe, Africa and South America – as well as China and India – have created global recogni tion for the UK festival. But Fedotov Clements says it is paramount to maintain the original ethos, established for the inaugural 2004; engagin event in g with and encoura ging participation from thousands of hobbyists and locals alongside world-renowne d figures in the indu stry.

B R I A N G R I F F P A T R O I N , N O F F O R M My photograph, A T morning for the ‘Rush Hour London Bridge’, was magazine Manage taken one story about people commuting ment Today, to illustrate a inspired by the German expressinto the City of London. It was a group of people ionist silent film marching to the ‘Metropolis’ – same place like automatons. briangriffin.co.u k

•ORRERY•

R N A L S FR OM BE HI ND TH E LE NS Inside the

an arts officer at the time. The inspiration was the city’s history not and heritage within photography, but the idea that the medium can “represent so different ideas many of places, people and ways of seeing, living and thinking ”. “It is a very contem porary festival, but it also involves archives based on the heritage of photography around the world, from whether it’s Africa, China, India or across Latin America ,” Fedotov-Clem ents adds.

FORMAT is now a major draw for practitioners across the world. It also seeks to develop people’s understanding and skills – not just of photogr but of other contem aphy porary and related as performance media such art, AR (Augme nted Reality) and AI (Artificial Intellige nce). This is in addition to the biggest internat ional portfolio “We want people review program to feel like they for aspiring photogr me have a voice and be seen as part aphers worldw of the festival, ide. Participants can meet leading alongside some industry people, the greatest practitio of such as director of museums, lead ners in the world,” s editors of media Clements adds. Fedotov“We show great and other established photogr art, but we want people to see there aphers, benefiti ng from a rare is potential for chance to engage them to be part in one-to-one that as well. That of sessions. works on many levels and it’s unusual. I think quite a lot of internat Derby is seen ional festivals as the ideal city nature have their of this for FORMAT. Fedotov backs to everyda Clements says: y people. We want “It allows us to people to feel give people a holistic like they can collabor view of the city. ate and be part We’ll be collabor the event, to have of ating with a partner fun and enjoy in Derbyshire it.” in the coming months too, so will be able to people get out to the FORMAT is organis countryside.” ed by QUAD, and sup by the Arts Council ported , Derby City Council FORMAT 2019 takes place between University of Derby. I and the 15 March and 14 April. The theme t usually attracts 100,000 people around is FOREVER//NO and is held at W and it will feature exhibiti 15 or so venues ons, portfolio the city. Fedotov across reviews, worksh -Clements founded events and masterc ops, the festival with Mike Brown, who lasses. On the next pages, Orrery was working at looks at work the city council from previous contributors. as formatfestival.com •31•

london bridg

e Social Regeneration

southwa

Growth goals and Canada Water via Old London Bridge plans in place Kent Road: change for positive

l crowd The festiva s, art Street partiehouse, fun trails, open Southwark at the fair: remember summers to

day Independentslocal Success for quirky traders, from ng eats, shops to inspiri business never better

happiness Health and lity, Reducing inequa to benefit regeneration nts – borough reside g and new both existin

the market Masters of modern, Traditional, undiscovered famous or to visit, – great places to engage fresh ways

ALL CHANGE

ark

southw

UD E N THE E

Issue 19

It is a big year for London Bridge and environs its , as mix of proj a fascinating ects eme rges around the station tran 21 century Sarah Her sformation. bert repo rts

er 2018

Summ

“Well done to the 3Fox team for another great issue!”

ng that

.com

LASTING IMPACTS

MAS GUY AL S CULTUR PER DEV ELO MAK ING

‘‘

24 issue

Issue 19 Summer

2017

19 summer

IN A BOROUGH storming ahead with some of the biggest development schemes in London, Southwark Council is introducing new ways to engage residents in plans for socially minded regeneration. Ensuring all stakeholders have their interests heard and considered is of

Southwark has some of the largest scale developments in London, and the council is determined to ensure regeneration provides genuine benefits for both new and existing residents. As such, it has adopted a mantra that its policy should not just be about constructing buildings, but creating strong communities. Lucy Clarke reports

2018

M, , DREAHT DANCE , DELIG DARE

, vision for local tradersdevelopment frame, boom of Festivals in the the social impact southwarkmagazine.com and prioritising setting

issue

southwa

Southwark Council on Southwark #19.

paramount importance to the local authority, as it aims to create life opportunities, improve wellbeing, reduce inequality and create engaged communities. Professor Kevin Fenton, director of health and wellbeing, says Southwark Council has identified social regeneration as a major priority. And in the midst of £1 billion works with British Land – one of the largest property development and investment companies in the UK – it is determined to ensure no-one gets left behind. “As we promote urban renewal, wellbeing will be at the centre,” Fenton says. “We’re not just focused on building new buildings but 19 summer 2018 19

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22/06/20

issue

19 summer

2018 25

3Fox International has been putting together successful inward investment campaigns for over 14 years. To find out how we can help you with your project, please get in touch on 020 7978 6840 or email office@3foxinternational.com

020 7978 6840

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Infographic

POPULATION IN 2018: OVER 314,000

MEDIAN AGE IN SOUTHWARK: 32.9 YEARS

OVER 1,160 SOCIAL RENTED HOMES (NET) BUILT BETWEEN 2011/12 AND 2016/17: (AN AVERAGE OF 195 A YEAR)

Over 90% of residents are under the age of 65 (Data

ESTIMATED POPULATION IN 2026: 376,000 (20% INCREASE) 11,000 NEW COUNCIL HOMES TO BE BUILT BY 2043

sources: ONS mid-year population estimates; GLA population projections)

LIFE EXPECTANCY HAS RISEN: MEN: FORMERLY 74 (2001-03) NOW 79 (2016) WOMEN: FORMERLY 80 (2001-03) NOW 84 (2016)

2,346 AFFORDABLE HOMES (NET) DELIVERED FROM 2011/12 TO 2016/17 Breakdown: • Approximately 400 formerly longterm empty • Approximately 1,800 homes newly built • 291 council homes delivered in 2016/17 • 263 gained planning permission or started on-site in 2016/17

REPRESENTS 50% OF ALL AFFORDABLE HOMES DELIVERED IN SOUTHWARK (southwark.gov.uk/planning-and-building-control/ planning-policy-and-transport-policy/authoritymonitoring-report/housing)

SOUTHWARK LEISURE FACILITIES RECEIVED ALMOST £50 MILLION OF COUNCIL INVESTMENT OVER 10 YEARS

(Data sources: PHE Public Health Outcomes Framework 2016)

OVER 1,900 FAMILY SIZED HOMES (GROSS) (THREE OR MORE BEDROOMS) DELIVERED OVER FOUR YEARS 47% (900 units) are affordable with 91% (794 units) of those for social rent

(local.gov.uk/london-borough-southwark-health-allpolicies-approach )

EMPLOYMENT 78.5% SOUTHWARK RESIDENTS 74.2% OF LONDON 75% OF UK

(southwark.gov.uk/planning-and-building-control/

ONS annual

planning-policy-and-transport-policy/authority-

population survey,

monitoring-report/housing)

(Jul 2017-Jun 2018)

southwarkmagazine.com

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Alumno is pleased to be supporting the 20th edition of the Southwark magazine Alumno has a long history of working in the borough and has enjoyed a positive working relationship with the forward thinking council.

Alumno has always focused on cultural placemaking and including the local community in our project briefs. Our third Southwark scheme, the former Southwark Town Hall on Peckham Road (completed Sept 2016), provides affordable accommodation for Goldsmiths students. Our collaboration with SPACE studios means there are also 12 artist/creative industry studios in the basement and mezzanine floor of the building. These studios have regular open days inviting the public to look behind the doors of these creative enterprises and buy goods direct from the makers. Alumno has sponsored one Goldsmiths graduate every summer since 2016. This graduate has a rent-free studio for a year to help start their creative career. This provides a massive boost to creative arts students starting out on their professional life. The burden of high rents often pushes talented people out of the capital to the detriment of the city. Alumno`s latest project in the borough is at 7889 Alscot Road in Bermondsey. The site is in a predominately residential area, opposite Bermondsey Spa Gardens, which acts as a hub for activity within the neighbourhood. Alumno`s proposals include rooms for 143 students, enhanced public realm and art installations. The project would also provide facilities for meetings and managed access into the ground floor cinema room for the local community.

Alumno is dedicated to the wellbeing of new residents, as well as the existing community and businesses of the local area. We have commissioned scientist and local resident Danny Ball to research methods to improve and pioneer the way the Alumno building provides navigation, to assist all residents using Audio Based Navigation Systems. We intend to extend this system to the immediate vicinity of the scheme. Danny is a researcher at the Institute of Cognitive Neuroscience at University College London and the founder of Blind Mind and Space. His work with Alumno and Southwark Council in the area of Applied Neuroscience for the Built Environment will help blind and sighted individuals alike enjoy the developments of Alumno in Southwark and surrounding places of interest. Danny says â&#x20AC;&#x153;The goal of my research is to improve the urban environment and make the city truly accessible and inclusive, enabling all to enjoy the exciting developments of Alumno.â&#x20AC;? A planning application has been submitted to the council for this ambitious development. It has good access to amenities and public transport and will breathe new life, investment and functionality into the site. As well as providing high quality student accommodation, Alumno, along with the onsite management team, will offer a direct contact point for neighbours and the wider community. Being part of the community and offering managed access means the potential new scheme could make a positive contribution to the neighbourhood where long-term regeneration is already underway.

For more info on Alumno please visit alumnogroup.com and alumnobermondsey.com For more info on Danny Balls` research please visit blindmindandspace.com

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Tube expansion

BACKING THE BAKERLOO The proposed Bakerloo line extension would make Southwark better connected than ever before, with the potential for the borough to gain three new tube stations. Little wonder then, that the council has launched its campaign to back the project for the future benefits of those living and working around Old Kent Road. Hannah Gal speaks to those spearheading the campaign

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Tube expansion

Bricklayers Arms

Burgess Park

Asylum

Elephant & Castle

Plans to extend London’s Bakerloo line have been on the cards for many years, with proposals put forward as early as 1913. Numerous ideas for the underground line were made and some even approved over time, but construction never started and the desire for the project eventually faded away. Then, in 2014, new life unfurled, when Transport for London (TfL) ran a consultation to decide on the preferred route for an extension, followed by the then-London mayor, Boris Johnson’s designation of the Old Kent Road as an “opportunity area”. TfL eventually landed on a preferred route which went via Old Kent Road, with the line extending to Lewisham, making it more connected to the rest of the tube network than ever before. The current extension plan is for construction to start in 2023 and to be completed by 2028-2029, at a cost of £3.1 billion. Phase one will potentially see the line’s reach expanded from Elephant and Castle to Lewisham, with three new stations built in Old Kent Road, as well as one in New Cross Gate over the Southwark borough boundary in Lewisham. The success of this initial endeavour will determine the fate of the second phase. Councillor Johnson Situ, cabinet member for growth, development and planning at Southwark Council, is among the leading backers of the project. He says: “For too long the south of the river has suffered in respect of true coverage, compared to north of the river and we want to address that. We want residents to be able to get to central London quicker and have access to cultural, creative and employment opportunities right across the city. With south of the river tube stations currently stretching only as far as Morden, there is great discrepancy there. We want residents to be able to hop on a service that

runs every two minutes rather than have to plan a journey.” The local community is at the heart of Situ’s support for the Bakerloo line extension. “This is an important point of discussion as we seek residents’ and local businesses’ engagement,” he says. “Like most regeneration plans, the Old Kent Road Area Action Plan provides a framework for new homes and employment space, and we have been very specific about the requirements for social infrastructure, such as schools and

WE WANT RESIDENTS TO BE ABLE TO GET TO CENTRAL LONDON QUICKER

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Tube expansion THIS PAGE: The Bakerloo line has been running for more than 100 years (left). Councillor Johnson Situ (right) is leading the calls for it to be extended.

New Cross Gate

Lewisham community facilities. This means investors know what to expect.” Input from the local community is crucial in “getting the plans right”, says Situ. “This is why we ran a number of public events spanning several years, including the Old Kent Road forum, and why the Back the Bakerloo campaign was set up,” he adds. “More than 6,000 residents have already responded and their views considered.” Situ’s sentiments are shared by Colin Wilson, brought in by Southwark Council to spearhead the dedicated Old Kent Road Regeneration team and put a strong plan in place. Wilson says: “We would like to work with the community to get to a point where people feel proud of what’s happening and of where they live, so there isn’t a sense of living in a place which is falling apart, and not being very well looked after. The regeneration will deliver new homes which are warm, wellinsulated, well-designed and look good on the outside and the inside, so if you live there, or if your children live there, you feel a sense of pride about the place, rather than have negative associations with it.” So how does the proposed Bakerloo line extension fit in? “There have been plans in the past to extend it, but that never happened,” Wilson explains. “The current Area Action Plan dates from 2015, when TfL considered two principle options for the extension. One was to go to Camberwell and around to Lewisham, the other was to go down Old Kent Road. A bit like Crossrail 2, it was decided to put the alignment where the greatest potential for growth was, to maximise benefits from the investment in public transport.” The first phase of the extension will potentially see three new stations on Old Kent Road, named Bricklayers Arms, Burgess Park southwarkmagazine.com

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Ladywell

Catford

Lower Sydenham

Hayes

and Asylum. The second phase will go further afield, reaching Ladywell, Sydenham, Catford and Hayes in Bromley. “What the extension enables London to do is deliver its housing growth target and accommodate the growth it is predicted to experience over the next three-to-four years”, explains Wilson. “The main task for our team is to make sure we take the opportunity that the value created by the Bakerloo line provides residents with better opportunities and business expansion, not just office space, but also distribution and the growth of creative businesses.” The plan details the positive impact the extension is projected to have on businesses and communities south of the river, but its strongest selling point is the regeneration of the historic Old Kent Road. “The plan’s underpinning ethos is to say that the Old Kent Road will be very different in the future to the way it looks now,” says Wilson. “Geographically, Old Kent Road is in central London, but to a lot of people it just does not feel as such because of the out-oftown retail, the low-density nature of the development there and because there is no tube line. What the Bakerloo line extension will do is confirm its position as the central London location that it is.” Bringing over 28 years of planning, regeneration and urban design experience into the Southwark project, Wilson points to Old Kent Road’s “typical London mix” of ages, characters and styles of buildings, which define the area’s character. He says: “There are some older Georgian Victorian buildings which survived second world war bombings, council-owned land with housing estates, some high rises from the 60s and 70s. [There is also] Burgess Park, which was built after the second world war by clearing old bomb sites.” issue

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THIS PAGE: Galliard Homes and Aviva Investments’ development on Old Kent Road is an example of the sort of project which will be spurred by transport infrastructure improvements.

“While there are lots of shops [on Old Kent Road], it has never been an officially designated town centre. Part of the reason is that historically it always straddled the boundaries of two local authority administrations. Before, it was on the boundary of Camberwell and Bermondsey. The two were later joined together to make the borough of Southwark. Often on these kind of edges, you don’t get civic centres or a town centre character, so what we want is an Old Kent Road as an identified town centre and the density of occupation and activity to make it a definitive place in its own right.” The project is a major undertaking. Its magnitude is matched by the scale of

construction it entails and the consequent benefits it aims to deliver. Quite simply, says Wilson, without the extension, there is a limit to the development that can go ahead. The scale of opportunity brought about by the extension of the line and the added accessibility is vital. Without it, there will be a limit on the development which can happen, because people will be restricted from getting in and out of the area. Wilson says: “It is an ambitious scheme with an ambitious timetable, but it is something that the mayor of London and TfL are committed to, as are Lewisham mayor Damien Egan and Southwark council leader Peter John.”

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The provision of affordable housing is pivotal to securing further support and additional funding. “At a time when Southwark and all London boroughs are facing acute pressure on housing provision, it could boost businesses because it will be easier for people to get to and from work, as well as back into the city. The extra traffic will be good for local businesses of all kinds. This can in turn lead to a really useful contribution to high quality affordable housing. Situ says: “The council is committed to delivering at least 35% affordable housing. Teaming up with the GLA [the Greater London Authority], I think we can raise that to 40%. The Bakerloo line is enabling this to be viable, so in terms of a social good, it is not just about building a railway line, it’s about the social benefits that will rise out of that – 8,000 affordable homes, which by any standard would be quite an achievement, but we can only do that if we get the Bakerloo line [extension] committed.” As well as the extension plans aiming to deal with London’s growing population – predicted to exceed 10 million by 2030 – and the need for transport services to accommodate this growth, it is also seen by supporters as important to update the Bakerloo Line’s rolling stock. It is the oldest on the underground network, with signalling being of a similar vintage, dating back to 1972. TfL has identified the upgrade as a

major incentive because the line is currently one of the most underutilised as it enters central London and the service becomes slower. An upgrade “could achieve speeds and frequencies similar to that of the Jubilee or Victoria lines,” says TfL. Southwark Council speaks of the extension as “a game changer” for the area, capable of spurring “substantial growth, with the number of homes rising from 14,500 to 34,500 and the number of jobs rising from 9,500 to 20,000”. The extension will facilitate the extra capacity on London Underground for 65,000 journeys (in the morning and evening peak). It will include investment in schools, leisure facilities, parks, walking and cycling connections, a health hub and new cultural offers, as well as higher and further education provision. Southwark Council says the purpose of the Old Kent Road Area Action Plan is to set out how the best of the Old Kent Road can be nurtured and developed over the next 20 years.” The plan rises to the challenge of the “unique conditions and character of Old Kent Road,” as highlighted by Colin Wilson, by “mixing residential and commercial uses, so that new and existing businesses, including warehouses, shops, creative workspaces and offices will be designed to co-exist with new homes”.

THE COUNCIL IS COMMITTED TO DELIVERING AT LEAST 35% AFFORDABLE HOUSING

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FLEXI-TIMES

For determined entrepreneurs looking for space to meet modern requirements, Southwark holds the answers within a range of spaces, which provide new and collaborative ways to work. Nadia Gilani reports

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LONDON BRIDGE HAS long been at the centre of Southwark’s working life, boosted by the opening of The Shard in 2013. But less known are the old warehouses, heritage sites and discreet spaces throughout the borough, which are having a huge impact on its capacity to attract businesses of all shapes and sizes – from multinationals to startups. The way we work and where we choose to do it has changed enormously in recent years, due to a boom in the number of entrepreneurs setting up their own ventures. Affordable workspaces in non-traditional settings are becoming increasingly popular, as people seek to work alongside different types of organisations, which might be less corporate and more creatively focused. This brings with it opportunities for networking and collaboration, ultimately giving people a greater sense of community at work. Businesses also choose Southwark because of the borough’s desirable location at the heart of the capital, with its vibrant

arts and cultural offerings, as well as diverse communities that live within it. Over the past four years, the council has worked with partners across the borough to create over 250 new affordable workspaces, and has committed to deliver at least 500 more by 2022. From disused garages being transformed into offices in Camberwell and creative workspaces in railway arches on Spare Street – to repurposed spaces at Bankside’s Metal Box Factory and Capital House in London Bridge, there is a wealth of choice for entrepreneurs and growing businesses. Then there’s The Ministry, a shared working space, private members club and bar – housed in the 1860s former Letts Diaries printworks and owned by superclub The Ministry of Sound. So Southwark could lay claim to becoming one of the most desired places for growing entrepreneurs to work in the UK. Councillor Kieron Williams, the local authority’s

THIS PAGE: Sustainable Workspaces’ new site on Sumner Street (above); the arches on Spare Street, managed by Hotel Elephant (right and above right). southwarkmagazine.com

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Workspace THIS PAGE: Metal Box (below) is an old Victorian warehouse where decorative tin boxes used to be made – now home to more than 100 small businesses.

cabinet member for jobs, skills and innovation, says: “We are determined to build a local economy that works for all. Ensuring we have the right supply of workspace is a key part of that. With the range of creatives and businesses in the borough, that needs to take many forms - from artist studios, to industrial units, to flexible office space, to retail. “Most importantly, it needs to be affordable. We have brilliant examples of how this can be done well, such as Hotel Elephant, Sustainable Workspaces, 55 East and Peckham Levels. We are always on the lookout for partners who can help deliver more.” One such scheme on Spare Street, comprised of five glazed-fronted railway arches, is less than five minutes’ walk from Elephant & Castle station, just off Walworth Road. The crumbling garages were converted into graduate studio spaces and a cafe, which opened in 2016, followed by a co-working space the following summer. Managed by Hotel Elephant, the arches are on a pedestrianised street, which didn’t exist previously, created as part of neighbouring development. At the time Hotel Elephant acquired the space, the street didn’t have a name, so the team applied to the council to call it Spare Street after local Edwardian portrait artist, Austin Osman Spare, and as an

area dedicated to creative enterprise. Emily Woodhouse, director of Hotel Elephant, says: “There are a lot of aspiring young entrepreneurs in Southwark. Some will have graduated from the local universities and some straight from local schools and colleges. These young people are inspired to create new products or services, to disrupt the status quo and be their own bosses. “For our freelancers and startups, they may begin with renting a hot-desk space, but when their business starts to grow they will take on a dedicated desk or office space to accommodate their growing workload and team. Community is a key part of your working environment and a big reason why people move into our workspaces. Not only are there the social benefits of working surrounded by other people in your field, but also professional community members can share expertise and services with one another and conversations can spark ideas and collaborations. We are really open to proposals from our members and often host exhibitions and events which they organise in our public spaces, including product launches, artists’ film nights and workshops.” A key factor in choosing a workspace is flexibility. Businesses – regardless of whether they are established or just starting out –

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BY BEING FLEXIBLE, WE’RE OFFERING TENANTS A DEAL THAT WORKS FOR THEM

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don’t want to be tied into long contracts for spaces that may not suit them in a year’s time. Startups in particular need rents to be affordable while they are setting up and getting their businesses off the ground. Dan Cohen, managing director of Purpose Group, says this is a top priority for new clients. His company, which re-purposes old buildings into multi-use community spaces, manages two sites in Southwark: Capital House in London Bridge and The Biscuit Factory in Bermondsey. Cohen says: “In Capital House, London Bridge, we filled all 30,0000 square feet [2,787sq m] of it within 10 weeks and there can be anything between 250 and 300 people in the building in one day. All the deals we are getting from landlords tend to be shortterm. We don’t pay a lot for the building, which means the guys coming in benefit from cheaper rates and flexible times. “There’s a lot of uncertainty in business and with uncertainty comes the difficulty of making decisions, so by being flexible, we’re offering tenants a deal that works for them. We’re finding this way of working is of interest to everyone. Whatever business you’re in – whether it’s corporate or creative, new or more established – if you can get the same product cheaper in an interesting location, why wouldn’t you go for that? “Southwark is probably the best council we’ve ever dealt with and is ahead of the rest in its understanding of short-term uses for buildings. There’s a great regeneration team in place, where in some boroughs you’ll find landlords think it’s safer to keep a building empty. Southwark is good at showing it’s better for the building to be put to use. It’s better for everyone – no-one loses out.” Another example of successfully converting an old manufacturing site is The Metal Box Factory at Bankside’s Great Guildford Street. Based within a 10-minute stroll from London Bridge, the striking redevelopment features an enclosed roof garden, cafe, games room, and central atrium. Its high-spec studio spaces – many with their own balconies – range in size and style to appeal to over 110 businesses working across fields including software, film production and Fintech. Mike McCarrick, asset manager for Workspace Group, which opened the site in 2015, says: “We spent over £30 million completely regenerating the common areas and sprucing it all up. We own and operate 67 business centres across London and in Southwark we saw the growth potential and the fact that the South Bank is doing so well. It’s becoming one of the fastest growing business communities in London. “We aren’t selective as to who we have in our buildings, we provide the staff and issue

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PICTURED: The Ministry (this page) is owned by The Ministry of Sound; Sustainable Workspaces (right) hosts organisations working to tackle climate change.

amenities, and we hold the networking events, so really it sells itself to the companies that want them. “When we opened, the main companies that started with us were startups, but it has actually now evolved as all companies want flexibility, because no-one knows where they are going to be in three-to-five years’ time. There’s a multitude of factors that form part of the way people are working nowadays. The way people want to interact with one another

at work is a large part of it; people come to work expecting certain things. Flexibility is one of the big things we offer. If a company wants to move to an office in a different building, we can tear up the lease and help them do that. “We also own all our buildings and provide the staff so we know everything the customer will experience from the minute they get through the door to arriving at their desk. It gives us far more control over customer

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experience compared with someone renting a desk space in a leased building. There, a person might sign-in at reception with a different person each day and get in a lift with people they’ve never seen before and won’t see again. That feeling of isolation is something you won’t find in the buildings we run, where there’s consistency and a vibrant community”. Elsewhere, the appropriately named Sustainable Workspaces calls itself Europe’s largest sustainable startup community, which is adopting commercial solutions to tackle climate change and dwindling resources. After renovating disused arches into co-working spaces in Shand Street beneath London Bridge station in 2015, the organisation opened its second project in nearby Sumner Street earlier in 2018. Shand Street offers a combination of office space and workshops, housing more than 20 startups creating products and services promoting environmental solutions, as well as light industrial workshop space for R&D. Sumner Street’s prime location has become home to 30 companies employing over 250 people, and hosts events by leading sustainability organisations. Most of Sustainable Workspaces’ members will be startups made of small teams of twoto-five people who have secured primary funding. They also offer space to more mature companies, with teams of 20 to 50 employees and corporate partners that would rather work in a space with a creative atmosphere. All of the clientele are operating businesses with an environmentally focused conscience; from Winnow, which is fighting food waste, to Powervault creating a de-centralised electricity grid. And from Toast Ale – which uses surplus bread to brew beer – to Envirobuild and Biohm, aiming to bring the circular economy to the construction industry. There is also Advizzo, which uses behavioural science to change the way people interact with their energy suppliers to reduce costs and improve efficiency – and Cheeky Panda, which has introduced bamboo toilet paper to disrupt the tree-munching toilet paper market. James Byrne, director at Sustainable Workspaces, says: “We chose Southwark as it offered our members easier access to business contacts and investors. Being central makes it easier to hold meetings across sectors, and we also found it helps our members attract talent when recruiting. “Work is changing in a way that is much more fluid and agile. Particularly startups in their seeding stage need to be very flexible and respond quickly to a change in their cash flow, product demands and different development challenges. By offering them as much flexibility as possible – and on the other southwarkmagazine.com

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hand creating a system of support that will help them grow – we are working with our members to make Sustainable Workspaces much more than just an office. “[We are also] building Europe’s largest cluster of sustainable companies. We are creating a community that easily creates cross links and abundant opportunities that are hard to find elsewhere.” So aside from great physical space, what are the key things for making an effective working environment? More often than not, ‘reliable internet’ is cited as vital. Though, perhaps less obviously, ‘showers’ emerges as

a popular requirement too. Purpose Group’s Dan Cohen says: “We get people asking for showers, which we offer at some of our sites, but obviously fast internet is the most important thing. Tenants are more likely to complain about the internet not working than not having running water, but of course, we work hard to maintain both.” With so much investment already made, more planned and further opportunities to take advantage of, the future looks set to maintain Southwark as a thriving business destination and hub for creative working for decades to come. issue

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Hidden attractions

A TASTE FOR THE CURIOUS Some of Southwark’s lesser-known attractions range from the historically fascinating to the more unusual. Suruchi Sharma embarks on a trip around the borough to seek out its quirkier attractions and speaks to those behind the ventures

FOR A LONDON BOROUGH packed with some of the UK’s most famous galleries, theatres and museums, Southwark also hosts an array of smaller, more niche venues, which attract hobbyists, locals and those with a taste for the curious. Southwark Council has made its enthusiasm for culture to form part of its development strategy clear, with an aim of “securing the cultural landscape for generations to come”. But how do the smaller venues add up to be greater than the sum of their parts and contribute to an already culturally rich community?

KIRKALDY TESTING MUSEUM There is a motto inscribed above the door of 99 Southwark Street that states “Facts not Opinions”; words Scottish engineer David Kirkaldy believed in. Inside this Grade II*listed building is a unique museum dedicated to his work, where the huge hydraulic-

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powered Universal Testing Machine he built is preserved. This pioneering machine was historically used for testing the suitability of building materials for major infrastructure projects that include Hammersmith Bridge and Wembley Stadium. Museum trustee Sarah Jarvis says: “What David was doing was very controversial at the time, as he was going against the way people were working. He was saying the only way to ensure building and construction materials are safe is to test them rigorously and objectively, and to basically build on fact – not opinion.” The volunteer-run museum opens on the first Sunday and the third Wednesday of every month, and regularly features as part of events such as Open House, London History Day and the Thames festival. Jarvis says the Kirkaldy Testing Museum is different to other cultural attractions as the public gets to “experience the authentic place”. Visitors are intrigued by the history of the venue, she says: “You go in and just fall in love

with the place. It’s astonishing that it’s still here, and it’s so important that it survives. It’s a crucial part of the legacy of why buildings and bridges stand up, and underpins the world’s standard of engineering established in this building on Southwark Street.”

OLD OPERATING THEATRE When visitors head up the narrow 52-step staircase in the Old Operating Theatre, they will be rewarded with a unique insight into the history of medicine. The oldest surviving surgical theatre in Europe is tucked away next to the iconic Shard building, and is housed in the attic of the old St Thomas Hospital’s 18th century church. Sarah Corn is a year into her role as director of this popular venue that opens seven days a week and annually has around 40,000 visitors. She says: “We talk about the Victorian surgery that would have taken place here and teach key points in medical history. “Many people say they’re so glad to live today [so as] to not have to go through the

PICTURED: The Old Operating Theatre (left and below) and The Kirkaldy Testing Museum (right) give insights into the fields of medicine and engineering respectively.

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horrible surgeries of that time. They are grateful for medical advancement.” School groups make up about a third of the audience that head to the museum, with history pupils who are studying the “medicine through time” module gaining an understanding of past surgical techniques. Corn says the museum wants to co-curate with the community to share stories about the history of the area. She adds: “No matter what time period you’re living in, there are people who always have herbal remedies for an ailment or an old wives’ tale or some kind of headache cure handed down through families. It’s those personal stories that are anecdotal, as well as folklore, which could open up a whole other angle we haven’t thought about before. Those are the type of stories we want to hear from the community, to create a bigger story on medical history.”

BRUNEL MUSEUM In Rotherhithe, a tribute to the Brunel dynasty of engineers sits at the site of the oldest part of the tube network and arguably the famous family’s greatest achievement: the Thames Tunnel. This was Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s first project in his celebrated career working alongside his father and fellow engineer, Sir Marc. The museum features the preserved Engine House, which held steam-powered pumps used to extract water as the tunnel was constructed. Museum director Robert Hulse says: “It’s an unusual and inspiring museum that despite being small, has a very big story to tell. Brunel, our most well-known engineer, is certainly one of Southwark’s most famous sons. He was a showman and so the museum is in that tradition.” Hulse points out that Sir Marc Isambard Brunel was a political refugee when he fled the French revolution and later, after some time in the US, found his home in London. He adds: “This is another reminder of the debt that London owes to new arrivals. People who arrive in this country often come with inspiring ideas, and it’s a French émigré who gave us the London tube system.” The museum hosts around 40,000 visitors annually and also celebrates Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s final project of ships that laid communication cables across the Atlantic and the Indian Ocean. Hulse says: “He’s a man whose ship heralded the world we live in today of instant communication, and of messages flashed around the world in a heartbeat.” Hulse says social media is “invaluable” to the museum and adds: “I’m sure if Brunel was alive today he would be a total Twitter fiend.” 42 issue 20 winter 2018

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Hidden attractions PICTURED: The Thames Tunnel at the Brunel Museum (left); Surrey Docks Farm (below) and The Four Quarters arcade bar (below right).

If we want to talk about sustainability, where food comes from and caring for the environment, then doing so at an early age is crucial. When our young farmers put seeds in the ground and see plants grow this is really motivating for us, as they’re excited and want to try the vegetables.” The farm works with many other organisations in the borough, and has links with groups for asylum seekers and older people. Hooper adds: “Given the nature of the place, it changes with the seasons so there’s often something new to connect with. Many visitors often talk about the therapeutic side of the farm that offers a calmer, slower pace of life than the city around it.”

THE FOUR QUARTERS Nostalgia plays a crucial part in the success of London’s first arcade bar; The Four Quarters in Peckham’s Rye Lane. Housed in what used to be a butcher’s shop, the venue was opened in 2014 by friends Joe Dowling and Tom Humphrey, who used to run a retro games shop in Streatham. Complemented by a selection of craft beers and vegan food, visitors can try out classic games such as Pac Man and Street Fighter 2, and enjoy special events including film screenings. Dowling says: “We wanted to open a gaming bar for a long time and I guess Retro Games Base [also in Streatham] opened doors and gave us business lessons that made Four Quarters possible. “When we opened, people thought we were some kind of chain, perhaps a flag bearer for gentrification, but they realised we’re passionate about what we do and it’s very much for everyone.” Dowling says he realises how vital it is to have good relationships with the public. He adds: “It’s important to make connections

SURREY DOCKS FARM Some may be surprised to learn that the business towers of Canary Wharf are located opposite Surrey Docks Farm in Rotherhithe. Free to the public, this venue is the only working city farm on the River Thames. Farm manager Gemma Hooper says opening seven days a week “certainly keeps the team busy” – but is keen to stress it’s “a labour of love” to accommodate the 50,000 visitors that head there annually. The community farm has animals including sheep, goats, pigs, ducks and rabbits, as well as bees. A vital aim for Hooper is to engage young people and the venue offers clubs for toddlers and older children, as well as hosting school visits. She says: “While we aim to educate the whole community, it’s important to get young people interested. southwarkmagazine.com

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THIS PAGE: Punters in Peckham enjoy “old school” video games at Four Quarters; a prisoner’s shackles at The Clink Prison Museum (below).

with the community on a broader level and to feel part of it rather than ancillary to it. I don’t think we knew what a big thing it was for a bar to open on Rye Lane at the time we did. In the early days we relied on the trade of folk who were just happy to have a new option, or make a stop on their way to or from somewhere else. We quickly became a valued part of Peckham’s nightlife.”

THE CLINK PRISON MUSEUM

Furneaux adds: “We have solid links with schools, as we’re part of the national curriculum covering crime and punishment for primary school children, and most schools return year after year. “We are in a great location on the original site of the Clink Prison. Our visitors come because we promote real history, and offer a hands-on experience where guests can handle some of our torture equipment.”

Furneaux says visitor numbers reached around 40,000 last year. With an eye on the future success of the attraction, she wants to promote the area’s heritage to ensure “local history is not forgotten”. The museum is currently working on an exhibit to promote its link with the pilgrims who boarded the Mayflower, for the historic ship’s 400-year anniversary that will be celebrated in 2020.

Stepping back in time gets to feel very real when visitors head to the famous medieval Clink Prison Museum, found on the River Thames, adjacent to Winchester Palace. There are many displays of art history and documents here chronicling the prison’s past, with referencing to major events such as plots against the crown, including during Queen Mary I’s reign. Museum director Miranda Furneaux says the aim is to provide an educational experience for the public and for people to learn about its heritage from when it first operated in the 12th century. Thought to be one of the oldest prisons in England, it is believed The Clink’s name was inspired by the sound of the blacksmith’s hammer closing irons around the wrists or ankles of a prisoner. 44 issue 20 winter 2018

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EVENTS WORKSHOPS ● LAUNCHES ● TOURS ● RECEPTIONS CONFERENCES ● MEETINGS ● ROUND-TABLES

Natasha Pullan – head of events natasha@3foxinternational.com Lottie Gregory – event manager lottie@3foxinternational.com

Hemini Mistry – events assistant hemini@3foxinternational.com

020 7978 6840

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Heritage

HISTORY IN THE MAKING As development in Southwark continues apace, it is important for those with a stakehold in the borough that its heritage is not only retained, but celebrated. Jane Thynne speaks to Michael Tsoukaris, the man charged with making this happen

TOWER BRIDGE, the Imperial War Museum, Tate Modern and Shakespeare’s Globe: Southwark has more than its fair share of nationally recognised landmarks. Yet across its 28.5sq km, stand many more lesser-known buildings of architectural and historical significance – buildings that tell the story of the borough; buildings that warrant its protection. However, as massive regeneration projects take place across Southwark and the council seeks to hit its target of 20,000 new homes over the coming decade, the challenge now is to achieve the demands of a 21st century metropolis without erasing the area’s distinctive past. Enter Michael Tsoukaris, Southwark Council’s group manager for design and conservation, who, along with his team, is forging a path in heritage restoration. “Interestingly, heritage and the buildings people value in the area are often a touchstone for regeneration,” he explains. “In other words, keep the best of what is worthy of preserving.

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That will then become a benchmark for things to come.” The team’s first project came back in 2011 during planning for the regeneration of Elephant and Castle. Tsoukaris opted to take a different approach from previous strategies, actively seeking out historically important sites, rather than solely concentrating on potential redevelopment zones. Dozens of buildings in Elephant and Castle were identified, along with three spaces that could be designated as conservation areas: Elliot’s Row, Larcom Street and Walworth Road. “These were places right in the centre of the opportunity area,” he says. “But by designating them as having historical interest, we set a benchmark for design.” He cites Lendlease’s Elephant Park development as an example, which sits adjacent to the Larcom Street Conservation Area. Here you have a brand new row of terraced houses that mirror those of the established dwellings opposite, before tiering back to taller buildings. southwarkmagazine.com

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It was a strategy the council employed again in Peckham with the Rye Lane Conservation Area and the Peckham Hill Street Conservation Area, initiating developments sympathetic to the streets surrounding them. By opting to preserve important sites, communities are also seeing financial benefits. For example, in Peckham, the council was able to secure £1.675 million of Heritage Lottery funding for its Townscape Heritage Initiative, which is providing new shop fronts, windows and repairs to facades. While Tsoukaris is mindful that such a sum doesn’t go far in terms of total restoration of an area, he is hopeful that “with careful placing you actually trigger a design approach that others will follow”. With work well under way in Peckham, the team is now also busy working with the Walworth Heritage Action Zone. Here, the council, along with community groups including the Walworth Society, is taking a slightly different approach, focusing more on

THIS PAGE: Peter Taylor Associates is the architect behind the Southwark Fire Station scheme (above). Plans for the Townscape Heritage Initiative (below).

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the cultural and social importance of the area. One of the most comprehensive heritage initiatives is taking place along the Old Kent Road. This ancient thoroughfare (first paved by the Romans before being used by the Anglo-Saxons from the 5th century) has undergone various transformations. Once a well-trod path for pilgrims, as noted in Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, it was later a hive of Victorian industrialisation, before becoming the urban retail sprawl we see today. Fortunately, the 1.8-mile London artery is now being given the historical recognition it deserves. The Old Kent Road Opportunity Area stretches from the Bricklayers Arms in the north to the boundary with Lewisham in the south. “For many people, it is just somewhere to do your Christmas shopping or buy a new computer. They wouldn’t necessarily associate it with heritage,” Tsoukaris says. However, after carrying out an extensive characterisation study, the team identified more than 60 buildings of historical interest. The Stables are a case in point. Situated

THESE BUILDINGS HAVE PROVED THEY CAN STAND THE TEST OF TIME AND MULTIPLE USES amid the current industrial spread and at the heart of the planned redevelopment by Colliers, this group of Victorian outbuildings offered a final nod to the former Bricklayers Arms railway goods depot, where they had served as a hospital for the many horses used by the railway. And although the stables were still in use, the freeholder was willing to sell the site, which had been earmarked for an eight-storey apartment block.

However, realising the importance of the historical buildings, Southwark Council placed them under an “Article Four directive” – meaning that planning permission would have to be sought before demolition – effectively quashing the sale. “Any site outside a conservation area can be demolished without planning permission and left as an empty site. It doesn’t matter how old the building is or what its previous use was. This was the risk in this case, so we used our power to take away the demolition rights. We wanted a positive development and we are currently looking to do that with all the buildings in the Old Kent Road that we have identified as ‘at risk’,” says Tsoukaris. Another example is the Old Kent Road’s Gasholders, which stand at the eastern end of the highway. Formerly owned by the South Metropolitan Gas Company, the Grade IIlisted buildings were designed by Sir George Livesey and in operation until 1953. Their future had looked uncertain until the site was bought by Southwark Council in 2017. It is now hoped the industrial monuments will form a backdrop for a new ‘urban park,’ to include an arts and community performance venue. And it is not only above ground where plans are afoot to save Southwark’s past. Surface work is under way to construct Bear Gardens – a 75-room boutique hotel which is set to take its place as part of the redevelopment of Bankside – subterranean strategies have been put in place to ensure that the site of London’s famous 16th-century ‘bear pit’ below is preserved. “This is very important archaeologically,” explains Tsoukarkis. “The bear pit has been given ‘Ancient Monument’ status, and although the public cannot access it, its new status means it will be preserved under the building that stands on the site, and it always will be.” While developers may not always agree to conform architecturally, they are often keen to keep the area’s social history alive, even if it is in name only. This is the case on the former Vinopolis plot where the former trades of these streets are being resurrected as part of the new urban landscape. Hence; Soap Yard, Dirty Lane and Clink Yard will once more make an appearance. Tsoukaris says: “Often there’s a point in the planning process when developers realise what they are dealing with in terms of heritage. They often get fired up by the site’s past, which often then acts as a hook to create something for the future.” And while there are those who will always hark back to the glory of the borough’s architectural past, some projects are rightly celebrated as a beacon of how society has

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Heritage PICTURED: The Old Kent Road Gasholders (left); Bear Gardens after its third rebuilding in 1648 (below); the site today ( far below).

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progressed. One example of this is the Southwark Fire Station. Concern had been growing about the fate of this 19th century former poorhouse on Southwark Bridge Road, until plans to build a new secondary school, sports facility and 199 homes were given the green light earlier this year. “The listed buildings of the fire station are going to be the new school, which is wonderful,” says Tsoukaris. “We wanted it to be sympathetic to the historic setting and I think we have succeeded. Aside from the architectural beauty, these buildings have proved they can stand the test of time and multiple uses.” Tsoukaris sees his team – which includes an archealogist, an urban forester and two conservation officers as “progressive”. He adds: “Conservation is about taking a strategic approach. It is not a stop to regeneration. Historic buildings define the character of the area. They are worth fighting for and are often the ones local people value most. But our job is not about preservation in aspic or wrapping Cling Film around buildings and saying ‘nothing should happen here’. We have to find solutions to save them, not only as heritage assets, but as our legacy for future generations.”

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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 building.control @southwark.gov.uk

Albion School images by Hufton and Crow

Albion School was highly commended in the national LABC Local Authority Building Excellence Awards 2018

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Projects

projects From new thinking behind estate redevelopment to the schools, retail and housing schemes in the pipeline, Mark Smulian reports on the progress of Southwarkâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s key sites

Blackfriars Bridge

Bankside

London Bridge

Waterloo East

Waterloo

Southwark

Rotherhithe

Borough

Bermondsey

Elephant and Castle

Canada Water

Kennington

South Bermondsey

Burgess Park Oval

Queens Road

New Cross Gate

Peckham

Camberwell 3 7

Peckham Rye

1. AYLESBURY ESTATE

4. BOROUGH YARDS

2. 18 BLACKFRIARS ROAD

5. BANKSIDE YARDS

3. CHARTER SCHOOL / HEALTH CENTRE

6. 185 PARK STREET

Featured project Rail / underground / overground station

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Our 10 year partnering contract with Southwark Council Head Office Unit 1a Juno Way Trading Estate London SE14 5RW 0208 692 4960 enquiries@aeelkins.co.uk

www.aeelkins.co.uk

In 2009, A & E Elkins were appointed as one of The London Borough of Southwark’s framework contractors to deliver the clients “Decent Home” programme on a 5 year term partnering agreement. A & E were appointed to cover the Southern region of the Borough and we are still currently delivering the same contract following a 5 year extension. Following a change in direction, by LB Southwark, our remit was changed to provide residents with a “Warm, Dry and Safe (WDS)” living space from initial feasibility study, through delivery and aftercare. WDS projects were delivered throughout Nunhead, Peckham Rye and Dulwich hitting all programme, budget and Key performance targets. Following the success of these initial projects our area was temporarily extended to the Walworth area where large scale projects were delivered to the same high standard. Currently we are surveying and delivering our 2018/2019 programme and hope to continue the success we have attained to date.

A Premier Refurbishment, ‘Decent Homes’ Maintenance and Roofing Contractor A & E Elkins Ltd, a family run company formed in 1963, now in its third generation and still offering excellence in workmanship

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Projects

AYLESBURY ESTATE Southwark Council and social landlord Notting Hill Genesis are collaborating on the regeneration of Walworthâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Aylesbury estate. Given its size and scale, this is one of the most ambitious regeneration projects in Europe, and is expected for completion in 2036, with a vision to create a place people from different backgrounds will choose as their home, and where families can bring up children on safe streets, close to good schools and job opportunities. The partners are delivering a masterplan for 3,500 new homes, at least half of which the council stresses will be affordable. Of these, 75% will be social rented homes and 25% will be for shared ownership or shared equity. At least 30% of the homes across all tenures will have three bedrooms or more. The regeneration work also includes a library and health centre and improved open spaces. This year demolition works have progressed on the first development site on southwarkmagazine.com

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Albany Road and building preparation works on the Plot 18 site on Thurlow Street. Over the next year, the partners expect to appoint a contractor to begin work on the new homes. Alongside the physical regeneration, the council is working with the community, through the Creation Trust charity, and have supported residents into apprenticeships and jobs. They have also awarded 225 bursaries to residents. In future phases, blocks west of Thurlow Street will be demolished from 2021 and 200 new homes will be built, while the Missenden, Michael Faraday, Gayhurst, Gaitskell, Latimer, Calverton, Danesfield and Emberton blocks will start to come down from 2023 to be replaced by 1,500 new homes. The estate was built between 1963 and 1977 in blocks connected by walkways but came to suffer physical and anti-social behaviour problems. issue

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Projects

18 BLACKFRIARS ROAD Planning permission has been given for a 111,500sq m mixed use scheme at 18 Blackfriars Road for developer Black Pearl. A statement by the developer said: “18 Blackfriars Road obtained consent in June this year. Our team is studying the scheme in the present market context. We hope to be able to progress the design further and discharge planning obligations to begin works on-site in the second half of 2019.” There are two towers planned, in keeping with the major redevelopments of towers now clustered around the northern end of Blackfriars Road near Blackfriars Bridge and station. The site is near the south bank of the Thames, and adjoins a park. Demolition of existing buildings on-site has been completed. The residential tower will have 227 homes and uses an unusual design with a simple rectilinear floorplate, sculpted to appear as a series of separated stacked blocks. The glazed facades of each block are at subtly varied angles to catch the light in different ways. Meanwhile, the office building will offer 40,000sq m of high-grade space over 32 floors, with retail facilities on the ground floor. The tower elements of the project have been placed on main roads, while the lowerrise elements along Paris Garden relate to the narrower and lower-rise streetscape. The office building will front onto Blackfriars Road, and the slender residential tower onto Stamford Street opposite the junction with Rennie Street. Lower rise buildings along Paris Garden will contain the hotel, while houses will be located at the site’s southern end. In all, 548 hotel rooms are planned, as well as 227 homes for market sale, 64 “affordable” homes, 25,532sq m of office space and 2,966sq m of retail space. Around 2,550 new jobs are projected to be created on the site.

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Renders taken from 2016 public consultation process

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Projects

CHARTER SCHOOL / HEALTH CENTRE A topping out ceremony was held at the Charter School East Dulwich in July 2018, to mark the completion of its brickwork, with its concrete frame completed last February. Construction has also started on the adjacent health centre. Construction of the school started in 2017 and is due to be finished by the end of 2018. It will move to its permanent site in January. When complete, it will accommodate 1,200 students in eight forms across each year group for years 7 to 11. There is also sixthform provision. The school will share its site with the new healthcare centre, which is expected to be completed in spring 2020. Speaking at the topping out ceremony, Johnson Situ, cabinet member for growth, development and planning, said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;Today marks a major milestone in the development of this longstanding and ambitious project for the council. It represents a major investment to create a new secondary school that will serve east Dulwich, south Camberwell and Peckham, as well as a new healthcare centre.â&#x20AC;? The school opened in September 2016 and has until now been housed on the former LeSoCo site in Camberwell, pending completion of the new building.

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Projects

BOROUGH YARDS Initial construction work is in progress on the £300 million retail-led Borough Yards regeneration project by developer Meyer Bergman European Retail Partners II. The scheme is on the site of the former wine-tasting and restaurant attraction Vinopolis, near Borough Market and London Bridge station. Borough Yards will provide more than 1,450sq m of retail and leisure space plus offices. The site spans the railway arches by Clink Street and the land between the railway viaduct and Wine Wharf. As part of the redevelopment, a new pedestrian lane will provide access from Park Street to Bank End. Some of the area’s original Elizabethan street names will be revived, such as Clink Yard and Soap Yard. Construction work began in July by contractor Wates to a design by SPPARC Architecture. For the project’s office element, flexible workspace firm The Office Group will occupy Thames House and a new adjacent building, taking 6,360sq m in a building that will also include a new branch of the Everyman cinema chain.

Thames House will be redeveloped behind its retained facade for retail use, though its two-storey side addition will be demolished to allow for the erection of a six-storey building on land between the railway viaduct and 28 Park Street. This will be a maximum of 27.4m in height and the space will provide retail and offices. Meyer Bergman’s chief executive, Marcus Meijer, said: “Everyman Cinema and The Office Group are fantastic new anchors at Borough Yards, highlighting our ambition to create a world-class location with a vibrant balance of work and lifestyle. “This part of Borough has been underserved in terms of a retail offering given the needs of the local community, the commuters who arrive at London Bridge and the number of visitors exploring the iconic sights in this part of London. “The Everyman Cinema will make Borough Yards an after-work entertainment venue too, a valuable addition to the area that will make it livelier in the evenings.” Borough Yards is scheduled for completion in early 2020.

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Projects

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Projects

BANKSIDE YARDS A planning application was submitted to Southwark in the summer for the Bankside Yards redevelopment of Sampson House (right) by Native Land, Temasek, HPL and Amcorp Properties. The 130,000sq m mixeduse project – which also includes Ludgate House, granted planning permission in 2014 – intends to reconnect the space between Tate Modern and Blackfriars Station in five buildings linked by public spaces. There will be more homes and a fraction less office space than envisaged in the project’s original design. Southwark Council will also benefit from a minimum £65 million contribution towards further affordable homes elsewhere in the borough. The project would replace two older office blocks. Preparation for the demolition of Sampson House is in progress and expected to start in early 2019, as well as development work on the Ludgate House site, which has already been demolished. A community liaison group keeps local people updated about the demolition. Original developer Carlyle Group obtained planning permission in 2014 for the 489 homes across five buildings, along with 27,870sq m of office space and 3,809sq m of retail and cultural facilities. The new application proposes 581 homes with 26,663sq m of office space and a hotel. Of the 92 additional homes, 35% are planned as affordable. There will be a range of publicly accessible spaces with public art that link up different areas within the site. The architectural strategy is intended to reflect the surrounding context of brick, steel and concrete and the artistic quality of the neighbouring Tate Modern. It will seek to contribute to a balanced skyline along the river, with the shape of the cluster designed to respond to the surrounding buildings. The five buildings will vary in shape, material and size, providing a scale transition. A landscaping plan is being developed for trees, hedges and green areas, and Hopton Garden will provide a new green space on Hopton Street, with shrubs and street trees, as well as benches and a play space.

185 PARK STREET Demolition has commenced on the 185 Park Street scheme. The site housed the former headquarters of the Central Electricity Generating Board near Bankside, which was later used by National Grid and various small businesses. The project was originally by developer Delancey but has been bought by Slovakian firm JTRE and Sons & Co, marking JTRE’s first venture into the UK property market. The site has planning consent for 163 apartments and 8,156sq m of offices and 919sq m of retail, plus 1,550sq m of cultural space.

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Winner of the ACAD Excellence in audit award 2018

Experienced. Professional. Trusted. With over 50 years combined experience in the asbestos and construction industry, we pride ourselves on providing the residents in the London borough of Southwark with a safe home for them and their families.

Unit 19 The Maltings Roydon Road Stanstead Abbotts Herts SG12 8HG 01920 872 911 www.franklynshaw.co.uk Enquiries@franklynshaw.co.uk

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Mountview Academy

THE OPENING ACT Long in the planning, Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts is now open in its new Peckham home, bringing an injection of culture and opportunity to the area. Shailja Morris speaks to the facilityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s executive director and joint CEO, Sarah Preece 60 issue 20 winter 2018

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Mountview Academy

ON THE EDGE of Peckham Square, behind the Stirling Prize-winning library, lies the impressive new exterior of Mountview Academy of Theatre Arts. Its two interlocking brick buildings reflect the heritage of the site, which was once a canalside warehouse. Located over three floors, with a golden brown Corten steel wrap around its theatre, the building is an asset to the local landscape. However, Mountview offers much more to Peckham than a drama school with an impressive physical structure. “Mountview is a community asset,” explains its joint CEO and executive director, Sarah Preece. “In January [2019], we will be launching our Community Academy, which will open up the building to local people. They will have daily access to our world-class facilities. “Historically, drama schools tend to have their back to their communities,” she adds. “They are good at providing trained performers, but that usually happens in isolation. Our ethos is not just to provide superb vocational training, but to embed arts education and engagement within our community. We want to provide opportunities to young people who otherwise would not believe there would be an opening for them in this world. “We are subsidising all our pathways and offering four bursaries each year to local students. We have just awarded three to Southwark residents, one of whom is a Theatre Peckham student joining our foundation course.” Mountview is in the process of creating apprenticeships for set construction, wardrobe, front of house and theatre. On a more regular basis, the Community Academy is offering free and discounted classes to children, young people and adults. In addition, free tickets will be available for local people for the academy’s many performances throughout the year. Preece says: “We’re also bringing economic benefits to local businesses through the creation of jobs. In fact,

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THIS PAGE: Mountview runs dance classes ( far left); Sarah Preece (above left); the building’s interior (left) and exterior (below left).

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Mountview Academy

THIS PAGE: Peckham’s young, diverse and enthusiastic community at Mountview Academy.

we have commissioned a local scene builder from down the road and over 22 local people have been employed on the Mountview site. In addition, around £14 million of economic inflow is being brought into the area.” Mountview is also a strong player on the national and global stage. As Preece explains: “After the financial sector, the creative industry is the second largest contributor to GDP in the UK. Around 70% of West End shows feature Mountview students. And we don’t just produce actors and performers, but also professionals involved in backstage crafts, from lighting to set design. Events like the London Olympics couldn’t have happened without the involvement of the creative industries. We have a 100% conversion rate from student to employment for backstage crafts and stage management. For our performance pathways it’s 96%. We also generate a lot in terms of the tourist industry – through West End shows, Fashion Week and so on.” The new site heralds a new era for the academy as it is Mountview’s first permanent home in 30 years. Prior to this state-of-the-art Peckham site designed by Carl Turner Architects, it was located across five rented sites in an industrial estate in Wood Green, Haringey. Preece adds: “This is a brilliant 9,600sq m space in a strategic location. It’s a multi-purpose venue, offering a unique model of training, which connects industry professionals, students and the local community. We have 23 dance and acting studios, two theatre spaces, and a commercial rehearsal space. “Although it’s taken us years to find our permanent home, it took just 17 months from the day they put the fencing up around the brownfield site to the day the students arrived. It has been a very efficient build.

“The cost of building the academy was £27.3 million, of which more than £20 million was secured in loan financing. Of the additional funding needed to complete the project, £2.5 million came from Southwark Council, £850,000 from the Mayor of London’s Good Growth Fund and the rest from trusts and foundations. “We received some of the cost from trusts and foundations and now need £1.5 million to complete the theatre fit-out, which will be generated through individual giving. We are self-sustaining and generate income from our food and beverage outlets, plus the work and office spaces we are renting out. There are commercial rehearsal rooms with a set of ancillary spaces that are ideal for West End agencies, theatre castings and so on. There is also a whole floor that would be suitable for SMEs within the creative sector. “Our academy is a fantastic case study, due to our partnership with Southwark Council and contractors Gilbert Ash. We could not have done it without our partners and we’re grateful to them,” emphasises Preece. “Councils have access to financing. If they can unlock the finance for us, we can deliver the benefits. The council owns the land and charges us rent and we pay off the loan and interest goes back in the coffers to the public – so the local public are getting a good deal too. “It is a great model that can be replicated on many different scales.” She concludes: “Regeneration is not about pushing out local people. It’s about bringing them into the potential of what change might look like. We can’t stop progress and change but can make sure that everyone will experience the benefits of it.”

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MALT STREET LONDON SE1

SITEMATCH LONDON 2018: 221 delegates 42 public sector landowners 331 meetings

The 2019 event is just around the corner An exciting new green place for everyone www.berkeleygroup.co.uk Proud to be a member of the Berkeley Group of companies

Berkeley are passionate about creating amazing new spaces to live, work and enjoy.

Sitematch London 2019 will take place on 7 February 2019 at etc venues, Bishopsgate, Our plans for our new site along the Old Kent Road will 155 deliver up to 1,300 London, EC2M 3YD new homes, many of them affordable homes, alongside 75,000 sq ft of out how you can get involved: industrial, commercial and retail space and a 250m longFind brand new linear Westhead jake@3foxinternational.com or park for the whole community to enjoy. Over half ofJake the site will be public open Paul Gussar paul@3foxinternational.com space with a large central piazza and green streets to enhance pedestrian and cyclist permeability in the area. We are also creating generous new employment spaces to provide a 400% increase in jobs on site. We are proud to be working with Southwark Council to create a fantastic new place for all.

Prices and details correct at time of going to press. Computer Generated Image is indicative only.

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Committed to Londonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s future We create in-demand London spaces that people want to be part of; helping our occupiers, local communities and the city to thrive.

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