APRIL 2022
brixtonblog.com
NEWS 3
Stockwell skatepark facelift Stockwell Skatepark, close to Brixton town centre, is to get a half million pound makeover to smooth worn-out and rough concrete surfaces and add modern skating features. The park on Stockwell Road, which is free to use, opened in 1978 and attracts skateboarders, BMX bikers and other riders of all ages and abilities from a wide area. Lambeth council, which owns the site, said it had worked closely with the Friends of Stockwell Skatepark (FOSS) and local residents on the refurbishment which is due to start on 4 April. The council said the improvements will significantly improve the experience for all types of riders, with an improved flow around the park, a more inviting space for beginners, and refreshed seating. Betongpark, one of Europe’s leading skatepark design and construction firms, will do the work. It is expected to take four months with re-opening scheduled for the end of July. Brixton BMX Club, whose main track is in Brockwell Park, are also involved in the project. Donatus Anyanwu, Lambeth council cabinet member for the voluntary sector and leisure, said: “Stockwell skatepark is really valued by both the council and the community, so I am delighted that this important improvement
Rueben Goodyear at Stockwell skatepark Photo Wig Worland project will soon start. “Engaging with the community has been central to this project and I thank everyone who has been involved for giving up their time so willingly, and their passion for the project. “We have really worked hard to get this right, factoring in the needs of different users so the end result will be a really inclusive skatepark for all to enjoy.” Other improvements will include a new family friendly and accessible viewing area. To support community use, the London
Marathon Trust has given £10,000 towards sessions for local schools, Lambeth residents and disabled users for when the park re-opens. Some of this money also will go towards skateboarding courses, including specialist instructor training for people with disabilities. Daphne Greca, from FOSS, a community association that works to protect and promote the Skatepark, who has campaigned for the refurbishment, said: “Stockwell skatepark is loved by so many people, and it’s such a valuable site for so many reasons,” she said. “It boosts wellbeing, gives young people an exciting way of exercising – but, more than that, a community has built up around the park which is just brilliant. “The park sits in the middle of an incredibly diverse, heavily built-up area where opportunities for free outdoor exercise and socialising in a safe space for our young people are in short supply. The park is currently run down, the surface is bumpy and its features are out of date.” The project will be funded using contributions from developers for local projects worth £180,000, including £100,000 from Network Homes, a housing association that has built new flats next to the skatepark, £110,000 from the London Marathon Trust, and further funding from the council.
Christopher Wellbelove in his role as Lambeth Mayor in Brixton
Former Lambeth Mayor appointed as Queen’s local representative By Iona Cleave
Daphne Greca: ‘Stockwell skatepark is loved by so many people, and it’s such a valuable site for so many reasons’
Council planning ‘bee roads’ to re-wild borough Lambeth council has won £440,000 from the Greater London Authority (GLA) to create 10 miles of wildflower patches, rain gardens and new woodland to boost urban biodiversity. The two-year series of rewilding projects across the borough – called “bee roads” by the council, will replace turf on selected roadsides, roundabouts and other under-used public spaces with native wildflower meadows. This is intended to create “linear habitat” for butterflies, bumble bees and other pollinators. The council said the project would also include the creation of rainwater ponds on housing estates, making new habitats for frogs, toads and newts and species such as dragonflies. Its proposal was based on
working with “local community champions” to create a network of re-wilded patches on formerly unused or underused land alongside major roads. Council leader Claire Holland, who, launched a borough climate action plan on March 21, said the funding would transform many different parts of the borough, “making our public spaces more biodiverse and better for the wellbeing of our residents”. The GLA grant is from its Green and Resilient Spaces Fund, part of the Mayor of London’s “green new deal”, which invests in projects that enhance resilience to climate change. Several Lambeth parks already have wildflower meadows that help preserve native species of plants and wildlife, including butterflies
Lambeth Walk Doorstep Green, a Local Site of Importance for Nature Conservation
and bumblebees. Thames Water is an active partner in the plans to create self-sustaining rain gardens that improve drainage and reduce flood risk. On St Matthew’s Estate in Brixton the council plans to create a permanent and a seasonal pond by diverting rainwater from the roofs of people’s homes, as part of a new countryside walk – a natural screen from the busy Effra Road. Outside La Retraite School in Clapham Park, the council plans to build out from the school entrance to help calm traffic and make the road safer – and plant the new public space as a wildlife habitat. A rain garden with pavement planting is planned for the Tulse Hill Estate. In the long term, the council plans to replace grass with five new roadside wildflower meadows and two areas of woodland . More than 100 people have offered to volunteer with Lambeth Bee Roads. To be added to a general volunteering list for the project, email parks@lambeth.gov.uk, stating ‘Lambeth Bee Roads’ in the title.
Christopher Wellbelove, former Mayor of Lambeth, has been appointed Deputy Lieutenant for Greater London representing Lambeth. Wellbelove held a seat on Lambeth council for 16 years, and is one of the few councillors to have served as Mayor of Lambeth twice. In his new role, he will act as the Queen’s representative in Lambeth, assisting the Lord-Lieutenant, Sir Kenneth Olisa OBE, in serving London’s communities. It is a position that recognises those who have long served their community through public life and through charitable or voluntary services. “It’s a massive honour,” says Wellbelove. “The Lord-Lieutenant is very keen in making the lieutenancy more representative of the community and he picked me as someone who has long worked for Lambeth council and lives here.” He hopes now to raise awareness of his role. “Organising royal visits to the borough is a key part, and so is making people aware of the Lieutenancy – what it is and what it can do for the local area.” And, what does Brixton mean to the near Deputy-Lieutenant? “Brixton is the heart of Lambeth and a special place for the Royal Family,” explains Wellbelove. “When it comes to royal visits, I will be really pressing to highlight the different community organisations and businesses in the area.” Wellbelove is already well-known in the community for his commitment to supporting mental health services, including the Mosaic Clubhouse mental health charity on Effra Road in Brixton. He will continue to support these charities in his new role, and hopes to look for ways to make connections between different community groups in the area and have their voices heard. “I do regular reports for the Lord-Lieutenant and his office, and it would be useful for me to make sure that Brixton is well and truly in those people’s minds at all the time,” he says. “As mayor I’ve met hundreds of people who work so hard in the community, and I want to make their cases and get more people like that put forward for awards.”
