EmPowering The New Women of Somers Town Claire Taggart- Year 4 -UNIT 22
ireland
pakistan
india bangladesh ethiopia
somers town, london
somalia
Displaced migrant communities of Somers Town
ampthill square estate:
issues/difficulties in your home/community life and how you might solve them...
hopscotch asian women’s centre:
ravenscroft primary school:
Conversations with recent migrants in somers town issues/suggestions that came up in conversations with members of somers town migrant communities
somers town female migrants more susceptible to: depression and mental health issues ill health due to confinement, lack of activity and excercise financial difficulties and unemployment sustained domestic abuse due to dependency on partner
due to: social isolation difficulty with integration culture shock change of family structure and role difficulty with english language lack of education and employable skills cultural/religious boundaries
Female migrant communities in Somers Town vulnerabilities of new migrant women
aurat enterprise berkshire ‘to empower and encourage women from minority groups to engage in learning’
community cleaning services tower hamlets ‘tackling social exclusion’
free training and ESOL classes flexible working hours for family commitments staff away days and women’s group networking to encourage integration
hopscotch asian women’s centre camden ‘supporting social and economic empowerment of women and their families’
shaah iyo sheeko women’s group barnet and harrow ‘breaking isolation through volunteering’
‘understanding and appreciation of the arts among muslim women’
‘supporting muslim women to participate in sports at all levels’
ESOL english classes craft and sewing classes training in homecare for carers of children, disabled and elderly advice on housing, employment and health issues
building awareness of eductaion system, political processes and legal system involvement in parent-teacher associations, local councils and communtiy consultative groups
ulfah arts birmingham
muslim women’s sport foundation
targeted regular community newsletter emplomyent and enterprise centre training schemes job club and forum for single parents
all-female music tuition sessions ulfah collective band- performing publically
training sessions in all-female environments with professional coaches providing faith-sensitive competitive opportunities
Case Studies empowering migrant women in their communities
state and connect
meet and chat
learn and develop
visit and share
collaborate and produce
exercise and socialise
Six ideas to empower migrant women of Somers Town shared and private feminine spaces in and around their homes
steel frame staircase fixes onto facade framework
Staircases on housing facades state their presence and connect balcony spaces
Not-So-Secret Staircases stating the women’s presence in their homes and privately connecting them
creating social feminine spaces along balconies
facade framework for sliding staircases connecting homes
Sliding Staircases staircases slide up, down and across facade to be used in different homes
park seat with encorporated children’s climbing frame provides a social meeting point
Park Bench providing opportunities for social encounters outside the house
Deployable shelter with seating creates privacy in public spaces structure hinges out from single fixed upright ring
sharing a cup of tea: bringing intimate indoor activities out
Park shelter creating an enclosed private space in public area
communal farming along balcony spaces
communal micro-farming project where food is cultivated and shared between the women
Communal Farming Project hanging baskets within homes and along balconies to grow food
structure creates connected, communal social spaces along balconies
trellises begin to construct new building facade
growing boxes and foldable trellises for small-scale farming produce
Communal Farming Facade farming project begins to become part of the building facade
connecting steel wires pull trellis structure into shape
bent wood frame trellises hinge out from main framework
Collected rain water flows through pipes in framework to sprinkle plants
Removable, collapsible fabric growing containers hook onto structure
waste plant produce composts and feeds back into base of soil bed
trellises fix onto balcony framework
Trellis framework facade system trellises fitted onto a main facade framework
planting, cultivating, harvesting and composting
Cultivation of crops along balcony spaces
Book Exchange Librarysecret bricks slip out from brickwork between apartments and along walkways and corridors
private personal home study space
Book Exchange private and shared spaces for the women to study
food Exchange WallTwo-way kitchen wall opens between neighbours and into communal spaces
books farming produce toys household items
Sharing of food and household items in specified deposit boxes and fridges
opens and connects home to home creating opportunity for other social encountersto be appropriated, used and mis-used as desired...
Exchange & Sharing Wall sharing of food and household items between homes
exchange windows create interfaces between homes
placing, taking and replacing
Exchange Windows exchange of objects between different rooms in the house
Route connects parks, streets and homes
goldington estate oakley square gardens
community sports centre
brill place phoenix court
excercise and play stops distributed around neighbourhood
prince arthur
Somers Town Trail neighbourhood walking route
route guided by electronic and physical markers organised and planned by members of walking group and published online each day
screens connected to published online route information screen changes gradually over time to indicate route activity electronic glass screen creates window shading as desired and publishes information for route stops
Digital Window Interface marks out house or flat as a stop on walking route
play net levels overlap for safe climbing
can be accessed from floor above
safe enclosed playground with seating, adult supervision and socialising below built on rooftops and within courtyards
existing walls and built high fences enclose space
Play Landscape layered landscape for children and parents
plastic funnels collect rainwater
water released down through pipes to farming facade climbing nets tensioned from rings
Rain Collection for Farming Facade rooftop play landscape collects water for community farming project
piezoelectric generating crystals woven into netting generate charge to light leds leds integrated into fabric clamps fixing levels of netting together
Reactive Fabric responds to movement and friction, lighting up to show activity within landscape
Play Landscape landscape lights up with movement to indicate activity, encouraging social encounters
grown produce shared
play landscape collects water for farming facade
play/social landscape on rooftops
sharing walls between flats
door and window interfaces indicate and link the women’s homes
trellises make up exterior facade
st
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s walking route links homes and designs
benches scattered in park areas
Connecting Designs designs inserted into housing typologies
chat
share
grow
connect
meet/play
exercise
Zoetrope Actions ways to empower migrant women of somers town
connect play/meet/chat
grow chat
share
meet/exercise
Zoetrope interactions with designs
grow chat connect share meet play
exercise
Zoetrope interactions with designs (see animation)
changeable anchor points for facade cable net, altering module size
inserted functions
inserted modules
solid steel framework with cable anchor points
facacde anchor points for steel cable net
Parametric Facade Exploration madrid workshop- adjustable cable framework facade system to insert add-on spaces
Rainwater
Sunlight ...made into...
...powers...
Homes...for...
...sold to...
...provide oppotunity of socialising for...
...cultivate...
...sold to...
{
...free up...
...feeds...
Children
Food
...produce...
community
Mothers
...look After...
Plants
Elderly
Neighbours
{
...irrigates...
Electricity
...provides for...
The Power Station empowering the migrant women of somers town through self-sufficiency and community involvement Ampthill Square Estate Somers Town
gillfoot
oxenholm
somers town
dalehead ampthill square estate
Site: ampthill square estate, hampstead road social housing estate in somers town with a large migrant population
euston station
ampthill square estate
ampthill square community facility
Ampthill Square Estate, Hampstead Road 1:2500
demolition site
current
proposed hs2 route
ampthill square estate ampthill square community centre
ampthill square community centre
HS2 high speed rail demolition 1:5000
run-down ampthill square estate towers
disused, soon to be demolished ampthill square community centre
Specific Sites to be addressed Ampthill Square Estate
Sites of intervention in the existing and proposed new build 1:2500
Power Station Aims: replace and revive community facility for ampthill square estate residents give increased independence, social opportunities and aid community integration for resident migrant women
for the women
experience in management, contributing to community and free facilities
self-sufficiency low cost services in new community centre
social meeting spaces producing fresh food produce for themsleves and their households
set up shared childcare network to allow time off and greater freedom to the women
gardens
childcare
open communal spaces fresh food produce available at low cost on site
safe play spaces for children and daytime childcare services near home
all-female spaces for relaxation and socialising
provide educational resources and teaching to develop language and other skills
all-female spaces for improving health and fitness whilst soialising
bath house
library
gymnasium
free library and teaching spaces for whole community
indoor and outdoor spaces for sport- open to communties, societies and clubs at low cost
reviving the bath house as a social event for the communtiy
for ampthill community Power Station Proposal self-powered communtiy centre for ampthill square estate run by resident migrant women
funding:
long-term financing and management:
clients: Compensation Scheme
Ampthill Square Tenants Association
compensation for loss of land and rebuilding of demolished community centre
residents
centre to be run by women with a handfull of paid full-time staff and many part-time female volunteers all services free to staff and volunteers
ampthill square estate management and residents
funding adult eductaion and employment Gender and Employment in Local Labour Markets (GELLM) Comittee
encouraging development and integration amongst local asian women in camden
eductaional courses and resources paid for by camden council
supporting self-sufficiency and city farming projects
all-female run organisation, aiding integration, sport and eductation amongst somali women and children
local community staff, up-keep and running of the centre paid for by income from charges for use of the centre facilities by local community
funding renewable enrgy installations
Power Station participants funding sources, building users and management
tensioned structures, fabrics, frameworks and modular systems The structure should be as lightweight and adaptable as possible to be easily assembled and maintained by the Women
making use of the women’s skills and heritage
bengali weaving patterns
Construction and Structure women to be involved as much as possible in construction
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building extends homes
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ampthill Power Station inter-woven, overlapping programs and spaces