THEME 1 Character & Culture

THEME1: CHARACTER AND CULTURE

CC4

To promote Southall as a destination for Londoners and international visitors

CC3

To create the potential for more diversity in Southall and add to the area's already rich cultural identity

CC2

To recognise and facilitate uses of the built environment that contribute to this unique cultural offer

Himalaya Palace

Desired Outcome: To promote Southall's identity through promoting its existing community and make Southall an area which attracts visitors for its unique cultural offer

Gudwara

Arches Business Centre Bidwell Square & New Station Building

Character and culture interventions - Sites

Character and culture interventions - High Streets

CC1

To maintain Southall's identity as a South Asian hub in London in the face of new developments in the area

SCALE 1:10,000

Objective CC1. To maintain Southall's identity as a South Asian hub in London in the face of new developments in the area

Rationale of this Objective

The OAPF referred to Southall as an 'Asian gateway' and having international importance. However, there was little in the policies of the document to promote this. In fact, it was threatened by the OAPF's explicit reference to diversifying the retail offer.

Policy

CC1.1 Meanwhile Cultural Hub

Designate that a vacant unit on one of the high streets in Southall must be used to set up a meanwhile use cultural hub by Ealing Council which focuses on engaging the local community. This engagement will focus on involving existing cultural groups and catalysing the formation of new ones with ordinary people. The cultural hub will also act as a focal point for the cultural life of Southall.

CC2.2 Meanwhile Toolkit for Local Cultural Groups

Support local cultural groups to occupy meanwhile venues through providing information about their location and how to complete the process. These groups can then be transferred to permanent community facilities in new developments later.

CC2.3 Community-led Public Art

Consult with local people to commission and manage murals of historically important local people and images in designated places. This process will give local residents a sense of ownership of the public realm, celebrating Southall's heritage for everyone to share in. It will also improve perceptions of safety and crime in the area if it looks more cared for and attractive.

Policy Tools & Indicators

Formal Tools

Control

Guidance

Control

Informal Tools Indicators

number of local cultural groups that are identified in the area and remain in the area, number of local cultural groups that have spaces from which to operate in, number of local artists used in placemaking initiatives and number of public art works that are commissioned

Key Messages

Exemplar

Croydon Art Store Transferability

Croydon Arts Store is a base for collaborative and participatory arts and events programme with a focus on community engagement. Croydon has used urban features creatively to promote the arts, making sure local people are represented in regeneration efforts. This is an exemplar that is currently happening in a similar place in London at the moment.

Brixton Project Transferability

The Brixton Project's 'participatory placemaking' approach and the public art that has been commissioned and managed after inclusive consultation. The public art reflects Brixton's Afro-Caribbean heritage and gives the historic population a presence in a fast-changing area. Because Southall is an area with a strong cultural identity like Brixton and currently not much public art but plenty of spaces for it.

Croydon Meanwhile Use Toolkit Transferability

Croydon Meanwhile Use Toolkit is a toolkit to help local groups make use of underutilised spaces in the borough. The project has been successful in engaging local people and using regeneration in Croydon as an opportunity to boost cultural activity in the area. Because this is also an exemplar that is currently happening in a similar place in London at

the moment.

Objective CC2. To recognise and facilitate uses of the built environment that contribute to this unique cultural offer

Rationale of this Objective

The OAPF identified some of the unusual uses of the built environment, such as sub-divided 'bazaarstyle' store units and street vendors. However, there were no specific provisions made for protecting them and in some cases they were identified as needing to be controlled.

Policy

CC2.1 Central Marketplace and Food Growing

Encourage the centralisation of smaller 'sub-divided' units in a marketplace on a key site with facilities for local food growing. Himalaya Palace would be the ideal site for such an initiative as it already contains small businesses in an informal marketplace. This could be coordinated through a BID (see policy EE 3.2 and EE 3.3)

CC 2.2 Formalising Street Vending

Formalise informal street vendors by outlining positions on the high streets in Southall to trade on. These will be focused around the new public square across the train tracks at Southall Station, meaning visitors are greeted by a traditional aspect of Southall's urban environment and promoting the business of street vendors. Other positions will be located along South Road, The Broadway and The Green.

Policy Tools & Indicators

added to the marketplace, number of local people involved in food growing and the percentage of to operate from and then remain there

Key Messages

Exemplar

Mercat Santa Caterina, Barcelona Transferability

The Barcelona Market Redevelopment Model involves treating the city's markets as a municipal service and investing in their modernisation so local traders can continue to prosper in a changing context. New stalls have also been added to complement the traditional businesses and attract more tourists. Because Southall has a key site (Himalaya Palace) that is ready for this kind of intervention with the cooperation of local traders who currently use the

Formal Tools

Incentive

Incentive

Informal Tools Indicators

Number of local businesses retained in the upgraded marketplace, number of new businesses street vendors that are given positions from which building and the addition of more.

Bhubaneshwar Vendor Transferability

Vendor engagement process in Bhubaneshwar helped create a series of vending zones through a participatory mapping process. These ensured their continued presence in the area and the affordability of products for customers who rely on these vendors for cheaper products. Because there are street vendors in Southall from South Asian backgrounds. However, informal trading is less common in the UK than India so policy that deals with it will have to be adapted

Objective CC3. To create the potential for more diversity in Southall and add to the area's already rich cultural identity

Rationale of this Objective

The OAPF mentions diversifying Southall's retail offer by offering more mainstram retail offers. However, this focus on mainstream, larger retail threatens to limit diversity to one of two things rather than allow opportunities for many different types of uses and owners.

Policy

CC 3.1 Cultural 'anchor tenants' in new mixed-use developments

Prioritise culture-led, locally-orientated businesses as 'anchor tenants' in new mixed-use developments by offering grant funding from the GLA Good Growth Fund so that new facilities are necessarily combined with existing community infrastructure. Examples of potential local 'anchor tenants' in Southall include The New School of Art and Southall Black Sisters.

CC 3.2 Public management of public spaces

Create systems for the public management of designated public spaces (including decision-making on upgrading them). This would involve creating a committee of local stakeholders with an interest in informing decision-making on the design and maintenance of public spaces. This committee would be selected to represent different groups in Southall.

Policy Tools & Indicators

use schemes, number of public spaces with public

Key Messages

Exemplar

Croydon Art Store Transferability

Mountview Academy was relocated to a new development in Peckham to promote culture in the area but also to promote diversity in an established drama school. The initiative was supported with £843,543 from the Good Growth Fund. Because this exemplar involved a major 'anchor tenant', whereas this policy will involve local cultural organisations that will

Formal Tools

Incentive

Control

Informal Tools Indicators

Number of cultural venues included in new mixed need to be identified accordingly.

management schemes and number of local people on management committees.

Croydon Meanwhile Transferability

Gillett Square in Dalston involved the participatory design and occupation of a new public space in Dalston. The mix of units and urban features was selected to ensure that diversity was locked-in to an area that has experienced rapid investment and change since. Gillett Square is also successful because it invites submissions for using the square online. These submissions can be logged and organised to create an all-year public cultural programme. Because Gillet Square involved participatory design and now management. There is an opportunity for the same process and management system to be implemented in new public spaces created near Southall Station and along the high roads.

Objective CC4. : To promote Southall as a destination for Londoners and international visitors

Rationale of this Objective

As mentioned before, the OAPF mentions that Soutahll attracts visitors from across Europe but does not suggest how Southall can become a destination for Londoners. This is a missed opportunity.

Policy

CC 4.1 Southall Creative Enterprise Zone

Ealing Council should support Southall to become a Creative Enterprise Zone(CEZ) to support all the stated activity above and give it a city-wide profile for culture and the arts. This policy works as an informal tool for the promotion of the area at a city-wide level, increasing people's knowledge of it as a cultural hub in London.

CC 4.2 Local legibility maps

Incentivise local artists to design 'legibility maps' with the sites of interest identified by local people through a collaborative process. This could be linked to policies CC 1.1 and CC 1.3.

Policy Tools & Indicators

initiatives, increase in the amount invested in

Key Messages

Exemplar

Tottenham CEZ Transferability

CEZ status for Totteham is expected to generate around 300 jobs each year and bring a £26 million boost in funding. Tottenham hosted its first literature festival in 2019, showing the potential for CEZ's to become hubs for local culture within London. Because Tottenham was selected by the GLA to become a CEZ in a competitive process. Southall will need to be

supported to be awarded such status.

CityID, Bath

Formal Tools

Incentive

Informal Tools

Promotion

Indicators

Number of applications for funding for cultural

Transferability

cultural activities in Southall, number of visitors to Southall and pedestrian footfall on ‘legibility’ routes

CityID's collaborative approach to designing legibility maps for Bath. This involved representing all different sites on the map to make sure people did not just flock to popular destinations and discovered 'hidden gems. This could go a step further and have the maps illustrated by a local artists like Martina Paukova did for Dalston for Walk With Me. Because Southall has a strong local identity and this can be capitalised on for such a scheme. Way-finding in Southall is currently weak so there is a great opportunity for this.