Southwark Life
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Southwark LifeWinter 2017 #TalkSouthwark Join the Conversation about our changing borough Festive Fun A look at what’s going on this Christmas Top of the Class Why Southwark’s schools are standing out Your magazine from Southwark Council Winter 2017 Contents 4 Need to know – All your Southwark news and festive information this winter welcome... 8 Southwark Conversation As 2017 draws to a close, it’s natural to look back over the year – Find out how to make your that’s passed. For Southwark, and London, 2017 was a year where voice heard as part of the we faced true tragedy on our doorsteps, with terrorist attacks in Southwark Conversation London Bridge and Borough, Westminster and beyond, as well as 10 Top of the class – Read why the awful fire at Grenfell Tower that claimed so many lives. We Southwark has some of the best learned a huge amount from these heartrending incidents, not schools in London least about how resilient we are as a borough and a city, pulling 12 Building a healthy together in the face of horror, offering our help and support to borough – What can we do to help people be healthier? strangers, refusing to give in to hate, but love instead. 15 Conversation – Our pull out Of course, we won’t ever forget those who lost their lives, or pages for you to complete and join in the conversation were hurt or scarred by these events, and we are working with Southwark Cathedral, Borough Market, the police, and anyone 20 Is Universal Credit else who wants to get involved on plans for a permanent memorial working? – We speak to people affected by the to those harmed on June 3rd. But it’s right that we also look to the proposed changes to the future, and consider how we take what we have learned and use benefit system it to make Southwark an even better place to live, work and play. 22 Borough of Culture – Back our bid to be the London One thing that stood out following the Grenfell Tower incident Borough of Culture was how disconnected local communities felt from their council. 24 Southwark Presents – I don’t think Southwark is out of touch with our residents, as All the festive fun and activities our article on Universal Credit demonstrates, but as a council we around Southwark this need to be sure, and that’s why we have launched the Southwark Christmas Conversation, which you can find out more about in this edition 28 History of the borough – of Southwark Life. Please do tell us what you think about the way See just how Southwark has our borough is changing and how we can make sure no resident changed over hundreds of years is left behind. Change isn’t new of course - you can also see how Southwark has changed over time in our brilliant history piece. Christmas is a wonderful time in Southwark and the events pages are brimming with ideas of fun things to do. I hope you and your families have a very Merry Christmas. Peter John Leader of Southwark Council Contact us The Southwark Life team Keep in touch Do you have something to say about Southwark Life? Editor Louise Neilan Southwark Life is a quarterly magazine and Write to: Your letters, Southwark Life, Assistant editor Kim Hooper the next issue is due out in Spring 2018. You Fourth Floor North, Southwark Council, Contributors Jane Evans, Terri-Anne 160 Tooley Street London, SE1 2QH or Powell, Emma Moseley, Louise Timms, Aine can contact the magazine at southwark. email [email protected] Gallagher, Patricia Dark and Judith Aitken. [email protected] but for more regular Front page photo kindly supplied by Design Whatever Design Ltd updates on council news and events, follow us Emergency Exit Arts. Print brokered by Swiss Post on social media at Page 11 Charter School CGI provided by FCBStudios. Printed on 100% recycled paper facebook.com/southwarkcouncil London Borough of Culture (P22) Image kindly Distribution London Letterbox supplied by Printworks. All information correct at time of going to @lb_southwark Southwark Presents pages: press. Instagram.com/southwarkcouncil Jerwood Gallery – Lua Ribeira, from the series Noises in the Blood, 2016. Image courtesy of the artist. South London Gallery – Photo by Zoe Tynan-Campbell. southwark.gov.uk 3 Winter 2017 Aylesbury MUGA Camberwell Library celebrates sees transformation its Library of the Year award Southwark’s Camberwell Council urges Need to know... Library celebrated its businesses to pay Bookseller Magazine, Library of the Year a living wage award, at an event on 30 October. Cllr Johnson Southwark Council has written Situ, was joined by to local businesses, urging them Winter may be upon us but that celebrated author Sophie to pay all staff the London Living The council, a developer, some Hannah, proud library Wage as part of Living Wage Week. hasn’t slowed things down. Take artists and some local children, staff and a crowd of a look at what’s been going on have transformed the Multi-Use more than 60 people to Southwark is one of only 16 Games Area (MUGA) on Portland mark the honour. councils in London that are around Southwark, and what is Street on the Aylesbury estate. accredited Living Wage employers, The MUGA was looking pretty sorry The new building has transformed library use in Camberwell, where meaning we pay a real living wage coming up. for itself, so the team started with visits have nearly doubled, issues have more than doubled and new to all our staff. But we want to use improvements to the pitch, walls borrowers have nearly tripled, since it opened in 2015. our contacts with local businesses and fencing. Next came the creative to spread the positive impacts of phase, which was scheduled during paying a real living wage to many For news and events follow us on Facebook and Twitter half-term so local children could get more people. or find out more at southwark.gov.uk/enews involved. Art group Positive Arts National HIV Testing Week worked with the community and a At the moment, only 108 Southwark Follow us on good number of children from the As HIV often has no businesses are accredited Living Facebook facebook.com/southwarkcouncil estate, and together they painted a symptoms, getting tested is Wage Employers, while 22% of mural on the internal walls. the only way to know your employees in Southwark earn below Follow us on HIV status. National HIV the London Living wage - higher Twitter @lb_southwark Testing Week runs from 18 to than the inner London average of 25 November and promotes 19%. Why not add your business Follow us on Laptop donation HIV awareness and testing. to the list? You can find more Instagram Instagram.com/southwarkcouncil information at livingwage.org.uk appeal to help Early detection and accessing treatment of HIV 1,000 homeless is key to preventing damage to your health, living longer people and healthier with HIV as Repairs Fabulous new play area well as reducing the risk of A social enterprise is appealing to the transmitting the virus to Inspectors opens in Brunswick Park public and businesses to donate their your partner. old laptop computers so that they can Southwark Council is enhancing We’ve re-opened a be refurbished and given to people who Visit doitlondon.org and southwark.gov.uk/kingscollegehosphiv its communal repairs inspection fabulous new play have experienced homelessness. for more information. scheme. The council has a well area in Brunswick established regime of estate Park with an event Donation bins are springing up across inspections - led by resident that welcomed London including one in the new services officers and communal local residents Camberwell Library. Donated laptops repairs technical officers. In the first with face painting, will be distributed by homelessness What’s hatching on East Street? quarter of this financial year, 524 refreshments and charity Thames Reach to the people estate inspections took place. An entertainment. using its services. To donate email We are delighted average of 240 residents a month [email protected] or visit socialbox. to present took part in these inspections. The The quarter biz/homeless-support Hatch, one of council is now collating contact of a million the UK’s leading information for all those who take pound project community part in order to establish a ‘pool’ is the result of enterprise of resources who can be updated local resident charities, which with training opportunities and Claire Walker’s just launched in potentially any specific projects application to our Cleaner Greener Safer (CGS) programme. Walworth’s historic East Street. 55 East is a new council and GLA they could get involved with, if Further to the exciting new play area, a carved wooden funded community and enterprise hub that includes a combined co- they wish. If you would like to sculpture of ‘Boris the Squirrel’ is to be commissioned working and training space; a community café and a retail and event get involved, and make a positive and the local community will be invited to decide where space for local designers and community groups. 55 East is available contribution to improving services his home should be. Find out more at southwark.gov.uk/ for the whole community to use and the public are welcome to drop for everyone, contact your resident NewBrunswickplayArea in anytime. Find out more at www.55east.co.uk services officer. 4 southwark.gov.uk southwark.gov.uk 5 Winter 2017 Free salt giveaway Have you had your flu jab yet? Don’t miss out on your chance to Flu is highly infectious and can affect anyone but certain collect your FREE bag of salt, for conditions can make it worse.