The Community Brain
Total Page:16
File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb
Appendix A Robin Hutchinson – The Community Brain Tolworth, Kingston upon Thames • Scarred by the A3 and quartered by the A240 • High air pollution • Low confidence • A place that is ‘done to’ Lovingly described by the Evening Standard as ‘the scrag end of the Borough’ Can we challenge a sense of inevitable decline and use community energy and ideas to re-imagine the high street and its surroundings • There’s a general sense from many in the communities that their voices count for little • With major regeneration projects, possible Crossrail and other initiatives, there is potential for both opportunity and fear • SHEDx Tolworth uses local history and current activity in the area to increase community pride and engagement • After a great deal of project work and engagement, we held an event on the top floor Tolworth Tower to enable people to get a panorama of the area – what has that led to? • Key to any success is building relationships with local people to convince them that positive change can come • We are looking to create a ‘Hybrid BID’ - an idea for a new type of BID that encompasses more than just businesses, and includes landowners, industrial estates and, most importantly, members of the community, contributing a shared - and owned - vision for success • We have taken a part of Tolworth to the V&A, The Garden Museum and to the Hampton Court Palace Garden Festival (where it won a top award!) First In Tolworth – a new opportunity Creating a distinctive vision for the area driven locally • Start ups • Corinthian-Casuals • David Bowie • Experience, Interaction, Exchange • Pride in place • Although first in Tolworth the model is replicable across London Thank you for your support.