Lambeth After Dark: Getting Serious About the Night-Time Economy Lambeth After Dark: Getting Serious About the Night-Time Economy A report by The Association of Town & City Management, TBR and MAKE Associates For The London Borough of Lambeth April 2013 1 Lambeth After Dark: Getting Serious About the Night-Time Economy Contents SUMMARY…………………………………………………………………3 4 THE SIX TOWN CENTRES..................................47 4.1 Clapham: ‘Night-time explosion’ ........................................ 48 1 STUDY PURPOSE............................................... 10 4.2 Waterloo-South Bank: Making the connections................... 88 1.1 Why study Lambeth’s night-time economy? ....................... 11 4.3 Vauxhall: 21st Century Pleasure Gardens? .........................101 1.2 Study objective ................................................................ 11 4.4 Brixton: After dark rennaisance ........................................113 1.3 Lambeth’s six town ‘centres’ ............................................. 12 4.5 Streatham: A new kind of high street ...............................123 1.4 Specific aims.................................................................... 13 4.6 West Norwood & Tulse Hill: A little TLC ............................138 1.5 The study approach ......................................................... 14 5 ‘IDEAS INTO ACTION’ - NEXT STEPS ..............152 2 STUDY CONTEXT.............................................. 16 5.1 Introduction ...................................................................153 2.1 Why is nightlife so important?........................................... 16 5.2 Lambeth’s ‘After Dark Vision’ ...........................................153 2.2 The national ‘after dark’ landscape .................................... 18 5.3 After Dark Targets ..........................................................154 2.3 National night-time economy policy context ....................... 19 5.4 Three Key Drivers ...........................................................156 2.4 Lambeth night-time economy policy context ...................... 22 5.5 Town Centres: Clpaham ..................................................161 3 AFTER DARK BENEFITS & COSTS ..................... 28 5.6 Closing statement ...........................................................170 3.1 “If you can’t measure, you can’t manage…” ....................... 29 3.2 The economics of Lambeth’s after dark.............................. 34 3.3 TBR-MAKE NightMix vs. GLA models.................................. 43 2 Lambeth After Dark: Getting Serious About the Night-Time Economy Executive Summary Summary 3 Lambeth After Dark: Getting Serious About the Night-Time Economy Why study Lambeth’s nightlife? What are the main conclusions? • In autumn 2012 the London Borough of Lambeth commissioned the • The night-time economy is of outstanding importance to Association of Town & City Management, economists TBR and night- Lambeth, particularly compared to most London boroughs. It time strategy specialists MAKE Associates to undertake an economic, provides 4,500 jobs for locals, contributes to successful town social and spatial study into Lambeth’s ‘night-time economy’. centres, and helps create places where people want to live and visit. • The purpose of the research was to understand for the first time the • However, Lambeth’s night-time economy has evolved in an ad scale and impact of the borough’s night-time economy and make hoc way and the vision, strategy, research and tailored policy appropriate recommendations for changes in borough-wide formation that it needs is absent. This has led to two areas of concern. licensing, planning, safety, community, tourism and economic policy to • Firstly, some after dark growth has caused problems (e.g. crime, achieve a more sustainable borough ‘after dark’. negative health outcomes). Secondly, areas that have performed well • The resulting study is the first anywhere in the world to could have done better, while some have been left behind. examine comprehensively a multi-centre night-time economy. • The ‘ideas for action’ located at the end of this study should form the It examines Lambeth’s ‘after dark’ role within London and provides a basis for a new approach for Lambeth’s night-time economy. Lambeth-wide picture of what is happening between 6pm and 6am. It • Lambeth’s new ‘after dark vision’ will need to be food, entertainment also provides specific insight into the borough’s night-time hotspot of and culture, rather than alcohol-led. Clapham, as well as its five other main centres: Waterloo-South Bank, • To deliver this vision Lambeth must demonstrate leadership, Vauxhall, Brixton, Streatham and West Norwood-Tulse Hill. coherent strategy, partnership and more robust enforcement. • The study takes place at a time when the Mayor of London has issued guidance (Alcohol Consumption and the Night-Time Economy) In the night-time economy there is no stasis; just a virtuous upward on better evidencing and managing the capital’s after dark economy journey or a downward spiral. With real focus and political will a further 3,000 jobs could be generated over the next decade in and is, therefore, critically timed. a healthier, safer Lambeth. Without stewardship, our global experience tells us the reverse will happen. Lambeth must seize this once in a generation opportunity! 4 Lambeth After Dark: Getting Serious About the Night-Time Economy this end we estimate frontline policing to cost at least half a million pounds a year, health services at least £1.3m annually (for immediate The upsides care around night-time admissions e.g. A&E presentations, paramedic • Our research shows the night-time economy in Lambeth is worth call outs) and council services such as cleansing and planning cost £505m in annual sales and it directly accounts for around 8,000 around £2.7m annually. In total this is around £4.5m annually. jobs (4,500 of whom are Lambeth residents). These people are • However, these frontline costs are the ‘tip of the iceberg’, the employed by nearly 1,000 after dark businesses. research shows that both health and crime costs will inevitably be • Night-time economy employment in Lambeth is around three times much higher. For example, a proportionate share of the Met’s the national average for this sector. operational budget for crime committed in the hours of the night-time economy would be in the tens of millions. Likewise, the costs of • The figures show that the Lambeth night-time economy has subsequent treatment and a share of the hospitals’ capital and revenue substantially outperformed many of the borough’s other costs may be of an even greater magnitude. economic sectors over the last ten years. • It’s important to note that most council ‘costs’ are not predominantly • Over 2001 to 2011 the Lambeth night-time economy has delivered the result of ‘negative’ activity in the night-time economy, but of increased gross value added (GVA) to a level of 40%. The rest of the general service provision ‘after dark’ e.g. licensing, planning. Lambeth economy has increased GVA by around 4%. • We estimate that there is the potential for Lambeth to set targets for Measuring progress the sector to grow turnover by 50% (to £750m) by 2025 and to employ at least a further 3,000 people (to 11,000) in more • Whilst the benefits are substantially larger in pure monetary terms than than 300 additional firms (1,300 in total) over that period. costs, they should not be compared as if this is a justification for ‘business as usual’. Only with a clear vision, appropriate The downsides resourcing, sound strategic management and effective regulation can we expect costs to fall, whilst the number of • The night-time economy, although not wholly causative of the public jobs, firms and sales can simultaneously grow in a way that is service costs between 6pm and 6am, does have a negative impact. To genuinely sustainable. 5 Lambeth After Dark: Getting Serious About the Night-Time Economy Clapham Waterloo-South Bank • Clapham is now the alcohol-led centre of Lambeth and a large • Waterloo-South Bank is the star performer in the borough’s part of its local economy is dependent on the late night-time economy, night-time economy, accounting for the lion’s share of turnover, attracting visitors from outer London, Surrey and Kent. firms and employment. It also has the highest profile for arts, culture, fine dining and as an international business centre. • However, its composition after dark is skewed excessively towards late night drinking, music and dancing. This has brought significant rises • Waterloo-South Bank still has considerable potential for after in crime and health harms and causes distress to many local dark growth, but it is fragmented (e.g. how does the South Bank sit residents. Clapham after dark is reminiscent of a city centre and has with The Cut and with Lower Marsh?), and has serious public realm exceeded the ‘carrying capacity’ of what is only a district centre. issues. A determined effort will be needed to unite the fragments and create the right context for more quality night-time investment. • Exacerbating this is the absence of the late night infrastructure consistent with the good practice in managing a dense ‘destination’ night-time economy (e.g. taxi marshalling, early intervention policing). Vauxhall This has started to change with the arrival of a new night-time • On the face of it Vauxhall is struggling to be a town centre, being split economy manager, a position we recommend is retained.