WARD FORUM ON 18 BLACKFRIARS ROAD

A reminder that we will hold our next ward forum on 26 February 18:30 – 20:00 on the 18 Blackfriars Road development. The planning proposal is currently under consideration and open for comments on the planning portal. Reference 23/AP/1854.

Please join us at the Hilton London Bankside to find out more about the proposals, the planning process and how to share your views. Note that the meeting will be held at the Hilton, not at the 18 Blackfriars construction site.

More information in the poster attached.

COUNCIL BUDGET AND OUR ALTERNATIVE

Next week, Southwark Council will agree its budget for 2024/25 at Council Assembly. As the official opposition, we have set out our alternative budget, which we believe offers a better vision for Southwark. Liberal Democrats would prioritise:

• Putting residents first
• Bringing services back to the community
• Going greener faster.

The letter attached provides more detail on our position. This include our campaign to get the £4 million the Council has pocketed from lucrative building projects spent locally in the communities most impacted by construction work.

BETTER BANKSIDE COMMUNITY GRANTS

The deadline for Better Bankside’s Community Grants programme is tomorrow. The programme is open to funding applications from charities and community organisations that make a difference to people living in Bankside and across Southwark. 

Funding is available for one-off costs or ongoing projects, with a focus on:

• Supporting people affected by the ongoing cost of living crisis
• Preventing homelessness and helping people affected by this to develop skills or move into employment
• Bringing people together to build social cohesion and create connections between different groups

Grants of £1,000 up to a maximum of £2,500 will be used to fund projects and organisations that are delivering services in the Better Bankside BID area, or areas of Southwark that are affected by significant levels of deprivation.

The deadline to apply is 10:00 on Monday 19 February. Grants awarded will be paid at the end of March.

More information is available in the Community Grants Information Pack, also attached. Applications must be submitted using the Community Grants Application Form.

POLICE SAFER NEIGHBOURHOOD TEAM WARD MEETING

The Borough & Bankside Safer Neighbourhoods Team is hosting a ward panel meeting on Wednesday 21 February at 18:00.

This will be hosted at Better Bankside, 18 Great Guilford Street SE1 9NX. The meetings are a good opportunity to find out about the work of the local police SNT and provide feedback on priority issues for the next three months.

Unfortunately, this clashes with our Council Assembly meeting so councillors will be unable to attend, but you will be in the capable hands of PC De Cintra and his team. You can follow them on X/Twitter here.

LEGAL ADVICE CLINIC

London Southbank University (LSBU) offer a free legal advice clinic from the Clarence Centre for Innovation & Enterprise at 126 London Road, Southwark SE1 0AE.

The Clinic provides the following services:

• Basic information on any topic.
• Generalist advice on any area of social welfare law including housing, benefits, employment, family, consumer issues, but not immigration.
• Specialist legal advice in family and housing law at Thursday evening sessions (accessible via an initial assessment at daytime drop-in).
• Initial advice on the Windrush Compensation Scheme as part of the Windrush Justice Clinic (this advice is only given via bookable online appointments on Monday and Thursday).

Public drop-in sessions at the in-person clinic take place on Tuesday 10:00-11:00 and 15:00-16:00; Wednesday 10:00-11:00 and 15:00-16:00; and Friday 10:00-11:00. The clinic also offers online advice sessions which are bookable in advice by emailing legaladvice@lsbu.ac.uk or via the website, and which take place on Monday from 10:00 and Thursday from 10:00.

The Clinic is a free advice service staffed by LSBU law student volunteers under the supervision of practising solicitors and an experienced law centre caseworker.

Find out more online here or by calling 020 7815 5450.

RESONANCE FM

Resonance FM is a not-for-profit broadcast platform, based on Risborough Street in Borough and Bankside, which exists to encourage creativity through radio. Its resources are open to a wide range of artists, art forms and diverse communities.

You can find out more about Resonance FM here.

MAJOR PLANNING APPLICATIONS

A reminder that we have a number of major planning applications going through at the moment. The links and reference numbers are below. You can submit comments online or by emailing the Council planning team on planning@southwark.gov.uk and quoting the application reference.

• 18 Blackfriars Road and 1 to 7 Stamford Street – reference 23/AP/1854 open for comments on the planning portal
• Friars Close Bear Lane – reference 22/AP/4376 open for comments on the planning portal
• Borough Triangle 69 and 82 to 83 Borough Road – reference 22/AP/3149 open for comments on the planning portal
• 4-5 Paris Garden And 18-19 Hatfields – reference 23/AP/3068 open for comments on planning portal.

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