Major new Art Hub development for Kennington and planning permission approved for Pathways at St Anselm's

I've been sitting on this little nugget for ages, but was advised to keep it under my hat.  A year or so ago, 373 Kennington Road (currently the place in which Cactus TV studios are based) was put on the market for £2.7 million, carrying planning permission for residential development on the site.  At the time, I heard a rumour that it had been purchased by new owners who intended to turn into an art gallery, but after that, things went suspiciously quiet...

It has now been brought to my attention that Space Station Sixty Five (a gallery that is currently based in East Dulwich) plan to open a sister gallery in Kennington at 373 Kennington Road.  According to Lambeth Weekender, It will officially open in 2014, but is to host preview shows in the meantime.  The gallery directors note that it will have arts studios, a cafe, a bookshop and a retail centre (so, no residential development, it seems)!  It's being billed as a "community arts hub".  Cheekily, the directors also suggest it will put Kennington on the "London arts map", but arguably, we cornered the arts market some time ago, with the City & Guilds School of Art (Kennington Park Road), Gasworks (Vauxhall Street), Danielle Arnaud Contemporary Art (Kennington Road) and Beaconsfield Art Gallery (which is currently being expanded by Damien Hirst, in Newport Street).  Also, I think there's a new gallery planned for Tyers Street in the Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens.  But, it certainly will change the landscape, and bring additional arty folk to Kennington. 

If the Beefeater gin distillers ever manage to pull off their plan to convert the gin factory into a visitor centre, that quiet corner of Kennington would become a hive of activity.  I've no idea what that means for the future of the TV studio, but the site is 1,673 square metres, so it offers quite a few possibilities.  In hard times, the addition of any creative business that might provide employment should be welcomed, and in another coup for Kennington, St Anselm's Church were granted planning permission for their own Pathways project (a combined restaurant, cafe, educational, worship and community hall facility).

In less positive news, it looks as though the 216 Kennington Road Tesco is due to come to fruition soon.

Musical face of youth in Kennington: defying the stereotypes

This Friday (19th August) at 7pm at St Anselm's Church, there will be a performance of music, written by young local community members.  If you want to attend, email luke@musicinprisons.org.uk 

The event is organised by Pathways SE11, whose mission is to divert Kennington youth away from crime.  More info here on Pathways SE11.  Click on poster above for more details.

Heart of Kennington Cross: St Anselm's Pathways Project submitted

(Photo taken from Planning Application shown below)

Last week, St Anselm's Church finally submitted their Pathways project to Lambeth Council for planning consent- reference 11/01826/FUL.  Revd Angus Aagaard of St Anselm's welcomes comments, so as usual, go and click the "submit comments" link to submit your views to Lambeth.  I've documented the Pathways project very thoroughly in the past, procuring videos here and then publicising full .pdfs of the the plans from the second wave of consultation.  The proposal involves converting the underused church into a focal community building at the heart of Kennington Cross.  It which will house a nursery, a restaurant partly run by ex-offenders (similar to The Clink, as run in HMP Highdown), a project to provide access to university for people that might not consider attending, a new community hall, business units, residential units and a church. If you've not read the previous posts, take a look at the posters below prior to submitting comments. I've uploaded the full planning application site plans below the poster.

Learning forgiveness in Lambeth: The F Word Exhibition at St Anselm's

The F Word Exhibition (also known as the Forgiveness Project) tours prisons, churches and other venues in both the US and the UK, to highlight stories of courage from people who have been able to forgive others after they've been wronged.  The narratives are varied, containing the extraordinary testimonies of people who are learning to forgive after living through the Holocaust at Auschwitz or people offering forgiveness to those that killed their relatives in terrorist atrocities.  But the project contains stories of ordinary people too; those that learn to forgive everyday ordinary wrongdoing.

I'm keen to promote this project because being unable to forgive others can destroy individuals and communities, and yet, without examples of others who've managed against the odds, it's much harder to imagine what forgiveness might look like.  In Lambeth, there is perhaps a greater imperative to learn to forgive.  Back in 2008, I quoted an excerpt from the South London Press in which Ashley Kemete's mother said that she had forgiven her son's killer(s) in a shooting that occurred in White Hart Street, Kennington.  That's one extraordinary statement from a local woman, especially since it doesn't look as though Ashley's killer(s) have been arrested or sentenced, but I hope it isn't forgotten

The exhibition is being held at St Anselm's Church (Kennington Cross, SE11 5DU) from 29th November to 6th December.  The comment below indicates that it will be open from 10am - 8pm at night.

St Anselm's Project Plans and feedback from the Consultation Event

I attended the St Anselm's Project re-consultation evening yesterday (it was worth it for the samosas alone).  Last year, I posted about the St Anselm's redevelopment (with video) here, and explained why the Duchy's desire to join the project has lead to a re-consultation here.  Happily, the new plans do not involve 150 metre towers in the heart of Kennington so there's not really anything to dislike.  I originally blogged quite favourably about this project, even despite the fact that the proposed  facade would have appeared rather bulky from Kennington Road.  My view was (and is) that the regeneration project would enable the church to be a building enjoyed by the wider community in the heart of Kennington, rather than a building that is locked for much of the week).

Anyhow, the re-consultation does not contain anything particularly offensive, but seems to address the fact that Lambeth Council weren't keen on the original drawings.  It's difficult to detect much difference between some of the new drawings, and the arguments appear to be all about height.  Option 1 is the original plan, and the rest are ideas that have been redeveloped in consultation with the Duchy.  The plans (see below) don't give detail on the finished look, but whatever the architects do is likely to be in an style approved  by Prince Charles and is unlikely to involve glass and metal.  The photos below are quite illuminating, and provide a little history about how some of the post-war buildings of Stable's Way don't do much for the street.  The SE11_lurker tends to agree with Prince Charles on the matter of classical architecture, so doesn't really mind which of the new drawings are chosen for the project.

The re-consultation seemed to be well-attended, but I know that not everybody can get along to these events, so the architects have kindly emailed me the plans so that everybody else can see what is proposed.  I've turned the .pdf info .jpgs for easier viewing.  At the top, there's a  consultation form, which can be filled in and returned to Pat Evemy whose email address is:

St Anselm's Project - Further Consultation

Earlier this year, you might remember that I blogged about the St Anselm's church consultation (with videos).  A plan was put forward which proposed turning the church into a large community centre, complete with restaurant, deli,  large hall, small chapel, church area, small spaces for businesses and supervised flats for ex-offenders who'd be helped back into work.  Three local charities/businesses were invited to use the space, including the excellent Into University, who help young people from disadvantaged backgrounds access University.  In general, I felt that whilst the project had a few risks, it was actually an innovative use for a building that is locked most of the time.  Actually, that itself is quite a frustrating point concerning a number of local churches.  There's nothing in St Anselm's that looks particularly worth stealing, and huge numbers of people (be they believers or otherwise) like to visit churches, light candles and sit quietly etc.  It would be great if they'd consider opening the doors, other than just on Sundays...

Anyhow, at the fabulous Cleaver Square fete (see photos), I learned that the Duchy of Cornwall (who own a fair bit of property in and around SE11) were also interested in the future of the site, and felt that they had some buildings at the back of the project that might also benefit from improvement/development.  Consequently, it seems that a revised consultation has been launched.  (Also, from the text below, it appears that potentially, Lambeth Council Planning were not happy on the issue of conservation / streetscape matters.  I don't believe that St Anselm's ever formally submitted their proposal, so perhaps they've been advised to go back to the drawing board before they do submit).  In any case, I'd really like to see whether what they're proposing now differs markedly from earlier plans.

After the first round of consultation in February, I received responses and emails from a number of people complaining that they didn't have enough knowledge of what was proposed, and hadn't been consulted.  I did request the questionnaire at the time for blog readers, but it was never forthcoming, although I did eventually get hold of the videos (which are great).  Consider the text below a second opportunity re. consultation, and do inform anybody that you know who is not online that might be interested...  (It's already been on the Kennington Association blog, and around various local lists, and via Councillors etc.)

I will be attending the consultation and will photograph/obtain copies of plans, in the usual manner :). The following text has been very widely circulated, but here it is for you once again.  :

“North Lambeth Parish and its St Anselm’s Pathways project have been overwhelmed by the level of public support for its emerging plans for St Anselm’s. However, Lambeth Council’s Planning Department is concerned that the scale and architectural character of the new building proposed for Sancroft Street might have a negative impact on the character and setting of the church. Following on from the Council’s comments, the Parish has begun discussions with the Duchy of Cornwall, which owns adjacent land, about whether a scheme could be developed which might enable the Parish to provide the facilities it needs beyond the confines of its own land ownership, and which might improve the character and appearance of Sancroft Street and the neighbouring area in the long term. Lambeth Council has welcomed the principle of this long term planning and joint approach to the design, and a number of initial sketch options have been prepared for discussion with the Council and local community. As yet there is no preferred option or design.

On 28th June we will be presenting initial ideas emerging from this collaboration between the Parish and Duchy, and we would like to ensure that comments are received from a wide range of stakeholders before we progress designs further. We will be starting the event with afternoon tea provided by the CLINK at 3.30pm and will have canapés and wine at 6.30pm. Please do drop in anytime between 3.30 and 7.30pm

There will be representatives on hand to answer questions, drawings will be on show for comment and questionnaire forms will be available as for the last public consultation in January.

A summary of consultation responses received in January is attached.

We hope to see you on 28th June either for tea or canapés.”

St Anselm's Church Project - an exciting adventure or a questionable risk?

I'm aware that I'm a month or so late with this one, but it has taken a while to get hold of the video files.  St Anselm's Church (in the heart of Kennington, SE11) offered a short consultation to local residents in January about the possibility of turning the church into a large local hub that would contain a variety of extra organisations, whilst still retaining space for the church.

I've finally obtained the videos, the first, a walkthrough of the proposed site, and the second, a kind of local commentary on the project.





The proposal is that the site would be developed so that it could contain several organisations:

1.  Into University - Organisation that works with local young people to encourage them in their studies.  It targets those who might not otherwise consider higher education or know how to access it.

2.  A restaurant and deli, to be staffed by ex-offenders, who would receive training and accommodation on the site.

3.  Small offices for local businesses that could offer basic facilities and would be hired out for an initially low rent to both those who had developed business plans from inside prison, and to local disadvantaged people who wanted to start an enterprise that could not otherwise afford the space.

4.  The Pelican Nursery - they are already on site, but their presence would complement the work being performed by the local organisations, and they offer a number of subsidised spaces.

5.  Community Hall - This would replace the Centenary Hall, which is in Cottington Street.

6.  Church - the top of the building would still contain a church, suitable for several hundred people.  Also, there would be space for a separate lady chapel and a prayer garden

7.  Accomodation - for ex offenders, ex-offender's live-in supervisor, assistant priest and caretaker

I'm generally in favour of the project.  I know there have been some mutterings about ex-offenders being accommodated on site, but actually I tend to think that the difference with this project is that there will be good supervision and training on offer as well.  I understand that it would be supervised accommodation, rather than people just left to their own devices.  I'd also hope that the into-university and young offender projects would benefit and offer a renewed lease of life to the church building.  It would certainly offer a kind of "centre" to Kennington where the community and the church could meet, with restaurant, deli etc. and there's nothing else like it around here.  Certainly, the project promises to be hugely more viable and uplifting than a more questionable unsupervised arrangement, such as the alcohol drop-in centre, currently disliked by residents on Brook Drive.

Anyhow, that's my take... But, the person that put together the video etc. has said that they would welcome comments from blog readers, and local people, so that they have information that they can feed back and further develop plans for the site...