7 minute read
Focus on Lewisham
Reopening has been a daunting prospect for businesses that have been forced to close for weeks and who now feel are stepping into an uncertain future. Lewisham is a borough with a high proportion of small, locally owned, independent businesses. We know that with over 11,000 local businesses, 91% of which are micro business with fewer than 10 employees many will be reliant on financial support to offer stability.
To do this Lewisham Council has launched the Lewisham Backs Business Taskforce to oversee efforts to support the economic recovery.
Over the past 10 weeks, the council has distributed over £38 million in emergency grants to small businesses that have been hit hard by the crisis. We have taken calls
Restart-Recover-Renew The pandemic has been unprecedented in its scale and has touched all our lives. As businesses begin to trade once more we are all glad to see the economy start to pick up.
from hundreds of businesses and gathered insights via a business survey to build a picture of where the need is across Lewisham.
Lewisham Council has also taken action to help residents, distributing £2.5m in emergency funding to support people through the crisis.
Earlier this month, Lewisham Council announced a new £2 million fund to provide further support to local charities and small businesses hit hard by the Coronavirus pandemic, and to protect jobs and livelihoods. Working closely with the local business community to develop the scheme, the fund will help organisations which have experienced a significant decrease in income as a result of the pandemic, and which have fallen through the cracks of other government support measures.
“Over the past 10 weeks, the council has distributed over £38 million in emergency grants to small businesses that have been hit hard by the crisis. We have taken calls from hundreds of businesses and gathered insights via a business survey to build a picture of where the need is across Lewisham.”
Businesses in shared offices and flexible workspaces, businesses in the creative and cultural sector and the night time economy, and businesses that are crucial for local growth and regeneration have been prioritised. Supporting small businesses that are vital pillars in the local community to survive and thrive is crucial.
We know from our own research that 41% businesses have reported they have furloughed staff and 43% said they expected there to be a decrease in turnover over the coming months. Cash flow, reduced footfall and supply chain and delivery disruption are amongst the biggest issues businesses are facing right now which is why, as we see government lockdown restrictions being lifted we will continue to do all we can to get our local economy back on its feet again.
Your Bromley Business Improvement District (BID), the business partnership for Bromley town centre, has spent recent months lobbying for financial support for businesses, sharing information about business support including claiming grants, and providing guidance and resources to enable Bromley businesses to keep customers safe.
Working alongside Bromley Council and other business leaders in a Business Task Force, temporary pavement widening has taken place
Bromley town centre, safer than ever to work and visit
at various pinch points to make Bromley town centre a safer place to work in and visit. A warm welcome awaits customers to the town centre’s many retail and hospitality, hairdressers and cafes which are gradually reopening with increased safety measures. The return of gyms, beauty salons, The Pavilion Leisure Centre and Churchill Theatre are eagerly awaited. Measures in place make Bromley town centre a particularly safe and welcoming place to work/visit in safety.
Frances Forrest, BID Manager of Your Bromley, said “What lies ahead for town centres is likely to be less retail, more residential
“A warm welcome awaits customers to the town centre’s many retail and hospitality, hairdressers and cafes which are gradually reopening with increased safety measures.”
accommodation and community hubs in the town centre, and possibly more short term and shared workspace. It’s hard to predict in these unprecedented times. Challenging times are ahead for many businesses but Bromley town centre will bounce back with a safe retail, leisure and cultural offer to draw customers in. Bromley remains an excellent place to live, work and visit, with fantastic train routes. Bromley town centre is open for business.”
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Bromley Council is undertaking public consultation on new planning guidance for Bromley and Orpington Town Centres
Bromley Council is producing new Supplementary Planning Documents (SPDs) for Bromley and Orpington town centres and has begun a 12 week public consultation process to shape this guidance.
In recent years, the general role of town centres has been shifting from largely retail-focused areas to more mixeduse retail, cultural and leisure areas, with a focus on creating functional and enjoyable civic spaces. This includes the introduction of residential uses into town centres and prioritising pedestrian use through improved sustainable transport links and public realm improvements.
Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic is changing the way we live and work, potentially in the longer term. These changes threaten to have significant impacts on the vitality and viability of town centres, hence the Council wants to utilise its planning function to plan ahead, and put in place guidance which will help the Borough evolve sustainably.
Bromley and Orpington town centres are significant within the borough, as the largest and second largest town centres
respectively. Bromley town centre is the borough’s most prominent retail, culture, leisure and employment area and Orpington town centre, lying to the Southern end of the Cray Valley, is a major influence over a large part of the borough. It is therefore important that this new guidance enhances the vibrancy and character of the town centres and enables them to adapt and thrive in years to come.
The consultation is seeking views from a broad range of individuals and organisations, representative of the community, on how the Council should guide the development of the town centres in line with the policies set out in the Bromley Local Plan. Consultation facilitated by the Council is taking place alongside a separate public engagement in Orpington by the developer Areli, which focuses on their plans for the Walnuts shopping centre. It should be noted that the Council is undertaking consultation on Orpington town centre to ensure a holistic and cohesive approach to transformation within and potentially beyond the town centre, which is distinct from the site-specific consultation being undertaken by Areli.
Public consultation will be hosted on the online platform Commonplace, which allows users to pin their views of a particular location onto an interactive heatmap. This enables members of the public to comment on very specific areas of their local town centre. Users can give
their opinion on how this area makes them feel, why they feel this way and what could be done to improve the location that they have highlighted. This will allow the Council to collect detailed comments on issues that matter to the community. This method of consultation has been chosen as it is hoped it will reach a broad audience and encourage active participation in the planning process from a number of new people and groups.
In addition to respondents pinning their views onto the interactive map, the Council is seeking further comments on a range of specific issues. These include but are not limited to retail, culture and leisure, public realm and transport, environmental issues, heritage and conservation and the recovery post COVID-19. The public will be able to give their views on how they would like their local town centres to develop in these areas and thereby shape the future of their communities.
“The consultation is seeking views from a broad range of individuals and organisations, representative of the community, on how the Council should guide the development of the town centres in line with the policies set out in the Bromley Local Plan.”
To have your say on the content of the planning guidance for Bromley and Orpington town centres, visit https://bromleytowncentre.commonplace.is/ and https://orpingtontowncentre.commonplace.is/
