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BRIXTON BUGLE YOUR FREE
No 49 | DECEMBER 2016
Published monthly in and for Brixton
ISSN 2397-852X
COMMUNITY PAPER
Arches blight and big rate rises alarm council traders and music venues
FEARS FOR BRIXTON BUSINESS Brixton and its traders are facing a double threat from huge business rate increases and the blight on the centre of the shopping district created by Network Rail’s closure of its arches. Some traders on Brixton Station Road, who are worst affected by the arch closures, say their trade is down by more than 50%. The council has demanded a meeting with Network Rail (page 2) over delays in starting work on the redevelopment of the arches. Network Rail has blamed the delay on legal action by the four remaining arches tenants who have refused its offers to end their leases. A Network Rail spokesperson said: “We have always been clear that the proposed redevelopment scheme would be completed within 12 months of our having vacant possession of all of the arch units. “While the majority of our tenants have now left their arch and are planning to return after completion of the scheme, four of our tenants have begun a legal challenge. “This will inevitably impact upon the timescale for completion of our overall scheme, however we are progressing with enabling and other necessary works to the vacant arches in order to remain as close as possible to our works timetable. Lambeth Council is
OLYMPIC HOPEFUL Brixton fencer Tarriq
aware of this. We very much regret the inconvenience caused to our tenants who have vacated and have signed contracts to return to a redeveloped unit and will continue to support them throughout this process.” Asked why, if Network Rail was going to have to work on the arches while a pawnbroker and betting shop are continuing to trade in them, it could not work while other traders had not vacated, the spokesperson replied: “We could not phase this work and still make the project economical, which we have to do because we are tax and farepayer funded.” Scott Leonard, founder and creative director of The Champion Agency in Brixton, said small companies faced business rate increases of a third or more. “We’re in a very uncertain period within the country – to then levy them with a tax of up to 30% higher than what they’re currently paying is not acceptable,” said Leonard. Lambeth council and the Brixton Business Improvement District (BID), representing more than 600 local businesses, have both warned (page 12) of the serious consequences of business rate rises due to come into effect on 1 April next year. The council said some businesses face increases of 45%, with an average increase of 35% in Lambeth.
Brixton resident, musician and entrepreneur Levi Roots joined Lambeth mayor Saleha Jaffer and Brixton Business Improvement District to switch on the Christmas tree lights outside Morleys. There were carols from a choir from Corpus Christi school
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3
2 NEWS
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2016 DECEMBER
Council seeks assurances over arches refurb
BRIXTON BUGLE brixtonblog.com Proudly edited in Brixton Both website and newspaper are published by a not-for-profit community organisation run by a committed team of people from Brixton » @brixtonblog » brixtonblog.com
ADVERTISING Jenny Shramenko 07811 878394 jenny@brixtonblog.com Circulation 10,000 copies Readership: circa 15,000 EDITOR Linda Quinn linda@brixtonblog.com MANAGING EDITOR Simon Still simon@brixtonblog.com NEWS EDITOR Anna McKie newsdesk@brixtonblog.com ARTS & FEATURES arts@brixtonblog.com FOOD Miss South food@brixtonblog.com SPORT Sandra Brobbey sport@brixtonblog.com ISSUE 49 Writers Lilly Blanchard Nick Buglione Kate Corry Nikki Griffiths Frankie Holah Nicola Jones Zara Rosool Annabel Sampson Gemma Sinclair Karine Stephan Delores William : Sub-editor: Jamila Omar Production: Alan Slingsby Distribution: Philip King Crossword: Josie Gardiner A massive thank you to everybody involved in making this issue, and the Blog & Bugle project, a success If you would like to be a Bugle stockist please email distribution@brixtonblog.com
Put yourself in the picture: Dulwich Picture Gallery is illuminating its 19th century building and grounds with a lights trail until 18 December. Details at dulwichpicturegallery.org.uk
Cressingham campaign waits for judge A judicial review of Lambeth council’s plan to demolish the Cress ingham Gardens estate was heard in the High Court in November. Judgement was reserved until a later date. The legal challenge was brought by Cressingham resident Andy Plant, represented by the law firm Leigh Day.
The grounds for judicial review included: a failure by the council to follow its own criteria as to the financial viability of demolition; a failure to carry out a fair consultation; and a breach of Mr Plant’s right to property. This is the second judicial review relating to the estate. In the first review, a year ago,
the High Court ruled that Lambeth council had acted unlawfully when it removed options for refurbishment – which it claimed was not financially viable – from its public consultation on the future of the estate. ●● You can read a blow-by-blow account of the second hearing on the campaigners’ website at savecressingham.wordpress.com
Lambeth council leader Lib Peck has written to Network Rail chairman Peter Hendy asking him to meet her and Brixton businesses to explain why, despite assurances, work has not begun on the arches on Atlantic Road and Brixton Station Road. Network rail’s planning application for the arches was granted at a Lambeth council planning meeting on 2 August this year where protesters warned that Brixton’s unique character might not recover from the closure of the arches. Local Coldharbour ward councillor Matt Parr had, at the meeting, “stressed the importance of work starting promptly and being completed to schedule so disruption to tenants, local residents and neighbouring businesses could be minimised,” said Peck. “We also sought assurances that Network Rail would put in place an effective management plan, ensuring that agreements with tenants were concluded in good time to avoid delays to the start of refurbishment and prevent Atlantic Road and Brixton Station Road becoming a ‘dead zone’,” she said. “Regrettably this has not happened. Vacant possession appears not to have been taken, work has been delayed and there is growing concern amongst local businesses about reduced footfall and increased levels of anti-social behaviour. “I should be grateful if you would agree to meet with me, local councillors and businesses to discuss these concerns.” A Network Rail spokesperson said it had to wait for the outcome of the legal challenge brought by four of its tenants.
Council outraged by government rail plan veto Lambeth council leader Lib Peck has written to transport minister Chris Grayling expressing outrage that he has dismissed plans by the London Mayor Sadiq Khan to take over failing rail franchises like Southern, despite the mayor’s plan having the backing of London councils and MPs of all parties. The previous transport minister and former mayor Boris Johnson and agreed the plan. It could have led
to a reduction in the serious and growing pressure on Brixton Tube station. It would also have raised hopes of a better service from Streatham stations. Ambitious plans to add Brixton to the successful Overground network that is run by the mayor may now go onto the back burner. Lambeth council had been looking at a new station on the site of the disused East Brixton station funded by major developments on land
between the two above ground railway lines through Brixton. “The current crisis in suburban rail in the capital is blighting the lives of millions of commuters,” said Peck. “Many are fearful for their jobs or are considering moving home, due to the shambolic and disgraceful service provided by the current rail operators. “It is costing London’s economy millions of pounds in lost working hours
and unreliability.” She said: “A readymade plan, via an organisation with a proven track record, with cross-party political support and huge public backing is available to tackle the crisis in suburban rail – and you appear to have dismissed it purely due to your political ideology.” Lambeth council has been in favour of failing franchises being handed over to Transport for London for over a year.
Mystery surrounded the fate of the Network Rail arches on Atlantic Road when a sign offering space to let appeared on hoardings in front of them. A Network Rail spokesperson said the sign had been put up by agents on the wrong side of the road and was nothing to do with the Network Rail scheme and had been moved. The letting agent Goodsir told enquirers that the property had already been let.
DECEMBER 2016
NEWS 3
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Date fixed for the Windrush Square memorial to recognise Black servicemen and women
Nubian Jak in Windrush Square
Ritzy is looking for local weekend staff Local management of the Ritzy cinema in Brixton has launched a drive to recruit weekend staff who live in the area. General manager James Van Dyke said the cinema found it difficult to get full staff cover for the weekends, its busiest time. He said the cinema wanted to recruit from Brixton, adding that the Ritzy was part of Brixton’s heritage and the cinema wanted to reflect that in the diversity of its staff. He said the move was not a bid to recruit people to counter the effects of strike action by full-time Ritzy workers, whose campaign for the London Living Wage of £9.75 an hour has been joined by two other cinemas in the Picturehouse chain that owns the Ritzy. The new jobs would be fixedhours weekend contracts, he said and he had consulted the Ritzy staff reps for before advertising them. Pay for the weekend jobs will be determined by the current Ritzy terms and conditions
of £8.10 per hour for a threemonth probation period rising to £9.10 an hour. The Ritzy branch of the entertainment union BECTU welcomed the drive for further diversity, which, it said, was “something we’ve worked together on with the general manager of the Ritzy”. Branch secretary Nia Hughes said: “We hope this further highlights the importance of BECTU at the cinema, and encourages new members of staff to learn of the rich history of the union they can join, especially in terms of our high profile 2014 campaign for the London Living Wage.” The 2014 campaign means that new recruits will earn £9.10 an hour after their probation period and have the same terms and conditions as existing staff. These were elements of the role at the Ritzy which other Picturehouse staff did not receive, said Hughes. ■■ Anyone interested in the jobs should send their CV to james.v@picturehouses.co.uk.
A memorial to Black Caribbean and African Commonwealth soldiers who fought in the first and second world wars is to be erected in Brixton next year on 22 June, Windrush Day. The memorial will be the first to honour Black servicemen and woman and the part they played in securing victory in those world wars. After a long campaign by the Nubian Jak Community Trust, planning permission was granted earlier this year by Lambeth council. The trust’s fundraising efforts to commission the plinth and memorial have been supported by an award from the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG). The Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) has approved a £40,500 grant for an inter-generational community project, REMEMBERED, that will run until the launch. Jak Beula, Nubian Jak from the Nubian Jak Community Trust, told the Bugle: “Our contribution is to show the world that there were Black Commonwealth soldiers who were pivotal to Britain’s success in both wars.” The memorial will make visible the contribution Black soldiers made that, up until now, has not been publicly recognised. “We are going to put that right with this wonderful, beautiful piece of art.” “The general public have been brilliant. There was not one
objection when the planning permission went out to consultation.” Beula paid tribute to Moe Darr of Madstone Ltd, the company who worked on the memorial on trust of payment. “They have been my single greatest supporter from day one.” Madstone inscribed and polished the memorial and helped with its temporary installation in 2014.” Attending the launch of the REMEMBERED project, Devon
Thomas, Brixton Neighbourhood Forum chair, said: “The bulk of those who fought were colonial Commonwealth soldiers. Many of those helped found this community in Brixton and we want to make a direct connection to their histories and the community today.” The heritage project will work with all sectors of the community. The three inter-generational groups will be made up of two schools; Richard Atkins primary and Ark Evelyn Grace Academy, and
Lambeth Pensioners Action Group. Groups will work together on a play, with the elders acting alongside the school students, that will be performed on the eve of Windrush Day at the Paul Robeson Theatre in Hounslow, West London. The HLF grant will also fund a London libraries touring exhibition in February, an online Treasure Trail, an e-book, souvenir journal and an Awards Day, where those who contribute will be recognised. The activities will be filmed for future broadcast as part of a documentary featuring the installation and unveiling of the first dedicated African and Caribbean war memorial. All archive material will be lodged at the Black Cultural Archives. Alan Piker from the Brixton Society said: “There are even links between Brixton and World War 1. A soldier from the Caribbean gave his next of kin as living in Coldharbour Lane, Brixton.” Beula says funds are still needed. During the campaign to launch the memorial, a CD, I Have A Song, was produced to support the fundraising effort. Eric Roberson gave permission for his song to be used and it was recorded in Brixton’s Raw Material studios last February, I Have A Song is available to download from iTunes or Amazon for 99p. The campaign also launched with a book Bayonets, Mangoes and Beads. ■■ More at www.acmemorial.com.
4 NEWS
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Mayor, council seek your views on police, fire and health plans Local residents are being asked for their views on proposed changes to London’s police and fire services as well as Lambeth council’s health strategy. Two draft plans: the Mayor of London’s draft Police and Crime Plan, and the Fire Authority’s London Safety Plan, explain priorities for policing and public safety. The police plan identifies three new priorities including keeping children and young people safe, tackling violence against women and girls, and fighting extremism, hatred and intolerance. A greater importance is also placed on neighbourhood policing, with plans to put two dedicated
officers into every London neighbourhood by the end of next year. Other key proposals include the appointment of a victims’ commissioner and reducing knife crime with more prevention and enforcement against selling and carrying knives. Londoners are also being asked to give their views on their fire services. Proposals include expanding the London Fire Brigade’s capacity to deal with terror incidents and flooding. How quickly fire response units, which carry specialist equipment such as heavy cutting apparatus, can get to incidents is also under review. London Assembly Member and
Lambeth councillor, Florence Eshalomi, said it is vital that London has “robust frontline services that meet the needs of our community” and urged local people not to miss the opportunity to have their voices heard. She added: “London is facing new challenges, not least the threat of terrorism and increases in knife crime. It’s vital we know our emergency services are fully resourced and prepped to deal with whatever may come our way. ■■ The draft plans are available at http://talklondon.london.gov.uk. Lambeth council said central government funding it receives for public health services will have
Hundreds mourn pioneering entrepreneur Spencer Williams Hundreds of people attended the funeral of Spencer Williams last month. A night club and business entrepreneur in the 1970s and 80s, he was a well-known and respected champion of small businesses. Devon Thomas, chair of the Brixton Neighbourhood Forum, said: “He was a pioneer, helping to establish the popular local sound system TWJ, with his two childhood friends, Trevor Russell and Joe Edey. “They also established the Bali Hai in Streatham Ice Rink as a major local venue and opened at the Podium in Vauxhall in the 1980s. He went on to help establish Night Moves Nitespot in Shoreditch, long before it became the trendy area it now is. “He also helped to set up the Granville Trader’s Association which fought against rent rises and won a famous test case against the then landlords. “This was the frontrunner for the Brixton Business Forum and, finally, the Brixton Business Improvement District. Williams was also instrumental in setting up the tradition of having a local celebrity switch on the Christmas lights, which helped to rebuild a positive reputation after the Brixton uprisings of 1981 and 85.
been reduced by £5m over the next four financial years at a time when the population of the borough is growing and health needs and rates of certain diseases are increasing. “As a result of other reductions in funding from central government, we will have to find £55m. worth of savings between now and 2020 just to balance our budget,” the council said. It said it had identified £7-8m worth of savings by redesigning services and being more efficient in the way we meet service user needs. ■■ It is now consulting on these plans through an online questionnaire at www.snapsurveys.com/ wh/s.asp?k=148050249890.
Charity seeks new trustees By Anna McKie An organisation giving grants to good causes in Brixton is on the hunt for new volunteer trustees. The Thrale Charity also works in other parts of Lambeth and Tooting and Balham. Last year, a number of Brixton-based organBrixton market traders who participate in the Rose fruit and veg voucher scheme, were visited by Gus Schumacher (centre), former under secretary for agriculture in the Clinton administration and founder of Wholesome Wave, whose work in the States was influential on the development of the Rose Voucher model in the UK. Wholesome Wave’s voucher scheme now reaches 600,000 Americans every year. Schumacher was accompanied by Jonathan Pauling, CEO of the Alexander Rose Charity and Brixton Market Trader’s Federation CEO Stuart Horwood. The Rose Vouchers project helps parents with young children on low incomes to buy fresh fruit and veg. The vouchers are exchanged for produce at participating market stalls. Also on the visit were representatives of Alexandra Rose Charities, the Department of Health’s obesity team, Lambeth Food Flagship and Artemis Foundation, a scheme funder.
2016 DECEMBER
NEWS IN BRIEF Christmas carols
St. John’s Church in Wiltshire Road, Angell Town, will host a carol service for Brixton on Saturday 17 December from 5pm. The Inner Voices Youth Choir will be joined by the choir of Angell Town’s St. John’s School.
Age UK appeal Lambeth Age UK is appealing for support to help it buy Christmas lunch for an older person in Lambeth. The charity says a £4 donation will make all the difference. For more information go to www.ageuklambeth.org.uk.
Outstanding nursery London Early Years Foundation’s (LEYF) Brixton Community Nursery has been judged “outstanding” by Ofsted. LEYF is a social enterprise with 38 nurseries across London. The nursery in Brixton Station Road celebrated with Helen Hayes MP who presented the team with their certificate.
Warming up the Kitchen A boiler company is donating £20 from each boiler it installs up until Christmas Day, towards getting Brixton Soup Kitchen its own boiler, writes Lilly Blanchard. The Soup Kitchen has depended on electric heaters up until now. LS1 Boilers, founded by young black entrepreneur Wayne Tomlinson says he has been looking for ways to give back to the community. The Soup Kitchen, started by Brixton resident Solomon Smith in 2013, donates 1000 meals a week, a number that is increasing as homelessness is on the rise. The kitchen also provides advice on housing, CV writing and job applications.
The Effra in the Effra
isations including Lambeth Mencap and the St Matthew’s Project (above) received funding. The charity runs almshouses in Streatham for women over 60 from across Lambeth and Wandsworth. Thrale Charity says it is looking for people who are passionate about the local area and, ideally, involved in other community activities. A bonus would be someone who has some finance expertise as the charity is looking for a treasurer. But the most important quality is enthusiasm, the charity says. ■■ If you are interested contact info@thralealmshouses.org.uk by 6 January.
There could be few more appropriate places for Jon Newman to talk about his new book River Effra, South London’s Secret Spine than the saloon bar of the Effra Hall Tavern at 38 Kellett Rd SW2 1EB. He will be there on Monday 12 December, with the talk starting at 8pm. Copies of the book will be on sale.
Black wellbeing The Black Wellbeing Partnership is being set up to improve mental health and wellbeing for Lambeth’s black communities. It will bring together people from the “mental health system” (organisations that deliver and pay for services) and the community. Find out how you can get involved and have your voice heard at www.healthwatchlambeth.org.uk/ black-wellbeing-partnership.
DECEMBER 2016
NEWS 5
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Debt centre hampers to bring some festive cheer Christians Against Poverty (CAP) debt centre in Brixton is donating 40 seasonal hampers to their clients this December. Local churches, friends and the community provided the contents . CAP manager Jon Taylor said: “For some of these people, the hampers may give them their first opportunity to enjoy Christmas with a special meal or gift without worrying how to pay for it.” The Brixton Debt Centre, launched in January this year, has since helped 40 families with debt problems. The centre meets with local people who are struggling and helps to find solutions, including money management training to help people remain debt free. The course is open to anyone who wants to learn about budgeting. Sasha, one of the first
clients, said: “My debt wasn’t massive, but I couldn’t get it under control. It was getting bigger and so I contacted CAP. When they visited, I didn’t feel embarrassed at all. They were so reassuring, and once they had looked at all my paperwork, they found a solution for me. After working to a budget for three months I was debt free. It feels amazing.” “We know how tough this time can be,” said Taylor. “The hamper scheme is an amazing opportunity to bless people with extra resources and let them know someone cares about them this Christmas. “With expenses adding up, and with increased fuel costs heightened by the cold winter months, this is a particularly difficult time of the year.” ■■ Anyone with debt problems can call CAP on 0800 328006.
FOODBANK THANKS VOLUNTEERS
Norwood and Brixton Foodbank celebrated its fifth anniversary with a thank you to volunteers. In that time it has fed over 30,000 people, distributed more than 220 tonnes of food and opened a new distribution point in Streatham. The foodbank also ran Eat Well, Spend Less courses this year. Manager Jon Taylor said: “It is impossible to track how many people have volunteered over this time, but at present we have over 100 unpaid staff serving regularly. ■■ To make a financial donation this Christmas visit the foodbank website: norwoodbrixton.foodbank.org.uk.
Fifth of Lambeth’s residents are low paid Nearly a fifth of Lambeth’s residents are low-paid, according to data published by the New Policy Institute and Trust for London. Trust for London and the Kennington-based Walcot Foundation are funding Step Up, a programme to help low-paid workers in Lambeth and neighbouring boroughs to progress into work that pays the London Living Wage (LLW) of £9.75 an hour. The Trust says that in the first years of the two-year programme almost 300 people have been helped. It is funding six organisations to support the work – two of them local – High Trees Community Development Trust in Tulse Hill and IRMO (Indoamerican Refugee and
Migrant Organisation) in Angell Town. The Step Up programme is available free to any resident of Lambeth and its surrounding boroughs who has been earning less than the LLW for the past year or more. Residents and employers can learn about Step Up at www.stepup.london. Cllr Paul McGlone, deputy leader of Lambeth council, said: “Supporting residents to move out of low-paid work and earn at least the London Living Wage is a priority for Lambeth council. “I would encourage any Lambeth residents who are earning less than the London Living Wage to consider taking part in the programme.”
Dumping spot transformed by art By Anna McKie Primary school pupils and a local artists have converted a grubby Herne Hill passage into a public work of art. Students from St Jude’s primary school and artist Victor Szepessy have transformed Brockwell Passage, near Herne Hill Station, with a mural and stencils that celebrate the area. The passage had long been a dumping ground for commercial waste, making it an unwelcoming thoroughfare and a hotspot for anti- social behaviour. Part of its #CleanHerneHill movement, the Herne Hill Forum initiated the collaboration. The group said it wanted the project to create a “beautifully lit public realm and a new piece of collaborative public art to restore pride in the centre of Herne Hill”. To create the mural Szepessy pressure-washed the wall, applied several layers of gesso, drew the outline freehand and painted it using water-based acrylic paint. It has an anti-graffiti covering. In December, the Brockwell Passage Picnic Spot, now complete with a blue plaque, a neighbourhood corner bench and colourful lanterns, was opened by St Jude’s head teacher Alexandra New. “The kids from St Jude’s Primary School created their own stencils and spent three days stencilling the passage way,” Szepessy said. “This was their first experience of painting on a wall and we explored how brick absorbs paint, how to mix colours to create new ones, and how the space you cut away to make a
stencil becomes the shape that appears on the wall.” New said that the children really enjoyed working on the artwork. “It makes the passage
really colourful, it is now a lovely place to walk through,” she said. “It has been wonderful for the children to have taken
part in this local community project which has improved such an important space for Herne Hill residents,” New added.
6 CHRISTMAS GIFT GUIDE
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Stay in Brixton for bargains and beauty Tis the season to #ShopLocal…(fa lalalala lala la la) says Frankie Holah, presenting some of her personal favourites
Diverse The design-led gift shop needs no introduction. December sees the return of the annual showcase for Makerhood, the Lambeth online network that develops and promotes the work of local designer-makers. It’s a great opportunity to find handmade gifts on your doorstep and to support the local creative community at the same time. ●● Find them at 390 Coldharbour Lane
Market Row Wines Wine, craft beer (featuring Brixton beer), prosecco … Oh, and port … need we say more? Christmas tipples sorted … hic! ●● Find them at 20 Market Row, Brixton
Circus
If the thought of those central London crowds fills you with dread, check out our top picks for shopping local in Brixton this Christmas … from music to clothing, stocking fillers to art, there is so much on offer, right on your doorstep. Let’s #ShopLocal this festive season.
Voted one of the top 100 independent shops by Time Out magazine, Circus has established itself as a destination to find beautiful one‑off pieces while championing local artists and makers. From vintage glassware to handmade wrapping paper, jewellery to blankets and pillows, you’ll always find unique and beautiful gifts. ●● Find them at 5th Avenue, Granville Arcade
United 80 United 80 is all about music, art, and fashion, stocking unique and limited edition pieces by local artists. From streetwear to avant garde jewellery, vinyl compilations to Afro Supa mugs as well as gorgeous handmade garments by the in-demand GeoD, you can be sure that they stay off the beaten track to bring you the freshest gifts. ●● Find them at 80 Brixton Village
2016 DECEMBER
Rachel and Malika Nour Cash and Carry Brixton’s famous cash and carry needs no introduction. THE go-to for all of your fresh fruit, veg and world food needs; the bustling store may fool you with the narrow entrance, but work your way through the shoppers and it opens up into a cavern of delights. The Iranian Medjool dates are a must have at Christmas (or indeed any time of year – yum)! ●● Find them at 23 Market Row, Brixton
Now electrifying Electric Avenue
This gorgeous boutique is home to an eclectic mix of unusual home furnishings, jewellery and gifts from around the world, sourced solely by Rachel and Malika. All of the interior products and accessories are fairtrade, sourced directly from the makers themselves from as far and wide as Mexico, West Africa and India. ●● Find them at Unit 34, Granville Arcade
Healthy Eaters is now open
until 11.00pm in the evening
reggae music. Mmm...mmm
So, come on and rock down to
17 Electric Avenue Brixton SW9 8JP and let the fun begin!
020 7274 4521 www.healthyeaters.co.uk
Dombey Wholesale Butchers Award-winning resident butcher on Brixton’s Market Row, Michael has been in business for 35 years and is extremely popular with the locals. Open (including Mondays) all the way up to Christmas, you can pick up your festive meats, with the triple smoked ham being a popular purchase…don’t miss out and get your orders in early! ●● Find them at 19 Market Row, Brixton
Rose and Thorn This stunning boutique in the heart of Brixton Village is the perfect place to pick up one-off fashion and jewellery pieces (full collections by the owners themselves) alongside a selection of emerging and established brands. From cute leather change purses, beauty products and homeware, to dresses and pendants, you are guaranteed to pick up the prettiest of gifts this Christmas. ●● Find them at 75 Brixton Village
The Keep Boutique A curated selection of ethical fashion, this Brixton boutique stocks brands with integrity and a focus on sustainable style. Favourites for Christmas gifts include Nepalese handmade bobble hats, Nordic candles, bamboo socks and pulp paper earrings handmade by a women’s social enterprise in Swaziland. You’ll find pieces to be treasured! ●● Find them at 32-33 Brixton Village
so now you can enjoy our warm Caribbean vibe with a Jamaican
rum, a tropical cocktail or local beer and authentic jerk chicken to the sounds of sweet
20 Storey Gifts galore at this boutique store with everything from books and candles to retro board games, light boxes, totes and toys! There is something for everyone here and it’s oh so colourful. Particularly good for stocking fillers and those who love something a little bit kooky. ●● Find them at 2A Market Row, Brixton
Full Moon Designs Handcrafted jewellery inspired by nature. An ideal stopover for special gifts at affordable prices. Carole, who works on the premises, uses bronze, semi-precious stones, wood, fossils and crystals. The shop also stocks a fine range of scarves. ●● Find her at Unit 8, First Avenue, Granville Arcade
Studio 73 Selling art and framing in Brixton Village for more than six years, Studio 73 art gallery has framed up a “greatest hits” show in an Christmas Salon. You can buy affordable art and prints starting at a tenner. For presents, the Brixton Map is a bestseller, or you could splash out on a one-off canvas. Their card selection is pretty awesome too. ●● Find them at 73 Brixton Village
And the last word . . . Don’t just take our recommendations, Brixton’s abuzz with creative talent that pops up all over the place including Brixton Station Road on a Saturday. Wherever you go, you can’t go wrong. Last minute panic buyers, don’t worry. All you need is right here on your doorstep.
DECEMBER 2016
New scheme to support local women’s businesses South London “business incubator” Hatch Enterprise is working with the giant international bank JP Morgan to help 60 women grow businesses. Hatch’s Dirk Bischof said women entrepreneurs faced extra barriers when trying to access funding. The new scheme, Women Enterprise Growth Accelerator (WEGA), launches in February and Hatch is keen to hear from women who want to get support. The Women’s Business Council estimates that there would be a million more female entrepreneurs if women were setting up new businesses at the same rate as men and that this could increase the UK’s GDP by 10% by 2030. WEGA will support ambitious women in growing and scaling their business. Bischof said women could be more concerned about getting it right before taking their produce to
BUSINESS 7
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market, which some funders might see as being “risk averse”. One of the businesses being supported in 2017 will be Neon Performing Arts. Emanuela Pagliei (left), a Brixton resident, started it in 2014, offering performing arts classes to south London young people, often from low-income backgrounds. She works with the Royal Opera and the Royal Ballet to support the most talented students into the arts. Neon received start-up support from Hatch in 2014 and recently secured premises, but still struggles to make the business sustainable. Pagliei said: “I have to be everything and everywhere. I’ve had to learn to not only work in my business but also on my business, whilst at the same time making sure I can spend enough time with my kids and my partner. “I look forward to the support from the Accelerator to help me achieve my business goals and supporting many more young people into performing arts.” ■■ wega.hatchenterprise.org
The award-winning Brixton entrepreneur who did it all herself Rosie Davies, founder of the Brixton-based London Fashion Agency (LFA) has won Great British Creative Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Another Brixton-based entrepreneur, Shaun Pulfrey of the Tangle Teezer hairbrushes, won Overall Entrepreneur of the Year. LFA works with two local businesses, The Keep Boutique in Granville Arcade and Lowie in Herne Hill. Davies (left) started her career as a fashion intern. She puts her success down to a relationship with clients
that tells them what they want to know and how much it will cost them. Davies said: “From web build to office set-up; I did everything myself. “If I didn’t know how to do something, I’d Google it. It’s amazing what you can learn on the internet. “People probably think I am crazy, as this isn’t the normal path to take. “But winning this award means that I can finally show my family and friends that I am not only doing something I am passionate about but I am doing it well.”
New shared office space in St Matthews Tree Shepherd, the charity that works supports social enterprise start ups is offering shared affordable office space in St Matthews Church. Tenants will share an office with the Tree Shepherd team and other local businesses. The aim is to provide informal knowledge exchange and provide a space suitable to exhibit products,
and artworks. Rental includes furnished office units and desk space with lockable office drawers, WiFi, a kitchenette, printing, coping and scanning facilities. Rates for a whole desk area (six to eight people) is £1,350 per month plus VAT; or an office unit (12ft x 9ft) at £500 per month plus VAT. ■■ For more information contact info@treeshepherd.org.uk.
WINTER PROMOTION
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Merry Christmas
Win B£1,000 this Christmas! The very special Christmas Bonus draw is on! Buy a ticket for £1 and enter a draw to win B£1,000, or one of 22 runner up prizes – including original B£ merchandise and 12 mystery prizes donated by Brixton businesses this Christmas. Raffle draw on 16th December
Brixton Pound Christmas Party Join us for a Christmas party at the B£ Cafe! Saturday, 17th December from 7pm at 77 Atlantic Road. We’ll kick off with a comedy showcase from Let’s Laugh, so get there early!
The best present in Brixton: Bowie prints are on sale! You may remember the A3 print featuring the iconic Bowie B£10 note which we published earlier this year. The edition of 300 went into production in December 2015, with David Bowie’s full approval. We’re very happy to say that the print is now on sale, just in time for Christmas! It will make an excellent present to any Brixtonite or Bowie fan. For more details please visit the B£ Cafe at 77 Atlantic Road or go to bit.ly/bowieprint.
Art at the B£ Cafe Thank you very much to Spleen Projects who curated some brilliant exhibitions at the Cafe last month. If you’re a local
22 runner-up prizes: new prizes donated by Brixton businesses revealed daily
family and friends from 20 Storey, Circus, Brixi, Diverse, Turpentine And while you do your Christmas shopping, treat yourself to a lovely coffee break at Federation Coffee, or a festive cocktail at Seven or Three Eight Four bars. Brixton every time! Turn £1 into B£1,000 and cover all your Xmas costs
Buy your tickets at the B£ Cafe or online: brixtonpound.org/ bonus-play
With B£1,000 in your pocket, you can cover all your Christmas costs: buy gifts for family and friends, groceries, decorations, and any other festive items – all from local, independent shops.
Proceeds from the Brixton Bonus go into the Brixton Fund, our local grants scheme: so it’s a win for
For some great ideas, check out gift guides made by B£ users in the previous years, or see
Get up to 10 tickets to boost your chances!
what previous Bonus winners spent their prize money on. You could spend your Brixton Grand on: AAGroceries at Faiz Foods or Brixtona Whole Foods AAXmas booze at House of Bottles or Market Row Wines AADelicious deli treats from Cornercopia, Salon, or Parissi AAExcellent gifts for
For a full list of B£ businesses, visit brixtonpound.org/ directory, or the newly launched B£ App! We are delighted to announce that you can make pay-by-text payments on the Brixton Pound App, now live on the Apple Store and Google Play Store. The app makes pay-by-text payments with B£s far easier and gives live information about local businesses accepting the B£ based on your location.
12 Days of BriXmas Advent Calendar – win one of 22 very special runner-up prizes! Aside from the Brixton Grand, you’ve got a chance to win one of 22 special runner-up prizes in the Brixton Bonus! We’ve teamed up with Brixton businesses who donated 12 very special prizes. We will announce a new prize every day from 1st until 12th December – keep an eye on our social media, or come see the
advent calendar at the B£ Cafe! Prizes announced so far: ●● Two mosaics classes with Heart in Art Workshops ●● Handmade jug from Omnis ●● Free gyoza at Koi Ramen ●● 24 Christmas cupcakes
●● A year’s Friends of the Black Cultural Archives membership
●● Scandinavian design ceramic plate
●● Framing voucher for Studio 73
AA Buy your tickets at the B£ Cafe or online: brixtonpound. org/bonus-play.
artist looking to show your work or use studio space, get in touch with us at studios@brixtonpound.org!
77 Atlantic Road | brixtonpound.org | @brixtonpound | info@brixtonpound.org
DECEMBER 2016
OPINION 9
brixtonblog.com
BRIXTON BUGLE
COMMENT ’Tis the season to be merry … or is it? The tree is up, the lights are on and the clubs and pubs are gearing up to host some great live entertainment. But beneath the tinsel and the bright lights there’s an anxiety about what the new year will bring for Brixton. The business rate hike of more than a third could see the end to many small independent local businesses. Pubs and clubs are also facing huge rises and as Hootananny’s Sophia Yates says on p12: “A tax rise that is this high puts all our businesses at risk.” Little of the extra money comes back into the area. Money will have to be found from somewhere, and jobs could be put at risk. As we report on the news pages a fifth of those who live in the borough are paid below the London Living Wage. Ritzy workers are still waging their campaign for that living wage. Rate rises like those won’t help. The fabric of Brixton is already changing with the new town hall development, housing redevelopment and the closure of the arches. But it’s not all doom and gloom. Brixton Green has a vision for a different model of affordable housing that involves the community in decisions (p14) Brixton is a resilient place and there’s plenty to celebrate. Brixton residents are a creative bunch and you need look no further than our local shops for everything you need for Christmas. Food, drink, presents, entertainment and, above all, a great community spirit. Regulated by IMPRESS: The independent monitor for the press 83 Victoria St, London SW1H OHW 020 3585 4160 complaints@impress.press www.impress.press
Local artist Juliette Martinez recently finished Christmas in Windrush Square Brixton – a large oil painting of the Christmas fun fair. You can find her prints and cards at Brockwell Art Services in Herne Hill, Studio 73 in Brixton Village and Diverse on Coldharbour Lane
I can’t speak for other women over 55 who rent, but I blooming love it people into your home and knew that all types of people were looking for rooms, including the black people who would ring me and ask if it was OK because they were black and, lots of over-50s. To actually become a lodger was something I was soon to learn about. I decided, after two years of struggling with trying to pay the mortgage on time and waking up feeling like the whole world was chasing me for money, to sell the bloody albatross of a house, pay back the mortgage and see where life would take me.
Delores William, whose Brixton Calling interviews are a highlight of the Brixton Blog, looks forward to the day when more people let go of the mortgage burden The number of women my age living in flat shares has risen by a phenomenal amount according to director Matt Hutchinson, director of property listing specialists SpareRoom. Over the last five years the number of people in the 55 plus age group living in a flat share has risen over 343%. He told a journalist that “whether we like or not, we’re being forced to rethink our aspiration of home ownership as Britain moves towards becoming a nation of renters”. While doing a bit of research for this piece, I read that there is nothing “intrinsically wrong” with flat sharing when you are over the age of 50. Well, thank you very much for that. That makes me feel better. Why not just say there is nothing wrong with flat sharing when you’re over 50, period.
Home became a burden
I owned my own property and when I was made redundant my home became a burden that I just couldn’t deal with anymore. I would have dreams that the roof had collapsed and water was pouring into my house. I would wake up drained and scared. I was single and, for the first time in my life, I realised that I was competing with young people for jobs and, even though I’m a talented journalist with a gift for getting great interviews, I am supposedly too old to employ anymore.
Suburbs not for me
Life is changing so fast for everyone; young people can’t afford to buy and older people are losing their homes at a frightening rate. I worked for a charity for 15 years and, in that time, went from serving street drinkers and drug users who were the regulars, to then seeing eastern Europeans who had come to England to work and make a life but failing, and then British people who had actually lost their homes. One man who touched my heart had paid a mortgage for over 25 years but, like me, had lost his job and then the house. I had always let a room in my house, so had knowledge of what is was like to let
I also decided that I didn’t want that traditional life of buying a cheaper home out of London. Living comfortably in the suburbs was not for me. I want to be free; I had children incredibly young and want to experience life, as I never have. Well I can’t speak for other women over 55 who rent, but I blooming love it. I put the house on the market and decided to move out while it was being sold. I just wanted rid of it. I don’t have the responsibility of paying all the bills, maintaining the home, or cleaning the whole house on my own. After losing my job and coming scarily close to losing the family home that I had put so much into, I let my pride go and thought: “Hold on. You have many skills, stop being a snob and go and get a job”. I got myself a job in a trendy restaurant as a chef, which paid the rent on my new room and gave me space to look for a job that suits my skills. It was lovely letting go and resetting the clock. My goal actually is to live in a womanly utopia and share with other like-minded women who relish the thought of living together, letting go of the burden of mortgages and live like the people of mainland Europe who are life-long renters.
10 INCREDIBLE EDIBLE
brixtonblog.com
2016 DECEMBER
Top tips for your Yule fuel
One of the reasons Incredible Edible Lambeth exists is to shout about
Karine Stephan of Incredible Edible Gipsy Hill presents a spread of good advice on festive food and drink
great food projects in the borough. We were very excited to hear about a
VEGGIES AND FRUITS FIRST. Aim to fill half your plate with vegetables. Fruit-based puddings, such as apple crumble, are best. Seasonal clementines and satsumas are great sources of vitamin C.
project with young people from the Marcus Lipton Centre in Minet Road, who learnt about healthy
COLOURS, COLOUR EVERYWHERE. Adding colour to your plate, such as pomegranate seeds in your salad, or grating a raw beetroot, will help you get good sources of vitamins and minerals.
eating and cooking on a Hip-Hop Gardens course! And Incredible Edible Gipsy Hill has produced
MAKE YOUR OWN ‘JUNK’ FOOD. Aim to eat real food and avoid processed junk food. Why not try making your own oven sweet potato chips? Add herbs, paprika and cinnamon. Make your own pizza or try crispy oven-roasted kale … delicious!
some extremely useful tips for staying healthy over Christmas …
DRINK SENSIBLY. Instead of too much mulled wine, enjoy seasonal herbal infusions (eg Yogi tea or Twining’s winter spice).
Participants learnt about customer service, working in a team, budgeting, managing money on the day, clearing and what to do when orders are mixed up
Hip-hop and happening gardening Zara Rasool reports on a successful project that needs a Christmas present of continuing funding May Project Gardens (MPG) and the Loughborough Farm community garden have been working with a group of young people in Loughborough Junction over the past six months on an innovative Hip-Hop Gardens course. The young people have been planting and harvesting in new growing beds, cooking delicious vegan recipes for the youth club, and writing lyrics and rapping about food to document their experiences. The programme is designed to engage young people about their health and wellbeing, as well as equipping them with entrepreneurial skills. That’s what led to their first LJ Youth Cafe at the Loughborough Farm Community Cafe in October. Over the autumn half term young people from Marcus Lipton were invited to come and cook for their community. Eight boys prepared a vegan meal, doing everything from cooking and serving to washing up and promoting the project by using their vivid flyers to drum up interest in the area.
They learnt about customer service, working in a team, budgeting, managing money on the day, clearing up and what to do when orders are mixed up! There was so much energy and fun – in a lively, great space – that brought in their networks too. There was resounding positive feedback from the customers, who were served delicious mushroom burgers, sweet potato fries and farm salad for £5.
The young people served 25 meals, providing a great opportunity to learn about enterprise. At the end of the day, the boys got to take home a share of the profits – about £15 each. Next up for the youth team is recording their first EP – on sale this month! The Loughborough Farm Community Cafe (below) has been running since September 2016 in the Platform in Loughborough Junction, bringing the local community
together to share healthy nutritious food every Friday from 11am to 4pm. The project is volunteer-run and each week a local resident or organisation is invited to come and share their cooking, skills, culture and food. The cafe uses freshly picked farm produce as much as possible, as well as donated surplus ingredients. Volunteers come along to learn new skills, socialise and improve their health and wellbeing. Recipes range from Polish pies and Trinidadian soups to lentil dal, jollof rice and Mediterranean salads. You can find the Platform at 2 Ridgway Road SW9 7AH – all are welcome. If you would like to get involved or learn more about the project, please contact charlotte_oconnor@ hotmail.co.uk. May Project Gardens is a team of grassroots activists working to educate and empower urban communities to live sustainably. Despite the success of Hip-Hop Gardens, they have struggled to find funding to continue the programme after Christmas. ■■ If you would like to find out more about their work or help to fund the continuation of Hip-Hop Gardens in Loughborough Junction please email ian@mayproject.org or visit www.mayproject.org.
AVOID SODAS AND SUGARY DRINKS. Why not try coconut water or make your own infused water? For instance, cucumber and mint, blueberry and vanilla pod, apple and rose, lime and basil, orange and rosemary … and remember to keep yourself well hydrated, especially after drinking alcohol. KEEP BREAKFAST HEALTHY. It will keep you full until lunch. Try cinnamon porridge with banana and berries or a grated apple (you can sprinkle linseeds on top), avocado and boiled eggs or scrambled eggs. BE CAREFUL WITH READY-MADE SAUCES. Many contain lots of salt and sugar. SWITCH FOODS. Dark chocolate instead of milk chocolate, oat biscuits with hummus instead of crisps, unsalted nuts instead of salty nuts… GIVE AWAY EXCESS TREATS TO FRIENDS AND FAMILY. Try vegetable dip such as cauliflower, hummus, beetroot and avocado. DON’T ARRIVE HUNGRY AT A PARTY. Have a little healthy snack (eg a handful of nuts) before arriving. Nuts are great sources of minerals and vitamin E. DON’T BE AFRAID … to say “No” (food, invitations …) DO EXTRA WALKS , especially after a heavy meal. If you can, aim to walk at least 30 minutes each day.
Networking event gives EGA students valuable insight into business and finance
Principal and Senior Vice Principal visit sister schools in China Evelyn Grace Academy hosted a delegation of principals from schools in China in October. Our Principal Devon Hanson and Senior Vice Principal Angelina Idun had the opportunity to visit China the following month to learn more about its culture and its education system; and also to establish a partnership between schools in China and Ark Evelyn Grace Academy here in Brixton.
Mr Hanson visited Xinghua Zhaoyang Lake Junior Middle School and Ms Idun visited Lida Middle School, Suzhou in Jiangsu Province of China. Both were impressed by the diversity and creativity of the Chinese curriculum. Mr Hanson’s visit included a Peking opera performance, brush pen calligraphy, folk dance, and Chinese painting. Ms Idun’s tour took in school sites with amazing
Sixth Form applications are now open and online at http://evelyngraceacademy.org/ sixth-form/application-process. The deadline for all applications is Monday 12 December 2016.
Celebrating Black History – with a focus on Identity
Crystal Palace star Benteke visits EGA Crystal Palace star footballer Christian Benteke, 25, visited EGA to film an interview in the PE department before speaking to students about life as a top footballer. The Belgium international striker joined Crystal Palace in a £32 million deal in the summer from Liverpool and is the south London club’s biggest ever signing. He has appeared 30 times for Belgium – the former FIFA No1 ranked side – including this year’s European Championships in France. For all the latest sports news and headlines here at EGA, follow us on twitter @egasport ■■ Visit evelyngraceacademy.org/ life-school/ega-sports.
architecture that created exciting learning environments for staff and students. One site had its own television station, a large indoor and outdoor space where students and staff grow plants and vegetables and make pottery, which is great way for students and staff to relax. ■■ You can read the full report on Mr Hanson’s and Ms Idun’s trip at www.evelyngraceacademy.org/news.
Ark Evelyn Grace Academy students are gaining an insight into the world of business and finance thanks to a three-year partnership with the operations division of Goldman Sachs, the leading international finance company. It is facilitated by the Business in the Community charity which promotes responsible business practice. Goldman Sachs hosted the first “Fast Facts, Informing Your Future” speed networking event at the academy in November. Students had the opportunity to meet Goldman Sachs employees, receive great career advice and hear their inspiring stories. Lisa Donnelly, Europe, the Middle East and Africa Head of Operations at Goldman Sachs said: “We are delighted to partner with Ark Evelyn Grace Academy to help inspire its students in their career paths. We aim to support the school and provide the necessary tools and resources they need to ensure their young people succeed.” For Goldman Sachs and Ark Evelyn Grace Academy this project matters because repeated, in-depth engagement between employers and students can help prevent the stigma that suggests a young person’s social background predicts their success at school and beyond. Francesca Hall, career and work related learning practitioner at Evelyn Grace Academy said: “We are so excited to be embarking on this three-year project with Goldman Sachs. “Working with an international corporate firm like Goldman Sachs will give our students an insight into the world of business and finance and raise their aspirations. “The strongest motivation to achieve well in school comes from students making the connection between their present studies and their futures. Interaction with employees at Goldman Sachs will help them focus, and inspire them to succeed.”
The focus for this year’s celebration of Black History Month (BHM) was Identity. Students were challenged to reflect on how they are perceived by others, and whether this was on the basis of skin colour, behaviour and attitudes, or actions; and also to focus on how they see others. The BHM celebration was also an opportunity to allow students to think about some derogatory words they may use to describe themselves or to refer to others, to understand the history behind the words and language and the harm or pain caused from using these words. The school wanted students to realise the many battles fought by people of all ethnicities to rid society of discrimination, segregation and inequality. Many of the people we now celebrate as part of BHM
Rui Freire Araujo, Year 8, meets Christian Benteke
Students prepare their projects for science and technology finals EGA students are in this year’s finals of the JP Morgan Chase & Co STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) event. Over the past few months students have been working hard on their projects in preparation for the
forthcoming finals. They have been looking at sustainable development, using the Olympic park as a case study (as it has made use of lots of recyclable material and waste from the Olympics) for their project.
have different races/cultures within their heritage and this could not be identified from looking solely at the colour of their skin. The artists for this year’s celebration included Sun SonLyte, a 20-year-old rapper and spoken word poet, Iman-Lyrics, a 19-year-old contemporary dancer and Lawrence Rowe, 23-year-old singer and actor. There was also poetry, singing and dancing from EGA students Rhian Coleman (below), Matthew Clayton and Shaden Arafa, all in Year 7, and Assya Benmeriem in Year 8. Thank you and well done to Ms Fuller and Mr Jegede for this wonderful show of appreciation, self-reflection and celebration of Black History! ■■ Visit bit.ly/AEGA-BHM16 to view pictures from the event.
Message from the Principal Dear Brixton, As we come to the close of another year and embark into 2017, I am sure you may be asking yourself have you achieved everything you set your heart out to achieve; and what are my new aims and objectives? As a community these should also be the questions we are asking ourselves, as a community how are we are shaping lives and futures in Brixton? Whether you’re a parent or not, a neighbour to a young person or not, or an adult or child can you say you have impacted, inspired or contributed to a young person(s) life right here in Brixton towards achieving something they can be proud of? An old African proverb says: “It takes a village to raise a child”. As I think upon this I am encouraged and reminded that it is going to take continued effort from us all working together in the New Year to ensure our children achieve and attain the very best from their education within our community. In this season of reflection and thanksgiving let us resolve within ourselves to work together and make it our personal responsibility to provide and shape the lives of our young people for the better right here in Brixton. Let’s go the extra mile for our young people in 2017, let’s believe in them and I am confident we will see leaders of the next generation arise from our Brixton community. I would like to wish you and your families a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Devon Hanson Principal Ark Evelyn Grace Academy
Facilities for hire
EGA is a state of the art, award winning building designed by renowned architect Zara Hadid. We have fantastic facilities available for hire for photo shoots, filming, dance, yoga, sports – You name it! We’ve got it! Email your requests to ega.lettings@ evelyngraceacademy.org
Local businesses – become a Friend of EGA As we go into the New Year, we would like to partner up with local businesses and community projects to support the school and its activities, advertise your business and so much more. If this is something you would be interested in or would like to find out more about send us an email: ega.media@ evelyngraceacademy.org
Evelyn Grace Academy, 255 Shakespeare Road, SE24 0QN | Tel: 020 7737 9520 | Email: info@evelyngraceacademy.org | Website: evelyngraceacademy.org | Twitter: @ARKEvelynGrace
Brixton BID is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to strengthening Brixton’s diverse business culture. We represent over 650 levy‑paying businesses in the local area and work to develop new and exciting opportunities for Brixton.
Small Business Saturday Despite the freezing weather, traders taking part in Small Business Saturday in Windrush Square managed to go about their business with a smile. Supported by the BID, Street Concepts and Tree Shepherd provided the gazebos and organised stall bookings.
BID joins with council to combat unfair rate rises Brixton BID and Lambeth council have united to campaign against big increases in business rates that will hit local businesses hard. Scott Leonard, founder and creative director of the Brixtonbased Champion Agency said small companies like his face increases of a third or more. “We’re in a very uncertain period within the country – to then levy them with a tax of up to 30% higher than what they’re currently paying is not acceptable,” he said. Lambeth council and the Brixton Business Improvement District (BID), representing more than 600 local businesses, both warned of the serious consequences of business rate rises due to come into effect on 1 April next year. At a recent BID night time economy meeting, club and pub owners expressed their concern. The average increase in Brixton will be 60 per cent. Sophia Yates, owner of the Hootananny music venue, facing a 71 per cent increase, including a CrossRail supplement said: “Its ridiculous and really damaging. We try our best to pay 120 young people a week and feel we play an important part of Brixton’s unique vibrant night life. A tax rise that is this high puts all our businesses at risk.” The council said Lambeth businesses face an average increase of 35%. Business rates are based on rent levels which have soared in Lambeth, and Brixton in particular, since the last review. The council said: “Alongside increasing staffing costs, rents and uncertainty over Brexit, the rise in rates could prove crippling to many businesses.” It has written to the government asking for measures to help businesses cope with the rates rise, such as a phasing plan or better transitional relief. Local authorities like Lambeth collect business rates, but most of the cash raised goes to central government. “The way it is redistributed means Lambeth will not see a penny of the extra money, meaning no local benefit,” the council said. Both the council and BID are
urging businesses and others to contact ministers and back petitions against the rate rises. Councillor Jack Hopkins, Lambeth cabinet member for regeneration, business and culture, said: “This huge rise in rates is incredibly unfair on businesses in London, and Lambeth in particular. “Lambeth has had the biggest rate of new business growth of any London borough, yet this huge increase in costs, on top of the uncertain economic climate, increasing rents and staffing costs, puts all that progress at risk.” As well as writing to the Secretary of State on the matter, the council is collecting signatures online to show the strength of feeling from the business community. The BID has produced a model letter for its members to send to communities and local government secretary of state Sajid Javid. It says that London businesses will pay an extra £855 million in business rates each year as a result of the rate increases. Government proposals for transitional relief “do little to enable businesses to plan and prepare for such a massive increase in taxation in such a short period of time,” it goes on. “Such unexpectedly large tax increases, with just six months’ notice to prepare for them, will have a real negative impact on investment, job creation and profitability for many London businesses. “Without mitigating measures, businesses of all types, which make our city a vibrant and diverse place to live, work and visit, will find it difficult to survive and grow.” Brixton BID director Michael Smith said: The likelihood is that jobs will be affected as small businesses struggle to make ends meet. The knock-on effect to communities and people living in the area is hard to overestimate. “We intend to set up public meetings and workshops for businesses that explain what they can expect and what relief they can apply for. Businesses are urged to sign the online petition.” ■■ http://bit.ly/Lambeth-BR
BID LOBBIES CENTRAL GOVERNMENT OVER BUSINESS RATES REVIEW Together with other London Business Improvement Districts, business organisations and the Mayor of London, Brixton BID is supporting the campaign to enable London to earn more money to pay for the increase in business rates. The BID added its name to an open letter to the Evening Standard …
The 2017 revaluation of bu
siness rates will hit London
hard. It could see the capital’s bill for bu siness rates soar by an est imated £885 million annually — a signifi cant extra tax burden for businesses in the capital. London will no w be paying 32 per cent of the country’s total business rates. Companies are already inv esting in the National Living Wage, the Apprenticeship Levy and meeting the increased purch asing costs caused by the recent dram atic fall in the value of the pound. The timing of the revaluation in April is particularly sensit ive as it will come at the same time as the Government has anno unced it will invoke Article 50. At a time of unprecedented uncertainty for Britain’s ec onomy, this huge rise in business co sts is an unnecessary blow. Chancellor Philip Hammond says ther e is a case for the UK to “re set” fiscal policy in the wake of Brexit. London businesses face rea l difficulties in planning for this unexpe cted rise in rates bills. The transitional relief scheme is meant to en able businesses to manage the rate rise. The previous three revaluati ons have seen a cap on annu al rises of 12.5 per cent and it was wide ly expected that a similar sch eme would be introduced, but the Gove rnment’s preferred schem e proposes a cap on rate rises for large bu sinesses of 45 per cent in ye ar one. Such large tax increases will have a real negative impact on investment, job creation an d profitability for London bu sinesses at a time when confidence an d stability are needed mo re than ever. To help smooth the cost inc reases the Government sh ould find the funding to finance low er caps without impacting on the cap on reductions, perhaps through the use of a “transitional po t”. The Government should als o suppor t policies and proje cts that will enable London to earn the money to pay for thes e tax rises. The narrowing of the tax base and the difficulty in producing a transitional relief scheme tha t satisfies both businesses fac ing large increases and those expecti ng large decreases shows a str uctural problem with the current bu siness rates system. This de monstrates the need for a fundament al review of business rates before the next revaluation.
Members of Brixton BID joined local entrepreneur and musician Levi Roots and Lambeth Mayor Saleha Jaffer to switch on the lights of Brixton’s Christmas tree lights – and to see the new Christmas lights in town. A choir from Corpus Christi school provided a programme of carols.
Brixton Green
Have Brixton people found one of the solutions to London’s housing crisis?
choosing locations that solve issues on their street. Somerleyton Passage, towards the end of Somerleyton Road, is currently unwelcoming. This project will transform the space by bringing positive activity and making it the heart of the community.
Bringing services together makes sense!
Doctors and other people working in public services often talk of the benefit of services working together. The Hub will be a place where health, employment, public and community activity come together and are offered in a space owned by the community. It will be set up to be the heart of the community located next to a new Afro-Caribbean hair salon, a children’s nursery, café, and convenience store. It’s all about making it easier for people to look after each other. For example, a young mum using the children’s nursery can access health advice and employment and training opportunities. An older person suffering loneliness may visit the café and will have easy access to support and activities such as classes in the chef’s school.
The cost of housing in Brixton has a big impact on our community. Families have to move away from their schools and friends because of rent rises. The maintenance of some of our existing estates is so poor that they are being rebuilt after only 40 years. Funding cuts mean many important services are being cut, putting more pressure on people who are already the most under pressure. In 2008 a group of local residents came together to find a better solution. They set up a non-profit community benefit society (Brixton Green) to try to ensure that local people decide how the area is redeveloped.
The solution
Make the development about people, not profit. Ensure that it is professionally run, but that the landlord is accountable to the local community, and the value is kept in the community. This can be achieved by having a charitable trust as the landlord. A charitable trust locks the value in the community and locks in the objectives the community wants (such as affordable homes, jobs for local people, sustainability, an accountable landlord and social cohesion). People want a secure home that is well managed. Brixton Green plans to set up a Trust employing experienced professionals to manage the homes and shops, but they will be accountable to the residents. Brixton Green is now working in partnership with Lambeth Council on Somerleyton Road in a project to deliver 304 new homes, all for rent, along with shops and services the community needs. All will be leased to the new charitable community trust, the Somerleyton Trust.
No ‘poor doors’
This approach solves one of the big issues London faces – “poor doors”. Many developments in London contain homes for private sale, with some social or “affordable” housing. The non-private housing has a separate entrance, the “poor door”. Often the “affordable” homes are built to a lower quality with a cheaper fit-out. In this development people paying different rents will live side by side in the same blocks. Every flat will be built to the same quality. All the tenants will have the same rights and quality of service.
Pay the rent that your household can afford
What’s great about many Brixton streets is their diversity: diverse incomes and diverse communities. We need a solution to maintain this diversity. Brixton Green’s proposal is for the Trust to take a longer-term approach to financing, making it possible to have rent levels that are affordable for the whole community, including
PICTURES: Fiona Freund
Will Brixton Green be the Somerleyton Trust?
those described as the “squeezed middle”. The current approach is to provide 40% at social tenure, 10% at “affordable” and 50% at market rents. The approach Brixton Green proposes is, instead, to offer homes by income bands. If a household’s income changed, its members would move to a different rent band, but would not have to move home.
No. Brixton Green’s role is to help make sure local people are at the forefront of the redevelopment and how it is governed. When the Somerleyton Trust is up and running, Brixton Green will have completed its role. The task of making sure the project continues to meet the community’s objectives will be the responsibility of the Trust.
A landlord you can hold to account
Why do we need a Trust?
If you can’t hold your landlord to account, then you can’t make sure they deliver a good service. Too many residents in London have watched their housing being allowed to run down, with poor maintenance, poor service and slow response times. This squanders money and affects the quality of people’s lives. People who live and work in an area are more aware of the work required and the quality of the maintenance.
The Trust is the guarantee that affordable homes, jobs, social cohesion and sustainability are delivered throughout the lease – 250 years is the current proposal. Locking these objectives into a charitable trust ensures that they are not vulnerable to the policy or economic pressures faced by the local authority. If the Trust did not have a lease, then a future Council administration could decide to sell the properties or reduce the management budget to a level which made it no longer possible to deliver the objectives.
Who will be able to rent the homes?
The aim is to provide homes that local people across a range of household types can afford. Priority will be given to those with a connection to the area or who contribute to the area in some way, such as key workers. The community and Lambeth council are developing a local lettings policy. A draft is available on the Brixton Green website.
Total household income Rent
Creating the street the community needs
The Trust will make it possible to create a better street with local people deciding on the shops and services in their street, and
BAND 1
BAND 2
BAND 3
BAND 4
BAND 5
BAND 6
BAND 7
Under £15,000
£15,000£25,000
£25,000£35,000
£35,000£45,000
£45,000£55,000
£55,000£70,000
Over £70,000
Social rent
Capped at 30% of household income
Market rent
Chefs school/restaurant – inspiring from the street
The Somerleyton Trust will have a duty to support employment and training in the area. There will be a chef school and working restaurant. The young trainees will have the opportunity to serve paying customers in a location close to the popular food area, Brixton Village.
We still need to push to make this happen!
It’s a big decision for Lambeth council to lease Somerleyton Road to the Trust. In the next few months the council will be making its final decision. We all have to work hard to make sure this Trust is the best it can be and give Lambeth council the confidence to make this choice. If there’s not a Trust, the area will be developed in the old way. That could mean “poor doors” and few homes for the “squeezed middle”. The community support and ability to choose the shops and service would not happen.
Buy your £1 share in Brixton Green
Anyone over 16 years old who lives in one of the five wards of Brixton can become a member of Brixton Green (community benefit society) by buying a £1 share. One share per person. One vote per person. Over 1,200 Brixton people are already shareholders. To find out more visit our website. ■■ Open drop-in meetings on the first Monday of each month (6.30pm-9.30pm at Impact Hub, Pop Brixton). Visit brixtongreen.org for more info.
JOB OPPORTUNITY: Brixton Green will be hiring a transition director to establish the Somerleyton Trust. The full job description will be available soon. Anyone interested in an informal chat should contact Brixton Green.
DECEMBER 2016
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Jumbo Christmas crossword by Josie Gardiner
Growing pains Nick Buglione continues a journey through time with his recollections of Brixton – this month, the noughties
Across
Down
1 Fabulous (9)
2 Flightless bird (7)
11 Diplomat who serves Ferrero Rocher (10)
3 Asleep (7)
12 Guide of the Magi (4)
5 It’s a 1 across – (4)
13 Self-service food (6)
6 Covenant (4)
14 Got wind of (5) 15 and 21 across White Christmas crooner (4,6) 16 Supernatural phenomenon (7) 19 Father Christmas (5)
26 Character from Twelfth Night (6) 29 16 across – 42 across 26 across (2,6) 32 Boxing Day lunch; withdrawal (4,6) 33 Places to tango (5,5)
23 Fish soup (7) 24 Means (7) 27 Old school desk feature (7) 28 Epic journey (7) 31 Christmas Eve (3,4)
37 Tyke (6) 38 Seventh sign of the zodiac (5) 39 51 down – (8)
34 Plod (5) 36 Stand-in doctor (5) 40 Forewarned (7)
42 A quarter (6)
41 Frozen hit (3, 2, 2)
46 Gadget (5) 47 Thoroughfare (6) 49 Round cheese (4) 50 ~ (5) 54 Moon mission (6) 55 Art gallery (4) 56 1976 De Niro film (4,6) 57 Earwig (9)
G N
10 Mingle; biscuit (6)
30 Rough (7)
35 No idea (8)
R
9 Panda food (6)
22 Go a different way (7)
25 Festive stem (5)
T
8 Second hand (4)
20 Of the heavenly host (7)
23 Small talk (4-4)
I
7 Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid (4)
18 Merry (5)
21 See 15 across
N A
4 Renegade (5)
E E
43 Antiquated (3,3) 44 Stay (6) 45 They’re gonna hate (6) 48 Solo (5) 51 Cherish(4) 52 Lug holes (4) 53 – 48 down (4)
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HISTORY 15
2004, Italy v Republic of Ireland where the pub’s TV hall was packed to the ceiling with a riotous combo of drunken Irish football fans and hordes of flamboyant super-camp Grayson Perry-esque revellers from that day’s Pride. Much like, for example, New York’s lower East side, Brixton has run the full gauntlet of regeneration. Cheap and cheerful attracts bohemians and creatives. The area gets a cachet. Bars and restaurants open and the area becomes desirable as a (slightly) edgy place to live. Estate agents smell their prey Sooner or later, we grow up and cast aside and house prices rev up towards today’s salary our youthful indulgences. And have babies, busting levels. careers and mortgages. And in my case, take The gentrification jury is still out on a sabbatical from Brixton. Yes, while the whether this has been a modern urban regennew millennium arrived in a rented house in eration success story, a travesty of social still murky Loughborough Junction, I soon exclusion, or something in between. temporarily disembarked the good ship SW2 What definitely happened was we had a and (luckily, through a housing association) deluge of pop-up, start-up dining spots and bought (half) a house in the slightly leafier Brixton became a destination for all the East Dulwich (née Peckham). Back in the days Londoners who a few years before would when someone other than the Candy brothers never have thought of descending down the could buy London property. Where, instead Victoria Line to visit us. of what party or gig to go to, life became These were the honeymoon years when all Pampers, sleepless nights, Calpol and the alliance of Spacemakers, property develnursery places. opers and Lambeth council created what our By the mid 2000s, with Lordship Lane resident food aficionado Jay Rayner called rapidly morphing into a cut-price Northcote “the most exciting, radical venture on the Road full of Petit Bateau, White Stuff, British restaurant scene” The rent hikes, upscale delis, bugaboos, lattes and terminated local traders, Brindisa, private schooling plans, I came Wahaca and lazy ironic reinvenhome. While Brixton took tion pop-ups were still a arguably its biggest steps way off. on the yellow brick road to All this was fuelled in no today’s aspirational urban small part by the arrival pleasure ground. of smartphones and social I still worked here, media. Not only can freelancing in a crazy, Facebook now remember crumbling, often unheated it for you wholesale, and Fridge-owned tenement on you essentially can run Porden Road. And working a business or career from for The Fridge. Myself, your palm, everyone from fellow Brixtonian journo, Honest Burger to Federation 2007: Kate Burt and a motley crew Coffee to your very own Bugle The iPhone 1 of designers, record label lads and founders Zoe Jewell and Tim creatives were supposed to turn our Dickens mobilised Twitter and Co to old clubbing ground into a live music venue. drive word-of-mouth marketing. Marketing by Ironically, Electric Brixton is now exactly finger stroke on an iPhone and you can’t sell that. I suspect we were about 10 years too artisan burgers unless you have a legion of early. Apart from a few events and over-exTwitter customers (and a queue). pensive rebranding, the Fridge’s somewhat So, post Peckham sabbatical, I returned mercurial system of actually paying us meant to Brixton to find that the squats we once we were only a temporary waystation on the colonised on Saturday nights were all being road to its eventual demise in 2010. Though done up, split into flats and sold for new we did have some great nights hosting interplanetary prices and my neighbours all sweaty, smoky live sessions in the basement seemed to be late twenty-something, early of the Fridge Bar, hiring Rob Da Bank (now thirty-something public schoolers. of Bestival superstardom) and Faithless’ And therein you have modern Brixton in Maxi Jazz to man our decks. Slightly bizarre a nutshell. We are (thankfully) not Clapham; mezzanine evenings with scruffy indie kids we’re not completely Shoreditch-ified. on the beer downstairs and “Return of the Somehow, despite the debate about social Mack” ultra–bling Cadillac kings buying cleansing, the homogenisation of the high road Cristal upstairs. and the seemingly limitless popularity of our Meanwhile, Brian Paddick came and (unforpatch for everyone from Lands End to John tunately) went as Lambeth’s head honcho o’Groats, Brixton still retains a messy, slightly policeman, taking his enlightened, progressive scuzzy familiarity. It still isn’t everywhere but ultimately rejected policies on the lesser else, and while I don’t buy the more hysterclasses of drug possession with him. Francos ical end of the gentrification debate, it’s a few became the now ubiquitous sourdough empire thousand miles from the Brixton I grew up in. Franca Manca and our mostly derelict art-deco Now I am more bothered by school entrance covered market began to transform into the criteria than who is DJ-ing at The Dogstar. “Village”. The George Canning became the By the noughties, Brixton, like me, had Hobgoblin became Hootananny. Another grown up. Growing pains, as it turns out, marvellously misfit day was the World Cup were inevitable.
16 ARTS & CULTURE
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Shades of music
Season of goodwill
Brixton-based artist Jane Mackay brings pop songs to life in a riot of colour, shape and texture. Lilly Blanchard spoke to her Jane Mackay uses her ability, known as synesthesia, to create art. She sees music and sounds as colours, shapes and texture. These images provide the inspiration for her work – vibrant visualisations of popular songs. She also specialises in art inspired by the work of classical composer Benjamin Britten. Mackay has been collaborating with the Swedish interior design company Photowall on her latest project – Shades Of Music – which brings together her love of art and music which, she says, are “totally integral in one another”. In Shades Of Music Mackay visualises classical versions of iconic pop tunes including Beyonce’s Halo and Nirvana’s Smells Like Teen Spirit. She moved to Brixton’s Cambria Road in 1980 which was, at the time, run down but affordable. “Brixton has undoubtedly enabled me to become an artist, not so much life in Brixton, but the space, I was lucky enough to buy my house for very little when my area of Lambeth was an extremely run-down place and you could still get grants for upgrading your property.” She used a grant to convert
2016 DECEMBER
Herne Hill’s Free Film Festival is showing films of Christmas until 21 December. Kate Corry finds out more
her roof space into her own studio, out of which have come 1,500 pieces of art. She also often uses her house as an exhibition space, and as a place to host classes for beginner artists. She says the lack of storage and space is a huge obstacle for young London artists. A lot of cheap spaces that were available are now being developed. Mackay spent 30 years working as a doctor
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in the local area and was on call during the clashes of the 80s. During this time art remained a central pillar of her life. During her medical training she still found time to take part in creating an arts festival at her university. The millennium came as a wake-up call, and she retired as a doctor to follow her passion for art. “On 1 January 2000 I went down to the Thames with my friends and threw my stethoscope into the water, I can still see that image of a huge book of life turning over a new bright page.” The decision also meant a change in lifestyle and a tighter budget as an artist on a doctor’s pension. Since then Mackay has returned to university at the age of 67 and completed a master’s degree in fine art at Wimbledon College of Art, graduating in 2016. Her final piece drew on her activism – a long wall filled with placards and shoes, reminiscent of a demonstration. “It became a really interactive piece with students and teachers adding to the work as they walked down the corridor.” She also works with stained glass, creating pieces inspired by British composers William Walton, Benjamin Britten and Michael Tippet. She exhibited 64 of her paintings created over two years at the Aldeburgh Cinema Gallery during the Aldeburgh Festival – founded by Britten – in 2013. As well her Shades Of Music project, she is creating material for a solo show, which will be on show in late 2017. ■■ See her art at www.soundingart.com.
The Herne Hill Free Film Festival, now in its fourth year, began when founder Charlotte Ashworth met Free Film Festival founder Neil Johns at a British Film Institute pop-up event and decided to run her own – attracting 700 people. Following a successful pitch to Film London, the festival was born. Festival volunteer Tim McInnes says the reasoning behind a Christmas festival was that although there are a lot of great Christmas films, “many of us have never seen them end-to-end, due to the usual Christmas interruptions. We’re hoping that our festival will solve this with a big screen and a bunch of great venues. It also gives us the chance to show people a few other great films they might not otherwise get the chance to see.” Thoughts are already turning to May 2017 and a fifth birthday celebration. “It’s always a big surprise to us how few people we speak to in the area know about the May Festival, so we’re hoping that a smaller Christmas event will help spread the word a bit wider in preparation for a big birthday extravaganza next year.” The team also hopes that encouraging the community to visit venues they might not otherwise see will build stronger ties in the neighbourhood. One of the main issues with the May festival is the unpredictable British weather, which has ranged from scorchingly hot to downpours. The Christmas films are all being shown indoors, in venues like All Saints Church and the Lido Cafe. What is challenging is not knowing how popular they will be. “What we don’t have, and won’t know if we are getting it until each screening, is an audience,” Tim says. “We don’t know if people’s usual Christmas activities will keep them away. We hope not, but this is the first one so there’s no way of knowing in advance!” Keeping the festival free requires a lot of work by the team to drum up local support. It relies on public donations at each screening and support from local businesses including Pedder estate agents, Boki’s Hair and venues donating their space and time. ■■ The full programme is at freefilmfestivals. org/filmfestival/herne-hill/. Highlights for me include It’s a Wonderful Life at All Saints Church on 10 December and Miracle on 34th Street at Holy Trinity Church on 17 December. Other highlights are Tangerine, shot on iPhones, at the Lido Cafe on 4 December, and Rare Exports at Off the Cuff.
Local school students create Three Brixton schools have used the creativity of their pupils to create hoardings for the Brixton New Town Hall project Classes from Jubilee and Sudbourne primary schools and Evelyn Grace Academy worked with Art4Space director Julie Norburn to explore the concept of modern citizenship. This formed the basis of the pupils’ work in the form of
drawings, doodles, words and quotes which fed in to an overall design. She says: “I love what the children have created around the theme of citizenship and their feelings about the New Town Hall Project, the paintings will create a wonderful outside gallery for all to enjoy for many months during the construction work. What a way to brighten up the streets.” The pupils’ work will be transferred
DECEMBER 2016
ARTS & CULTURE 17
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Booker Prize winner for Brixton library
The glory that is Stockwell Annabel Sampson pays homage to south London’s – indeed the whole of London’s – most important building At Stockwell’s busiest junction, a south London commuter’s portal to anywhere, large red buses, unwieldy carp of the transport world, can often be seen disappearing upstream down a small track – Binfield Road. Their destination is the mid-century masterpiece of Stockwell Bus Garage. Described by author and journalist Will Self as “a pod of whales, a concrete Leviathan, frozen in mid arch as they swim through the rather choppy brick sea of south London”, Self presents a compelling case for Stockwell Bus Garage as London’s most important building. You may wonder what could possibly merit this status – a building that you may never have heard of and almost certainly never visited? This overlooked piece of post-war architecture was designed by Adie Button and Partners and opened in 1952. Its 125-metre roof structure, formed of ten, extremely shallow “two-hinged” arched ribs was Europe’s largest unsupported roof span at the time of construction.
Come nighttime, the garage is the resting place of 200 buses, meticulously parked in the 73,350 square foot bedroom-cum-playground. Such a vast internal space dwarfs the buses. Self draws parallels with Rome’s aged marvel, the Pantheon (118-128AD): “the skylights are reminiscent of the Pantheon’s high central opening, the oculus … Unfortunately, unlike the Pantheon, it’s not a public meeting place for people but for buses, where buses talk unto buses, where buses mingle in their bus togas and discuss affairs of bus state.” The building is a tour de force of reinforced concrete, in keeping with the aesthetic of the post-war construction period and the Festival of Britain of 1951. As a fully functioning, garage, where the buses that frequent our London streets set off from and return to each day, it’s no museum for everyday perusal. Yet it’s hard to disagree with James Pallister of Architect’s Journal: “The familiar, the competent and the mundane are too often underrated in architecture.” Or, as Self puts it: “Signature buildings are just that to me, signatures. I want to hear more about the text”. Here’s to the buildings in London built for and used by the people, that are highly worthy of praise.
new town hall hoardings into a set of paintings by Art4Space in partnership with muralist Jade Perry ready for installation in January. Content generated through the project will also feature at futurebrixton.org/YNTH. Evelyn Grace’s head of art Graham Gayle said: “This is an amazing project for our pupils and what an achievement it will be to see their artwork on a busy Brixton street in January.”
In the art department with pupils from Evelyn Grace Academy
Stockwell Bus Garage: a tour de force of reinforced concrete
Paul Beatty, winner of the 2016 Man Booker prize for fiction, will drop into Brixton Library on Tuesday 13 December at 5pm for his only UK library visit in a packed schedule during a short visit from the USA. Beatty, the first American to win the prize, will be reading from his winning novel and signing copies – perfect Christmas presents for the book lovers in your life. The visit is yet another confirmation of the high status achieved by Lambeth libraries through their extensive live literature programme. Beatty’s prize-winning novel, The Sellout, is a biting and comic satire about an urban farmer who tries to spearhead a revival of slavery and segregation in a fictional Los Angeles neighbourhood and who ends up in the Supreme Court. Beatty’s absurdist style, which has the uncanny ability to make readers want to both laugh and cry, makes The Sellout an outrageously entertaining indictment of our times.
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18 FOOD & DRINK
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RECIPE: O XIXI DO MENINO JESUS
Try holy water with a difference this Christmas Things are a little damp at the Bugle as we wipe away a tear – it’s Miss South’s last recipe for us – and she’s giving us water of a different kind … Sometimes things in life call for alcohol. And since it’s Christmas and my last column for the Brixton Bugle, this seems like one of those moments that needs toasting with a tipple. Cream-based liqueurs are very popular around the festive season but I find them a little sickly with food so this lighter version from the Azores that infuses vodka with chocolate, milk and citrus attracted me for the flavours and the eye-catching name. Vaguely exotic sounding as o xixi do menino Jesus, it actually translates as the wee of Baby Jesus and when you look at the colour of your creation in the bottle you can see how it got the name. You don’t get that kind of talking point with a bottle of Baileys do you? Unlike most infused drinks for Christmas it doesn’t require any specialist ingredients, only takes two weeks to make and with a name like that will be a drink to remember, so, Cheers! This is very easy to make. You’ll need a jar
or bottle big to hold all the contents and be secure enough to shake it in. I used a glass Kilner jar but you could split the recipe in half and use two well-washed milk containers if you don’t have one big enough. Simply put the chocolate, sugar and vanilla in your jar along with the lemon zest and add the vodka. Stir to dissolve the sugar a bit and then pour the milk over it all. Leave for a minute or so and then add the lemon juice. The mixture will start to curdle almost immediately and while it looks decidedly unappealing, that’s the whole point. The curdling allows the milk to infuse the alcohol. Seal your container well and allow the mixture to mature for two weeks, agitating the jar every day or so to encourage it all. It will look frankly revolting at this stage but bear with me. After two weeks, place a sieve in a large bowl and line with a clean piece of muslin or a J-cloth and strain the whole mix through it. The milk curds will stay in the cloth and you’ll be left with a clear yellow liquid. Keep the milk and chocolate mix. I beat mine with some cream cheese, two egg yolks and two beaten eggs whites, poured in ramekins and baked it for 30 minutes in a water bath in the oven at 160C to
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2016 DECEMBER
Azorean milk liqueur or Baby Jesus Pee (makes 750ml) ¡ 500ml vodka ¡ 500ml full fat milk (I used Jersey milk from Sainsbury’s) ¡ 1 lemon, juiced and zested ¡ 25g milk chocolate, finely chopped ¡ 1 vanilla pod ¡ 150g sugar make a beautiful boozy rich cheesecakeesque dessert. Using a second clean cloth, strain the liquid a second time to make sure it is completely free of any milk solids so that it lasts better. Taste it and add up 100g more sugar if needed, bearing in mind this will make the alcohol slightly cloudy. Serve neat in small glasses. It makes a good alternative to dessert wines after a meal but I loved the sweet creaminess with a salty snack such as cured meat or olives which stops the Baby Jesus pee getting you too pissed over the festive period.
FOOD & DRINK NEWS Foodbanks need a hotline
As more and more people need foodbanks, more new establishments are opening in Brixton
NNThe Trussell Trust, parent organisation of the Norwood and Brixton Foodbank, is calling for a hotline between foodbanks and local job centres after the latest figures show that the foodbank network is on course to distribute the highest number of food parcels in its 12-year history. The direct line would provide timely support for people referred to foodbanks because of problems with welfare. The foodbank says its managers, volunteers and advisers spend a significant amount of time on hold to the DWP on behalf of people in crisis.
NNBoom Shack, a new venture from Boom Burger founder Joshua de Lisser, has opened in Brixton. The restaurant on Brixton Station Road offers Caribbean cocktails and a breakfast-style menu.
NNFirst Aid Box in Herne Hill has opened a new back room bar. Loosely based on 1920s England, it offers dark spirits, lots of gin and strong cocktails.
NNIn the run-up to Christmas, Joe’s Café on 90 Railton Road is raising money for Medical Aid for Palestinians. There will be traditional preserves and jams, cakes
as well as handmade soaps and scrubs, handmade cushions and herb bags, Palestinian olive oil and wrapping paper. The café will be open 12pm to 6pm, 10, 11, 17 and 18 December.
NNNanban’s Lazy Goat Tsukemen was named number 3 in TimeOut’s 100 best dishes. The rich goat-curry broth’s “depths reveal chunks of spiced, braised meat, is served with a plate of fat, wiggly dipping noodles and some eye-wateringly fiery bamboo shoots (pickled with scotch bonnet chillies)”. Other nods to Brixton restaurants include the Keralan Fried Chicken at Kricket in Pop Brixton at 78 and KaoSarn’s som tam (green papaya salad) at 94.
NNDetails of Kricket’s second incarnation in Soho, announced in the summer, are now out. The Denman Street (near Piccadilly Circus) restaurant will have 70 covers (Pop Brixton: 20) on two floors.
NNVisitors to the massive new(ish) Boxpark next to East Croydon station will spot familiar names from Brixton there: Carioca, Mama Lan and Fish Wings & Tings.
DECEMBER 2016
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FOOD & DRINK 19
REVIEW: FRANZINA TRATTORIA
Futtitinne … and you won’t find a better place to do it in Brixton The only thing that Nikki Griffiths might be worried about at Pop Brixton’s Sicilian trattoria is how long it will be with us Franzina Trattoria has just signed a three-month extension to its residency in Pop Brixton’s flexible restaurant space, designed to offer new starters a chance to establish and grow their business. Being a lover of all Italian food, I thought I’d go down and check it out for this month’s review. The Sicilian-style cafe is owned and managed by hubby and wife team Pietro and Stefania, both having moved to London from Palermo just over a year ago. Pietro has a background in working in some of Sicily’s top restaurants, but this is their first venture as a pair into the food world. The style is purposefully laid back and invokes a warm, friendly and sociable vibe. The menu is made up of ‘schiticchio’ (pronounced ski-tikeeo) which means small plates of local specialities. Usually these small plates would be washed down with wine; well, if the locals do it … This menu radiates the true Sicilian style of food, taking influences from geographical neighbours such as Spain, Greece, North Africa and, of course, mainland Italy. Stefania and the rest of the team are wonderfully friendly. The interior is clean and bright yet still cosy, with long sharing tables and minimal décor. There are a couple of outdoor tables as well which are now useable, thanks to Pop’s new roof. I tried a glass of their house white wine, the Caleo Inzolia. This is a delicious, crisp and dry white and I would highly recommend it if that’s how you like them. Also worth trying is the special edition Moretti beer they have, which has a noticeable flavour of orange blossom – it could be likened
to one of those trendy, citrus-style IPAs. And it comes in a cute bottle. First up on the food side of things we tried the sfincione, a home-made Sicilian focaccia with tuma cheese, anchovies and a tomato sauce. The bread is rich, salty, savoury and perfectly baked. The melting cheese is unevenly distributed throughout, meaning you get some truly delicious mouthfuls when you chance upon a big chunk of it. The flavour of the cheese could be likened to a parmesan. With a cube of this bread in one hand and a glass of wine in the other, you can’t go far wrong. Next up, an impressive looking chargrilled polpo (octopus) arrived. I love the art of simple plating, serving up beautiful ingredients and letting them shout for themselves. The texture was just a little more al dente than I would normally like but the smoky, charred flavour is utterly delicious. My favourite dish of the night was the fresh pasta which comes with a choice of sauces; we opted for the ragu. And it was a proper ragu, with not a tinned tomato in sight. This humble sauce gets its creaminess from the battuto (minced carrot, onion and celery) and the meat juices. And it is both delicious and generous. The other stuff on the menu is awesome but I’d be equally happy popping back for a bowl of spaghetti and a glass of wine. According to the menu, there is a Sicilian saying – futtitinne -–meaning “don’t worry, make the most of life”. It’s temptingly written alongside the dessert menu. And because of it, we couldn’t leave without trying the warm dark chocolate souffle, which was the perfect way to end an excellent dinner. The cooking at Franzina Trattoria just goes to show that traditional, simple and delicious cooking will forever be a winner. The addition of a relaxed atmosphere, friendly service and good wine makes Franzina Trattoria a new favourite of mine and I hope that Stefania and Pietro are in Brixton to stay.
With the departure of Miss South – who, with her wonderful book Recipes from Brixton Village – did as much as anyone to put Brixton on the food map, the Brixton Bugle (and Blog) is looking for more local recipes. They need to fit into 600 words, max, and use ingredients that can be bought locally. If you want to share your cooking with Brixton, contact features@brixtonblog.com.
Stafford and the staff wish all their customers a peaceful Christmas and a happy healthy new year. Drop in over the holidays for our great tasting food and friendly customer service. Or take a break from the cooking and pick up a take away. Every meal is as healthy as can be thanks to our low fat cooking techniques which lock in our uniquely succulent flavours. We are open lunchtime until evening.
HEALTHY EATERS 17 Electric Avenue Brixton SW9 8JP Tel. 020 7274 4521
www.healthyeaters.co.uk
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2016 DECEMBER
Jamila Omar rounds up a December selection of what’s on in Brixton and nearby FRI 9 @ CAFE CAIRO
The Hot Waffle Vibes Canteen touches down on Landor Road at one of London’s best kept secrets, serving up a large portion of the hottest GARAGE, House, Jungle and Old School vibes for your festive headpiece. Free before 9pm. £3 after.
SAT 10 @ BROCKWELL LIDO DISCIPLES: At the Electric
NEW YEAR’S EVE IN BRIXTON NEED SOME INSPIRATION FOR NEW YEAR’S EVE CELEBRATIONS? ANNA MCKIE HAS ROUNDED UP A SELECTION OF BRIXTON’S BEST ■■ Norman Jay will be spinning a special extended four-hour midnight set at the Prince of Wales. Colin Dale will be playing at the Acid House Hotel, and will take over from Jay after his headline set. The venue will also be hosting a silent disco on the winter Terrace Pop Up, Brixtarnia. Tickets range from £22.50 to £40. 8pm to 6am. ■■ Club 414 will be hosting not one but two parties: a free daytime celebration from 3pm to 11pm followed by its Cohesion NYE 2016/17 Adventure, including John Phantasm, Jakaan, Thallom and more. Tickets £15 to £25. From 11pm to 10am.
■■ DJ and producer Julio Bashmore will be taking to the decks at Phonox this NYE. Club regular HAAi (above) completes the line-up. Doors for the bar open from 9pm, DJs start at 10pm, until 5am. Tickets are £25.
■■ Dub-electronica reggae pioneer Gaudi is at Hootannany for a one-off gig this New Year’s Eve. Promoter Fruit Palace presents an evening of “feel good brass, hip hop reggae mash-ups, electronica, party bangers, dnb, jungle, dancehall and plenty o’ bass for your face”. Alongside its usual food stalls, Hootananny promises a live brass band midnight countdown, confetti canons and special surprises. Tickets £12 to £20. 9pm to 5am. ■■ Ram Records has announced the first phase of this year’s big name Brixton line up for NYE at 02 Academy Brixton. Sub Focus, High Contrast, Camo & Krooked, Friction, Delta Heavy and many others, including Brazil’s DJ Marky, will be performing. Plus a DJ set from special guests Nero. Tickets £37.50. 8pm to 5am.
■■ Big Apple Brixton, from the creators of South Pole Saloon and Brixton Beach Boulevard, invites you to welcome in 2017 with special guest Fatman Scoop. The purpose built rooftop venue has replicated 1970s New York City and as well as serving festive cocktails and street food DJ Woody will be performing too. £10 to £20. 10pm to 3am.
The Prince Regent PUB QUIZ is held each and every Tuesday. Big cash prizes, free drinks questions and a rollover jackpot question that grows each week. Come down early because it’s first come, first served and tables get filled quickly. 8pm. Free.
WED 21 @ UPSTAIRS AT THE RITZY
Ye Olde CAROL SERVICE and Christmas Party at this Unitarian chapel, with sword dancers, Senegalese cuisine and live music. All welcome. 6pm.
MON 12 @ SUNSHINE CAFE
THUR 22 @ HOOTANANNY
TUE 13 @ WHIRLED CINEMA
FRI 23 @ POP BRIXTON
SUN 11 @ EFFRA ROAD CHAPEL
A Very Merry Christmas Sing-a-Long-a-DingDong! Christmas KARAOKE on a mass scale, with everyone’s favourite Christmas songs on the big screen and you singing along. Join The Pogues, Sir Cliff, Mariah, Wham!, The Waitresses and others, and help raise some money for War Child. There will be Christmassy hats, crackers, even a raffle. 8pm. £10.
WED 14 @ MARKET HOUSE
House of Idiot is an alternative COMEDY open mic night upstairs at Market House. From acts at the top of their game to bright eyed ingenues who will be the stars of tomorrow, expect sketch, character, musical comedy, clown, cabaret and the downright weird. 8pm. Free.
THUR 15 @ BRIXTON EAST
b.supreme, a platform for women in HIP HOP culture celebrates its 10th anniversary. Dance crews from across London showcase their skills. DJ DBO and DJ Renegade will be hitting the turntables and Sunanda “SunSun” Biswas (one of the choreographers of the Olympic opening ceremony) hosts the night. Doors 7,30pm. £5.
Cecil Reuben presents a roots rock reggae special: Reggae Icons Showcase, a collective of UK musicians perform songs by reggae icons. Spread the reggae love. 9pm – 2am. £3. The Stevie Wonderland crew host a celebration of all things DISCO, inviting their favourite DJs to take over Pop Brixton, playing everything from disco, boogie, soul, formative house and everything in between.
SAT 24 @ BRIXTON JAMM
DJ Luck & MC Neat are joined by So Solid Crew’s finest Romeo & Lisa Maffia, alongside some extra special guests for the GARAGE Xmas Eve Rave. The Halloween Garage Rave sold out well in advance so grab tickets before it’s too late and go hard right until the early hours of Christmas Day. 10pm to 4am. £6 to £15.
SUN 25 IIIIIT’S CHRISTMAAAASSSS!!!! MON 26 @ ELECTRIC BRIXTON
Do you really know your OLD SKOOL music? Well come along to the biggest old skool party to end the year… Old Skool Factor. 11pm to 6am. £7 to £15.
TUE 27@ UPSTAIRS AT THE RITZY
A very special guest DJ set from HUEY MORGAN (Fun Lovin’ Criminals, Radio 2 DJ) as well as a performance from Atlantic Soul Orchestra. Last entry 10.30pm. £5.
Ever catch yourself on the dancefloor rapping flawlessly along to Coolio, Missy or Q-Tip? Well this could be the opportunity you’ve been waiting for … a chance to show everyone what you can do … where you can take to the stage, at this brand new HIP-HOP KARAOKE night Wot Do You Call It. 7pm to midnight. Free.
SAT 17 @ POP BRIXTON
WED 28 @ WINDMILL
FRI 16 @ BLUES KITCHEN
■■ PLUS: Pop Brixton promises to transform into a “twisted parallel paradise” with DJs, an immersive light show and the Hackney Colliery Band (above) on the big stage. Tickets from £5. The Blues Kitchen hosts a Mardi Gras Masquerade Ball with a performance from Brassroots, tickets £28.75. The Duke of Edinburgh is free entry all night, with DJs and theme still to be announced. Market House presents its “all stars” night with DJs Jamie Taylor and Lesley Love, early bird tickets £5 to £10.
TUE 20 @ PRINCE REGENT
A live music night hosted by local musician, Rami Radi, presenting Laid Bare at the Ritzy – the best musicians, singers and poets south London has to offer. Based around two featured acts, the night is dedicated to LOCAL PERFORMERS to showcase their talent. 7.30pm. Free.
Visit Loughborough Junction and learn how to play West African RHYTHM with Senegalese maestro Dia every Monday. Open to all levels. Book in advance to secure djembe. £10.
■■ Disciples and Together will present The Following on New Year’s Eve at Electric Brixton. The line up for the event includes Disciples, Camelphat, DJ S.K.T., KDA, plus special guests Shadow Child and Friend Within. £19.50 to £30. 9pm to 6am. ■■ Gold Teeth returns to Brixton Jamm and invites revellers to say goodbye to 2016 by “blocking out reality and pretending you’re at the circus” at its Hip Hop Big Top. The line up incudes Yung Jozy, LA Champagne plus guests. 9pm to 5am. £8 to £25.
Take (or watch) an ICY DIP for Crisis, the national charity for the homeless, and you’ll be reserving a place for someone who is homeless at one of the Crisis at Christmas Centres. In addition to a hot dinner each place you reserve (cost £22.32) will also give someone an introduction to Crisis’ year-round health and wellbeing, education, employment and housing services.
that went wrong. Perhaps it means something entirely different to you, or maybe it means nothing at all … regardless – Spark wants to hear your stories about this colourful annual takeover. 8pm to 11pm. £4.
The Jingle Ball – an all-dayer of family-friendly fun with CHRISTMAS craft workshops, free drumming lessons and a visit from Father Christmas. In the evening you can look forward to a live DJ set from Armistice, followed by a live performance from underground African electro specialists Afriquoi.
SUN 18 @ DOGSTAR
The Brixton Winter VEGAN Festival Live Long & Go Vegan Sci Fi & Fantasy Costume Party. Prizes for best costumes and charity raffle for local homeless charity Spires. £1 (kids under 16 free),
MON 19 @ UPSTAIRS AT THE RITZY
Spark London STORYTELLING open mic “Christmas Time” theme. December is full of juicy stories of that Christmas party at work, those “jingle bells” on the reindeer, or that roast
Catch “hard to categorise” Slushy Guts AKA Stephen Keane and his lo-fi introspection and snap out of it with post-punks Gravity Racer. 8pm.
THUR 29 @ BRIXTON JAMM
Bringing disco, soul and funk jams from every corner around the WORLD, Pangaea serves a smorgasbord of musical delights with everything from Afrobeat and highlife to classic disco jams. 9pm to 3am. £6 to £12.
FRI 30 @ HOOTANANNY
Merciless presents Kororoko, a young Afrobeat collective specialising in a soul-shaking, hornfuelled sound with WEST AFRICAN roots and inner London hues. 9pm to 3am. £5.
SAT 31 NEW YEAR SEE PANEL
DECEMBER 2016
RITZY ROUNDUP
© CHRISTINE SUGARY STAPLE
SNOWDEN
It is full steam ahead on the best season for the cinema – and with the London frost already having paid us a visit, what better time to grab a hot beverage and revel in the magic. December is full to the brim with releases, some whose creative teams will surely grace the Oscars stage. Oscar nominations are announced 24 January so there is still plenty of time to get a head start, says Nicola Jones
TRUE AND TROUBLED
Starting off the month is the Sundance lauded BIRTH OF A NATION (from 9 Dec), which has lost considerable steam due to controversy over director/star Nate Parker’s past. This is coupled with SNOWDEN (from 9 Dec), which stars Joseph GordonLevitt and Shailene Woodley. The film sees director Oliver Stone tackle another true story in Edward Snowden’s saga.
THE POWER OF DISNEY
Also out that week is LIFE ANIMATED, a documentary about an autistic boy who uses Disney drawings to communicate with his family. Should be a seasonal reminder of the power of this medium.
FORCE STILL WITH US
Of course, December will see the release of ROGUE ONE: A STAR WARS STORY (from 16 Dec). Chronicling the team behind stealing the plans for the Death Star, it has a lot to live up to considering we
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already know how it ends. Felicity Jones takes on the lead role and the film is definitely the Christmas outing not to be missed regardless of your fandom.
WE KNOW WHERE THEY’RE GOING
Later in the month is the much promoted PASSENGERS (from 21 Dec) starring Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt. A project that has been kicked around for years gives everything away in its trailers. Already showing in December is the Tom Hanks’ starring SULLY (from 2 Dec), which is surely on the Oscars radar. Also in theatres is Spike Lee’s gang satire/drama CHI-RAQ (from 2 Dec) and Disney’s new girl empowering animated feature MOANA (inset) (from 2 Dec), which will join the Ritzy from 9 December.
HAUNTING HOLIDAYS
This month will also house the Picturehouse curated program A WARNING TO THE CURIOUS that will show
various spooky holiday films – more info can be found on picturehouses.co.uk.
VISUAL SPLENDOUR
The New Year will firstly bring ASSASSIN’S CREED (from 1 Jan) with Macbeth director Justin Kurzel taking on the video game adaption world with his star Michael Fassbender. Another visual splendour will surely be A MONSTER CALLS (from 1 Jan) from Spanish director J.A. Bayona. Based on a novel by Patrick Ness, Liam Neeson voices a gorgeous monster created from a boy’s imagination.
ONES TO WATCH
However, the award season releases to catch are firstly MANCHESTER BY THE SEA (from 13 Jan) starring Casey Affleck and Michelle Williams. Kenneth Lonergan’s first film in five years is making waves for its handling of a family drama. Then there is Damien Chazelle’s sophomore feature LA LA LAND (from 13 Jan) that will certainly contend for best picture. A magical musical ode to Los Angeles – you cannot miss this film nor would you want to!
■■ Nicola Jones is a freelance writer whose website asophisticatednoise.com covers film reviews, trailers, and industry news. She can be found tweeting @MzJones.
ARTIST OF BRIXTON IN LONDON EXHIBITION Local artist Martin Grover, who creates such masterpieces as his print Barry White waiting to cross Acre Lane singing ‘You see the trouble with me’ and atmospheric interpretations of railways scenes (above), is exhibiting paintings and prints at Focus LDN’s winter exhibition alongside 21 other London artists at the Menier Gallery near London Bridge. Don’t miss it. Hop on a bus, Tube or train (if they are running). Exhibition from 13 to 17 December. 11am to 6pm. Menier Gallery, 51 Southwark St SE1 1RU.
POP-UP PANTO
IN THE VILLAGE …
Originally commissioned as part of the Old Vic’s New Voices programme in 2012, Lee Sutton’s pop-up panto Snow White, directed by Kirsty Patrick Ward, is an interactive pantomime with a modern twist. It comes to Brixton East on Barrington Road on Thursday 22 December at 11.30am, 2:30pm and 5.30pm and Friday 23 at the same times. Adults £10, children £5. Family Ticket £30. Show lasts an hour and is suitable for fives and over. Book online at sixteenfeet.co.uk or 020 7856 0380.
Brixton Market Village is getting into the swing of things with two events. The Village stage will host free music from Charlee, Nerve Collection and acoustic punk/rock cover band The Humerus from 5 to 10pm on Thursday 15 December. On Friday 16 December there will be free balloon modelling, juggling, stilt walking, face painting, free competitions and more in the Village and Market Row from 2 to 6pm.
We ar e curr ently recru iting £9.10 per ho after t hree m ur onths pro
We are currently recruiting weekend staff to join our team here at the Ritzy.
bation
We are looking for happy, enthusiastic film lovers who have availability on weekends and can provide great customer service. l Our pay rate is currently £9.10 per hour, including paid breaks l We provide late night travel allowance if you work past midnight l Duties include front of house and bar work - no experience necessary l Fixed hours contract Not only is the Ritzy a vibrant and fun place to work, we offer a great range of perks including:
JANUARY 2017 SUN 1 @ BAR 414
Grass Roots Live Music. A weekly Sunday night event that looks to inspire local grassroots talent. UB40 trumpeter Patrick leads the house band. 8pm to 2am, Free.
MON 2 @ POP BRIXTON
A free community Tai Chi class held every Monday,suitable for all ages and abilities. Neville from Wu Style Tai Chi Chuan in Brixton has over a decade of experience in this Chinese martial art that has many potential health benefits including improved posture, circulation flexibility,
core strength, joint mobility, focus and concentration. 12.30 to 1.30pm. Free. Let’s Dance! A celebration of David Bowie in Brixton. All profits to charity. Dress up in the Bowie look of your choice to win free shots. 9pm to 2am. £3.
l Unlimited free cinema tickets at Picturehouse and Cineworld l Free hot drinks and draught soft drinks when on duty l Free soft drinks and popcorn when visiting the cinema to watch a film l Two guest tickets a week: once a week, staff can bring two accompanying guests to any film or event for free l Food & Drink discounts: staff get 30% discount at Picturehouses and 50% when on duty
THUR 8 @ BRIXTON ACADEMY
Send your CV to james.v@picturehouses.co.uk
WED 6 @ PRINCE ALBERT
A benefit concert in aid of the Children and the Arts charity celebrating David Bowie and featuring key musical collaborators including Mike Garson, Earl Slick, Adrian Belew, Gail Ann Dorsey, Sterling Campbell and Gerry Leonard. £55 in advance.
22 COLUMNS
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2016 DECEMBER
GEMMA SINCLAIR
FRANKIE HOLAH
Now for something different this month …
Old year resolutions
It’s cold outside, and gardening is probably at the bottom of your list as Christmas approaches. So, this month I thought we could combine Christmas and gardening and make a Christmas wreath for your home. So, try to follow these instructions. Get evergreen branches from cedar, pine, and other clippings. Trim them to about 6 inches (15 cm). The greenery you choose is totally your choice. You can even mix! You can make a wreath with 3ft of greenery cut into 6" pieces. Pick out a few brightly coloured items such as berries, holly and pinecones. The embellishments you use to spruce up your wreath can totally change the feel and create a more classic or funky vibe. There is nothing wrong with a simple green wreath. Attaching a red bow at the bottom is just as festive as spraying it with glitter and dressing it up to the nines. Obtain a frame. Get a wire coat hanger and fashion it into a circle. If you’re not keen on this idea, you can buy wire frames in different shapes and sizes at your local craft or flower shop. A single wire frame is good for a thin, delicate wreath. But if you’re going for a show-stopper, stick with a double wire frame – it allows your wreath to be more lush-looking and full. Attach floral wire to a place on the wreath frame. Take one end of the wire and twist it around the frame to hook it. No fancy Girl Scout knots needed; just make sure the wreath is going to stay in place. Don’t cut! You’ll be using one long strand of wire this entire time. Don’t worry – it won’t be seen through the greenery.
Let’s break the mould – instead of waiting for January to put those resolutions into action, start them this month and get ahead of the New Year madness. You hear so many stories of people starting and quickly giving up, so maybe January isn’t the best time after all. We set so many goals in a time of pressure for constant self-improvement and it can all feel a little overwhelming. Well, let’s shake things up and get cracking. And let’s be honest, if you can get started now and work through the festive period, you’re basically bad ass! So this is where I come in with some survival tips for making the most of your training ventures … Do something you enjoy! Consistency is key when it comes to training and trying to do something regularly which you simply don’t enjoy very much means you’re less likely to keep it up. There are so many options out there as individual as you are and you mustn’t be afraid to play and try things out … have fun! FOCUS your goals and don’t overwhelm yourself. Give yourself two to three fitness goals and this should help you to stay on track. When working on your goals remember to enjoy the process and celebrate achievements as you go.
Get a bundle of the evergreen branches with the tips all at one end. Place them where the floral wire is attached. Lay a small bunch of your greens on your frame, and wrap your floral wire securely around the stems at least three times. Don’t cut the wire yet! Continue wrapping around the frame. Take a second bundle and cover the stems of the first bundle with it, at a slight diagonal. Wrap wire around the stems of each bundle and keep on adding same-sized bundles until you’ve gone full-circle. Once you have completed the circle, tuck the last bundle under the first bundle. Adjust the greenery and stems as necessary. Finish off the wire. Tuck it under the nearest bundle, secure it with a knot, and cut. Leave a few extra inches before cutting the end. If you’d like to make a hanger, form a loop at the end of the wire and twist it around itself. Use a new piece of wire to fix the ends of pine cones or berries to the wreath. Tie a knot in each piece when you are finished. Well done, 66 I would like to wish all my clients a very merry Christmas and a happy New Year and we hope to see you again in 2017. The Gardening Girl
Being accountable to someone can really help on those days you struggle to find motivation. If you have a friend who also wants to train, agree times in the week to work out together … encouragement, support and maybe a touch of competitiveness could be just what you need. There is also the option of hiring a personal trainer to kick your butt and help you to really step out of that “comfort zone” – It can also be a positive way of beating plateaus and ruts. FIT KIT is my weakness. There’s nothing better than a super slick pair of leggings to get me in the mind set for training like a warrior Feeling good is really important. Whatever fitness journey you are on now and into 2017, I hope it is a journey full of fun, tonnes of sweat, great achievements, goal smashing and some wicked Lycra. Go forth and conquer and when you do, give yourself a massive high five!!! 66 For personal training or advice: frankie@frankieholah.com Follow me @frankieholah.
To celebrate opening in Brixton, we’ll sell your property for FREE* We officially open our doors on Monday 16th January, but we’ll be busy valuing your neighbours’ homes from the new year. We like to think of it as a ‘welcome to the neighbourhood’ gift, from us, to you.
T 020 8033 8380 marshandparsons.co.uk/zero-percent
*See website for details, terms and conditions
DECEMBER 2016
Hill Mead HERALD What makes Hill Mead a truly outstanding school
visiting the classrooms, the children are choosing their favourite name, and there is a weekly rota for mucking out!
School is in the last four to win national award as Literacy School of the Year Hill Mead has made it to the last four in the Literacy School of the Year Award. It will be competing against three other schools to win the UK Literary Association’s award – one is in London and the others are in Aberdeen and Bristol. The winning school will be announced in July. The award celebrates schools providing rich, exciting, innovative curriculums in English at the same time as achieving good outcomes for their pupils. UKLA president Andrew Lambirth, professor of education at the University of Greenwich, said: “This award has become an aspirational and recognised kitemark for schools of excellence in literacy.” The award is sponsored by Nosy Crow, an independent publisher of books and apps whose aim is to encourage children to read books for pleasure. Hill Mead headteacher Richard West said: “This nomination is testimony to what makes Hill Mead a truly outstanding school. I’m so proud that we give our pupils such a love for words and language.”
High quality literature Children’s literature is at the heart of Hill Mead’s English curriculum, where there are no reading schemes or commercial lesson plans. The school organised a conference earlier this year that attracted a
Learning opportunities
full house of teachers and other education experts keen to find out about the Hill Mead approach to literacy. Deputy head Becky Lawrence says the school believes that high quality children’s literature is at the heart of learning. “During Black History Month we read authors who explore geography and history and the children’s heritage. “In the Year 5 class, the children are studying Journey to Jo’burg by Beverley Naidoo, and so will link more explicitly to apartheid. Books like this enable the children to be introduced to difficult questions.” Teachers at Hill Mead believe in deepening children’s understanding through such an approach – and it offers children the opportunity to think deeply about cultural history and to consider the social and emotional aspects of literature. The Year 2 study of The Eagle That Would Not Fly by JEK Aggrey has led to a whole school project of keeping two chickens. Eggs are collected daily, the chickens are
Every year group from Nursery to Year 6 participates in at least one project with the Unicorn Theatre and the National Theatre, inspiring learning in all areas of the curriculum and opportunities for the children to share their ideas through performance and writing. Mrs Lawrence said: “The school seeks out learning opportunities within the community in Brixton, which provide opportunities for the children to exhibit their own work. The pupils have put on a ‘Fine Art’ exhibition in Pop Brixton and created poetry inspired by the Black Georgians exhibition at the Black Cultural Archives. “Finally, we recognise the importance of audience. The Hill Mead Herald is a regular feature in the local community paper, the Brixton Bugle, with articles written by the children about their learning, experience and its inspiration.” Hill Mead has established very strong links with parents and carers. Last summer, the school launched its first “Love My Books Café” with www.lovemybooks.co.uk, an interactive website created by a team of literacy specialists, especially for parents. The school has also embraced the digital world. The school’s website showcases its pupils’ experience and learning. The children have access to iPads and use them in creative ways, recording their ideas and learning. ■■ You can see the school’s curriculum in action by visiting the school’s website www.hillmead.org.
What supporters say … The school was nominated for the award by Marion Hampton, assistant head teacher at City Heights Academy I believe so much in what you are doing – the very real concern you have for the children and the desire to see them grow in so many ways, physically, socially, emotionally and intellectually. Sarah Horrocks, director of the London Connected Learning Centre The school’s approach to learning in a real-world context as well as its enthusiasm and community engagement makes it a very special place to work.” Jenny Smith, partnership manager, Brixton Learning Collaborative Hill Mead’s commitment to partnership working with other local schools as part of the Brixton Learning Collaborative, extends the opportunities for sharing its innovative and cutting edge work with other teachers to the benefit of hundreds of pupils in the Brixton area.” Jackie Tait, primary programme manager, National Theatre Learning Hill Mead demonstrates a real understanding of the particular needs of its pupils and how to create the best opportunities and environments for their learning to thrive.
They realise the importance of creativity in learning and work extremely hard to provide exciting and engaging opportunities for their children both in and outside the classroom. Claire Hadingham, Beanstalk volunteer co-ordinator (Lambeth & Southwark) At Beanstalk, we share the school’s approach to reading – seeing it as an adventure, and something to bring joy, excitement and knowledge. By the time the children reach Year 6, the reading helpers find they are keen to explore genres such as biographies, Shakespeare, and poetry. Cath Greenwood, Unicorn Theatre The nomination is a well deserved acknowledgement of the innovative and creative curriculum Hill Mead has developed for pupils across the school. Children at Hill Mead are lucky to have a rich and broad education, full of engaging and creative approaches to learning, including a commitment to visits to theatre and in-school work with theatre professionals. The dedication of the staff to making their pupils’ schooling so inspiring, stimulating and meaningful is apparent to anyone fortunate enough to work closely with them.
BRIXTON
Bugle SPORT
FORMER MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMP PRESENTS AWARDS AT BRIXTON BOXING PROJECT A former WBC middleweight champion paid tribute to young south Londoners celebrating their boxing success at an awards ceremony hosted by a Brixton-based boxing group. Richie Woodhall, a Commonwealth Games medallist, presented medals to dozens of young winners of the Lambeth Boxing Awards created by Lambeth Police and a local boxing project Dwaynamics. The project, which was established by Pastor Lorraine Jones in memory of her son Dwayne Simpson, has coached dozens of youngsters from across south London.
Brixton teen’s Olympic fencing dream Sandra Brobbey meets Tarriq Roach of Brixton Fencing Club A Brixton teenager has been hailed as a fencing prodigy by coaches at a local fencing club established by a Polish Olympian and backed by Satay Bar founder Patrick Foster. Tarriq Roach, who is 15 and the current under-18 épée fencing national champion, has been touted as ‘one to watch’ by trainers at Brixton Fencing Club, one of London’s most successful fencing associations. The club, which was founded by Polish fencer Marek Stepian and is based at the Brixton Rec, has dozens of members who have competed at international tournaments including the Commonwealth Games. Tarriq, a towering teen who stands at over 6ft 2, is set to take on some of world’s best young épée fencers at an international competition for under-17s in Copenhagen next year. “I loved sword fighting when I was younger and came across fencing classes at the Brixton Rec when I was seven,” said Tarriq. “I became a competitive fencer at the age of nine and currently compete at national and international levels as well for my school. “In a few weeks’ time I’ll be off to Copenhagen, to take part in an international fencing competition there. My aim is to finish in a top eight spot. “I also hope to be selected for the European Épée Fencing Championship, which will take place in March. “My coach Kamil (inset with Tarriq)
has helped me a lot. I don’t think I would have progressed as much as I have without the support I’ve had from Kamil and my Mum. “Patrick Foster and the Satay Bar have been a great help too. They have given me lots of encouragement and sponsored me to take part in international competitions. Hopefully one day I’ll make it to the Olympics. That’s my dream.” Kamil Golisz, Brixton Fencing Club’s head coach, has high hopes for Tarriq’s progress and hopes to see his protégé make his mark at an international level
next year. “Tarriq is currently in the national team for under-17s and he’ll do one more season in that division. Earlier this month we went to Grenoble, France where he faced some very strong competition from Italy and France. French and Italian fencers are among the best in the world. “Tarriq did incredibly well and came eleventh out of a competition featuring 180 fencers.” This month he will be competing in Copenhagen and then Luxembourg and Bratislava next year. “I’ve trained Tarriq for many years since he was a little boy. We’re lucky that he’s a member of our club here in Brixton. He’s very talented,” said Golisz.