Brixton People First Expo - Question Time responses

A local Question Time session took place at the Brixton People First Expo event on 2 February 2008.

This session, which was led by the council, provided everyone with the opportunity to ask questions to the panel which was made up of:

Cllr Val Shawcross (Labour)
GLA Member

Cllr Lib Peck (Labour)
Cabinet Member for Environment and Culture LBL

Cllr Rachel Heywood (Labour)
Deputy Cabinet Member for Enterprise LBL

Cllr Ashley Lumsden (Lib Dem)
Leader of the Opposition LBL

Shane Collins 
Brixton Tea Party 

• View questions answered by the panel
• View questions answered by council officers

Questions answered by the panel

What follows are the answers to the questions posed to the panel on the day.

When will we get more school places for local children in Lambeth? (Name and address not supplied)

• Cllr Val Shawcross – The GLA was campaigning to ensure that the government got its statistics right. Undercounting of the population in London meant that not enough funding was being provided for the number of places actually needed.
• Shane Collins – He felt that the involvement of businesses in academy schools could lead to problems. It meant that they could have a big say in the curriculum being taught and was effectively privatisation of education.
• Cllr Rachel Heywood – Delighted that there would be a new academy opening in September this year with a permanent site ready for September 2009. This would create 700 new places for pupils.
• Cllr Ashley Lumsden – Felt that there was a real shortage in Primary School places which was a challenge the council needed to face.
• Cllr Lib Peck – Pleased that there would be two new schools opening in the borough and a third site was currently being looked into.

What environmental improvements are expected in Brixton? (Katrina Wright)

• Cllr Lib Peck – There were to be substantial public realm improvements starting in the next six months. The council was extending the range of items that residents could recycle and was looking to improve the levels of commercial recycling. The council had also agreed new energy saving measures as part of the budget.
• Cllr Val Shawcross – The GLA needs to work together with local councils in this area to produce results. The refurbishment of Brixton high street was a joint project with the council and TfL which would give the town a facelift. There were to be bus improvements in the area and a scheme for a tram to Brixton was being considered. The Mayor had also set up a Climate Change Agency which would give advice and support on measures such as insulation.
• Cllr Ashley Lumsden – Felt that Brixton missed a proper bus station. If the environment could be improved for public transport users then it would get more people out of their cars.
• Shane Collins – He stated that mediocrity was the enemy of brilliance. We had to become carbon neutral and make 80-90% cutbacks in carbon emissions by 2030 or the world would be in desperate trouble. It was up to all of us to make sure that the environmental improvements being made were enough to stop disaster.
• Cllr Rachel Heywood – Noted the good work of local groups such as Transition Town Brixton which was being held up as a national example of best practice.

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When will we see the killings on the street stop in Brixton? (Angela Conway)

• Cllr Rachel Heywood – The council was working in partnership with national government, the police and communities to try to find solutions. We need to work alongside the young people to find out how to stop the deaths. This was the biggest problem facing Brixton and everyone needed to work together and focus to find solutions.
• Cllr Ashley Lumsden – Gun and knife crime were really worrying. He felt that there should be more provision for vocational studying which would give young people a wider range of alternatives. Currently, too many young people were leaving education early and had limited choices in their lives.
• Cllr Val Shawcross – Expressed terrible sadness at the recent killings across South London which had affected many communities. Felt there had been a slow disinvestment by the state in the social lives of young people and services that had got close to them. More money needed to be invested and more effort made to engage the young. The deaths were the worst end of the culture of fear and violence. We need to takes responsibility for tackling this and presenting good role models to young people.
• Shane Collins – Guns had proliferated in this country as a result of the turf wars fought by drug dealers. The drug trade was the third largest business in the world, worth an estimated £8bn per year in Britain. By prohibiting drugs, a criminal market was created in which disputes were settled by violence. The genie had been let put of the bottle and now guns and knives were being used to settle matters of ‘respect’. There was an ongoing low level conflict which most people just did not understand. Until the sale of drugs was regulated and controlled we would see a continuation of this violence. The government stance of being seen to be tough on drugs would not work.

What plans are there for helping young people who find themselves in so much trouble? (Karen, details not supplied)

• Cllr Lib Peck – Did not believe that all young people did get themselves in trouble and noted that a lot were engaged in constructive activities. Believed that it was important to provide sporting facilities and pointed to the recent refurbishment of Brixton Recreation Centre as a real success. Also felt that the election of a youth mayor in Lambeth was a very positive move. The council needed to be responsive to what young people wanted.
• Cllr Ashley Lumsden – Considered that the Youth Council could help us to see what young people want and praised the use of peer inspections carried out by the Youth Council. Believed this idea could be taken further and an assessment of how the council spends its money on youth services could be carried out.
• Cllr Val Shawcross – The Mayor had invested £3.7 million in youth schemes in Lambeth. Stressed the important role that the voluntary sector could play in this area and praised the contribution of the churches.

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What’s happening with Brixton central square? (Name and address not supplied)

• 
  Cllr Val Shawcross – Transport for London, the London Development Agency and the council were implementing a joint project for improvements in Brixton to be implemented over the coming months, the plans having been formulated in consultation with the community. The refurbishment of Brixton High Street would be commencing before May 2008 and then the central square within the next year. Everything would be done to ensure that this was as well managed as possible although such a rapid and large change would inevitably lead to some inconvenience. Investment was being made in the future of Brixton so that it would be somewhere that residents could take pride in. See the Future Brixton pages.
• Cllr Rachel Heywood – She had been involved in the project to redevelop the public domain in Brixton for the last eight to ten years and it was exciting that it was about to come to fruition. Better use was to be made of the space to create a safe and secure social environment.

What is the council doing to get more jobs for local people? (Name and address not supplied)

•  
  Cllr Rachel Heywood – A new Economic Development Strategy for Lambeth had been introduced recently. The council was also looking to focus on tackling worklessness which had a broad range of impacts elsewhere. There was currently a 63% employment rate in the borough and the immediate aim was to get this up to 70%. There was support from regional and central government to achieve these targets.
• Cllr Ashley Lumsden – There were lots of small businesses in the borough but they often found it difficult to grow. It was vital that the council provide support in order to help small businesses grow into medium sized businesses.
• Cllr Val Shawcross – There was a huge amount of economic success and prosperity associated with London, but many of those benefiting from this did not actually live here. The borough should look to exploit the coming Olympics and the council should encourage and support local businesses to gain access to the numerous contracts that would come with this, particularly BAME run businesses. The GLA was about to start allocating Learning Skills Council money which would be targeted at trying to bring people up to the necessary educational requirements to get jobs.
• Shane Collins – i) Believed that Brixton had been inundated with supermarkets which led to less small local retailers. The borough’s planning policy should be revisited to stop this continuing in this manner. ii) He felt that people should start to recognise muscle power once again and move away from the use of and reliance on machinery. As an example, he stated that the council should do away with expensive road sweeping machines and employ more people to do the work. iii) People should learn to live more cheaply so that they need less money. Steps such as growing your own food could contribute towards this.
• Cllr Lib Peck – The council needed to look at improving the skills of local people. She also pointed out though that it was up to all of us to contribute and by using local services we would help to sustain local jobs.

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When are the drug dealers going to be removed from Brixton? (Name and address not supplied)

• 
  Cllr Rachel Heywood – Drug dealers were being removed from the streets all the time but unfortunately more just come in to take their place. Some good work was being undertaken to combat the problems in partnership with the police and the churches and it was considered that Brixton now felt safer than it had in the past. There had been a 25% decrease in drug crime over the last two years and whilst it was acknowledged that there was still a long way to go, progress was being made.
• Cllr Ashley Lumsden – Was not convinced that the figures regarding drug crime were as positive as they were being made out to be. Did not feel that the real issues were being dealt with. It was something which could not be tackled on a small scale but had to be addressed on a country-wide level. We have to look at why drugs are on the rise. Prohibition fuels a burgeoning black market. ASBOs for dealers were a waste off time and maybe a zero tolerance policy needed to be pursued instead.
• Cllr Val Shawcross - Had seen the problems that drug dealing caused in the area. Felt that Brixton police had launched some very good operations but when one group of dealers were removed, another would come in to take their place and continuous police activity was required. Not enough was being done to focus on the drug users and action needed to be taken against drug commuters. There was a certain amount of two facedness about the issue as the dealers and gangs were condemned by people who used recreational drugs. It was the responsibility of all of us to address this problem.
• Shane Collins – 10% of the adult population in Britain had used illegal drugs and for the under 25 category, this figure was 25%. This is not going to change no matter what steps are taken. There is an £8billion trade which is being gifted to the dealers. He believed that there were two approaches which could be taken. The first was to increase the amount of CCTV and police on the street. However, this would merely displace the drug dealing, it would not go away. The second option was to follow the Dutch model and separate the cannabis dealers from the harder drug dealers, regulating the sale of cannabis through licensed premises. Thirty years after this policy was introduced, Holland has less than half the rate of heroin use and addiction as Britain and less young people smoking cannabis. We need to rise above our personal preferences and come up with a sensible solution to this problem.

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Officer responses to questions

What follows are the responses by council officers to questions not answered by the panel.

Why is there not more money for the community to tackle climate change for energy saving light bulbs, insulation etc? (Chris Jones, contact details provided)

The council cannot pay for energy saving measures for residents but we do work closely with colleagues from the utility companies and the Energy Advice centres so that light bulbs are given out at many events for residents and tenants across the borough.

There are a variety of energy efficiency grants and discounts available for residents in Lambeth. The best way to find out which would be most suitable for you is to phone the Energy Saving Trust Advice Centre on 0800 512 012. This is a government-funded organisation which has access to a database containing details of all the grants and discount schemes available.

The Energy Saving Trust also fund a programme called CAfE, Community Action for Energy, which is designed to promote and facilitate local community-based energy projects.

Has Lambeth Council considered the economic costs from climate change effects and has Lambeth Council any plans to address behaviour change and solutions to reduce CO2 emissions caused by individuals’ lifestyles? E.g. domestic energy efficiency, diet choice, transport use. (Ronan Leyden, contact details provided)

The council is very aware of the economic costs of both increasing utility costs and of economic costs of the potential threats from climate change. We have a draft Carbon Management Strategy and Implementation Plan and hope over the next year to produce a Climate Change Adaptation plan.

The council works to encourage residents to adopt healthier and lower carbon lifestyles through programmes in Housing, and at events held throughout the borough. The council liaises with a number of local groups working in this area and funds Groundwork in the area who are also doing work with residents. We publish relevant articles in Lambeth Life. We will be holding our second Climate Change Conference on the 13 June, 2008 at which we will be launching our Climate Change Partnership.

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Why have Lambeth not got an aggressive climate change strategy like Woking Council? (Adam Herriott, contact details provided)

Lambeth has begun the process of addressing it’s impacts on Climate Change and Cabinet recently agreed a £400K budget over three years to look at large scale technology to improve the efficiency of the council. This will also be used to attract match funding.

Why is the council not working more closely with Transition Town Brixton? (Andrew Graham, contact details provided)

The council is working with Transition Town Brixton and has held joint meetings and invited them to a number of our meetings including the Brixton People’s Expo. TTB also organised a talk on Peak Oil attended by Cabinet members and Senior Officers of the council.

Do you recognise the importance of providing affordable, safe, accessible spaces for groups, for example parents/carers and todllers, parents/carers of children with special needs, elderly, youth, artists, musicians, to meet and interact, partake in activities etc? At the moment there is a total lack of facilities. (Jane Beaumont, contact details provided)

The council recognises the importance for providing affordable and safe spaces for groups and recognises that there is a lack of facilities in Brixton at the moment to do this. We are currently consulting on a masterplan for Brixton as part of the Future Brixton programme which will explore ways of providing this. I would encourage you to visit our website www.lambeth.gov.uk/futurebrixton to find out more about the plans.

In addition, the Brixton Central Square project will start construction this summer combining Tate Gardens and Windrush square into a new larger space for people to relax, to be used in events or ease congestion in the town centre. It will include new lighting, paving, seating, planting and landscaping. It is scheduled for completion by summer 2009. Work is also underway to look at the possibility of a café or kiosk on the square as well.

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Why are people allowed laminated floors in council flats? Driven to distraction by noise, heavy footsteps, slamming doors. Please help? (Marion Palmer, contact details provided)

Residents of council properties are bound by the terms of their tenancy agreement or lease meaning they are obliged to request permission to improve their homes and must not do anything that causes a nuisance. This includes being responsible for other household members, visitors, lodgers, and in the case of leaseholders, anyone they may sublet to.

Regrettably, the existing conditions of tenancy do not refer directly to laminate flooring and residents rarely request permission to install such flooring often not realising the consequences of doing so, but I am pleased to confirm that the tenancy conditions are in the process of being revised and laminate flooring will be specifically referred to. In the meantime, when a request to install such flooring is received it should be refused unless the applicant occupies a ground floor flat or a house.

If you are suffering nuisance as a direct consequence of a neighbour installing laminate flooring then in the first instance you should contact your Housing Officer who will investigate your allegations with a view to taking appropriate action.

Depending on the circumstances, we can ask for the laminate flooring to be removed and for a more appropriate floor covering to be fitted. If you have already contacted your Housing Officer and the situation has not improved then please contact me and I will request your case be reviewed by the appropriate Team Leader.