Culture and adult learning
Introduction
Lewisham offers a rich and varied programme of culture and adult learning which helps to make Lewisham one of the best places in the capital to live, work and learn. And as a council, we are committed to broadening and deepening what is on offer in these areas.
Lewisham is a diverse borough and home to a vibrant mix of communities. These communities make a major contribution to the strength and vitality of the area’s cultural offer. In addition to Lewisham’s many libraries, sports facilities and arts venues, the borough is also home to some of the capital’s most respected cultural organisations, such as the Laban Centre and the Horniman Museum.
The borough possesses an internationally recognised grouping of higher and further education institutions, made up of Goldsmiths College, Lewisham College, Trinity and Laban which have produced some world-class talent. We seek to provide a home for fresh initiatives – opening up opportunities, contributing to the regeneration of the borough and developing the talents of our residents. The borough’s cultural voluntary sector is particularly lively and innovative and provides many opportunities for cultural expression and enjoyment to our residents.
In addition to the contribution they make to the borough’s cultural offer, our libraries also make a significant contribution to the development of basic skills and life-long learning. Residents continue to have free access to new technology, supporting their learning and providing them with a wide range of information. The new library space proposed for Downham is co-located with a range of other community services including GP surgeries, swimming pools and other community facilities. Proposals are also being considered for co-location of community-based services in the north of the borough as part of the proposed New Deal for Communities Centre. These will provide a livelier environment for the whole community and bring community services alongside health services.
Our sports and leisure sectors have obtained significant external funding to support work in our schools and to provide new sports facilities. However our services are about much more than ‘sport for sport’s sake’. We are ensuring therefore that we focus not just on sport, but on forms of leisure activity that will improve the health, well‑being and quality of life of Lewisham’s residents.
We are keen, in particular, to contribute to the preventative health agenda as set out in the Government White Paper Choosing Health. The ‘Spotlight on Sport’ consultation confirmed the strength and depth of the borough’s sports community and provides an excellent platform to take forward the key health and physical activity agendas. In the Leisure Strategy opportunities to improve the sports infrastructure, particularly as regards swimming, have been identified and recommendations made for significant investment in some of the borough’s best-loved facilities.
The provision of adult learning continues to help people in Lewisham realise their potential and ensures that they are supported to be able to read, write, speak English and work with numbers. We are committed to helping people access further education, gain employment and improve their quality of life. Raising levels of achievement and responding to the national ’Priorities for Success’ plan for adult learning remain high priorities for us. Through the Federation for Adult Learning, in partnership with Lewisham College, London East Learning and Skills Council and the voluntary sector, we will continue to focus on delivering the national and local priorities for learning which will ensure that the learning opportunities available better meet the needs of employers, adults and all our local communities, whether for vocational purposes, life skills or for pleasure. The completion of the new adult learning centre at Granville Park in April 2006 will provide new learning opportunities for adults in a fully accessible purpose built centre.
Strategic objectives
Cultural Services
In partnership with statutory and voluntary agencies, we have set out the framework to deliver our cultural aspirations in Lewisham’s five-year Cultural Strategy.
Our vision for culture is to:
- develop Lewisham’s built and natural environment in a way that improves the quality of life for all through innovative and sustainable design management
- develop and strengthen a sustainable economy for Lewisham through the support and encouragement of the cultural and creative sectors
- ensure that everyone in the borough has the opportunity to acquire the skills and knowledge they need to participate in, and learn through, the full range of cultural activity
- enhance the quality of people’s lives through cultural and creative development, by encouraging both participation and the provision of quality programmes.
In order to achieve the objectives outlined in the Cultural Strategy, the Council is committed to the following specific objectives:
- to ensure that residents and communities influence the decisions and issues that affect them
- to promote participation in, and appreciation of, cultural and leisure activities
- to improve and expand the resources and facilities available for residents in the areas of sport, leisure, culture and recreation.
The current Cultural Strategy is due to be updated and we expect the new strategy to maintain similar aims but to refocus them and place them in the context of cross-cutting policy areas such as community safety, health and inclusion.
Adult learning
The Council, working in partnership through the Federation for Adult Learning, has developed a vision for adult learning in the borough which aims to:
- meet the needs of learners effectively and efficiently to support their employability, achievement, personal development and progression
- maximise the learning opportunities for Lewisham residents to participate in adult and community learning, particularly among the hard-to-reach groups and in the neighbourhoods of Lewisham that have high levels of need.
In order to achieve these aims, Community Education Lewisham (CEL) has developed and continues to deliver four strategic objectives:
- to provide access to skills and knowledge for continuing education and employment
- to provide entry and first-step qualifications into key economic growth areas
- to improve residents’ quality of life through personal, social and recreational education
- to provide the skills for effective community involvement, neighbourhood renewal and citizenship programmes.
Performance against 2005/06 top level commitments
In 2005, the Mayor pledged to provide 100 new activities where children and young people could participate in sports, leisure and cultural activities. More than 100 activities were provided in the first nine months of 2005/06, including over 20 that took place on our extended People’s Day, with more planned during Easter 2006. Our young people took part in a wide range of activities throughout the year, including a number of new sports activities including Tennis, Football, Netball, Gymnastics, Dance, Tag Rugby, Basketball, Boccia and Cricket. Specific events for children and young people to promote reading were held by the Library service, and the Broadway Theatre held five events as part of the national schools’ film week. In addition, 18 dance performances were held in schools. Over 20 new sports and leisure activities are scheduled for the 2006 spring half term.
Other key achievements in 2005/06
Cultural Services
- The Creative Lewisham Agency was successful in their bid to make Deptford/West Greenwich one of two Creative Hubs established this year with funding from the London Development Agency and is among the first in London.
- We have ensured that the ‘Moonshot’ will provide new cultural and educational facilities for the communities of Deptford and New Cross when it opens in August 2006. Building work is well under way and is due to complete on schedule.
- Following the evaluation of the success of the new leisure discount card, which was launched in 2004/05, a resident’s smart card offering discounts to broader cultural opportunities is being developed in conjunction with e‑government.
- The Downham Lifestyles Centre development is well under way and is due to open in March 2007, providing two pools, a library, GP facilities, Access Point and arts facilities.
- We organised celebrations for the 21st birthday of Lewisham People’s Day which attracted over 30,000 visitors. This two‑day event in July 2005 benefited from an Urban Cultural Programme Grant and showcased local and international performers with stalls, workshops, food from around the world and a spectacular carnival parade.
- We commenced our planning for the development of an additional new 25m pool at Wavelengths.
Adult learning
In the academic year 2004/05 we:
- increased the number of basic skills learners to 1,400
- increased the percentage of new learners to 55%
- increased the number of learners on accredited courses achieving accreditation to nearly 97%
- increased the number and effectiveness of family learning opportunities in partnership with schools, the Library Service, Early Years Service, Sure Start partnerships and the voluntary and community sector
- improved and enhanced individuals' employability skills through the Federation for Adult Learning
- started the construction of the new adult learning centre at Granville Park
- refurbished space at the Ravensbourne Community Centre to enable adult learning classes to take place locally
- continued to reduce the number of adults with literacy needs (down from 35,000 to 26,000 since 2002).
Physical activity, sport and leisure
- Visits to the borough’s leisure centres increased by 8.65%; 3.65% over the predicted target of a 5% increase.
- A skateboard park was completed in Ladywell Fields following the successful initiative at Beckenham Place Park last year.
- We are capitalising on London’s success in gaining the 2012 Olympics by setting up a steering group to develop a strategy for participation and to ensure that Lewisham’s citizens, particularly young people, get maximum benefit from Olympic activity.
Library and Information Service
- The number of visitors to Lewisham libraries increased by 35,000 in 2005/06.
- The number of children who participated in the national Summer Reading Challenge leapt by 36% in 2005/06 from the previous year with the proportion of boys also increasing.
- Ten Lewisham libraries are now designated Wi-Fi hotspots.
- Over 248,000 sessions were booked by members of the public on library terminals in 2005/06.
- Libraries offered 579 learning courses on their premises in 2005/06.
- The work programme of our Heritage Service has continued to build on the partnership arrangements that are ongoing with the Horniman Museum and the Museum of London, as well as other existing initiatives both within and outside the borough.
- Lewisham Arts Service supported the National Youth Theatre in presenting the Deptford Tales, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, working with local young people to tell the story of Deptford at a site-specific performance in September 2005.
- We have continued to work on the development of Convoy’s Wharf, site of Henry VIII's dockyard, and some of Deptford’s most significant historical sites.
Festivals and the performing arts
- The Catford Broadway Theatre successfully met its attendance target for 2005/06, with 25% more people enjoying the pantomime than the previous year.
- The borough was host to a full programme of festivals, including SpikeFest Comedy Festival, Black History Month, Refugee Week, Irish Festival, Exposure Disability Arts Festival, Downham Celebrates, International Women’s Week, Pensioners Day and Chinese New Year.
- Lewisham Film Initiative supported 157 film screenings in the borough and made grants to local film makers totalling £9,000.
- With the support of Laban dance company, Lewisham Rotary, Lewisham Education Arts Network and Lewisham schools we have provided a range of music and dance showcases, such as Battle of the Bands and the dance and music showcase evening at the Broadway Theatre. These have enabled our children and young people to demonstrate their skills and potential in these areas.
Personal and community development
- In 2005 the Black History Month was the largest in London involving schools, community groups, films, talks and events.
- In 2005 Blackheath Fireworks was again London’s largest free display attracting around 40,000 people.
Key commitments for 2006/07
Library and Information Service
The service will:
- upgrade its computer system in 2006/07, which will lead to new services offered outside regular opening hours and the digitisation of the local archive holdings
- roll out the national Bookstart (Books for Babies) scheme, delivering packs to health centres and under fives locations across the borough
- photograph the old Town Hall war memorial boards currently in storage at Manor House, transcribe their contents and place them on the Council website – this will facilitate a local project asking Lewisham residents to contribute their memories and recollections of any family or friends commemorated on the boards
- devise and write up a collection of Heritage Trails to promote Lewisham’s heritage and make it easier for residents and visitors to enjoy and learn about their community’s history.
Arts and entertainment commitments for 2006/07
The service will:
- work to maximise external income across the Arts and Entertainment Service
- introduce an e-bulletin as a cost-effective way to keep people informed about what arts activities and events are taking place across the borough
- work with colleagues across Cultural Services to improve access to the arts for Looked After Children
- work with colleagues across Cultural Services to ensure that the borough is ready to contribute to the wider cultural programme leading up to the Olympics
- continue to work closely with the Creative Lewisham Agency to ensure that we maximise the opportunities offered by the Deptford/West Greenwich Creative Hub.
The Creative Lewisham Agency has submitted a five-year investment plan to Creative London, which sets out how the borough intends to support its cultural industries sector in the north of the borough. The Agency will build on its success in achieving Cultural Hub status and ensure that there is continued investment in what is already a very successful sector.
Physical Activity, Sport and Leisure Service commitments for 2006/07
The service will:
- tackle obesity through an increase in the amount of school sport children and young people take part in each year
- develop and expand training opportunities in sport for Looked After Children
- increase access to leisure facilities and physical activity sessions for older people
- establish a physical activity, sport and leisure advisory group for disabled people
- develop more opportunities for people to volunteer in sport
- provide a springboard for a renewed interest in sports, arts and cultural development by maximising the benefits from the Olympics Development 2012
- achieve the preliminary stage of the Sporting Equals Promoting Racial Equality through Sport charter
- implement the on-line booking system for leisure centres
- establish and develop working partnerships with Lewisham faith groups and BME communities aimed at increasing participation levels within physical activity, sport and leisure and the promotion of a healthy lifestyle
- publicise a programme of swimming pool developments for the next five years.
Adult learning commitments for 2006/07
Community Education Lewisham will:
- open a new adult learning centre at Granville Park
- increase the number of basic skills learners to 1,600
- continue to attract new learners from across the community
- work with colleagues from across the Council to offer more, locally based learning opportunities through the extended schools programme
- work with partners through the Federation for Adult Learning to enable adults to enhance their employability skills
- work with partners to maximise both the opportunities and the external income available for adult learning.
