Agenda item

Ben Finden, Project Manager

The chair welcomed Councillor Veronica Ward, cabinet member for culture, leisure, sport and the Olympics to the meeting.

Ben Finden, Project Manager, outlined the structure chart of the Southwark Olympic Delivery Board and the duties of the operational planning group, which had been set up to ensure Southwark supported inspirational, safe and inclusive Games. There were different work-streams including: volunteering, the Southwark experience group, engaging with young people, travel and networks, and health and well-being. 

Councillor Veronica Ward, cabinet member for culture, leisure, sport and the Olympics, said that the Olympics were going to have a great impact on this on part of the borough, and that the council were keen to show off Southwark to visitors from around the world. The two key issues were: what needed to be done while the Games were going on, and what the Olympic legacy would be. There would be lots of activities, including an arts and cultural festival (including plays being put on in 37 languages), cultural heritage trails to attract visitors to the southern parts of the borough (for example, to the 1948 Velodrome) and legacy projects. The activities would be delivered with no extra council resources required. The legacy projects, were designed to leave a legacy of health and wellbeing in the borough.

Jonathon Toy, Head of Community Safety & Enforcement, informed the meeting of the dates for the Olympics. These were:

Torch Relay arrives in London  21 Jul 2012

Olympics – Opening Ceremony    27 Jul 2012

Olympics – Closing Ceremony    12 Aug 2012

Paralympics – Opening    29 Aug 2012

Paralympics – Closing    09 Sep 2012

The transport and road network issues would become important to during the Olympics. In addition to the Olympics, the Notting Hill Carnival and the Diamond Jubilee would also be taking place in the summer, so that Olympic boroughs like Southwark would be very busy. 20 million extra trips would be made within London during the 2012 Games. 80% of spectators would be travelling by rail (including the Underground). In Southwark, commuters were advised not to use London Bridge and Canada Water stations. While Southwark did not have any Olympic Route Network (ORN) roads, there were some Alternative Olympic route network (AORN) roads and Road Event Olympic route network (REORN) roads in the borough.  The marathon route included the A201 New Kent Road and A100 Tower Bridge Road. This would be used on Day 9 - Sunday 5th August 2012, and day 16 - Sunday 12th August 2012. On these days, there would be traffic signal timing changes and adjusted stopping restrictions. Residents and businesses would have to think about how they could best modify their commutes and deliveries.

Philippa Beagly, Foundation and Vocational Learning Lead, told the meeting that schools, which had joined the “Get Set” network had been able to apply for free Olympic tickets, if they had put the Olympics on their curriculum in terms of sports, but also in terms of values (excellence, respect and friendship). 91 schools had done so - over 1,900 tickets had gone to secondary schools and over 620 to primary schools. Sports events had been organised, and the aim was to encourage young people to volunteer and to become sports leaders. There were also a wide variety of cultural and arts events and projects for young people. 120 young people had signed up for an accredited volunteering programme. The legacy of the programme would be for young people to stay engaged with sport, volunteering and to increase their marketability on the job market. 

Ben Finden informed the meeting that in the Borough and Bankside area, there were going to be discovery cultural trails, an Olympic market and the rings on Tower Bridge, as well as additional planting and GLA-funded street dressing. The torch relay would pass through the borough on 19 March 2012.

Responding to questions, Jonathon explained that there was no link between the legacy projects and the greater impact some parts of the borough would be experiencing. There were unfortunately no legacy projects in Borough and Bankside, as the projects, which had been proposed, had not been feasible. The officer time involved would help put Southwark on the map for a world-wide audience, and to attract visitors who would spend money in the borough. The council only contributed officer time, the other funding came from the GLA, TfL and other bodies. The footfall would be well managed and illegal street trading would be policed. Council resources would be concentrated in the north of the area, where the main Olympics activities would be.

The meeting heard a suggestion that officers should communicate with residents through the SE1 website, and by targeting those residents who were likely to be affected most by the Olympics, like those living close to Borough High Street and London Bridge, for example around Tabard Gardens.

Fears were expressed that the area would not have enough police and enforcement officer cover during the Olympics. Jonothan explained that policing numbers had almost been finalised, and that the night-time economy team would continue to be in place. In addition to this a multi-agency team had also been put together. He went on to say that his understanding was, that the police would be at about 66% of their normal strength.

The meeting heard a suggestion from the floor that there were opportunities for legacy projects to be put into Malborough Playground and Winchester Palace.

For further information, contact:Ben Finden, 020 7525 1289 , benjamin.finden@southwark.gov.uk