London 2012: a social
legacy for East London?
By Ellen Vanderhoven, October 2012
“Let’s make sure the Olympics legacy lifts East London from being
one of the poorest parts of the country to one that shares fully in the
capital’s growth and prosperity”.
David Cameron, May 20101
Legacy has been the buzzword of London 2012. An awareness of what these
Games would leave behind and a sensitivity to the needs of local people were
principles which helped make ours the winning bid seven years ago. Now that the
Games are over and the keys to the Olympic Park are being handed over to the
London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC), serious attention is turning to
the future of East London post-2012.
The official London 2012 slogan, ‘Inspire a Generation’ mirrors our own belief
that the Olympics has provided our area of East London with a unique
opportunity to tackle decades of exclusion, to transform the communities we
support and to secure a positive impact on the lives of young people in Newham.
That’s why we established the “Living Legacy” project, ensuring that the hardest
to reach young people in East London see a marked change to their prospects.
We want to “Inspire a Generation” of kids living on the doorstep of the Olympic
Park so that they’ll be ready for anything, understanding they have potential, and
knowing how to unlock it. We want to see a generation that plays its full part in
society. And even more importantly, a generation which brings up the next
generation to be the same; passing on the torch of a positive legacy; a
generation which shows others how to do it
The ‘Living Legacy’ project will touch those young people that we work with in
Newham, but the Olympic legacy as a whole is a much broader undertaking. This
report summarises some of the projects and proposals relating to the social
legacy of the Olympic Games, identifying the main parties involved and the
progress of any plans.
Furthermore, it presents reactions of various parties to the projects mentioned
and lays out Community Links’ recommendations for the LLDC and its new Chair
and London Mayor Boris Johnson relating to the future progress of the Olympic
legacy, drawing on our experiences of working in East London.
1
David Cameron (28 May 2010) Transforming the British economy
1
The report focuses on three principal areas;
2.1.
2.2.
2.3.
Housing
Employment, skills and business
Community resources and connections
1. Legacy promises
It is important to make clear what exactly a ‘legacy’ for East London means for
the parties charged with delivering it and what promises have been made.
One of the most definite statements of what the Olympics should achieve for East
London comes from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, as part of their
5 Olympic Promises:
Promise 2 – Transform the heart of East London.
Headline Ambitions
1. Transforming place: create a well-planned and well-managed
environment in and around the Olympic Park which will attract
business investment and promote recreational and cultural use
for years to come.
2. Transforming communities: build over 9,000 new homes, a large
proportion of which to be affordable; and provide new sport,
leisure, education and health facilities that meet the needs of
residents, business and elite sport.
3. Transforming prospects: help 20,000 workless Londoners from
the 5 Host Boroughs into permanent employment by 2012; and
create 12,000 job opportunities in the area of the Park postGames.2
In addition, the Department for Communities and Local Government has outlined
a commitment to improve the quality of life of East London residents:
A renewed commitment from the Mayor and the East London
Boroughs of Newham, Waltham Forest, Barking and Dagenham,
Tower Hamlets, Greenwich and Hackney to tackle the factors such
as low educational attainment and life expectancy that have
prevented East Londoners enjoying a quality of life that those in
other parts of London take for granted.3
2
3
DCMS (2008) Before, during and after: making the most of the London 2012 Games: p8
http://www.communities.gov.uk/regeneration/olympicslegacy/
2
This is defined more clearly in the Strategic Regeneration Framework (SRF) and
later reports written by the Mayor of London and the host boroughs. Here, the
organising principle of Convergence is developed which states that “within 20
years the communities who host the 2012 Olympic Games will have the same
social and economic chances as their neighbours across London”4. In particular,
the importance of getting more local residents into work and better paid work is
highlighted:
“There is no more important factor to be addressed in tackling the
persistent long-term deprivation in the Host Boroughs…The
challenge for the Mayor of London and the Host Boroughs is
therefore to ensure not only that such economic growth is realised,
but also that the residents of the Host Boroughs are able to take full
advantage of the opportunities which such growth will create.5
These statements provide some tangible benchmarks against which regeneration
and development after the Olympics can be measured. In particular, the principle
of Convergence acts as a measure of success for the Olympic legacy in East
London over the next 20 years.
2.1 Housing
Who is involved? The London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) was
founded by the Mayor of London on 1st April 2012, taking over responsibility for
the Olympic Park from the Olympic Park Legacy Company. It is now chaired by
the Mayor of London and is responsible for selecting organisations to develop the
park into a number of residential ‘neighbourhoods’ over the next 20 years. It will
also manage some of the assets and responsibilities of existing regeneration
agencies in the area.
East Village (formerly the Althete’s Village) will be the first area of The Queen
Elizabeth Olympic Park to reopen in October 2013. The existing buildings will be
converted into more than 2,800 homes, roughly half of which are owned by
Triathlon Homes, a consortium of two housing associations and an urban
development company. The rest of the properties belong to a joint venture
between the real estate arm of the Qatar sovereign wealth fund and Delancey6.
The first of 5 new ‘neighbourhoods’ to be built in the Park is Chobham Manor,
opening in 2015. It was recently announced that property development firm
Taylor Wimpey and housing association L&Q will be responsible for developing
4
Hackney Council (2011) Convergence framework and action plan 2011-2015
Hackney Council (2011) Convergence framework and action plan 2011-2015: p2-3
6
http://www.triathlonhomes.com/
5
3
this area7. The remaining four neighbourhoods - Eastwick, Marshgate Wharf,
Sweetwater and Pudding Mill - have yet to be assigned developers.
What has been done so far? The main focus at the moment is on the reopening
of East Village next year when 6,000 new residents will move in. Triathlon Homes
will provide affordable homes to rent or buy, of which 675 are for social rent8. The
properties owned by Qatari Diar and Delancey will be open market homes mainly
available for private rental.
Construction on Chobham Manor begins in October and should be completed in
2015. The development will contain 870 homes, of which more than 70% will be
for families. Here, 28% of homes will be affordable and it has been suggested a
Community Land Trust could become part of this provision. This development is
aimed at responding to calls from the local community for quality family housing
and more open spaces9.
What is still to come? The aim is to build an additional 8,000 homes in the Park
over the next two decades. The LLDC currently has outline planning approval for
6,800 properties. Site wide, the LLDC has committed to 35% affordable housing
and 40% family housing10. Developers for the remainder of the Park have yet to
be chosen.
What has been said? Keith Fernett, director of homeless skills centre Anchor
House has voiced his concern over the definition of ‘affordable’ housing. After
recent changes to social housing legislation this can place rents at up 80% of the
local market value11; meaning a two-bedroom flat in the East Village advertised
at £762pcm would be deemed affordable12.
An East Thames Group study has found that 65% of Newham households would
be unable to afford a three-bedroom property at 80% market rates13. The report
also found that the Affordable Rent model will create housing benefit dependency
among the very working families that the Olympic development aims to offer
fresh prospects. This has raised concerns about who the new housing will be
aimed at:
7
LLDC (2 Aug 2012) Legacy Corporation appoints Taylor Wimpey and L&Q to build first
neighbourhood
8
http://www.triathlonhomes.com/new_homes/ownership_and_rental_options.php
9
LLDC (2 Aug 2012) Legacy Corporation appoints Taylor Wimpey and L&Q to build first
neighbourhood
10
www.londonlegacy.co.uk
11
Communities and Local Government (2011) Affordable Homes Programme - Framework: p15
12
Independent.co.uk (2 July 2012) Price rise for ‘affordable’ housing puts Olympic legacy under
threat
13
East Thames Group (2011) Impact of the Affordable Rent Model - Newham: p1
4
“Traditionally 'affordable' meant homes for working-class, lowincome people. It has been redefined and now it means affordable
for graduates and young professionals”
Keith Furnett, Director of Anchor House
Penny Bernstock, Housing Consultant at the London East Research Institute
(LERI), has highlighted that a significant proportion of the affordable housing on
offer will be for sale rather than rent, making it inaccessible to many who should
be the targets of affordable housing14.
Furthermore, a report by LERI, has warned that land and property values in other
areas of the Olympic boroughs may increase, displacing existing residents15.
Gavin Poynter and Penny Bernstock have signalled that developers of projects
on the fringes of the Olympic Park have been quietly reducing their affordable
housing requirements as economic pressure mounts16.
Community Links’ recommendations
1) The LLDC should ensure that ‘affordable housing’ commitments are
truly affordable.
The London Legacy Development Corporation (LLDC) has committed to
ensuring that 35% of housing in the Olympic Park is affordable
But they have not broken this down further, between Social Rent,
‘intermediate rent’, ‘Affordable Rent’ (defined as 80% of market rents
under recent legislation) or various affordable buying options (like shared
equity).
The East Village contains a good mix, with no ‘affordable’ properties at
80% market rent 17
But in the remaining developments there is room for the LLDC to reduce
the affordability of its housing while still being able claim to have reached
its target of 35% affordable housing, through use of the legal 80%
definition.
Therefore we recommend that the 35% target for affordable housing is
broken down into clear proportions of Social Rent, intermediate rent and
14
BBC News online (6 Dec 2010) Living in the Olympic Park: Will dreams become a reality?
Iain MacRury and Gavin Poynter (2009) London’s Olympic Legacy: A “Thinkpiece” report
prepared for the OECD and Department for Communities and Local Government
16
Guardian.co.uk (27 July 2012) Affordable housing sideline Olympic regeneration
17
Triathlon Homes (2012) Triathlon East Village Letting Strategy; p8
15
5
Affordable Rent to ensure that affordable housing in the Park remains accessible
to a wide range of local people.
2) The LLDC should learn from East Village and consider raising the 35%
target for affordable homes
Half of the homes in East Village will be affordable (all either Social
Rent or intermediate housing)
This means that to reach the target of 35% overall across the new
neighbourhoods, future developments will have much lower
proportions of affordable homes.
East Village will open in 2013, at a time when tenders for other areas
of the Park are yet to be decided.
We recommend that the LLDC consider increasing the proportion of
affordable homes in later developments based on the experience of East
Village.
2.2 Employment, skills and business
Who is involved? On a national level, the Department for Culture, Media and
Sport take principal responsibility for the Olympic and Paralympic Games,
however the Department for Communities and Local Government has a
significant role in relation to the social legacy, having formed the Olympic Park
Legacy Company in 2009. The Learning and Skills Council provided funding for a
number of employment and training schemes associated with the Olympics prior
to its closure in March 2010.
The Mayor of London and the GLA take responsibility for developing a skills and
employment legacy London-wide, while the host boroughs each have specific
plans for their areas. The Olympic Development Authority (ODA) is responsible
for the development of venues and infrastructure for the Games, and as part of
this work have a number of programmes to ensure a construction employment
legacy for East London.
Westfield Stratford City shopping centre was opened by the Westfield Group in
September 2011, employing 8,500 people of whom 2,000 are local residents18. It
is the largest urban shopping centre in Europe and was designed to become not
18
http://uk.westfield.com/stratfordcityleasing/news/press-toolkit/
6
just a source of employment but a “lifestyle destination” for tourists and local
residents19.
What has been done so far? As stated in the London Employment Skills
Taskforce for 2012 (LEST 2012) Action Plan20, the majority of the employment
opportunities arising from London 2012 have been related to the construction of
venues and execution of events. As a result, many of the schemes designed to
enhance this legacy have taken 2012 or earlier as their completion date.
Below are examples of some of programmes which are already underway or
completed21:
Personal Best – training course to qualify unemployed in event
volunteering and offer chance to become Games Maker
The National Skills Academy for Construction – collection of projects
offering tailored, on-site training for those working in construction, using
the 2012 Olympic Park as a major site for training
Competefor – free service that enables businesses to compete for
contract opportunities linked to the London 2012 Games and to other
major public and private sector buying organizations.
London Employer Accord – a simplified broker service to offer integrated
business support in the capital.
Women into Construction – ODA project to promote construction related
employment opportunities for women.
Westfield shopping centre was developed as part of the wider Stratford City
development which will comprise hotels, schools, health centres and housing.
The office development is expected to produce a further 1,100 new jobs22.
However, like the Olympic Park, this development will progress over the next 15
years, so many details have not been established.
It was recently announced that iCity will take control of the Olympic Media Centre
post-Games, transforming it into a technology, design and research centre with
the potential to generate up to 4,000 jobs23.
What is still to come? One of the core aims of the development of the Olympic
Park is to not only build housing, but establish communities, which means
creating jobs for the influx of new residents. However, as outlined in section 2.1,
plans for the majority of the Park are not yet finalised and will develop gradually
over the next 10 to 15 years.
19
Westfield Group (13 Sept 2011) Westfield Stratford City opens in East London today
London Development Agency (2006) LEST 2012 Action Plan
21
London 2012 (2011) Sustainability Report – A Blueprint for Change: p112
22
http://www.newhamworkplace.co.uk/JobsInNewham.htm
23
LLDC (9 Aug 2012) A golden games to be followed by an incredible legacy says Mayor
20
7
Two of the Mayor of London’s major Olympic employment projects are still
ongoing. The Five Boroughs Skills and Employment project provided £12.8m
funding to help long-term unemployed in host boroughs into sustained
employment while the 2012 Employment Legacy project used £4.5m of LDA
funds to help Londoners into jobs during the Games and will continue to support
them post-Games24
Culture Secretary Jeremy Hunt announced £10 million of extra funding for
tourism promotion in order to increase visitor numbers from 30m to 40m a year
by 202025. Tourism is seen as one of the central ways to capitalise on the
Olympic Games and increase employment26.
There are also a number of regeneration projects throughout East London which
are not directly linked to the Olympics but are part of the wider promise in the
Olympic bid to transform East London. The redevelopment of Custom House and
Canning Town is expected to produce 2,500 jobs27 and The Northern Olympic
Fringe development will focus on building IT-related workplaces28.
What has been said? A BBC report has heavily criticised the Mayor of London’s
two flagship employment legacy programmes; the Five Boroughs Skills and
Employment project and 2012 Employment Legacy29. The projects were both
delayed by a year and started in 2011, when many Olympic job opportunities
were already filled. Since then, both projects have significantly under-spent, and
it is questioned how the programmes can support sustained employment when it
has struggled to find people jobs in the first place.
The report criticised the use of Payment by Results for support contractors
suggesting that this had discouraged organisations from investing resources in
helping people to find employment - 40% of funding was dependent on work
being sustained for 12 months despite the economic climate and temporary
nature of Olympic employment (although this was later revised down to 6
months).
Conor McAuley, Executive Member of Newham Council for Regeneration and
Strategic Planning has warned that development of the Olympic Park must retain
a focus on employment opportunities, not solely on housing30. He suggests that
24
London.gov.uk (17 March 2010) Mayor announces £20m programme to get London
unemployed into Olympic jobs
25
Guardian.co.uk (14 Aug 2012) London 2012 success prompts £10m tourism funding boost
26
London Development Agency (2006) LEST 2012 Action Plan
27
http://www.newhamworkplace.co.uk/JobsInNewham.htm
28
Waltham Forest Council (2011) Northern Olympic Fringe Area Action Plan: p24
29
BBC News online (9 Aug 2012) London 2012: Olympics jobs legacy ‘falls short’
30
Guardian.co.uk (23 July 2012) Live discussion: regeneration and the London 2012 Olympics
8
the integration of job brokerage services, such as Newham Council’s Workplace
into newly regenerated communities will help ensure this.
“In order to be job-ready, many
long-term unemployed people need
intensive and tailored support to
overcome complex multiple
barriers”
Economy, Culture and Sport
Committee, 2011, p16
The London Assembly Economy, Sport
and Culture Committee published a
report one year before the start of the
Games, highlighting some of the hurdles
to fulfilling the aims of the original
Employment and Skills Strategy31. The
report32 cited the recession and publicsector funding cuts as major barriers to
reaching employment targets.
It also suggested that the barriers of hardest-to-help long-term unemployed were
not being properly addressed. The committee called for intensive and tailored
support from Jobcentre Plus in order to help locals overcome complex and
multiple barriers and become job-ready for Olympic posts.
The report also points to major disincentives to short-term work within the
benefits system, meaning that many would have been worse off in short-term
Olympic roles than on benefits, specifically criticizing the efficiency of the rapid
reclaim service. This fed larger concerns that there could be little long-term
employment legacy if people did not gain the work experience promised during
the Games.
Community Links’ recommendations
1) We recommend that the LLDC set targets for the proportion of local jobs
to be created in each major development within the park (similar to those
set for the park’s construction, and for Westfield)
2) We recommend that the LLDC fund training support programmes for
young people not accessing college, to ensure they get the first step on the
ladder towards accessing employment opportunities in the park
2.3 Community resources and connections
Who is involved? The LLDC will determine the future of public spaces and
facilities within the The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park as well as some
31
London Organising Committee of the Olympic Games and Paralympic Games (2010)
Employment and Skills Strategy
32
London Assembly Economy, Culture and Sport Committee (2011) Review into the employment
and skills opportunities of the 2012 Games-time period
9
surrounding areas over which they have planning responsibility. The permanent
venues in the Park will be run by third parties but overseen by the LLDC. The
financial operations under which third parties run the venues will be negotiated by
the LLDC.
Transport for London and the GLA are responsible for the majority of
infrastructure and transport changes.
Local authorities are responsible for other public areas affected by Olympic
regeneration.
What has been done so far? Designs for the North Park within the Olympic
Park are already agreed and it will be reopened in July 2013. It will provide a
significant new area of green space for communities in Leytonstone and Hackney
Wick as well as new residents of the Park.
The South Plaza, opening the following year, will be an open space featuring
water features, gardens and ‘urban beaches’.33
Five permanent Olympic venues will remain in the Park and will be open to the
public (see box 1). Admission costs have yet to be decided although it has been
agreed that the Aquatics Centre will charge the same rate as local leisure
centres.
The clean-up of waterways through the Olympic Park and surrounding areas will
allow for water taxi services and recreational water activities. Stratford Waterfront
is a prime example of waterways being developed as public spaces34.
Plans for the residential neighbourhood of Chobham Manor already include a
walk-in health centre, two nurseries, community spaces and local retail, as well
as Chobham Academy for 3-19 year olds.35
The vast majority of masterplan documents for Olympic legacy areas identify the
difficulty of integrating old and new communities. The development of transport
links throughout East London is seen as vital to securing connected communities
in the future. Large-scale projects already completed or underway include the
expansion of the DLR, Crossrail and the redesign of major roads such as the A13
at Canning Town36.
33
http://www.londonlegacy.co.uk/the-park/south-plaza/
Legacy Masterplan Framework (2009) Stratford Waterfront – Area Brief
35
http://www.londonlegacy.co.uk/chobhammanor/
36
Masterplan Consultation (2007) Canning Town and Custom House Regeneration Project
34
10
Box 1. Five permanent Olympic venues will remain open to the public:
Tennis & Hockey Centres
Mixed-use sports facilities at Eton Manor, primarily catering for tennis, hockey
and five-a-side-football after the Games. These will be operated by the Lee
Valley Regional Park Authority.
The Stadium
Bidding is still underway for a permanent tenant but it will host the 2017 World
Athletics Championships, which are already secured.
The Aquatics Centre
Home to two 50m pools and a diving pool, the Centre’s temporary wings will
be removed to reduce capacity. Operated by Greenwich Leisure Ltd.
The VeloPark
Features 6,000-seat Velodrome, alongside the BMX circuit, a 1km road
cycling circuit and 8km of mountain biking tracks with facilities for visitors to
hire bikes and bring their own in for repair. Operated by Lee Valley Regional
Park Authority.
The Multi-Use Arena
London’s third largest indoor sports arena with flexible seating up to 7,500,
the Multi-Use Arena will be used for a wide range of sports and physical
activities. Operated by Greenwich Leisure Ltd.
What is still to come? The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park will include a range
of community resources, spaces and buildings in order to help form successful
neighbourhoods. Among these will be three schools and 29 play spaces to
ensure families are able to settle in the area.37
Similar resources are planned for other regeneration projects in East London
such as Custom House and Canning Town. Here, the Kier Hardie Park will be
combined with new libraries, sports centres and health facilities to create a range
of public and semi-public spaces for residents38.
Links between established and new communities will continue to be developed in
a variety of ways. The East Village development will use an online forum to help
residents get to know each other before they move in39. The Stratford Waterfront
development will feature new pedestrian bridges across Carpenters Road to link
existing and regenerated areas40. Mixed use and mixed tenancy are taken as
37
Guardian.co.uk (23 July 2012) Live discussion: regeneration and the London 2012 Olympics
Masterplan Consultation (2007) Canning Town and Custom House Regeneration Project
39
http://www.eastvillagelondon.co.uk/
40
Legacy Masterplan Framework (2009) Stratford Waterfront – Area Brief
38
11
central tenants of good ‘place-making’ across different Olympic regeneration
projects.
What has been said? Few of the community building aspects of the Olympic
legacy have actually begun on either a physical or social level. However, a
London East Research Institute report has highlighted the dangers of attempting
to create public spaces amongst the networks of privately owned sports centres,
residential developments and retail spaces that make up most Olympic
regeneration sites41. The report raises concerns over the formation of ‘splintered
communities’ as access remains under the control of private interests. Even if
this power is not acted upon, the loss of control and constant uncertainty over
access prevents the spaces from developing into naturally shared, public places.
Community Links’ recommendations
1) The LLDC should include Community Land Trusts (CLTs) in the
development of the Olympic Park.
Currently, there are tentative suggestions that a CLT could be included
in the development of Chobham Manor, the second neighbourhood to
open in 2015.
Owned and controlled by the community, CLTs provide an opportunity
for connection and communication, build resilience and ensure that
facilities reflect the actual needs of the community.
These characteristics could be instrumental in helping to form
sustainable communities in new developments
We recommend that the LLDC ensure that Community Land Trusts feature
in each of the 5 neighbourhoods to be developed in the Park.
3. Concluding remarks
A number of specific promises were made to residents of East London,
guaranteeing significant social transformation of their communities over the next
two decades. As the Games are now over and the true work of legacy building
begins, these commitments are taking centre-stage. A sporting and health legacy
are obviously crucial, but the success of the London bid in 2005 also rested on its
aim of building a lasting social legacy for East London post-Games. Now begins
the period where those promises are put to the test.
41
Iain MacRury and Gavin Poynter (2009) London’s Olympic Legacy: A “Thinkpiece” report
prepared for the OECD and Department for Communities and Local Government
12
Some targets have already been missed due to the economic climate and some
projects have failed or been scraped. However, a substantial amount of planning
and consideration has gone into the Olympic regeneration of East London and
much of it has barely begun.
This report has summarised many of these projects and reactions to them. It has
also outlined Community Links’ recommendations for the LLDC as to how plans
for the legacy could be improved and enhanced.
These recommendations feed into and have emerged from our own “Living
Legacy” project which attempts to ensure that the large-scale legacy plans
actually touch residents’ everyday lives. We will be delivering a number of
projects relating to sport, gun and knife crime and youth unemployment
throughout our network of Community Hubs in the most deprived
neighbourhoods around the Olympic Park. All of the learning will be shared with
other practitioners and policy makers to multiply the impact.
Our “Living Legacy” is about taking seriously a promise to ‘Inspire a Generation’
and change the minds of hard-to-reach kids from ‘I can’t’ to ‘I’m ready’.
We won’t have such a chance again in our lifetime, so we need to seize the
moment now.
To find out more about the Living Legacy visit:
www.community-links.org/get-involved/living-legacy/
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