Introduction and Context

The premises based challenges confronting groups are as varied as the groups themselves. These include

• Established groups who have outgrown their current premises and are looking for alternative locations
• New groups who need access to premises to begin to deliver their services but who have limited or no funding
• Organisations who wish to maximise the use of their premises by groups who share their values
• Ensuring the negotiation of favourable lease and hire agreements
• Lack of suitability of premises available. This is either because the premises are not affordable, (which is likely to become even more of a challenge as rents increase in response to the Olympics and other regeneration initiatives), or it is because premises are not accessible, this includes their location.
• The need to share best practice on the management of the premises that the sector occupies.

 The aims of this project are to: 

1)     To improve Newham’s Voluntary, Faith and Community Sector access to accessible, affordable and suitable premises from which they can organise and deliver their services. 

2)     To enhance the knowledge of the Voluntary, Faith and Community Sector on a) the legal implications of purchasing and renting premises and b) the effective management of premises.  

One of the major barriers to entry and development in the market for the VCF sector is the lack of affordable office space. This is further intensified in Newham as Newham has the lowest supply of office space in London (Frank Knights Commercial Estate Agents). A number of initiatives have already started to address the issue of service delivery by the VCF including the Council’s Community Support Unit’s work on available community space and Aston-Mansfield’s Faith Directory which identifies available space for meetings and activities. However neither of these proposals considers office space specifically. This report will therefore outline these initiatives and signpost the VCF to accessing these services. It will go on to focus specifically on the available office space across the borough that may be suitable for the needs outlined in the aims of the project and will include facilities for the small community projects wishing to use hotdesking facilities, shared office space, self managed shared office space to leasing/licensing their own offices across the Voluntary, Statutory and Private Sector. The report also outlines an alternative model of affordable premises that would be suitable for the needs of the VCF in Newham using metal containers. This model has already been adopted by Leaside Regeneration in Tower Hamlets.

Context 

In the UK there is an estimated voluntary community and faith sector (VCF or third sector) of half a million organisations. In London there are an estimated 18,640 registered charities and over 40,000 voluntary and community groups. They include informal community groups, large national charities, mutual societies and social enterprises of which 70% operate at local authority level or below.  

In Newham, Hackney and Tower Hamlets alone, 3000 voluntary and communities organisations (1500 in Newham) have leveraged £585 million per year into disadvantaged communities into these three boroughs. (East London Voluntary Sector Alliance, 2004)  

The H M treasury document ‘the role of the voluntary and community sector in service delivery 2001’ recognises that despite a revolution in the contribution of the voluntary and community sector to service delivery, many front line  organisations, especially the small and medium sized are still unable to access the support they need. It was recommended that that voluntary and community sector and central and local government develop a shared strategy to underpin the capacity of the sector.  

ChangeUp – Capacity Building and Infrastructure for the Voluntary and Community Sector was the response. Newham’s infrastructure plan identifies access to affordable space for offices and events as one of the gaps in infrastructure support. As a result the Black and Ethnic Minority Community Care Forum were commissioned to carry out this piece of work.

Community Support Unit Community Space Project

Based on the above recommendations the Community Support Unit (CSU) embarked on the exercise of identifying further community spaces in the remaining 8 community forum areas in the Borough.

Community space was defined according to the Scrutiny Commission report to include community spaces owned by the Council to include Community Centres, Youth/Adult Centres (Voluntary Sector), Leisure Centre, Schools, Colleges, and Centres of education.

During March 2005 officers from the CSU conducted a series of walkabouts throughout the 8 remaining community forum areas of Newham. Officers were split into groups of 2 or 3 and were given a designated area to cover within each community forum.  Each group covered every street. CSU Officers then contacted the potential community space venues identified to establish whether they had community space available for hire to the community. The internet was used to gather information on the venues as a great deal of contact information was not attainable on the actual walkabouts.

Venues that could not be contacted by telephone were sent letters asking if they had community space for hire. Any venues that could not be contacted by telephone and letter were not recorded as community space.

Although Public Houses were originally included in the community space mapping, it was decided not to include them as they were not accessible to some sections of the community and therefore are not regarded by the council as community space. Even so, this only reduced the overall community space figure by 6.

450 different venues were contacted. The information was collated into a database; the following is a summary of the confirmed community space throughout all 10 community forum areas:

• Beckton                                              6 community spaces
• Custom House & Canning Town            18 community spaces
• East Ham                                           11 community spaces 
• Forest Gate                                        9 community spaces 
• Green Street                                      10 community spaces 
• Manor Park                                        14 community spaces 
• North Woolwich & Silvertown                   7 community spaces 
• Plaistow                                              22 community spaces 
• Stratford                                             23 community spaces 
• West Ham                                          1 community spaces

The total number of Community Spaces identified across the borough is therefore121.A booklet will soon be published detailing type of space, contact details and rates. 

Aston Mansfield Faith Directory 

Aston-Mansfield has recently produced a comprehensive directory and database of all of the religious groups and places of worship in Newham, published in their 4th edition of the Newham Directory of Religious Groups. 

Each entry details the name of the group, the meeting place, time of regular meeting, name and address and telephone number of leader/key contact. It also gives information regarding additional activities and facilities and whether these facilities are available to hire. 

Although none of the faith organisations offer office space there are a number of places of worship that offer rooms and halls for meeting, functions and project activity.