Congratulations to CRP partner Paddington Now for winning a Silver Gilt Award at the 2018 RHS Britain in Bloom awards.
It was great to see our work together on Click. Collect. Clean Air recognised as part of the award. The Judges were impressed with the campaign which aims to reduce traffic pollution and improve air pollution. Read all about the award here.
Arts Council England (ACE) held several exciting workshops in early November to help shape their 10 year strategy. CRP was delighted to attend alongside independent practitioners and organisations to provide different perspectives on the ACE strategy so far. The online consultation is ongoing; you can read the brief and take part in the consultation here.
Following on from CRP’s Art in the Public Realm report, we are pleased to see that the ACE proposed 2030 outcomes include encouraging people from every background to benefit from public investment in culture. CRP encourages all of its partners to get involved with developing the new ACE strategy.
CRP is keen to discuss any upcoming arts and culture projects with potential partners. Please contact Susannah Wilks to discuss further.
Transport for London (TfL) is proposing changes to bus routes, to simplify the network and reshape services to support London’s future.
CRP has negotiated an extended deadline of 16th November 2018 to submit responses to TfL’s consultation.
CRP will prepare a collaborative response on behalf of its willing partners to strengthen individual partner responses, and to add weight to strategic versus local considerations in TfL’s decision-making process.
Please contact CRP’s Susannah Wilks for further information.
The newly announced Future High Streets Fund pledges to commit £675 million to:
The Fund aims to “support and fund local areas’ plans to make their high street and town centres fit for the future.”
Full assessment criteria is due to be released by the end of 2018, but it is anticipated local authorities need to show how the proposal allows high streets to adapt to changing consumers and provide economic benefit. Up to £25m will be available per local area but it cannot be used to expand traditional retail opportunities. The initial paper expects local authorities to partner with the private sector to develop proposals.
CRP would like to hear from any potential partners who would be interested in working together on a Stage 1 application due in Spring 2019. Please contact Susannah Wilks to discuss further.
Saturday 1st December is Small Business Saturday. The aim is to highlight the success of small businesses and encourage consumers to support them in their local communities.
Small Business Saturday grew consumer spending on the day from £468m in 2013 to £748m in 2017.
If you are a small business or potential customer, find out how you can get involved here.
CRP were glad to join the ‘Planning Ahead’ session and panel discussion at this year’s Freight in the City Expo alongside Transport for London’s Director of City Planning, Alex Williams. The session focussed on collaboration, planning and infrastructure as key ingredients to improving freight flows in urban areas. CRP’s Tanja Dalle-Muenchmeyer presented the Smart Electric Urban Logistics project that is successfully demonstrating how smart charging can address local power grid constraints.
The annual Freight in the City Expo looks to support freight operators with a comprehensive seminar programme covering key questions from the urban freight market and by showcasing cutting edge vehicles, equipment and technologies in Alexandra Palace’s Great Hall.
For more information, please see the project webpage here or contact CRP’s Programme Manager Electric Freight Tanja Dalle-Muenchmeyer.
CRP are continuing work on the Central Government (DEFRA) funded Clean Air Villages (CAV) project up until March 2019. Working in partnership with Lambeth, Hammersmith and Fulham, Islington, Kensington and Chelsea, and Lewisham borough Councils, the ambition of the project is to reduce emissions from business deliveries and servicing at 10 air quality hotspot ‘villages’ across the boroughs.
Since the last update, CRP have completed three additional seminars in Islington, Earls Court and Shepherds Bush. By the end of November, the aim is to have the final four seminars wrapped up with promotion for all four events being firmly underway. These final seminars will be taking place in Ladbroke Grove, Earls Court, Fulham and Deptford.
Reflecting upon the last month, it is clear that through a lot of time and effort, CRP continue to create and solidify strong links with both micro, local and national businesses across all of the ‘villages.’ CRP are continuing to develop a wealth of knowledge and understanding of the local and systemic issues businesses are facing and will be looking to continue to support businesses further on the transition to cleaner practises, via funding applications to various government sources.
For further information, please contact CRP’s Business Engagement Officer Ethan Howard.
CRP’s accountable body Westminster City Council is moving to a new, improved finance, payroll and HR solution on 3rd December. The IBC SAP solution is administered by Hampshire County Council and is used by over 85,000 users across the public sector, such as a number of other local authorities and the Police. The new solution is very flexible allowing employees to access it from their mobile device as well as via a laptop. There is currently a data freeze in the existing Agresso system to enable the financial and HR data to be copied across to the new system. This means that no purchase orders can be raised or supplier invoices paid until the new system is implemented in early December.
For further information or with any payment queries, please contact CRP’s Operation Manager Carol Quamina.
CRP’s Recruit London Team visited HMP Brixton on 7th November to view the training facilities and the range of courses on offer to offenders as part of their rehabilitation, prior to their release from prison. The visit was hosted by the Bounce Back Project, a charity and social enterprise supporting ex-offenders into training and employment.
The Bounce Back Project will shortly be opening a training centre in Victoria. Recruit London looks forward to working with Bounce Back by developing their service offer to also include ex-offenders.
For further information, please contact Recruit London’s Westminster Workplace Co-ordinator Chika Anyanwu.
Interest in our Smart Electric Urban Logistics (SEUL) project is no longer limited to the UK or even Europe but has now reached the United States! On 21 September, The New York Times published an article on project lead UPS replacing diesel delivery vans with electric ones and how the smart grid approach implemented as part of the project enables them to do so.
In addition, a UPS / Green Biz study has further identified motivators and barriers to fleet electrification. The study notes how public/private collaboration (in this case between UPS, CRP and UK Power Networks) can overcome these barriers.
For more information, please see the project webpage here or contact CRP’s Programme Manager Electric Freight Tanja Dalle-Muenchmeyer.
