Greenwood Place Consultation: Alternative proposal published

Published today, Greenwood Place: A Centre for Independent Living for Camden, is a partnership proposal written for Camden Council by the Camden Society and DISC (Disability in Camden).

Submitted in response to Camden’s consultation on the proposed redevelopment of the Greenwood Place community building, the proposal welcomes Camden’s aspiration to create a Centre for Independent Living (CIL) for the borough. This new document however also sets out a number of other, alternative ideas that, if taken forward, would provide a sustainable, exemplar scheme, generating significant benefits and opportunities for people with disabilities in Camden. Read the alternative proposal here.

Since September, Camden Council have been consulting on the future of Greenwood Place as a key feature within its Community Investment Programme – you can read more about Camden’s consultation here.

Whilst the Camden Society and DISC believe that a CIL would be great for Camden, we also believe that the proposed co-locations of multiple services and organisations, and the complexity of Camden’s proposed property sales necessary to achieve this, will seriously delay the whole proposal, and compromise the quality and integrity of the service.

Our alternative vision

Having reviewed the Council’s proposal for Greenwood Place, the Camden Society and DISC believe that most of the Council’s objectives for developing a high quality CIL could be better achieved through an alternative strategy. So what are the key points of this strategy?

To develop a new community resource that incorporates an exemplar Centre for Independent Living, providing a space that promotes wellbeing, a good quality of life, and independence in a safe and secure environment, with a fundamental ethos of service user leadership.
It will be an inclusive place that offers flexibility, a greater choice of activities, and provides new opportunities for people with social care needs and the wider community to encourage greater independence.
Proposed services for this new resource include:
Advice, advocacy, information, counselling and self-directed support services
Specialist services including support for people with complex needs, a day service for older people with learning disabilities, campaigning support and disability equality training
An employment, volunteering and empowerment service, a series of social enterprises, IT courses and a Time Bank scheme
Leisure and recreation services including sports, arts and music workshops, a Deaf club, social clubs and holiday projects for young people with disabilities
The Camden Society and DISC propose jointly forming a Community Interest Company to develop and subsequently provide the facilities management of a new Centre for Independent Living at Greenwood Place.
The facilities management budget would be met through tenants and service providers paying rent for permanent spaces and hire charges for the use of sessional spaces.
The capital budget for redevelopment to comprise S106 funding, planning gain from the redevelopment of the site to include 47 residential apartments, and grants raised through charitable sources.

Having been submitted to Camden Council as a deliverable alternative, the Camden Society and DISC have invited Council Memebrs and Officers to discuss the details of the process to take our joint proposal forward. Together, our two organisations, along with The Advocacy Project in Camden, have the vision, skills, experience, professional advisors and capacity to deliver what would be a fantastic community resource run by and for people with disabilities in Camden. To find out more, download the proposal below:

Download 'Greenwood Place: A Centre for Independent Living for Camden' - December 2011