Since the local elections in May 2018 we have collated a monthly briefing for all local Labour members. This highlights the work we have been doing in the Council, in the Community, and the achievements we have made with help of local activists. We will be updating this page with the newest addition each month.

October 2019

Welcome to the 16^th Lewisham Labour Town Hall Briefing – our monthly newsletter giving local members an update on the work we are undertaking in the Council and in the Community to deliver on Lewisham Labour’s Manifesto. It’s visible from the shift in temperature that we’re heading into the autumn season, and with it we have an array of events and campaigns to hopefully contrast with the current gloomy weather!

Lewisham Labour Member Conference

As we’re sure many of you know, on Saturday 7th September we held our Lewisham Labour Member Conference for Labour members in the borough at the Calabash Day Centre in Catford. We had Mayor of Lewisham Damien Egan, our local Lewisham MPs, as well as Mayor of London Sadiq Khan and our Labour councillors in attendance – joining the over 150 local members and activists who signed up.

We lead sessions throughout the day on topics such as supporting the Windrush generation as well as how we can unite as a Labour movement to win a general election. As well as Policy workshops, we also ran training sessions during the lunch break on “Becoming a Councillor” as well as how to effectively run campaigns in your community. These were staffed by a mixture of our Councillors and local activists – and we’d like to say a huge thank you to all of you who got involved on the day!

Motions to Lewisham Council
At the start of this month we had our Full Council meeting. There we made some exciting announcements as well as passed several really important motions, a snapshot of which are below:

Black History Month
At Full Council we also formally announced the start of Black History Month after raising the flag outside the Civic Suite in celebration on the opening day. We have a great programme of events to celebrate in conjunction with Lewisham Libraries, to find out more visit: www.lewishamlibraries.eventbrite.com

Education & Schools – Free School Meals NRPF Children
We passed a motion at Full Council earlier this month calling on the Government to ensure that no child should goes hungry in school because of their parents’ immigration status. We reiterated our position that we oppose the inhumanity and racism of such “hostile environment” policies and that free school meals should be a basic right for ALL children who need them.

Housing update – Borough-wide Landlord Licensing Scheme
Cabinet Member for Housing Cllr Paul Bell has submitted Lewisham’s bid to the Secretary of State, to introduce a borough wide licensing programme. Between May and August 2019 we consulted on proposals to introduce licensing for all private rented homes in Lewisham. We want to license all privately rented houses to: improve property standards, security and decency in the private rented sector as well as cracking down on rogue landlords and protecting tenants from illegal evictions.

Climate – Car Free Day
As well as being one of the first Local Authorities to formally pass a motion declaring a Climate Emergency at Full Council – we are continuing to lead the way in community initiatives. On 22nd September, 34 roads across the borough were closed, putting Lewisham in the top three boroughs for Car Free Day events in London. We believe that less car use can lead to cleaner air, healthier lives and closer communities. Lewisham is working on a plan to make the borough carbon neutral by 2030 – that is why we are campaigning for the Bakerloo Line Extension, why we have started to roll out the Healthy Neighbourhoods scheme across the borough, and it is why we currently offer month-long bike loans and free cycling lessons for all residents. We can only fight this emergency together, and thanks to all of you currently involved.

Young Mayor 2019

Lewisham’s Young Mayor Scheme has attracted 28 bright & diverse young people from our Borough as candidates. Their manifestos pledges include tackling knife crime; mental health issues; youth provision; and equalities. All statements and voting options can be found on https://lewisham.gov.uk/mayorandcouncil/youngmayor/candidates-for-young-mayor-2019-20 – please publicise this amongst your community groups and networks or with any young people you think may be interested!

Borough of Culture 2020 Bid

As you may have seen from the some of the posters up around Lewisham at the moment – on 28 Oct we submit our bid to win London Borough of Culture 2021. We’d use the £1.3m award from the Mayor of London to show our love for the place we call home. We are delighted to already have the backing of local grime artist Novelist, and we’re counting on your support in order for our bid to be successful! For more information and to get the relevant image to change your Social Media profile pictures to express support: www.iamlewisham.uk

Mayor’s Volunteer & Business Awards
The Mayor’s Award for Volunteers celebrates individuals and community projects who contribute or support others to volunteer their spare time. If you know an unsung hero who is making Lewisham a better place to live, please take a few minutes to nominate them: https://lewisham.gov.uk/mayorandcouncil/mayor/mayor-s-award-for-volunteering

We also want to hear who your favourite independent restaurants, bars, cafes & shops in Lewisham are. Please submit your nomination here: https://lewisham.gov.uk/myservices/business/mayors-business-awards/about-the-lewisham-business-awards