Myatt’s Fields Park Project in Brixton has been awarded up to £500,000 by Lambeth council to renovate and extend the park depot. The money will be used to create new community meeting, cooking and education spaces. The space will also be available for private hire and income raised will be reinvested in the park. Alongside the depot development, a new contract with the council will provide the park with an enhanced level of maintenance until 2019.
You can see plans for the depot redevelopment here. An entrance will run from Cormont Road through to the park, making the building more welcoming and accessible. There will be a central foyer with a café-kiosk and views over the greenhouse, a large meeting and eating room, including a kitchen, along with new offices for MFPP staff. It is hoped that work will begin on the project in early 2018. You can sign up to the MFPP newsletter for updates.
Cllr Sonia Winifred, Cabinet member for equalities and culture, said: “This is fantastic news, not just for Myatt’s Fields Park, with an improved building, a new income stream and extra maintenance, but also for the local community with the investment boosting opportunities to learn, develop new skills and spend time together.”
Marjorie Landels, Chair of MFPP said: “A whole load of fantastic things happen in the Depot with dozens of groups cooking, growing food, growing businesses and running sporting activities. They’ve managed to develop these despite the limitations of the current buildings which are a really poor use of space.
“The rooms are small and cramped and we can only work with a few people at a time. This redevelopment will give everyone the chance to spread their wings and really fly. The building will allow the community to extend their food and growing activities while minimising disruption to neighbours.
“A community business is accountable to local people, to make sure it offers products and services local people actually want. We will set up a management committee for the building, including representatives from our immediate neighbours to ensure all views are heard.”
Park users and local business are invited to find out more about the park, its future and how they can get involved at a Community Business Weekend, taking place on Friday 6 to Sunday 8 October. A full programme is on the Myatt’s Fields Park website.
