FOI 374686 Allocation – Islington Community Centres

This request is being handled under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 and the Environmental Information Regulations 2004. The information that we hold on these sites falls within both and therefore we have processed this under both Acts.

In your e mail you requested the following information, and the councils responses are set out beneath each request:

Provide all proposals in the borough that involve the redevelopment of community centres to provide additional housing.

1. Address of each site

2. Full details and breakdown of the redevelopment budget allocated

3. How many housing properties (and of what unit size) have beenplanned for each site

4. Full details and breakdown of any additional funding from other sources which will contribute to financing each project e.g.

Section 106 money, grants etc or confirmation that the proposal is self financing from the sale housing being built on site.

1. Name and Address of Community Centre / 2. Redevelopment Budget Allocation / 3. Total Number of Units Proposed / 4. Full details and breakdown of any additional funding from other sources which will contribute to financing each project e.g. Section 106 money, grants etc or confirmation that the proposal is self financing from the sale housing being built on site.
Goodinge Community Centre
North Road / It is anticipated that the site will be disposed of to a Registered Provider partner who will be responsible for funding the redevelopment. / Feasibility study proposes 15 – 19 units. / Detailed financial appraisals of this site have not yet been carried out.
Charles Simmons House
Margery Street, EC1 / The scheme will be funded through cross subsidy from the sale of private/ and or Shared Ownership units. The remaining balance will be taken from the New Build Programme Budget or the Councils Capital Programme. / Exempt / Self financing site. If additional resources are needed to fund the gap, it will be taken from either the New Build Programme Budget or the Councils Capital Programme.
Vibast Community Centre
163 Old Street, London EC1 / Feasibility study not yet commissioned. / Detailed financial appraisals of this site have not yet been carried out.
The Laundry
Sparsholt RoadLondonN19 4EL / The scheme will be funded through cross subsidy from the sale of private and/or Shared Ownership units. The remaining balance will be taken from the New Build Programme Budget or the Councils Capital Programme. / Feasibility study proposes 6 units / Please see column 1.
Ivy Hall, Ilex House
Holly Park, 31 Ilex House, Crouch Hill, N4 4BY / The scheme will be funded through cross subsidy from the sale of private and/or Shared Ownership units. The remaining balance will be taken from the New Build Programme Budget or the Councils Capital Programme. / Feasibility study proposes 40 units. / Please see column 1.

For Questions 2 and 4 (table) please see the attached document – New Build Project Board: Finance Summary (May 2012). This provides further information on the councils financial resources allocated to the New Build Programme.

5. The feasibility studies for each site

The following feasibility studies are attached:

-Goodinge Community Centre

- Ivy Hall, Ilex House

As discussed in the above table, the feasibility for the Vibrast Centre has not yet been commissioned.

The Feasibility study for the Laundry has not yet been consulted on with local residents so has not been included in this response.

6. The business case and plans for consultation of each proposalthat is being progressed following the feasibility study being

completed.

The council does not produce a ‘Business Case’ for each site. The process of deciding what is contained in a new development scheme is as follows:

  • Internal Council discussions with Ward and Executive Members on development opportunities
  • Initial surveys and outline feasibility studies of the site. This is to check whether development would actually be possible.
  • An outline financial appraisal of the scheme. At this stage the figures are general and based on assumptions from the development programme. For example, average build costs, average sales costs for that area. This is again to check whether the development would broadly stack up financially.
  • Internal Council discussions and consultation with Ward and Executive Members on proposals
  • Consultation with residents on the proposals. If a community centre is included in the re-development proposals, the council would work with the Centre Management and establish a brief of requirements for the internal and external environment.

The council always plans to consult with residents and key stakeholders following the initial feasibility design stage; i.e. Architects providing outline proposals on what can provided on a site. The following table demonstrates the consultation that has taken place on these sites to date.

Scheme / Consultation / Actions
Goodinge Community Centre / Meetings / -Quarterly meetings to update the committee on the proposals.
-Discussions with Key Stakeholders: Education, Children’s Services.
-Plans to consult with the wider residents of the estate when a firm proposal has been agreed.
Charles Simmons House / Meetings and Consultation Events / -Initial meeting with the Chair of the TRA and Community Centre Manager. (1st June)
-Initial design requirements meeting with architect, TRA Chair, Community Centre Manager and estate staff. (12th June)
-Architect currently adapting designs to reflect comments.
-Wider estate inspection on possible environmental improvements. (12th June)
-Ongoing discussions with TRA regarding consultation proposals.
-Wider resident consultation proposed (Summer 12)
Final design stage: resident consultation.
Newsletters/ Mail outs / -Letter to Charles Simmons House residents outlining development proposals, community centre re-provision and one to one meeting requests. (6th June)
-(Various meetings with residents on housing options)
Vibrast Community Centre / Meetings and Consultation Events / -Initial meetings with TMO (Jan, March 12)
-Worked with TMO to appoint an Architect (May 12)
-Ongoing brainstorming and consultation work with the TMO on the outline design (July 12).
-Wider resident consultation on the proposals (Summer/ Autumn 12)
-Final design stage: resident consultation
Newsletters/ Mail Outs / - TMO June 2012 AGM briefing provided an update on the new build proposals for the estate.
The Laundry / Meetings and Consultation Events / -Meeting with centre trustees (Jan 12)
-
Hanley Crouch Community Centre's management committee established a building sub-committee to meet regularly with us for a series of workshops to brief us and monitor the progression of the design proposals. The dates of these workshops were as follows:
Workshop 1: 12th March 2012
Workshop 2: 23rd April 2012
Workshop 3: 14th May 2012
Workshop 4: 28th May 2012
Also please note that we have agreed to refer to the project as Hanley Crouch Community Centre Redevelopment, as opposed to The Laundry Club (the name given to the existing building) or Crouch Hall Court (the neighbouring estate).
Ivy Hall / Meetings and Consultation Events / -Residents meeting (Feb 12)
-Residents meeting (May 12)
-Resident consultation event (June 12)
-2nd resident consultation event planned for later in the year

7. Please also provide all paperwork including minutes, reports, agendas and feedback reports held for the Tollington Ward from the

"ward by ward review of all community facilities" described section3.9 of 4th July Overview Community 12 month review on community centres.().

The ward area reviews look at the usage of all LBI sites and assets (including community centres) within the ward. The usage findings are presented to ward Councillors for them to note/comment.

The Ward reviews are informally discussed with the Leader of the Council, Executive member for Housing and the local ward councillors. These have been informal internal meetings and as such this relates to 'internal communications'. This information is exempt from disclosure under Regulation 12(4)(e) of the Environmental Information Regulations 2004. Regulation 12(4)(e) requires a public interest test to be carried out and information may only be withheld if the public interest in maintaining the exception outweighs that of disclosure. The public interest test for this request is as follows:

Public Interest in favour of disclosure

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* The release of this information would promote understanding and debate on current issues.

Public Interest in favour of withholding

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* The release of this information could threaten to harm the frankness and candour of future discussion within an organisation.

* The council needs to be able to consider the options available to them and exchange views within a 'safe place'.

* The council needs to be able to maintain the confidentiality of policy discussions in the interests of good governance and the perceived threat to candour and boldness in the giving of advice.

The council believes that in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exception outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

8. Finally, please provide an up-to-date copy of the "detailed database comparing usage, development potential, and condition

information on all of the centres within the HRA" referred to insection 5.1 of the same report.

The database is attached to this email in an Excel document.

The ‘Development potential’ for the community centres has been removed from the database.

We are withholding this information since we consider the exceptions under regulations 12(4)(d), material in the course of completion and 12(5)(e), commercial confidentiality applies to it.

Regulation 12(4)(d) applies as the council has carried out initial studies to understand what development options may be available. The council does plan to share indicative layout plans at future consultation events, however this information is not yet complete.

Regulation 12(5(e) applies as no formal decisions or consultations have yet taken place on the proposed project. The council has not made a decision whether to proceed with the work and therefore the information contained in reports that are held are commercially sensitive to the council.

Public Interest in favour of disclosure

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* The release of this information would promote understanding and debate on current issues.

* Improved decision making due to transparency which provides an incentive to decision makers to ensure that their decisions are soundly based on appropriate evidence and on public rather than private interests.

Public Interest in favour of withholding

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* The release of this information could threaten to harm the frankness and candour of future discussion within an organisation.

* The council needs to be able to consider the options available to them and exchange views within a 'safe place'.

* The council needs to be able to maintain the confidentiality of policy discussions in the interests of good governance and the perceived threat to candour and boldness in the giving of advice.

* The council has yet to make any decisions with regard to the project and if it released survey information before its completion it is likely that the council could be harmed commercially.

* Were the council to release commercially sensitive information it is likely that companies would become reluctant to do business with the council for dear of suffering commercially due to the release of commercial information.

* The intrinsic value of the information held by the council is great.

The council believes that in all the circumstances of the case, the public interest in maintaining the exception outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information.

We have not entered into any contract negotiations with external parties about the emerging proposals and therefore cannot release this information.

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