The London Society

At the The London Society, we are committed to solving some of London's knottiest problems. The decline of the public loo seems to be one of the toughest to solve. Lack of toilets affects EVERYBODY but somehow is beyond the ability of the biggest brains in policy and government to ensure that we have access to clean, safe, accessible toilets. The society has been working for some time with a great group of individuals and organisations committed to changing this situation. Join us for this talk hosted by Donald Insall Associates on Tuesday November 19. Information in the link below: ⬇ ⬇ https://lnkd.in/exda9CuB Robert Fiehn Clare Delmar Rose Marshall Age UK #lovelondon #londonloos #internationaltoiletday #londonsociety2024

The Royal Society of Literature has been a great supporter of The London Society's #LoveLetterstoLondon competition. We are delighted to return the favour and promote their exciting new prize for #writers: The RSL #Scriptorium Awards will provide free writing residencies in a cottage in Ramsgate owned by RSL President @Bernardine Evari. Applications open Spring 2025 for excellent authors (all genres) who lack time and space to write. Details in the link below. #writing #competition #dreams #collaboration https://lnkd.in/erKP5t6u

Such a positive development for The London Society. Thanks to the foresight of NLA, we now have a base to hold talks and events to further the understanding of the many issues that impact London via our built world.

Thanks to our trustee, Nick McKeogh Hon FRIBA for this update straight from the RIBA #StirlingPrize awards held last night at the #Roundhouse in Chalk Farm. Since the announcement, there has been lots of discussion and debate about what type of project the #ElizabethLine is - is it an engineering project or architecture led? Whatever your view, we can all agree that it is spectacular and the 4.7 million people who use it every week applaud the thousands of people who spent decades working on the project and making it an exemplar for London and the UK. #awards #engineering #architecture #London #Britain #UK #transport #infrastructure

I will be chairing this discussion on the future of London's Housing on November 21. I can honestly say that no-one involved in housing in London can afford to miss hearing directly from Richard Blakeway, Housing Ombudsman. He and his team are at the front line of seeing where the system is failing residents. Hopefully, the panel will help us to also discuss solutions. In my experience, no issue is not related to having access to a safe and secure home. #health #education #equality #opportunity #safety #housing

The Soho Neighbourhood Forum has launched a street heritage study in collaboration with urban designers Publica and urban design specialist, and Soho resident, Bahar Durmaz-Drinkwater. To find out how you can take part, visit the recent post on our blog page: https://lnkd.in/eut4Qh4h

Is there any more important issue than the state of London's Housing? Working with the Housing Ombudsman, Richard Blakeway, The London Society is holding this important discussion on November 21 at the offices of BDP (Building Design Partnership Ltd) in Clerkenwell. Richard Blakeway has expressed significant concerns about the state of social housing, emphasizing issues such as neglect in addressing vulnerabilities of residents and delayed maintenance that can lead to unsafe conditions. For example, he highlighted cases where windows have remained broken or boarded up for years due to resource shortages, creating unsafe living environments. He has called for a national conversation about updating the Decent Homes Standard to better reflect the needs of modern social housing. Blakeway has also spoken about the stigma faced by social housing tenants, warning that many landlords fail to appropriately respond to vulnerable residents, including those with mental health problems, domestic abuse survivors, or those dealing with loss. His reports call for better handling of vulnerabilities, suggesting a need for clearer policies and better training for landlords He advocates for stronger accountability in the sector, aiming to ensure that landlords are held responsible for maintaining decent living standards and timely repairs. He will be joined by @Kathryn Tombing FROM bdp, Kyle Buchanan from Archio Ltd and Heather Thomas from Sapphire Independent Housing. The discussion will be Chaired by Leanne Tritton. BOOK NOW. #HOUSING #LONDON #SOCIALHOUSING https://lnkd.in/ehc68SuT

🌟 Calling all London lovers! 🌟LOVE LETTERS TO LONDON WRITING COMPETITION 60 years ago, Doctor Martin Luther King addressed the congregation at St Paul's Cathedral, London where his words inspired not only his audience sitting before him, but have continued to resonate across the generations. He showed how the power of words and dreams could shape society and as a tribute to him, The London Society's annual #LoveLetterstoLondon competition is themed around dreams. What are your dreams for our great city? ✍️ Write a love letter, a poem, or even a short story dedicated to London and be in the running to share in the £4,000 worth of prizes. 👉 The competition is for children and adults and to find out more, please take a look here: https://lnkd.in/dkAeVBxM Please feel free to share this link to any schools or writing groups that may be interested. #LoveLettersToLondon #TheLondonSociety #CelebrateLondon #WritingCompetition #LondonLovers #ShareYourStory #Dreams #StPauls #MartinLutherKing

Thank you NLA for your support of this wonderful writing competition, celebrating London. A beautiful autumnal weekend in London to inspire budding writers. Don't put it off - start writing now!

Last night our Canteen was taken over by The London Society! Our guests were treated to a sneak peek of the new public realm hiding behind the hoardings of Tideway, London's super sewer. Lead architect Clare Donnelly (Fereday Pollard) told us about the history of the project, what it was like to fit high-tech engineering under the surface, and honouring the legacy of Victorian visionary #SirJosephBazalgette Then, our associate Fiona Stewart gave the audience a preview of three of the eight central London sites designed by Hawkins\Brown, sharing how we've created new open spaces with distinct characters as the river winds its way through the city. Finally, Turner Prize-shortlisted artist #NathanColey discussed how he has introduced romance, connection, and a little bit of chaos to the project, telling us about the process behind his monolithic sculptures, or "objects", installed at Tideway's largest central London site, Blackfriars. You can learn more about our involvement with Tideway via our website, or get in touch! We love inviting the public to see and hear more about our work - thank you to the London Society for coming by! #tideway #london #infrastructure #architecture #publicrealm #parks #blackfriars #thames