Key information
Decision type: Assistant Director
Reference code: ADD2053
Date signed:
Decision by: Debbie Jackson, Interim Assistant Director for Built Environment
Executive summary
The ground floor flat roof to the rear of 639 Community Enterprise Hub (“639”), a GLA Property building, incurred some damage during the 2011 riots, but upon inspection was found to be sound. The roof has recently begun to leak and is in need of repair. A process of retendering operation of the building was recently completed and ideally the building will be in good repair for agreement of lease in March 2017. There is a modest underspend on the 639 project. It is proposed to utilise this funding to address the issue.
This report seeks approval of expenditure of up to £15,500 of the project underspend for repair works to the ground floor flat roof to the rear of 639.
Decision
That the Assistant Director of Regeneration approves expenditure of up to £15,500 to fund repair works to the ground floor flat roof to the rear of 639 Tottenham High Road.
Part 1: Non-confidential facts and advice
1.1 The 639 Project was jointly agreed by the GLA and the London Borough of Haringey (LBH) based on results from consultation with the local community and discussion with the Tottenham Taskforce. It is a cornerstone of the overall MRF programme of investment in Haringey. The overall aim is to promote and support small and emerging businesses bringing together all strands of support to enable people to develop and sustain careers businesses and careers.
1.2 Following the completion of refurbishment works the 639 Community Enterprise Hub (“639”) opened in May 2013. The London Youth Support Trust (LYST) was contracted to run the centre and over a 3 year period to support establishment of 85 new SME businesses, to promote employability, volunteering and apprenticeship working. By July 2016 the enterprise centre had supported 89 new SMEs, provided assistance to 61 enterprises, and pre start assistance to 801 individuals.
1.3 An interim review and forward strategy carried out in 2015 recommended that the centre focus on enterprise for young people in Tottenham and that the lease be extended by one year. These recommendations would help improve the efficacy of the Enterprise Centre, and its attractiveness to potential operators. Both recommendations were agreed and re-tendering is now underway. GLA support for the project in this extension period is in the form of peppercorn rent for the building. A target of 12 new star ups was set for this lease period.
1.4 The 639 building is old and problematic, the initial renovation works were carried out within a limited budget and consequently there were significant leaks in the main building, rendering some rooms damp and unusable. Works undertaken in 2015/16 resolved the issues with the pitched roof to the front of the building. Works to the flat roof were beyond the scope of that project however a modest underspend within the project was used to address a small flat roof to the rear of the building.
1.5 The main flat roof has recently begun to leak and is in need of repair. GLA Property will oversee the works and has received a quote of £15,500 for the repairs. It is proposed to utilise underspend on the 639 project and to cover these costs. It should be noted that the roof has been subject to a number of previous repairs and on inspection may require full replacement of the roof. If a full replacement is deemed to be required; this will be subject to further approval via the Authority’s decision-making process.
1.6 A process of retendering operation of the building was recently completed and ideally the building will be in good repair for agreement of lease in March 2017. It is anticipated that a seven year agreement will be granted to the successful bidder.
1.7 The works will be carried out as a standalone piece of work. This work will be carried out via GVA, the GLA Property Management Company who were awarded the maintenance contract for GLA Property via competitive tender in 2014/15.
2.1 The works will support the ongoing operation and project aims of the 639 Community Enterprise Centre. The repair works are necessary to protect the asset and to ensure the rental income generated by the building is maximised enabling further support for young people in Tottenham who want to start up their own businesses.
3.1 All works will be developed and delivered in compliance with relevant Codes of Practice and in line with the public sector equality duty. Improvement to 639 access and space underpins the underlying equality aims of the Community Enterprise Centre project. Furthermore, all design proposals will be assessed in terms of maximising physical accessibility and creating a welcoming and inclusive space for all groups that share a protected characteristic of age, disability, gender reassignment, pregnancy and maternity, race, gender, religion or belief and sexual orientation.
a) Key risks and issues
4.1 Key risks and issues and their control measures will be reported to the Regeneration Budget and Performance Review, which will oversee the project as part of their regular updates and performance management.
b) Links to Mayoral strategies and priorities
4.2 The proposed project is not mentioned in the strategic plan directly, as it is a response to the unforeseen exceptional incidents of August 2011. However, the programme overall, and the individual projects for Tottenham closely link to the Mayor’s priority themes of: improving Londoners’ quality of life; investing in young Londoners and supporting jobs and growth.
4.3 The project will support the Mayor’s priority to deliver growth and jobs, including meeting the Mayor’s 200,000 jobs target.
c) Impact assessments and consultations
4.4 Since the riots in 2011 Haringey Council has started a dialogue with local residents, businesses and stakeholders to inform and shape the key elements of the overall approach to regeneration in Tottenham. In October 2013, Haringey Council commissioned an independent organisation called Soundings to conduct a thorough five-month consultation exercise called Tottenham’s Future, to gather views from the community on their views and ambitions for the next 20 years. The responses fed into and shaped the council’s Strategic Regeneration Framework (SRF) for Tottenham, which sets out how the local community’s priorities can be achieved. More than 3,700 people contributed to the consultation.
4.5 The works outlined in this report play a direct and significant role in tackling the key concerns identified through consultation by helping to deliver the strategies for success outlined in the SRF. Individual projects will be developed and delivered in compliance with relevant Codes of Practice and in line with the public sector equality duty.
5.1 The estimated cost of the proposed repairs to the roof of 639 High Street building is £15,500, which will be funded from the LEF revenue budget for 2016-17. It should be noted that after inspection, should a full replacement of the roof be required, this will be subject to further approval via the Authority’s decision-making process. All appropriate budget adjustments will be made.
Signed decision document
ADD2053 639 Repairs work to flat roof (signed) PDF