The leader of the Green Party, Natalie Bennett, visited The Andover Estate in the Finsbury Park area of north Islington to meet residents and hear about some of the innovative projects that are providing jobs and making a real difference to the people living on Islington’s largest estate.
Accompanied by Councillor Caroline Russell, who is the Green Party’s candidate for Islington North, Natalie Bennett toured the estate and saw how the Community Hub is providing essential community services and actively creating opportunities for residents and young people through a variety of resident-led schemes.
The tour included seeing the community plant nursery where children were planting out beetroot seedlings. They aim to offer apprenticeships in horticulture and grow vegetables for residents.She then saw the community gardens which are partly planted by the children from nearby Montem School.
She also visited the clothes bank where residents can donate and obtain second hand clothes for a token fee, thereby ensuring nothing is wasted.
Lastly, she visited the Community Hub and took part in an internet radio interview with some of the Andover Estate’s younger residents who asked her a whole range of questions including what the prospects for young people under a Green government might be and also what her favourite song is.
Natalie Bennett said: “It was inspiring and fascinating to see so many worthwhile projects making such a difference to so many people. The Andover Estate really is a blueprint for what communities can achieve under their own steam simply by joining together and making things happen. Democracy begins in our communities and I was fascinated to see how engaged people were in the various projects around the Andover Estate.”
Cllr Caroline Russell said: “The Andover Estate is a hotbed of innovation and direct community action and there is much to be learnt from the great work they are doing there. The Andover Future Forum and The Andover Development Plan are setting out a new direction for the estate that takes this great work even further. I look forward to seeing how the plans develop with the support of the local council and the energy of all the people on the estate.”
All images by Chris King / Chris King Photography.