Pembury - February 2025
Monthly Drop Ins Do you need to talk about your housing, wellbeing, finances, repairs or anything else? We are running drop-in sessions for residents, friends and family to speak with staff from a range of Peabody teams at the Pembury Community Centre.
2025 Drop in dates 4 March, 4pm to 7pm
3 June, 4pm to 7pm
1 April, 12pm to 3pm
1 July, 12pm to 3pm
6 May, midday to 3pm
Progress at Dalston Lane We’re in the final stages of procuring a specialist contractor to carry out the repairs needed and hope to confirm who’s been selected next month.
Skills for Life On Wednesday 5 February 34 young people from Hackney, accompanied by their parents and carers, came through the doors of Pembury Community Centre for a myth busting session all about apprenticeships.
We should have further details in time for the next newsletter, including who will be delivering the project, what the timescales are, and when residents are likely to be able to return home.
The evening was organised by our Economic Inclusion and Community Investment teams, in collaboration with construction company Greyline. The young people in Hackney spoke chatted with teams from Diverse Futures, Greyline, King’s Trust, Health Spot, Fashion Retail Academy, Bauder, Arsenal Football Academy, Thru Life and BlueLime.
In the meantime, we’ve shared details of the replacement fixtures and fittings with tenants, who are now in the process of selecting which products they’d like in their home. There’s a range of options available for new floorcovering throughout, and also new kitchen cupboards and worktops. Our insurers are contacting leaseholders directly to discuss their options.
Amar from Diverse Futures shared helpful advice during his talk on Bridging the Skills Gap. Explaining where to find apprenticeships using gov.uk and signing up for mailing lists, as well top tips on what to include when applying. The talk clearly left an impression, as 100% of those who came said that they knew more about apprenticeships after the session than before.
Since the last Pembury newsletter, we’ve continued to provide support to residents and this will remain in place throughout, until everyone is back home. We and A3 have also continued to focus our efforts on securing longer term temporary accommodation for the remaining households and there are now a couple waiting for offers.
From management to more creative pursuits, the event offered something for most people. Paul from King’s Trust spoke with four young women that evening who were interested in media, filming and presenting. The range of apprenticeships available was one of the main talking points. Tom from Brauder, a roofing manufacturer, noted “People tend to think of electricians and plumbers when it comes to apprenticeships, but there is much more out there”.
Something that has still to be confirmed, almost nine months after it happened, is the cause of the fire. We understand how frustrating this is and, as we are as keen as residents to receive the LFB’s report, we continue to contact them regularly for updates. We and our insurance company have always provided the LFB with any information they’ve asked for and haven’t caused any delay to their investigations. In terms of what’s happening on-site, all of the work related to the temporary roof installation is now complete and the drying out process is also almost at an end, which means we should be ready to start internal work in April.
Children’s Community turns 10 This year marks the 10th anniversary of the Pembury Children’s Community. To celebrate, we’ll be conducting an evaluation, and gathering feedback from young people, families and the wider community about their experiences. We invite you to share your thoughts, memories, and photos of Pembury through our online form.
Thank you to everyone who came and to the partners and employers who gave their time and shared their expertise. The team will be reaching out to everyone who left their details, as an important part of the evening was making sure there will be continued support for those who are interested. If you are a young person, or parent or carer to a young person, we’d love to hear from you in this short survey. This will help the team develop our resources and expand the youth programme.