News from London Action Resource Centre (LARC)
Sam | 21.04.2002 22:27
LARC is a space for people interested in taking positive action for social justice and the environment. Run by and for its users, it’s made up of a meeting room/ exhibition space, office, library, roof garden, and banner/prop-making basement…
LARC UPDATE/NEWSLETTER, APRIL 2002
Stop press: Free yoga sessions every Tuesday evening from 5.30-7pm, starting on April 23rd, for people of all abilities.
If you would like to be sent a LARC introductory leaflet, please email, phone or (preferably) write to us sending an SAE. Contact details below…
This is the first of what we hope are regular updates from LARC, in this case to let everyone know what the latest situation is with the building as it feels like it is taking forever due to frustrating delays with the council etc. However, the latest good news is that we have officially occupied the building (as of 1st March, 2002) - hurrah! Unfortunately we’re still ironing out health and safety issues with the council, and as such can’t use the top floor office space at the moment. (By the way, the groups set to use that space are LARC itself, London Reclaim the Streets and Indymedia’s Offline project, as well as occasional campaigns and needs that’ll arise down the road.)
So we can use the rest of the building for meetings, making banners/artwork etc., and for other events. And there are still many jobs left to do - we need as much help as possible to finish off outstanding building work. We also need lots of people to get involved in the working groups that are now required if we are going to get the building up and running quickly and comparatively smoothly. So if you have any amount of spare time each week, why not put your name down on the work rota or let us know if you're interested in joining one of the following groups:
Fieldgate general admin, gardening, organising events, finance & fundraising etc. These working groups aren’t properly organised yet, so there’s plenty of scope for developing them if anyone is interested.
And talking about getting Fieldgate up and running means finding money on a regular basis. There will be bills to pay plus other costs, as well as maintenance of the building. We may have to fork out substantial amounts for rates each year as well, though we have made an application to the local council for a discretionary rate rebate. (In case you didn’t know, the building is owned by a company limited by guarantee, of which there are about 10 directors. The company is set up is such as way as to prevent those directors from being able to profit from their position; in fact, we’ve set it up in a similar way to a co-op…)
One obvious way to help finance the building is by having regular benefits, which have started to happen already. Donations by those who use LARC are another way of raising some funding and any donations would be very welcome. If anyone has other ideas or suggestions about ways we could generate income to cover our running costs or even reduce them, please, please share them with us.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS AT LARC:
The ‘Festival of Alternatives’ (www.ourmayday.org) comes (partly) to LARC:-
Sunday 28th April 10-4pm/Tuesday 30th 4-7pm: ‘Free Market’, the money-free shop. See separate leaflet for full details, (www.reclaimthestreets.net)
Tuesday 30th, 11-1: website design workshop.
Thursday May 2nd, 12-7pm: health and healing day.
Friday 3rd 11am: prisoner resistance workshop
2-3.30pm: Rising Tide climate justice workshop (www.risingtide.org.uk)
4pm: feminism workshop?
7-9pm: Peoples’ Global Action workshop (www.agp.org)
Sunday 5th 7pm: anti-militarism direct action workshop?
Monday 6th, 3pm: how to start and run a food co-op?
4-5.30pm: food autonomy w’shop (
http://www.resistanceisfertile.com/english/)
6pm: No Borders workshop (www.noborder.org/)
6pm: Films: ‘Incitement to Riot’ & ‘New Kids on the Black Bloc’.
8pm: film and talk from the Simon Jones Memorial Campaign,
(www.simonjones.org.uk/)
May 15th 7.30pm: London Social Centres meeting
May 18th: OPEN(ING) DAY from midday onwards, including tours of the building, tea and cake, probably loads of stuff left over from the Free Market to take away, and lots of surprises we haven’t thought up yet! All welcome, and there’s a working Saturday to prepare for that on May 11th, from midday.
May 25th: women’s day.
Regular events:
Free yoga sessions every Tuesday evening from 5.30-7pm, starting on April 23rd, for people of all abilities.
Stop press: Free yoga sessions every Tuesday evening from 5.30-7pm, starting on April 23rd, for people of all abilities.
If you would like to be sent a LARC introductory leaflet, please email, phone or (preferably) write to us sending an SAE. Contact details below…
This is the first of what we hope are regular updates from LARC, in this case to let everyone know what the latest situation is with the building as it feels like it is taking forever due to frustrating delays with the council etc. However, the latest good news is that we have officially occupied the building (as of 1st March, 2002) - hurrah! Unfortunately we’re still ironing out health and safety issues with the council, and as such can’t use the top floor office space at the moment. (By the way, the groups set to use that space are LARC itself, London Reclaim the Streets and Indymedia’s Offline project, as well as occasional campaigns and needs that’ll arise down the road.)
So we can use the rest of the building for meetings, making banners/artwork etc., and for other events. And there are still many jobs left to do - we need as much help as possible to finish off outstanding building work. We also need lots of people to get involved in the working groups that are now required if we are going to get the building up and running quickly and comparatively smoothly. So if you have any amount of spare time each week, why not put your name down on the work rota or let us know if you're interested in joining one of the following groups:
Fieldgate general admin, gardening, organising events, finance & fundraising etc. These working groups aren’t properly organised yet, so there’s plenty of scope for developing them if anyone is interested.
And talking about getting Fieldgate up and running means finding money on a regular basis. There will be bills to pay plus other costs, as well as maintenance of the building. We may have to fork out substantial amounts for rates each year as well, though we have made an application to the local council for a discretionary rate rebate. (In case you didn’t know, the building is owned by a company limited by guarantee, of which there are about 10 directors. The company is set up is such as way as to prevent those directors from being able to profit from their position; in fact, we’ve set it up in a similar way to a co-op…)
One obvious way to help finance the building is by having regular benefits, which have started to happen already. Donations by those who use LARC are another way of raising some funding and any donations would be very welcome. If anyone has other ideas or suggestions about ways we could generate income to cover our running costs or even reduce them, please, please share them with us.
FORTHCOMING EVENTS AT LARC:
The ‘Festival of Alternatives’ (www.ourmayday.org) comes (partly) to LARC:-
Sunday 28th April 10-4pm/Tuesday 30th 4-7pm: ‘Free Market’, the money-free shop. See separate leaflet for full details, (www.reclaimthestreets.net)
Tuesday 30th, 11-1: website design workshop.
Thursday May 2nd, 12-7pm: health and healing day.
Friday 3rd 11am: prisoner resistance workshop
2-3.30pm: Rising Tide climate justice workshop (www.risingtide.org.uk)
4pm: feminism workshop?
7-9pm: Peoples’ Global Action workshop (www.agp.org)
Sunday 5th 7pm: anti-militarism direct action workshop?
Monday 6th, 3pm: how to start and run a food co-op?
4-5.30pm: food autonomy w’shop (
http://www.resistanceisfertile.com/english/) 6pm: No Borders workshop (www.noborder.org/)
6pm: Films: ‘Incitement to Riot’ & ‘New Kids on the Black Bloc’.
8pm: film and talk from the Simon Jones Memorial Campaign,
(www.simonjones.org.uk/)
May 15th 7.30pm: London Social Centres meeting
May 18th: OPEN(ING) DAY from midday onwards, including tours of the building, tea and cake, probably loads of stuff left over from the Free Market to take away, and lots of surprises we haven’t thought up yet! All welcome, and there’s a working Saturday to prepare for that on May 11th, from midday.
May 25th: women’s day.
Regular events:
Free yoga sessions every Tuesday evening from 5.30-7pm, starting on April 23rd, for people of all abilities.
Sam
e-mail:
fieldgate@gn.apc.org
Comments
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Text for an introductory LARC leaflet
21.04.2002 22:42
Here's some more text to explain a bit more about the space. Oh, and the nearest tubes are Aldgate East
or Whitechapel...
'''''''''''''''''''''''
Here’s a copy of part of the statement that greets visitors when they come into the building:
'This is a list of the ways that this building works - we ask that you respect them while using it.
· This co-operatively owned and run building is dedicated to taking steps (however small or large) towards a socially just and environmentally sustainable future;
· No one can discriminate against anyone else on the grounds of colour, gender, sexuality, nationality, religion etc. In fact, we seek actively to overcome such prejudice.
· This is a non-hierarchical space, meaning that no one is ‘in charge’, or able to tell others what to do. So that means that making it work is down to all of us!
· We believe that respect for the planet goes hand in hand with respect for its people, so wherever possible, we’re trying to reduce the impact the building has on the planet. That means taking care to save as much energy as possible (and even generating our own at some stage), using ecological building materials, and generally working to reduce, reuse & recycle what we can.
· Users of the building are asked to contribute to making it work, both by helping out physically on a regular basis (all the way from washing up your tea cups to cleaning the toilet), and also by helping keep enough income coming in to keep the doors open.
· Regular Users Group meetings will be open to all who are actively involved in the building, and that will be where big decisions concerning it will be made.’
Issues that might be looked at in the centre could include
· the need for a cheap (or possibly even free!) public transport system in London, and to deal with the horrendous traffic we face every day;
· preventing a further escalation in the US/UK ‘war on terror’;
· opposing the further privatisation of essential public services;
· campaigning for the rights of asylum seekers and all refugees, and to dismantle all borders;
· taking action for climate justice in the struggle to prevent climate change;
. fighting to protect our biodiversity and for real food solutions not corporate GM solutions...
And as well as meetings etc. about ‘issues’, LARC will be a space where people can come together for other events, like the free yoga classes every Tuesday afternoon. And if you have an idea for an activity in the building, feel free to get in touch or to come to an open planning meeting. Events will be free as often as possible, though there will be regular fundraising activities, and all users are encouraged to make whatever contribution they’re able to in order to keep the building up and running. There will also be regular times when people will be free to come in, browse in the library, possibly use a computer or maybe just pick up a few leaflets.
By the way, the groups set to use the office space are the LARC admin group, London Reclaim the Streets (www.reclaimthestreets.net) and Indymedia’s Offline project (www.uk.indymedia.org), as well as occasional local, London-wide or international campaigns and needs that will arise later on.
We have made efforts to minimise the ecological impact of the building, although our budget has not allowed us to be 100% eco-sound. (We do, however, have planning permission for a wind turbine and solar panels!)
This is one of many similar projects coming together both in and outside the capital, other examples being the Sumac Centre in Nottingham, The Cowley Club in Brighton, Bridge 5 Mill in Manchester and Emmaz in London.
We look forward to seeing you there over the inspiring, challenging, scary or ordinary days and months to come...
Scam
e-mail:
fieldgate@gn.apc.org