Author: Tijs Broeke

As the weather is turning, we are preparing to support homeless people during the cold winter months. COVID-19 has seen City of London resources deployed in different ways and has forced a change to the planning we would normally have in place at this time. As Deputy Chair of the City’s Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Committee I’ve stressed the importance of a pan-London approach.

The City of London Police has launched its new Sector Policing model, which will see new dedicated local Police Officers on the beat in the Ward of Cheap and around Cheapside. Together with my Ward colleague Cllr Nick Bensted-Smith, I have championed this new approach as a member of the police authority board, because we believe a more local approach to policing in the City will benefit our communities, residents, businesses and visitors.

Together with my fellow Ward colleagues we are asking residents and City workers what the priorities should be for the City of London in responding to Covid19. We would like to hear what matters most to you – click here to complete the survey.

Today a new COVID19 test centre has opened in the Ward of Cheap in Guildhall Yard, just off Gresham Street. The test centre will be open from 8am and 8pm, 7 days a week, for both residents and City workers.

A 100-year-old man from Bow in east London has been be awarded the Freedom of the City of London today after raising £420,000 to help people who have contracted, or been affected by, COVID-19 in the UK and Bangladesh.

“With the PM’s guidance to work from home, footfall on our high streets is also way down.” But fellow member of the Barbican Centre Board, Jenny Waldman, rightly emphasises in the Evening Standard that visiting museums can help. She references a report by Arts Council England revealing that 75% of buildings used by arts organisations are either on or within a 5-minute walk of a high street, adding that “culture is embedded in the high street, supporting local economies and community cohesion.”

The City of London is planning to eliminate its carbon dioxide emissions by 2040 – ten years ahead of the national target – investing 68 million pounds to tackle climate change and create 800 jobs over the next six years. Earlier this month we approved a Climate Action Strategy at our full Council meeting. For more info click here.

In the shadows of St Paul’s Cathedral in the historic heart of the City of London Cheapside has been an attractive area for shopping and hospitality for centuries. And it is open for business! At the end of September the Cheapside Business Alliance reported that out of the 288 shops, cafes, restaurants and pubs in the area, 207 (or 72%) were open. This is up from 66% at the start of September. Come and visit. Now it is more than ever important to support our local businesses where you can.

Rough sleeping rates have fallen dramatically since the City of London Corporation converted a youth hostel in the Square Mile to provide beds for homeless people in May, at the height of the pandemic.

The world of worship in the City of London will be featured in an open-air photographic exhibition this month. Faith in the City of London, which showcases the work of photographer Niki Gorick, will be presented in Paternoster Square from 3 October to 28 October, before transferring to Aldgate Square for its 29 October to 26 November run.