New timeline for Peckham Rye station redevelopment

 Message from Southwark Council:  Dear Peckham Stakeholders                         3rd April 2014

We have good news that the GLA has now confirmed that they are willing to extend the deadline for the delivery of the Gateway to Peckham project and that the £5m of funding for the scheme is secure. Network Rail and the Council have decided we need to appoint some community engagement specialists to ensure the next stages of consultation (via a co-designing process) are successful. These specialists will be appointed shortly and we’re expecting consultation events to start in the summer with a view to developing submitting a planning application in the autumn. Please see below the press release that has been issued today.
Cllr Fiona Colley, Cabinet Member for Regeneration & Corporate Strategy, Labour Member for Nunhead Ward 

PRESS RELEASE
New timeline proposed for Peckham Rye station redevelopment:
Following last month’s agreement to extend the timescales for the Peckham Rye redevelopment project to allow for further community consultation, a new timetable has been proposed. Southwark Council, Network Rail, the GLA and Southern Railways are planning further public consultation in the summer including workshops where local people can sit down with the project team to further evolve the vision for the station area, understand constraints – both technical and financial – and develop a viable scheme which has been co-designed by the community alongside the partner organisations. The broad ambitions of the project are to improve the environment around the station and enhance the passenger experience, including opening up the Grade 2 listed station building, which has been hidden for many years, onto a new square. Community engagement specialists will be appointed shortly to work with the partners and run the consultation events. The events will then run over the summer months, with the aim of submitting a planning application in the autumn which has the support of local people. This new timetable would see the whole project completed by summer 2018.

Cllr Fiona Colley, Southwark Council’s Cabinet Member for Regeneration and Corporate Strategy, said:
“We know that local people felt the initial consultation was too hurried. Whilst they really want to see the station square happen, they weren’t happy with the initial proposals and because of the short deadlines didn’t have the chance to be fully involved in developing the plans. That is not how we want this scheme to go forward, because ultimately it is about providing a better station environment for all the people who use it, including those who work there, live nearby or travel through it. I’m really excited about this next phase of consultation. I know that Peckham is full of creative people committed to improving the neighbourhood and the Gateway to Peckham project will be vastly improved by involving them in a meaningful way.”

Stephen Mills, Senior Town Planner with Network Rail, said:
“Network Rail will continue to work with the local community to ensure that the most appropriate and viable proposal for the area around the station is produced and that the development will be an important asset, both for the local community and the travelling public in general. To this end, we have already had very valuable feedback to help shape these plans from the two community consultation events undertaken in November and January.”

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