You are here:

Working in the local community

Working in the local community
As a community-based association we are committed to building sustainable communities. We want to work with local communities to develop their own capacity for mutual support and independent action. We are developing opportunities for the active participation and engagement of residents in the life of the community – informing residents and getting them involved including coming along to the quarterly Residents Forum. Partnership working on the Respect Agenda with the police and other stakeholders as well as contributing to West End Forum and Westminster’s Police Community Consultative Group. Soho Housing Association benefited from the Neighbourhood Renewal Funding administered through Voluntary Action Westminster. We have used the funds for the Chinese community to visit Manchester and meet residents from Tung Sing Housing Association as well as introducing a Silver Surfers Project at our sheltered scheme. We have been working with the Soho Caring Agencies Forum in the production and distribution of the Soho Directory. The Soho Directory has been designed to help residents access services and we are now working on the implementation of the Soho Action Plan.

Working in the local community

Soho Society and Soho Festival

The Soho Society – www.thesohosociety.org.uk was founded in 1972 and within a few months it was registered as a charity and had gained a formal consultative status with Westminster City Council on all planning, licensing, traffic and environmental matters. The Society is now an influential community association and a member of the Civic Trust – www.civictrust.org.uk Britain’s leading charity devoted to enhancing the quality of life in cities, town and villages.

Members of the Soho Society founded the housing association in 1973 as well as other local bodies such as the Museum of Soho. The Soho Festival was run by the Soho Society in 1972 in St Anne’s Gardens – for a video clip of this year’s 34th Festival please visit our youtube site.

Soho Caring Agencies Forum

The Soho Caring Agencies Forum was set up in 2001 by the Reverend Clare Herbert (former Rector of St Anne’s Church) and Chris Best, Chief Executive of Soho Housing Association. The Forum is a network of community and statutory groups and brings together representative from the different agencies working in Soho. Please visit the Forum’s web site for more information – www.sohocaf.org.uk

West End Time Bank

The Association has been a keen supporter in setting up a Timebank for residents living in the West End. We are working with the London Timebank – www.londontimebank.org.uk to set up this mutual form of volunteering. Working with the Soho Caring Agencies Forum we have applied for funding from the Westminster West End Ward Fund and hope to employ a part time worker to move the project forward.

Soho Action Plan

The Soho Steering Group is chaired by Cllr Glenys Roberts and includes key stakeholders of the Soho community. The meetings take place every two months and current initiatives include:

  • Noise audit with a comparison to 2003 including an audit of late night noise
  • Street lighting audit to identify areas that need improving
  • Berwick Street market review and recommendations on revitalising the market area