Suburban Futures: Town Centres, the Arts and Regeneration

Many people see London as a patchwork of villages, absorbed into the city during its rapid growth in the nineteenth century. Today, some of these villages have become our most successful Town Centres. But not all of them find it easy to survive.

Just what makes such places work? The quality and diversity of the shops, the buildings, the spaces in between them, the wealth of the residents living nearby, accessibility? What do the arts offer? Can London learn from other cities?

These are the questions that will be asked at Suburban Futures, a London-wide conference being held at the artsdepot in North Finchley this Friday 28 September (10am-4.30pm).

The speakers and performers include:

Kat Francois, World Slam Champion, 2005
Jordi Pascual, Barcelona City Council (Olympic host city, 1992)
Thierry Baert, Lille Metropole (City of Culture, 2004)
Vanessa Bone, Creative Cultures
Joost Beunderman, Urhahn Urban Design, Amsterdam/London
Robin Buckle, Design for London
Paul Lyalls, performance poet
Jane Ponder, Brentwood Town Centre
Stella Eldon, artist
John Burton, Creative Space Agency/Urban Space Management
Charles Landry, well-known author on creativity and city futures

If you want to make London's Town Centres vibrant and exciting places to live and work, you still have time to register (£30) - but places are limited!

Contact peter@fourgreens.org by Wednesday 26 September at the latest.