Project Case Studies
Furniture on the Street
Partners:
- Old Ford Housing Association (part of Circle Anglia)
- Caxton Hall Management Committee
- The Bromley By Bow Centre's Furniture Group
- Rick Levene Associates Ltd
Summary
Furniture on the Street manufactures and supplies outdoor furniture for public spaces using reclaimed timber from London demolition sites. The project was set up by Old Ford Housing part of Circle Anglia, and grew out of the ALG-ESF Co-Financing Programme which provides accredited training in carpentry.Description
Furniture on the Street (FotS) is a social business, supplying benches, bins and planters to housing associations, local authorities and landscaping companies. More than this, FotS can be involved in the development of specific solutions and work with community groups, schools or resident associations to develop solutions which truly represent the work of local people.The 'Design & Build' training course is adjacent to the Furniture on the Street office. This training programme is delivered in partnership with another social enterprise; The Furniture Group, which is part of the Bromley By Bow Centre's Enterprise Hub. This centre has over 20 years of delivering successful regeneration programmes.
Process
Furniture on the Street supplied benches for a park in Camden, London NW1 and these were designed together with young people in the local area. The process built upon work with St Pancras Youth (SPY) developing ideas for a nearby estate. When the park project arose, two of the young people helped develop scale models with furniture designer Rick Levene, through a specially designed workshop. These scale models were built into full-size mock ups and then to prototype the design, components were commissioned.The first production model was taken to the Furniture Industry Research Association (FIRA) in Stevenage for testing and achieved a pass at BS 4875-1 to test level 5, the highest rating for strength and stability of outdoor furniture. Young people attended pre-arranged visits to the V&A, the Design Museum, a metalwork fabrication company, the galvanisers and to FIRA. Young people from the project were invited to be part of ongoing meetings and came to a local community centre in Camden to be part of the assembly and delivery of the park benches too.
The FotS project is currently developing an idea of one the trainees. A new design to be produced in 316 grade stainless steel. More broadly, the project is also open to the potential for social franchising which would allow the work done to develop designs be replicated in other areas. An initiative such as this would allow more exposure of product and increase sales.
Evaluation
In evaluating a project such as Furniture on the Street it is important to highlight those innovative aspects. The project has brought several key strands together which include: training, social enterprise, the green agenda and design development, into a product which has appeal and saleability.This mix is undoubtably the plus-side of a venture such as this, but as with any new business, securing sales in this sector can be a long haul. From a lead to an order can be as long as a year, with furniture being one of the last elements of any new development, and special conditions for selling to local authorities for example, and foreward financing orders. The FotS approach may not suit the commercial sector either, as FotS are happy to engage in workshops with local users, community groups, or a youth forum.
These hurdles have been overcome in part by FotS being part of Old Ford Housing Association, who itself is part of Circle Anglia, and therefore benefits from the securities of being part of a larger organisation which can provide support in the areas of Finance, Human Resources, Facilities Management and Community Development.
Resources
Circle Anglia: wwww.circleanglia.org/