Employment
Jobs create wealth and help regenerate communities yet unemployment in Bromley by Bow is three times the national average. In fact many local people have never worked.
There are many reasons for this. The East End economy has changed dramatically over the past 50 years. The old industrial heritage of the Lower Lea Valley has now largely gone and many people living here did not have the skills to take advantage of new opportunities created in places like Canary Wharf.
However at a time when lots of exciting new opportunities and multi million pound developments are coming to east London such as the Olympics, Stratford City and Lord Mawson's vision for a WaterCity, we want to make sure that local people can grasp these opportunities. This is why we are working hard with our community and with local businesses to help people develop new skills and move into meaningful, well paid employment.
A major local employer too
The Bromley by Bow Centre has helped local people into work in another very direct way - the Centre itself is a significant local employer. This did not happen overnight but developed organically as opportunities arose.
A great example is Bob's Park. What started as a project to clean up a shabby, run-down public space became a job for a full-time gardener, which eventually led to Green Dreams, a landscaping and design business based at the Centre, creating new jobs and apprenticeships.
The Centre employs over 100 people and provides many more volunteering opportunities and work placements. Two thirds of the staff live in Bromley by Bow, four out of five within a three mile radius of the Centre.
Another key part of our success story is our Beyond Business programme which has been the catalyst for the launch of 28 successful social enterprises with a combined turnover of more than £3 milllion and has created more than 200 jobs.
This is how sustainable regeneration works.
View current job vacancies at the Bromley by Bow Centre.
