OnTrack Sports Therapy - at Fitness First, Blue Star House, Stockwell Road, SW9 9SP. info@ontracksportstherapy.co.uk. Offering 10% off to B£ customers.

The Ford Clinic, Nutritional Therapy – at Fitness First, Blue Star House, Stockwell Road, SW9 9SP. louise@thefordclinic.co.uk

Copacabana – 12-14 Market Row, SW9 8LD. Authentic Brazilian cuisine.Offering 10% to B£ customers.

Casa Sibilla – Unit 67-68, Granville Arcade, SW8 9PS. Fresh Italian food prepared from scratch in front of you. Offering 10% every Tuesday to B£ customers

First Choice Bakers – 40 Atlantic Road, SW8 8JW. Producers of finest Jamaican Patties, cakes, buns, breads.

WAG Free Food – 26 Granville Arcade, SW9 8PR.  Freshly baked wheat and gluten free bread, pies, cakes and pastries.

KUBIFIT - Personal training programs, group exercises, in and outdoors.

Mobile Care – 1 Atlantic Road, SW9 8HX. Mobile phone sales and support.

Please do say hello and show them your support, in the shape of our lovely notes….

Noureddine with his B£ cups

Owner of Sitifis Cafe Noureddine Lalmi was photographed by Lambeth Life for an article about the Brixton Pound reusable cup scheme. Sitifis is just one of many cafes and eateries in Brixton offering a discount to customers using the cup. Get hold of yours now from participating businesses for B£6 or £6.50 and help reduce the amount of waste going to landfill. See this earlier post for more details.

The Brixton Pound also featured in Friday’s Evening Standard. Brixton Village trader Mpho McKenzie said the Brixton Pound had helped boost local trade. Read the article in full here.

Stallholders will be accepting Brixton £s on the day so it’s a great opportunity to pick up the last (or, in my case, the first) of your Christmas presents. Shopping in the Dogstar – it’s got to be less stressful than Oxford Street!

On that note, we’d love to hear from anyone who’s decided to buy all their Christmas presents using Brixton Pounds. Simon Woolf did it last year and you can watch a video of him Christmas shopping here.

Watch this space for more hints and tips about how to support independent businesses in Brixton over the festive period…

The Community Shop in Granville Arcade

There are loads of ways that you can help the B£ as well as spending it. We are hosting a very informal meeting on Thursday 3rd June for anyone keen to join the team. We will talk a little about the B£’s plans and activities and then there will be an opportunity to have a chat and discuss ways of getting involved.

Over the summer… There are loads of festivals and community events which we are looking to participate in, to help spread the word, increase B£ circulation, and generally make the B£ louder and more visible. Perhaps you could help us with this?

Here are a few different ways that we need help. Get in touch if you think you’re the one for the job!

1) Processing collectors’ packs – online and Ebay orders
2) Saturday outreach – visiting business supporters ensuring they have all necessary communication material; also help with staffing an info stall outside KFC between 11:00-15:00hrs
3) Thursdays drop-in session at the community shop – to help with visitors’ enquiries between 18:00-22:00hrs
4) Producing communication material e.g. A4 posters for businesses
5) Translation of our user guide into community languages e.g. Yoruba, French, Polish
6) Helping during events such as the Lambeth County Show, Brixton Splash, etc.

The Community Shop is in Granville Arcade (entrance from Coldharbour Lane, past the Dogstar and immediately on the left past the railway bridge). The shop is the third unit on the left hand side.

Come for a cup of tea and to find out in more detail how you can get involved.

Branded by the B£!

The B£ team were out in force, selling pounds on the night, manning the Community Shop and painting the B£ logo on anyone who was willing!

There was a real carnival atmosphere in the Village, helped along a little by the BOY policy. Brixtonian Rowan Sawday said, “It felt like the community was thrown open. Everyone was just relaxed and mingling and I had wicked conversations with about five new people. I’ll be there for the next one!” So far the plan is to keep Brixton Village open late every Thursday, with the possibility of extending this to Market Row (fingers firmly crossed). Make sure you get down to the next one and show some support!

The "democratree"

On Saturday Power 2010* hosted ‘Blow-up Politics in Brixton’, an informal event where Brixtonians had the opportunity to have a chat with parliamentary candidates from the three constituencies of Streatham, Vauxhall and Dulwich and West Norwood.

Candidates sat on bright pink inflatable sofas while constituents queued to have their say or add their thoughts to a “democratree”. The street outside KFC became a real political melting pot for the afternoon with candidates from both ends of the political spectrum as well as the three main parties.

Despite the candidates looking a little uncomfortable at times (it’s hard to strike a confident pose on inflatable furniture) there was a real buzz around the event itself, which drew a large crowd of spectators throughout the afternoon.

Never one to miss an opportunity to talk politics, the Brixton Pound posed a few questions to the candidates about the local economy and independent businesses.

Lib Dem candidate for Streatham Chris Nicholson had some encouraging things to say. He stressed the importance of attracting new business to Brixton and highlighted the late-night and Sunday openings for the market as something that could draw in custom from further afield. Nicholson mentioned his own personal frustration at never being able to find time to eat in foodie hotspot Franco Manca.

Chris Nicholson talks to a constituent

Green candidate Rebecca Findlay was adamant that business rates need to be readdressed to give new independent businesses a fighting chance, especially in areas where they are being crowded out by commercial chain stores. On the high street, independent businesses can currently be charged up to four times the rate that chains pay. Findlay was supportive of the Brixton Pound project as an economic initiative, especially its accessibility for people outside the mainstream banking system.

Unfortunately Socialist candidate Daniel Lambert didn’t approve of the Brixton Pound. Then again, he didn’t approve of the use of money full stop. Can’t win ‘em all…

*Power 2010 is a political pressure group campaigning for parliamentary reform in the run up to the general election. Go to www.power2010.org.uk for more information.

Did you know that you can buy yourself our very special Brixton Pound badges and key rings from our community shop?

They come in various colours and design, are handmade in store, by our team of creative craftspeople, using recycled materials as much as possible, and we are selling them at the bargain price of 1 Brixton Pound.

By wearing them you will help us raise awareness about the initiative, may get some conversations started about local currencies, while of course also looking absolutely cool…

Or you could come to the community shop and make your own – we have fabrics and materials, but you are also welcome to bring your own.

All money raised goes towards supporting the Brixton Pound.

• wood carving
• stone sculpting
• costumes making
• banners making
• stainglass making
• drumming
• bicycle repair

So whether you are artistically inclined, or need some help fixing your bike, or you simply enjoy making stuff with your hands, do pop over and say hi to resident sculptor and painter Jose and bicycle-repairs man Jimmy. They will be very happy to get your hands dirty.

New Generation also sell a number of paintings and sculptures, which you will be able  to purchase using Brixton Pounds.

The unit is open every day, except Sunday, until Saturday 17th April, between 10am and 5:30pm.

It will be home to the 3 Future Jobs Fund workers, including our very own new Project Manager, the Remade in Brixton Marketing and Engagement Coordinator role, and TTB‘s Shop Manager and Assistant Coordinator post: the roles will be advertised as soon as all details have been finalised.

TTB plans to develop the community shop as a really useful Transition Resource and Work Centre. The Brixton Pound will therefore continue to have a central base in the market, from which to launch its community expeditions…Come and see us at the shop, we would love you to get involved.

Volunteers to staff the shop are also always welcome, so if you can spare a few hours do let us know.

Brixton Market Row (by Steve Cadman)

We are delighted to announce that the B£, together with Transition Town Brixton, the Brixton Market Traders Federation and Friends of Brixton Market, has been given a free space in the heart of Brixton! As part of the Space Makers initiative, what was an empty market unit will be transformed (initially for three months) into a buzzing community space for people to come together, mingle, discuss and contribute to create and enact a vision for Brixton as a thriving, inclusive and sustainable economy.

The unit will provide a fantastic opportunity to showcase the wonderful initiatives happening in our community, and a real chance for everyone to come say hi and get involved. Keep an eye on Unit 6, Granville Arcade for further developments.

Our new home: Unit 6 at the Granville Arcade, Brixton Market

And if we ever need a cup of sugar, no doubt our next door neighbour Remade in Brixton at 5 Granville Arcade, will be happy to oblige, as well as lending some great creative skills.