Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 June to Questions 263696, how many (a) Jewish and (b) other faith groups Big Ideas has (i) organised or participated in meetings with and (ii) engaged with in other ways on the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
Big Ideas Community Interest Company have reached out to a range of community organisations across Westminster, Greater London and nationally. They have held meetings with those groups who expressed an interest in learning more about the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre either through direct engagement or hosting information in their newsletters. A list of direct engagements is below.
Emmanuel Centre - Mother and Toddler Group |
Board of Deputies of British Jews Board Meeting |
Brixton Library - Foyer Space |
Emmanuel Centre - Homework Club |
Emmanuel Evangelical Church - Sunday Service and Community Lunch |
Grey Coat Hospital School - Y11 and Sixth Form Group |
Grey Coat Hospital School - Year 9 Class |
Holocaust Survivors' Centre |
Kinder Lunch - Alyth Gardens Synagogue |
National Holocaust Centre, Nottingham - AJR Members |
Open Age Westminster (Churchill Hub) - Coffee Morning |
Remembering and Rethinking - Kindertransport Conference - Lancaster House |
Thamesbank Centre - ETAT Group (Encouragement Through the Arts and Talking) |
Thamesbank Centre - Mothers and Toddlers Group |
The Abbey Centre - The Wash House Cafe |
Together Plan - Memories of the Minsk Ghetto |
United Synagogue - Annual Women's Dinner |
Wiener Library - Heroes of the Holocaust |
Wiener Library - Panel discussion |
William Gibbs Community Centre - Coffee Morning |
Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 June to Question 263698, for what reasons the Government’s contract with Big Ideas on the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre does not specify engagement with existing users of Victoria Tower Gardens.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The work of the Big Ideas Community Interest Company aims to engage local people whether or not they use Victoria Tower Gardens.
Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, what the highest number of submissions was that Big Ideas submitted in a day to the Westminster Council website on the planning application for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
This information is available on Westminster City Council’s planning portal.
Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, if he will place in the Library the speaking notes and presentations used by Big Ideas in its public engagement work on the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The work of the Big Ideas Community Interest Company drew on material that is publicly available.
Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 June to Question 263703, how many of the 24 possible sites for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre reported by the CBRE to the board of the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation on 11 January 2016 had not been brought to the board’s attention before that date.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
None were formally submitted to the Foundation.
Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 June to Question 263706, for what reasons Victoria Tower Gardens was not included in the site selection process for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre conducted by the UK Holocaust Memorial Foundation and the CBRE between September 2015 and 11 January 2016.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
CBRE was only one element in the search for potential sites.
Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answers of 19 and 21 June 2019 to Questions 263702 and 263704, on whose authority representatives of the UKHMF engaged in discussions with Royal Parks and government departments on 2 December 2015 on the possible use of Victoria Tower Gardens for the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre; and for what reasons those discussions were not reported to the board of the UKHMF.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
Representatives of the United Kingdom Holocaust Memorial Foundation (UKHMF) engaged with the Royal Parks on the authority of the chair of UKHMF and Ministers.
Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, pursuant to the Answer of 19 June to Question 263707, whether it is the Government’s policy that following the construction of the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre that there will be no continuing call on public funds for that centre's maintenance and operation.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The United Kingdom Holocaust Memorial Foundation are considering various operating models to cover the running costs as part of a sustainable long-term plan.
Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether it is his policy that work on the Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre after planning permission has been secured will not begin until (a) pledges of funding from non-government sources of at least £25 million have been secured and (b) funding for ongoing maintenance and operation is in place.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
Funding arrangements will be in place before main construction begins.
Asked by: Edward Leigh (Conservative - Gainsborough)
Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:
To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, for what reasons the Government reduced the amount to be raised through the public fundraising campaign for the proposed Holocaust Memorial and Learning Centre from £52 million to at least £25 million.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The aim is to raise at least £25 million from charitable donations.