About Us

Loughborough Junction bridge

The Loughborough Junction Action Group (LJAG) is a volunteer-led social action charity that works to improve the environment of Loughborough Junction and the lives of the people who live and work here.  It is our mission to make Loughborough Junction a great place to live and work.

It was formed in 2008 following the murder of a young man, Andrew Pratt, in Southwell Road. Local residents in the road and surrounding streets came together to do something positive for their neighbourhood which they felt had been neglected for too long.

LJAG works to achieve its mission through its projects which focus on community events, skill-sharing, greening, children’s activities and place-making. LJAG works to build a strong civic society in Loughborough Junction and has a record of involving volunteers across our diverse neighbourhood.

LJAG’s fundraising activities have brought over £600,000 into Loughborough Junction and we have been instrumental in attracting over £3 million of public investment into the area.

Over the years, LJAG has delivered art projects which have improved a pedestrian alleyway under a railway bridge; run two street photography projects; launched an augmented reality app linked to the history of World War One; run community events including four street parties; health events; a community festival; run cycle maintenance classes; craft workshops; a mapping project; installed street planters and run community planting days. We have worked with Lambeth council on the production of the Loughborough Junction Plan and on public realm improvements and we facilitate monthly meetings of the Loughborough Junction Neighbourhood Forum.

LJAG runs successful projects: Loughborough Farm, The Platform Cafe, Grove Adventure Playground and Craft Workshops.

Loughborough Farm is is a community garden open to everyone who wants to learn organic growing skills and meet their neighbours. It was started by LJAG in August 2013 to create a patchwork of community growing spaces on derelict or underused land and has continued growing since. They run regular volunteer growing sessions, sharing harvests between volunteers and giving surplus to their sister project The Platform Cafe.

The Platform Cafe started life in April 2017 as an offshoot of Loughborough Farm. It is open for coffee, cakes and vegetarian/vegan meals from 9am to 3pm from Tuesday to Saturday, using produce from the farm as well as surplus donations. It also offers  community events, outreach, workshops, volunteer programmes, training and work placement opportunities for local young people experiencing barriers into employment, and emergency food provisions for those in need.

LJAG rescued the Grove Adventure Playground from permanent closure and since summer 2018 it has run holiday and regular play schemes.  Situated in Gordon Grove, the playground has a history going back 50 years and has some of the most adventurous climbing structures in London.  The playground has been a great success. Over 400 children and young people between the ages of six and 14 are registered to use the playground and our popular holiday play schemes are attended by up to 75 children a day.

Craft Workshops offer free access to sewing machines and attendees learn how to make or repair clothes, knit and crochet. The workshops combat loneliness and isolation and pass skills between the generations. They are held at Carnegie Library every Tuesday in term time.

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