Help make Tower Hamlets a great place to live, work and play

LITERALLEY on Whitechapel High Street transforms an under-utilised alleyway into free public library and forum. An interactive bookshelf weaves through the alley connecting High Street neighbours.
A beautiful and playful structure will weave through Angel Alley on Whitechapel High Street creating a long bookshelf that contains a book exchange, a curated library, seating and planters. LITERALLEY re-imagines our relationship with the High Street - connecting diverse communities within a neighbourhood.
LITERALLEY emerges out of an innovative collaboration between Whitechapel Gallery, Providence Row, Freedom Press and the local landscape architects, Wayward. LITERALLEY will be built through Providence Row’s carpentry and gardening programs, and volunteers from the local area, creating an enchanting public library with green pockets that activates the high street. Local businesses, residents and community organisations will be invited to co-curate the library with Whitechapel Gallery, representing the diverse interests of the community. LITERALLEY will present itself as a new space for community outreach programmes, skill-share workshops, educational programming and public art.
What we'll deliver:
Why it's a great idea:
LITERALLEY maximizes the potential for alleys as open space resources and neighbourhood connectors. Establishing a new attraction on the high street, LITERALLEY supports local businesses and creates a safe, people-orientated passageway that celebrates community exchange of ideas and stories on the high street through a unique urban setting.
LITERALLEY has the potential to be transformative, not only for the space but for people too. Workshops in carpentry, gardening and horticulture during the build of the project will complement Provide Row’s current schemes. This project will provide Providence Row’s sheltered homeless community and local volunteers with more skills for future employment in a social environment that fosters well-being and connection. LITERALLEY will present a new cultural, and social environment for learning and exchange, representing the diverse ideas, politics, stories, histories, cultural identities and memories of the high street community through books.
Steps to get it done:
Local organisations, residents and businesses will be invited to co-curate the library through a community outreach campaign. Other links built in the local area include East London Mosque, Toynbee Hall, and Cass School of Art. The books will be a mixture of donations and small grants to represent the interests, cultures, stories, beliefs and histories of the local high street community. The project will also open up an important connection between Whitechapel High Street and Wentworth Street, with the potential of opening up a link with Osborne Street as well.
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Help make Tower Hamlets a great place to live, work and play
How will the money be spent?Target (inc. fees) £28,268
Costs Breakdown
This shows how money raised for the project will be spent. These costs have been confirmed by the project's Delivery Manager and verified.
Target (inc. fees) £28,268
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