London City Airport Consultative Committee

The Airport seeks to be a good neighbour. They understand that its near neighbours are interested in the impact which the Airport has on their lives and they make communication and consultation a key priority. To this end the Airport has developed and implemented a comprehensive Community Relations Programme which focuses primarily on local education and employment initiatives. They believe that investing in the future of local young people, employing local people and maintaining an open dialogue with the community is vital in shaping the future of London City Airport and the community in which it operates.

Relationships with the neighbours are generally good not least because the Airport strives to:

On this page, and those concerned with Employment and Supporting Education, we seek to describe the Airport's latest initiatives in pursuit of these local goals.

Community Relations Staff

The Airport is thus pro-active in building relations with its local community. To liaise with the community directly the Airport has a Community Relations Manager (Elizabeth Hegarty), a Community Relations Executive (Victoria Jeeves) and a Community Relations Coordinator (Rohima Begum). In addition the Airport's Environmental and Planning Manager (Rob Grafton) is also active in the local community. For contact details see our Contacts page.

Community Relations Ambassadors

Supporting the community relations staff are three Community Relations Ambassadors who work elsewhere in the Airport but provide support to the Communty Relations team on one day a month each. They work part time with the Community Relations team to further strengthen links with local residential and business communities. The key responsibilities of the Community Relations Ambassador include:

* Developing and maintaining relationships within local communities by attending meetings, contributing to local projects, programmes and initiatives.
* Providing local schools, colleges and interest groups with guided tours of the airport.
* Raising the profile and co-ordinating London City Airport community relations activity.
* Assisting with planning and organising of fundraising events.
* Working with local education providers to build skills and confidence in local students.

The Ambassadors receive additional skills training to help equip them for their community tasks, such as Powerpoint presentation skills, and are provided with the opportunity to gain a wider understanding of the business as a whole, thus assisting in their personal development. The Ambassadors perform their duties during working hours, one day each month in place of their normal roles.

Community Programmes

VISIT the Airport's website for information about the Airport's Community Programmes. Elizabeth Hegarty, the Airport's Community Relations Manager, will be pleased to answer any questions - for contact details see our Contacts page.

Supporting Education

A KEY ingredient of the Airport's Community Programme is support for local schools, colleges, universities and the Newham Education Business Partnership (NEBP) through its involvement in a variety of programmes and initiatives. There is an outline of these initiatives on the Airport's website.

Airport Tours

The Airport conducts educational tours on a regular basis for local organisations and interested groups within the community - click here for more for more information

Funday

Once again on Saturday 7th July 2007 the Airport transformed from a major European business hub into a fun-filled theme park. Fun Day has been a regular feature of Airport life for 11 years now and every year gets bigger and better.

As well as featuring London's only regular air display, the entire aircraft parking area behind the terminal is packed with rides, shows, displays, sports activities, and lots to eat and drink with something to suit all age groups.

Entry for the thousands of people who come along each year is free but once inside many of the rides and attractions require tickets, the proceeds from which go to support Richard House Children's Hospice, providing care for children with life-threatening illnesses, and itself a near neighbour of the airport. So as well as having a good time, you can support a really worthwhile local cause.

In December 2007 the Airport presented Richard House with a cheque for £35,000 which included the proceeds from Fun Day. [See press release]

Preparations have already commenced for Fun Day 2008 which is scheduled to take place on Saturday 5 July 2008 starting at 14.00hrs and running until 1900 hours. The Airport says the event promises to be more exciting than ever before. As London City Airport celebrates its 21st birthday, the airport staff are dedicated to bringing together the community with a host of new activities and attractions. The apron "is remarkably transformed from a working airport into a theme park within a few hours". For more information visit these web pages

Annual Art Awards

Every year the Airport runs an art competition for those living within 5 miles of the Airport. Entrants are expected to submit pictures featuring the Airport and its surroundings in any way they see fit. Art and photography shortlisted for an Award is displayed in the passenger terminal near the Meridian Business Centre where passengers can see them. Exhibiting the paintings and photographs gives passengers an opportunity to purchase them. Prize money is awarded to the top three winning entries.

In 2007 the Awards were again co-sponsored by the London Borough of Newham and Newham's Mayor, Sir Robin Wales, joined Airport MD Richard Gooding to present the prizes at a special Reception in the Meridian Business Centre on Monday 4th June 2007 The winners were:

Highly Commended (Certificate and a bottle of champagne)- Rhoda Webb and Daksha Amin, both from Forest Gate.

All year round different societies or organisations display their artwork in the terminal and donate twenty percent of their profits to the Richard House Trust.

2008 Art Awards

The Airport published details of the 2008 Art Awards in a press release issued on 14th February 2008. The closing date for entries is Friday 2 May 2008. For further information contact Linda Alexander on 020 7646 0056

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Awards

Following its success in winning a similar accolade of the Docklands Business Club (DBC) in 2003, the Airport went on in 2006 to win the Club's "Corporate Support for the Local Community" award.

Speaking Club's Gala Dinner DBC Chairman said: “As a business London City Airport is a great success story for East London, but as well as recognising their role as a key employer within the community, they have successfully identified their role as a neighbour. As a neighbour they provide continuous support on a day-to-day basis investing both time and money into the community.”

Accepting the Award on behalf of the Airport Angeline Barnes, Community Relations Manager, said the continued support of the staff had helped to grow the level of community involvement:

“We are overjoyed to receive this award. The enthusiasm and dedication shown by the Airport's staff demonstrates how a company can support its local community and make a difference. Our Community Programme enables us to work together with the community and offer support on a day-to-day basis.

"East London is a great place to live and work. There are exciting times ahead for both local businesses and residents. We believe the success that the Airport enjoys today is a result of our neighbour's continued support. We will continue to build this partnership to benefit from the exciting opportunities that East London will enjoy.”

The Airport's latest work in the Community

At each of its meetings the Consultative Committee receives a report from the Community Relations Manager on the Airport's latest work in the community. The latest Community Relations Report** for the for the period July September 2007, was received by the Committee at its meeting on 2nd October 2007

** This report is in .pdf format and to view them you will need an Acrobat Reader. This can be obtained free of charge by clicking the "Get Acrobat Reader" icon opposite.