After almost 2 years of hibernation the SMLS is finally waking up and coming to life again!
Finally we are able to host our Open Evenings again and with that take on new members! These will once more take place on Wednesdays and let you have a look at our space and meet some of our makers!
For now the Open Evenings will take place twice a month so please check on our Discourse Forum when they are taking place.
Much has happened in the past few months in and around the space to get the place looking good and ready to open up again for new members. A lot of work has also gone into ensuring a safe working environment for all members in regards to Covid. Each of our workshop rooms has a high volume air filtration system with HEPA-filters and currently we have a policy to wear masks in the space.
We have been working on expanding and we will be doubling our space with the arch next to us almost ready to move in to. So there will be a lot of opportunities to get involved in setting up new areas in our space and taking part in our upcoming volunteer days. You can find more details on Discourse
Over the past 2 years we had a lot of people interested in becoming a member of the space so our waiting list has grown considerably. We will try and work through our waiting list as quick as we can manage but it might be some time before we can offer a membership to everyone.
Hello @members,
Today, the UK government advice regarding Covid-19 has been updated. It now states:
Accordingly, we will be closing the Makerspace as soon as possible. Please note the key details of the closure process:
Whilst the physical space will be closed, our community continues on Discourse – so please do join the discussions. Hopefully many of you will be able to continue making at home during this period – you might find an idea for a new make on Discourse or be able to share your own tips and suggestions!
Once we know how long the space needs to remain closed, we will discuss the issue of membership subs with all members. For now, subs will continue to be taken by Direct Debit – the space may be closed, but most of our major costs (such as rent and business rates) still need to be paid. As ever, if you are in financial hardship please contact the Directors and we can discuss an alternative arrangement.
If you have any questions or concerns, please reach out to the Directors. At this difficult time, please take care of yourselves and your loved ones.
Thank you,
The Directors
The South London Makerspace Directors have been in close contact over the last few days to try and formulate plans for our response to potential Covid 19 derived issues.
Covid 19 is a new type of virus so is unpredictable, we are taking advice both from NHS England and World Health Organisation (WHO). We are also receiving advice from the City of London response committees.
Unfortunately at this time, for an organisation like ours, the advice is unclear and changing hour by hour.
As directors, we have a duty to look at any given situation and to do what we believe at the time is best for the membership.
At this time, our response is as follows :-
This is Your community, please work with us to keep it safe by following the enclosed guidance.
Many Thanks for your continued support and please work with us to keep SLMS safe by following the above.
Dear Members,
The UK Chief Medical Officers have raised the risk from coronavirus (COVID-19) to the public from low to moderate.
It matters to us that South London Makerspace is a safe space for everyone involved.
This note provides advice on coronavirus (COVID-19) and what steps you could take to help keep everyone safe.
For the latest information on coronavirus and how it affects you and your space or event, please check the website of your local public health organisation.
For London, https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/coronavirus-covid-19/ 1
These organisations regularly update their websites and are your most up-to-date source of information. We strongly encourage you to defer to the advice on these websites.
If you are unsure about anything, please consult the Directors (@directors on discourse or directors@southlondonmakerspace.org on email) and we will try to assist
The main risk to people with the virus is from public gatherings and people in close proximity. Due to the nature of the building and the ventilation etc, the space remains a low risk if we observe some basic measures.
While in the space, please observe good basic hygiene, wash your hands regularly, don’t share dust masks, take care while preparing food and store it in sealed containers, wash up your plate/cutlery/mug/pan etc AS SOON AS YOU’VE USED THEM with hot water and washing liquid and keep the place clean and tidy.
For planned sessions (Like the Thursday Electronics Club or Music Night), use common sense.
If, having checked your local public health advice and/or consulted the Techs/Directors, you feel that it is right to cancel a session or other event, you should do so. (you do not need to contact the Directors before making that decision, Tech or organisers can and should do this themselves if they feel the need)
If you decide to go ahead with your session or event, then you should consider taking the following actions:
The World Health Organisation’s website is a good starting point for finding information and advice about this. We strongly advise you not to try to provide public health advice yourself.
If a person feels unwell while in the space, please ask if they require medical help from 111 or (999 if you are worried about their condition), isolate them in one area and inform other members in the space.
We request that you don’t come to the space if you are in any way unwell, if you’ve recently travelled to the UK from somewhere with a higher risk of coronavirus or have been in contact with someone who has.
These places are (as of 5th March 2020):
Please contact us if you have any questions, and remember to regularly check your local public health organisation’s website for coronavirus updates.
Directors
Today, South London Makerspace will join a host of cultural organisations by declaring climate emergency. As the accelerating impacts of climate change become increasingly evident it is vital that we face the truth, demand action, support each other and express solidarity with affected communities.
Our declaration follows:
We South London Makerspace declare a Climate and Ecological Emergency
Since October 2014 South London Makerspace (SLMS) has been supporting a wide range of physical and digital making for makers of all backgrounds and abilities. We do this both in our online forum and physical space. As a volunteer-run workshop we encourage members to jump in a get making in everything from 3d Printing to screenprinting, lasercutting to woodturning and much besides and inbetween. Our underlying aim is ‘lowering the barriers to making’ through principles of skill sharing, inclusion and collaboration. The only qualification is an enthusiasm to make things
We are living through a period of growing awareness about the severity and speed and social and environmental challenges caused by unsustainable growth, climate change and resource insecurity. In October 2018 the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reported that we have only 12 years to make ‘urgent and unprecedented changes’ necessary to limit climate warming to 1.5 percent and avoid extreme heat, drought, floods and poverty.
Our planet is our only home, and to limit damage and develop resilience as the climate changes will require the engagement of individuals, organisations and nations on a global scale, with each contributing according to its attributes and abilities. There is increasing interest in the potential for museums and cultural organisations (encompassing arts, science, heritage & place) to catalyse civic engagement and place-based activism in this frame.
SLMS pledges to work with and support our community of makers, working with other cultural organisations and agencies, in understanding and tackling this Emergency.
These are our intentions:
Governments, and their public broadcasters and cultural agencies, must tell the truth about the Climate and Ecological Emergency, reverse inconsistent policies and communicate the urgency for far-reaching systemic change.
Governments must enact legally binding policy measures to reduce emissions to net zero by 2025 and to reduce consumption levels.
The emergency has arisen from deeply systemic injustices. Arts and Culture can imagine and forge shifts in the ways we relate to one another and the world, in our values and behaviours.
Declaration ends.
Find out more about Culture Declares Emergency
Come along, meet members, see our workshops!
There is no fixed itinerary for today – just as there is no timetable for any day at South London Makerspace: you never know quite who will turn up or what they’ll be working on
There could be Daleks, jewellery making, bowl turning, coding…or completely unrelated projects
Other than that we can promise you a warm welcome, a tour of the workshops, and that you will learn at least one fascinating/mind-blowing new fact*…and strongly hint that you’ll see 3d printing and laser cutting in action
Plus: Robin Baungarten’s famous experimental hardware games and installations – as seen in the recent Videogames: Design/Play/Disrupt exhibition at the V&A
*or your money back, noting that entry is free…
Welcome to the SLMS New Web and Membership system