Clapham About Us
Love Clapham is a website for residents and visitors of Clapham in London and its surrounding areas.
This site offers detailed and up-to-date information on Clapham and its people, and importantly it’s a place for you to make your opinion heard. Get involved by emailing us information, having your say in comments and on our Clapham Network or even by becoming one of the team.
Why LoveClapham.com?
Love Clapham started as a personal project of mine in early 2009. I’ve lived in Clapham for over seven years now both in Clapham South and now nearer to Clapham High Street in Clapham North.
My motivation was to create a blog to address local issues, to support local people and businesses and to generate a sense of community that was fun and reflective of the Clapham population. Most importantly, I just wanted to create something that could bring Clapham residents together to have a bit of a laugh. I certainly didn’t expect the support I’ve had with over 40,000 people visiting Love Clapham in 2009 and over 600 followers on Twitter!
In the past I’ve largely been disappointed with other independent local publications. While they’re all good in their own right, they didn’t seem to be hitting the pulse of Clapham’s buzzing community spirit. I certainly don’t seek to compete with any of these, but to offer another voice as a resident of this part of London.
Another reason for Love Clapham is to provide a platform for residents of Clapham to make their voice heard. While Clapham is a great place to live, it does have its problems such as crime, planning issues and terribly high amounts of junk mail. While I write most of the articles on this blog, I love it when other people want to contribute too, so please do!
Personally, I think our Councils (primarily Lambeth, but in some areas Wandsworth) are doing a great job to address the majority of issues and to look after residents. But as Steve Reed, Leader of Lambeth Council, and Christopher Wellbelove, Major of Lambeth, said in our interviews with them, encouraging residents to get involved in local issues can be a problem.
So, with Love Clapham I aim to be a positive voice in the middle of all of the other organisations out there to try and inform other residents, encourage involvement in the running of Clapham and to have a hell of a lot of fun along the way.
See you soon Clappers!
Jack Wallington
Clapham Resident