Controversial London development with its own Sky Pool received a government grant of £ 800,000 “Leveling Up”

Luxury residential area in the west London received £ 800,000 from a state-of-the-art music institution as part of the government’s level-raising program.

The project, written for Embassy Gardens, in Nine Elms, where the controversial Sky Pool is located, comes despite the Wandsworth local council being among the areas of the UK least eligible for funding.

It comes after receiving a score of ‘3’ – the lowest possible score – on the government’s ‘Leveling Up Index’, which compares the investment needs of different areas of the country based on socio-economic data.

The development, which includes the world’s first glass pool hung between two apartment blocks, has secured the project despite its homes being sold for up to £ 1.6 million.

The money was donated to the World Heart Beat Music Academy charity, which will build a fully equipped 110-seat auditorium and state-of-the-art recording and broadcasting facilities.

The charity, which offers free music education to young people, said the center would be part of a luxury development, but would take care of thousands of children from some of the poorest estates in London.

Wandsworth councilor Aydin Dikerdem said it was “pretty amazing” that Leveling Up funds were used for a concert hall “in the same building complex where Sky Pool is.”

Located next to the billion-dollar U.S. embassy, ​​the EcoWorld Ballymore residential complex includes 2,000 luxury residential homes and already boasts retail space, offices, bars, restaurants and landscaped gardens.

The development was under criticism this summer after it turned out that only residents who had bought or rented their apartments at full price could access the Sky Pool.

Mr Dickerdem said My London: ‘It’s always good to hear about government funding for youth programs, and World Heart Beat music is a fantastic organization.

“But I have to admit that it’s pretty remarkable that Leveling Up funds are used for a concert hall in the same building complex where the sky pool is.

“It would be very interesting to know what role developer Ballymore played in this process.”

World Heart Beat Music Academy offers free music instruction for young people.

The World Heart Beat Academy of Music beat 42 other projects when it entered a competition organized by EcoWorld Ballymore in 2017 for the “prize for occupying 750 square meters of cultural space at the heart of development”.

He got the space under the “rent for peppercorns” – meaning he only paid £ 1 to make the contract legally binding.

However, of the £ 2 million needed to build the facility, and after the UK government has provided £ 800,000, it still needs to raise an additional £ 600,000.

Construction work on the facilities is already underway, the opening date and official launch are set for May and September, respectively.

A World Heart Beat spokesman said: “The LUF award, despite being a priority area of ​​Level 3, testifies to the need for a project in a socially polarized area that is underserved by music venues and youth services.

“World Heart Beat offers massive, non-selective, richly diverse music programs for young people from a wide range of backgrounds, many of whom live in unfavorable living conditions.

“We provide scholarship support and free instruments to more than half of the students who come through the door; at our new location in Nine Elms, we will be offering musical opportunities to thousands of young people from some of London’s poorest estates, including Patmore, Savona, Carey Gardens, Doddington and Rollo Estates. ‘

It comes after the government created a £ 4.8 billion fund as part of its promise to “raise” the parts of the UK most in need of upgrading infrastructure and community facilities.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak had previously said the money was “specifically intended to support investment in places where it can make the biggest change in everyday life, including former industrial areas, disadvantaged cities and coastal communities”.

In late October, he told MEPs he was awarding the first round of bids from the ‘Leveling Up Fund’, noting that £ 1.7 billion would be for ‘investing in the infrastructure of everyday life in more than 100 local areas’.

He added: “With £ 170 million in Scotland, £ 120 million in Wales and £ 50 million in Northern Ireland – more than their Barnett shares. This will benefit the whole of the United Kingdom. ‘

Mr Sunak boasted that the government would support projects in Aberdeen, Bury, Burnley, Lewes, Clwyd South and Stoke-on-Trent – along with the Ashton work areas under Lynn, Doncaster, South Leicester, Sunderland and West Leeds.

However, tens of millions of pounds are also allocated to areas deemed least necessary – including just under £ 20 million for the Twycross Zoo in Leicestershire.

The £ 800,000 grant for the Embassy Gardens project came after activists feared a massive regeneration project on the north side of Wandsworth would risk splitting the county into two levels.

A spokesman for the Wandsworth Council said: “Providing £ 800,000 for the Leveling Up Fund is a major milestone for the Wandsworth Council and the World Heart Beat.

As partners of the “cultural anchor”, this money will be used to consolidate the musical background in the very fabric of Nine Elms, a place that is fast becoming a destination for art and cultural organizations.

“We look forward to continuing the fantastic work that World Heart Beat is already doing in the Nine Elms community to reach a new audience and bring music to our vibrant neighborhood.”

Sahana Gero, founder and artistic director of the World Heart Beat Music Academy, said: “We are delighted to receive this Leveling Up Fund Transformation Award, which brings us closer to our fundraising goal.

“We believe that our new building, which is top-notch, will be a plan for the future of music education and an incredible asset for the community in an area that desperately needs concert venues.

“Our vision is to create an inspiring space for music that is truly exceptional.

“And now that the last £ 600,000 needs to be raised, we hope businesses and individuals will support us.”