King’s Cross announces new partnership with youth entrepreneurship social enterprise, Fishtank

King’s Cross Central Limited Partnership (KCCLP) has today [17 November 2022] announced FishTank, the youth entrepreneurship social enterprise, as the winner of a local competition to transform an existing, vacant premises in King’s Cross into a new community offer.

FishTank will turn the empty space on Beaconsfield Street in King’s Cross into a place where young people, creators and entrepreneurs can network and collaborate with investors, creatives, businesses and like-minded peers to help them establish and grow their own ideas and businesses.

FishTank was chosen as the winner out of 53 amazing entries from local people, charities, social enterprises and organisations. The competition, run in partnership with New London Architecture (NLA), invited ideas and proposals for how the existing two-storey building could be transformed into a community offer which benefitted local people.

Since the start of development at King’s Cross, the estate has aimed to support and deliver value to local communities on and around the King’s Cross estate. As part of its commitment to creating even stronger links with these local communities, King’s Cross committed this premises on Beaconsfield Street to an organisation, enterprise or individual with an idea that would deliver positive outcomes to the community groups that have been hardest to reach.

FishTank was founded in 2019 by Stephen Griffith and since then has worked with more than 70 young people and entrepreneurs to help them to turn their ideas into success stories. FishTank provides training programmes, coaching and mentoring to its young people and entrepreneurs, as well as office and content creation space and support to apply for start-up funds, including through its own ‘Get Hooked’ grant-based pitching event.

Beaconsfield Street will now become the long-term home of FishTank Workshop which will use the 1,200 sq ft building to expand and grow its offer for young people, particularly those members of the community that have yet to fully benefit from the ongoing transformation of King’s Cross and its creative opportunities.

FishTank will use the ground floor space as a working gallery, exhibiting the work and ideas of its young entrepreneurs working to collaborate with the creative corporations on the King’s Cross estate. Part of this floor will also be transformed into a bar and kitchen area.

The first floor will consist of a content making space and editing suite, together with an open workshop and collaboration area. The space will be home to a changing roster of resident creatives who will work from the FishTank space, offering coaching and sharing skills with the young people who choose to visit the space. FishTank plans to further capitalise on the connections it has with King’s Cross stakeholders and businesses to develop its programme and offer.

Commenting on the new partnership with FishTank, Robert Evans, CEO of King’s Cross and Joint Managing Partner of Argent, said: “The aim of this competition was to find an offer that clearly met identified community needs, creating stronger links across the estate and our surrounding neighbourhoods. We were particularly keen to use this space on Beaconsfield Street to reach members of the community that have yet to fully benefit from the ongoing transformation of King’s Cross, in turn empowering them to flourish. FishTank is a brilliant example of this in action and we’re delighted to help the enterprise extend its unique offer and I can think of no better home for young entrepreneurs than here in King’s Cross.”

Stephen Griffith, Founder of FishTank, added: “Our mission at FishTank is to ensure that young people are not left behind. A huge part of this is making sure that they reap the positive benefits of regeneration and development, so it is an absolute pleasure to be selected as the new community offer for King’s Cross. The new space on Beaconsfield Street will be vital in allowing FishTank to grow its offer, develop new partners, collaborate and create a gateway for aspiring young creatives from the surrounding communities. This is a real opportunity to provide a supportive structure which can help young people realise their creative potential.”

About the King’s Cross competition King’s Cross launched its competition to find a new community offer in January 2022. It attracted an exciting and diverse selection of entries from a range of backgrounds. Eight teams were shortlisted in March 2022, including inclusive design experts AC // AJ, Camden Black Creatives, Emily Compston for family charity Little Village, MW5 Fitness Community Project, Food for All x Show & Grow, Street Storage, Urban Learners and FishTank. Each shortlisted team offered a unique response to the competition brief, demonstrating ambition and emphasising the importance of local community engagement in tackling our city’s public spaces.

The competition was adjudicated by a panel of key local figures, including Cllr Danny Beales, Cabinet Member for Investing in Communities and an Inclusive Economy, Camden Council; Cllr Paul Convery, Ward Cllr for Caledonian Ward, London Borough of Islington; Ranya Lamani, Participation Champion, Camden Giving; Hasanul Hoque, Operations Director, Camden Town Unlimited; Robert Evans, CEO of King’s Cross; Anthea Harries, Asset Management Director at King’s Cross; and Rosa Rogina, Director, London Festival of Architecture.