Tower Hamlets rallies support for city status bid

People occupying flats to rent in Tower Hamlets are being called upon to offer their support for a campaign by the local authority to have the borough officially recognised as a city.

Tower Hamlets Council is launching a series of promotional schemes to raise the profile of its bid, using the backing of local residents and businesses to prove the area is worthy of its upgraded status.

The borough is competing against 24 other towns and districts for a chance to be named the UK's next city, as part of the Queen's Diamond Jubilee celebrations next year.

On December 14th 2011, for example, a day-long social media campaign called Tower Hamlets Tweets will be conducted via Twitter, which aims to encourage residents to share their reasons why they believe the area is a great one in which to live and work.

Using the hashtag #cityoftowerhamlets, Twitter users can highlight famous landmarks, recommend little-known attractions or call attention to forthcoming events in the borough.

This week also saw the council announce a competition for schoolchildren to draw some of the 50 local landmarks included in Tower Hamlets' city status bid document, with the winning pictures to be framed and put up for public display.

Locations include Brick Lane, the Tower of London, Canary Wharf, Victoria Park and Whitechapel Bell Foundry, with winners of the competition set to receive free tickets to events at the London Olympic Games in 2012.

Tower Hamlets already has the support of many local businesses in its bid, with Bow-based construction firm JB Riney & Co giving its backing to the initiative earlier this week.

Mayor Lutfur Rahman said the growth of the area in recent years, as well as its rich cultural heritage, make it a worthy candidate for city status.

"It is a natural extension to have Tower Hamlets as the third city to the east of the capital alongside City and Westminster," he explained.

Posted by Chris Price

Published 8th December, 2011

© 2011 Estates IT Limited