Bankside: From My Side with Alison Winfield-Chislett

  • Date Tuesday, 7 September 2021

Put faces to names and celebrate Banksiders with an interesting story to tell – meet your Bankside neighbours.

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As part of our ‘Meet the Neighbours’ series, we are celebrating the people of Bankside – reminding you why our neigbourhood is so special.

Bankside is a playground for culture and art lovers and has attracted all sorts of creative and talented people into diverse roles. We’re shining a light on the characters, the stories, the interesting roles people have behind the scenes that keep our neighbourhood ticking.

Do you know someone with an interesting role or story to tell? Perhaps you have a long history with the area – we’d love to hear from you! Get in touch.

Here we meet Alison Winfield-Chislett Director of The Goodlife Centre in Bankside.

Job title: Director/ Chief Muckity Muck

Company: The Goodlife Centre Ltd 

Journey to workI turn a ten-minute walk  into a twenty minute wander from my home near Waterloo Station. I change the route to check up on any changes in tree blossoms and gardens as the year passes by. 

  1. How long have you been a Banksider?
    Not long- Only 12 years!!!
  2. How do you typically start your day in Bankside?
    On my way to work, I walk along Copperfield Street and  I always detour into the pocket garden to enjoy the birds and flowers. It invigorates me up for the day.
  3. What’s been a career highlight or the most unusual thing to happen to you in your current role?
    We now teach from an amazing 1950s factory. On the day I met the wonderful owner we found out we had both worked in Metropolitan wharf when it was an artist enclave in the 70s. It’s a small world- but I wouldn’t want to paint it.
  4. What advice would you give to your younger self about getting into your sector/your career?
    I have always enjoyed arts and crafts and I am glad I have never wavered from designing and making things. It’s a privilege to now have the environment to be able offer that marvellous feeling to other people.
  5. Bankside foodie or culture vulture?
    I revel in my proximity to the BFI, concert halls and theatres.
  6. What did you miss most about our neighbourhood during lockdown?
    The bustle of Borough Market and the loud applause of a full theatre.
  7. You have one last day in Bankside – what do you do, where do you go?
    I would grab my binoculars and meander along the river bank taking in the foreshore, riverboats and shops with plenty of stops and cafes along the way.