The Genesis Cinema building is a landmark, not only for Stepney but across London. It's part of the cultural fabric of our city, with a history on the site stretching back to 1848 and having hosted names such as Charlie Chaplin and Stan Laurel.

It is now threatened with demolition to make way for student accommodation. If allowed to happen, this would remove an important link to our city's cultural heritage and replace it with an imposing development which makes a mockery of the local environment, the Stepney Green Conservation Area and the efforts towards retaining local history which Tower Hamlets is attempting. The plans do not retain the current cinema and it is difficult to see how demolishing the cinema to build student accommodation is consistent with maintaining a key part of the local community which so many people in Tower Hamlets (and London more generally) know and love.

We have to save Genesis. Sign this petition, and object on the Tower Hamlets website here, or by sending an email to development.control@towerhamlets.gov.uk to object to planning application PA/25/00516 to protect this local landmark. In sending your objection, you might consider the following points: 

• Genesis Cinema is an important part of London’s culture and its demolition will have a detrimental impact on the cultural fabric of Tower Hamlets.
• Building seven storeys of student accommodation will impact the streetscape in the Stepney Green Conservation Area and will have a detrimental impact on Grade II Listed Buildings around the Genesis Cinema.