Are things moving at last on the Bridge Park and dormant Unisys site in Stonebridge? Brent Council launches consultation

 

Unisys buildings

 Unisys and Bridge Park from above

 Site ownership

I have prompted Brent Council several times recently over the Unisys/Bridge Park development. The twin Unisys buildings have been empty for decades.     In answer to a series of questions I tabled in September 2024  to Full Council LINK Brent Council said that the immediate priority was to progress scheme plans for a pre-planning resident consultation towards the end of 2024 which would include the latest on the Nerw Bridge Park Centre and target dates for planning submission, determination and on-site delivery.

The resident consultation was launched yesterday on the Brent Council website and although the focus is on Bridge Park Centre  the wider major development that includes 1,000 homes and  a hotel is also important. The consultation closes on January 6th 2025.

From the Brent Council website:

Residents are invited to have their say on the future of Bridge Park Leisure Centre as part of an ambitious plan to invest £600 million into the Hillside Regeneration Corridor in Stonebridge.

Brent Council is working with the owners of the Unisys buildings, Stonebridge Real Estate Development Limited (SRED), to redevelop Bridge Park and the neighbouring land currently occupied by the Unisys buildings which have been derelict for more than 20 years.

The proposals, which will be shown at two exhibitions in November, show the new Bridge Park Leisure Centre will be more than double the size of the current building. Residents are being asked for their views including on a new state-of-the-art swimming pool, a new sports hall, a larger gym, a function hall, meeting rooms and a café.

The proposals include more than 1,000 high-quality homes, including family homes and affordable options; new parks and green spaces; a new 263-room hotel, commercial and affordable workspace. The designs are worked up to maximise the environmental benefits of the new buildings and encourage sustainable and active travel.

The redevelopment is part of a wider plan to invest in a number of sites, including Bridge Park, Morland Gardens, Twybridge Way, and Bernard Shaw House, along Hillside corridor.

The existing Bridge Park Community Leisure Centre has reached the end of its useable life. The current condition of the building demands substantial investment to keep the site open, including major and expensive works to the lifts and other parts of the building, which is not affordable. The proposal is therefore for the building to close next year with a decision expected in early 2025.

Councillor Muhammed Butt, Leader of Brent Council said:

Bridge Park has always been a symbol of community and togetherness. So, as the building comes to the end of its life, it’s important that we do justice to both its history but also to what comes next. We take that responsibility very seriously.

We’ve listened to what residents have told us they want in a new, state-of-the-art centre. Our proposals not only provide a new Bridge Park Leisure Centre but expand and improve it for future generations. Wider plans for investing in the site will create new opportunities for everyone in Stonebridge, as well as desperately needed new homes.

Please take part in the consultation, we want to hear what you think of these proposals. Together, we can make sure that Bridge Park continues to serve and unite our community.

Mr. Mohammed Al-Miqdadi, SRED Director and Senior Director of International Development of GMH General Mediterranean Holding S.A., SPF. said:

Stonebridge Real Estate Development is excited to be working with Brent Council to bring forward a transformative vision for Bridge Park and the Unisys site. These plans focus on creating vibrant green spaces for everyone, with a commitment to inclusivity, ensuring accessibility for people with disabilities, older adults, and neurodiverse individuals. This project underscores our dedication to sustainable, community-centred spaces that enhance quality of life for local residents."

We’re proud to be delivering much-needed new homes, including affordable housing options, as well as creating hundreds of job opportunities across the hotel and leisure sectors. This major investment into Stonebridge will enrich the area and catalyse wider regeneration, whilst building on Bridge Park’s legacy as a place for connection, activity, and opportunity for all.

• Have your say at two exhibitions to find out more in person at Brent Start, Twybridge Way, London NW10 0ST on Thursday 28 November, from 3 to 7pm or Saturday 30 November, from 10am to 2pm
• There will also be an online version, which will be live from Monday 25 November on the website
• Email the team at BridgePark@four.agency

Get involved and have your say by Monday 6 January 2025.

Brent Council to consider a formal twinning arrangement with Nablus after enabling motion passed

 

 The Labour Group motion to 'consider a formal twinning agreement between Brent and the city of Nablus, which sits under the governance of the Palestinian National Authority, and receive a report considering the proposal at a future council meeting' was passed by a large majority at last night's meeting.

An amendment by the Conservative Group (see video) was defeated and a Liberal Democrat move to get both withdrawn,  because the issue was 'divisive' failed. Legal officers ruled that both the substantive motion and the amendment were in order.

I have asked the Liberal Democrat to confirm how they voted as the Mayor does not summarise the vote and the council video does not pan across the chamber to show the voting. Cllr Neil Nerva removed himself from the council chamber before the vote was taken and returned afterwards.

A large group of Palestine supporters cheered as the motion was passed. 

STOP PRESS: Brent Liberal Democrat Group confirm that they voted against both the Conservative Amendment and the Labour motion.

 

All aboard the Lioness and Mildmay overground lines from Willesden Junction

 

 

TfL will complete the renaming of the London Overground lines by the end of the year. LINK There have been criticisms that this will involve unnecessary expense. TfL justify the changes thus:

London Overground was created in 2007, when TfL took over a series of under-used suburban rail lines and transformed them into a high frequency metro-style service.

Since then, the network has expanded, improved connectivity for millions of people and supported new jobs, homes and economic growth.

The Overground network covers 100 miles of railway, 113 stations and all 9 London zones.

Now there are more than 3 million passengers using the service each week, connecting some of London's most historic and diverse neighbourhoods.

Giving each of the 6 London Overground routes an individual line colour lets us improve the way our customers experience our network. It also gives them their own name and identity.

Benefits

 

Specific improvements will include:

• Increased usability and understanding of the network
• Greater customer confidence  
• Clearer wayfinding
• Clearer service disruption information 

 

It also brings a positive and unique opportunity to engage customers and communities and showcase London's rich diversity.

Two Overground lines serve Brent and pss through Willesden Junction. TfL explain why they have chosen the names.

The Lioness line Watford Junction to Euston

 

The Euston to Watford Junction line runs straight through the heart of Wembley, where the Lionesses enjoyed their greatest triumph when they won the UEFA Women’s EURO final in 2022. The team are creating a lasting legacy that continues to inspire and empower the next generation of women and girls in sport. 

 

Following their triumph at the UEFA Women’s EURO in 2022 and their memorable run to the FIFA Women’s World Cup final a year later, the Lionesses’ success has attracted millions of fans and had a significant impact on the sport’s participation numbers. Following the EURO success, 2.3 million more women and girls were inspired to play the season after the tournament. Showing the remarkable impact the squad have on the next generation. 

 

The Mildmay line  Richmond and Clapham Junction to Stratford (via Willesden Junction)

The name celebrates Mildmay, a small but crucial charitable NHS hospital serving the NHS in Tower Hamlets, with a long history of helping Londoners in need. Mildmay opened in the 1860s as an informal help centre organised by the Reverend William Pennefather and his wife Catherine at St Jude and St Paul’s church in Islington. William organised Mildmay Institutions to care for the sick and Catherine trained well-educated young women – ‘deaconesses’ in nursing. When cholera broke out in 1866, two Mildmay deaconesses volunteered to assist in the East End’s poorest slums, an area strictly avoided by other Londoners. In 1892, the first purpose-built Mildmay Hospital opened in Shoreditch. 

In 1982, Mildmay was closed owing to its small size and a lack of funding. After a six-year battle, it reopened as Europe’s first hospital for people with HIV- and AIDS-related illnesses. It was visited by Princess Diana a total of 17 times. The press coverage of some of these visits helped break the stigma at the height of the HIV/AIDS crisis. The name cherishes the role of the NHS and its smaller healthcare centres in caring for all Londoners. To this day, Mildmay is still an internationally renowned centre for the rehabilitation of and care for patients with complex HIV. It a valued and respected place for London’s LGBTQ+ communities.

 The new Overground Map

 

Unanswered question on the financial viability of the Bridge Park/Unisys redevelopment

 The Minutes of the Brent Council Meeting on September 19th have been published for approval this evening.

This is Cllr Butt's answer to my question regarding the development of the Bridge Park/Unisys site. You will note that the financial viability part of the question was not answered:

 

In thanking Councillor Tatler for the written response provided, Martin Francis in asking his supplementary question began by taking the opportunity to highlight that it had been nearly 10 years since former Councillor Dan Filson had warned against dealing with General Mediterranean Holdings (GMH) and 7 years since the Conditional Land Sale Agreement relating to Bridge Park had been approved. Referring to the latest accounts from Stonebridge Real Estate Development Ltd (Subsidiary of GMH registered in Luxembourg) he pointed out these had shown a reduction in valuation of the company from £36m to £29.5m.

 

Members were also reminded of the aim outlined within the Council’s original decision notice relating to the agreement back in 2013 which, he pointed out, had been for the council pursue the option of GMH (and its subsidiary company) developing the Unisys and Bridge Park sites for residential and commercial development to fund a new Bridge Park sports centre with the site value of Bridge Park put at £4m and the cost of a new Sports Centre at £9m and the difference made up from the GMH agreement and Strategic Community Infrastructure Levy (SCIL). Given the financial update provided he therefore asked whether Bridge Park was still felt to be financially viable and if an update was available on the timeline for completion of the financial viability assessment of the GMH plans and when they were expected to go to planning.

 

In responding on behalf of Councillor Tatler, Councillor Muhammed Butt (as Leaderof the Council), thanked Martin Francis for his question and attendance at the meeting along with the reference to former Councillor Dan Filson. In terms of the current position, he advised that the Council were still in discussions with GMH as part of the process in reviewing the plans for Bridge Park so could not give a precise date, at this stage, as to when final design proposals were likely to be submitted to planning. Confirmation was, however, provided on the Council’s intention to undertake consultation regarding the general principles of the development at Bridge Park in order to gauge views, with the Council remaining committed to realising the wider opportunities and potential available through the Bridge Park development recognising the commitment of key stakeholders in seeking to progress the original development proposals. In terms of more detailed timescales, the Leader advised he would be willing to provide these once they had been finalised.

 

Brent Council is consulting on new Local Flood Risk Management Strategy

Brent has many waterways, some on open ground but others hidden underground in conduits that reveal their presence at times of flooding. Extreme weather, including heavy rainfall, has made the area more susceptible to flooding, exacerbated by an increase in the number of impermeable surfaces in developments and front and back gardens.

Brent Council is consulting on a new Local Flood Management Risk Strategy and invites contributions from local residents, community groups, organisations and businesses. The RAG rated Action Plan on the consultation website reveals the amount of work to be done with a predominance of Red ratings.

 

Extract from Action Plan

 

The Consultation website can be found HERE:

Local Flood Risk Management Strategy Consultation

We want to hear from you.

Residents, community groups, and organisations have a chance to help shape our flood risk strategy.

Periodically we update the strategy which you have the chance to shape. It focuses mainly on where flooding risk areas are, how we will deal with a flood, and putting things in place to reduce the risk of flooding.

You have until 31st December 2024, so please do give your feedback and help shape your local environment.

What are we consulting on?

The Lead Local Flood Authority (LLFA) are consulting community stakeholders, internal council teams and Risk Management Authorities (RMAs) and partner organisations on our Local Flood Risk Management Strategy (LFRMS). This document explains the different sources of flooding and the actions the Council will take to meet its strategic objectives for the management of Borough-wide flood risk for all applicable flood sources.

Why are we consulting?

Section 9 of the Flood and Water Management Act enacted in 2010 (FWMA) stipulates that the LLFA should develop, maintain, apply and monitor a strategy for local flood risk management in its area. The FWMA also requires that the LLFA consult RMAs that may be affected by the Strategy and the public. The LLFA are therefore requesting feedback from community stakeholders and RMAs as well as internally via Brent employees to take any feedback on board and make changes to the LFRMS ahead of finalising in Spring 2025.

For information please contact: highways.management@brent.gov.uk

 

Petition launched to Save Cricklewood Post Office: 'Losing it would hurt not just our local economy but also the spirit of Cricklewood'

 

Cricklewood campaigners have been quick off the mark after Cricklewood Post Office was included in the list of potential closures. Kilburn, Harlesden and Kingsbury Post Offices are also on the list. Please let Wembley Matters know of any campaigns for these and I will publicise.

Save Cricklewood Post Office have launched a petition and are asking residents to sign. SIGN HERE or use QR Code below to go straight to the petition.

We, the undersigned, demand that the Post Office keep our local Cricklewood Office open.

This post office is at the heart of our community, providing essential services that so many of us rely on. Losing it would hurt not just our local economy but also the spirit of Cricklewood. 

Please join us in supporting the Cricklewood Post Office and helping to preserve our beloved community hub.

 

Chess at Chalkhill Success: 'The junior sessions are at full capacity and for the first time ever there is now a waiting list!'

 

Guest post by Anthony Fulton Willesden & Brent Chess Club General Secretary and Junior Coordinator   In March 2020 life in the UK experienced a situation it hadn’t done so for generations. COVID-19 hit UK shores in February and by March the UK went into the first of many lockdowns. Over the next two years, life changed as lockdown meant that the many social activities individuals would partake of ceased as family, friends and even strangers were unable to interact. However, due to Skype, Teams, Zoom, and other such platforms, many of these activities were able to proceed virtually. A foreseen consequence was the impact lockdown would have when these activities moved from the physical sphere to the virtual (bricks vs. clicks). Many organisations, i.e., businesses, sports clubs, etc. faced challenges as if they were unable to migrate to the virtual, since the period of lockdown would be unknown there could be no guarantee that when life returned to ‘normal’ that they would continue to exist. These were the circumstances in which the UK lived including Willesden & Brent Chess Club (WBCC).   When the pandemic ended and life began to return to normal WBCC recognised they were a club in crisis. In fact they were a club in crisis prior to the pandemic. Ironically, lockdown was ideal for the club as the period was used to review how they operated and if they were to return they had to ‘build back better’. The club resumed its services at Cricklewood Community Library on 10th January 2022 and took what at the time was the risky decision to set up a second night, based at Chalkhill Community Centre, Wembley from May 2022. It was a risk as throughout the club’s history (1946 to date) they had traditionally operated one night a week from their historic base Willesden Municipal District, including after 1965 when London Borough of Brent formed with the merging of Willesden and Wembley Urban District. For a small not-profit-organisation this placed a huge demand on resources, both financially and in terms of personnel. It was accepted that the venture of two nights a week should be tried as at the time they had nothing to lose and everything to gain. Should it prove unsuccessful the club could retrench by returning to its spiritual home and accept it could no longer be a competitive club, just be a social one providing opportunity for like-minded people to meet.   It must be noted that one reason WBCC chose to set up at Chalkhill is because they sought to expand their chess presence in the borough and to ensure that both North and South Brent were properly serviced. By establishing a base in Wembley, it meant that this part of Brent had a formal chess presence for the first time since 1956 after the demise of Wembley Chess Club - for further details see A History of Chess in Brent at either Brent Archives (Willesden Green Library) or on www.willesdenchess.wordpress.com Therefore if the club was to be successful they had to focus on building capacity from a low base in the area.   The three years at Chalkhill have been somewhat parlous with September 2022 to December 2023 being a critical period as it seemed as though the project was doomed to failure, Attendance was low, at times the number of tables outnumbered the adults who were present after the junior session! This though appeared to be the nadir as January 2024 began to see a turnaround which has carried through into the current season (2024-25).   The junior sessions are at full capacity and for the first time ever there is now a waiting list!  The number and strength of attending juniors has influenced the club to enter junior specific teams into competition. The number of attending adults has increased to the point where we now have teams participating in the Middlesex League and Hillingdon League.   The decision therefore has proven to be a masterstroke! As with any new venture, the first few years are indeed a struggle but to be fair to the club, as stated, chess had not really been a force in the Wembley area after 1956ca with the demise of Wembley Chess Club and the reluctance of the old Willesden Chess Club to focus on in its historical base, despite assuming the name ‘Brent’ in its title! By persevering and showing resilience, the club has begun to grow from strength to strength. The club has ambitions to continue growing in this vein, it may prove challenging to accommodate all the juniors wishing to attend and possibly adults if there numbers continue to grow but the beauty of being at Chalkhill Community Centre is that there is plenty of space within which the club could expand into subject to the other activities that take place. We certainly look forward to continuing welcoming new, existing and even former members.   The club has had its struggles during its history, none more so than the past decade where they have had to relocate twice after their long-time base, Scout House, was sold and their replacement, Willesden Working Mens Club, decided to convert its upper floors to flats. We are therefore grateful to both Cricklewood Community Library and Chalkhill Community Centre for allowing us to re-establish firm roots. We must also be thankful in receiving the Love Where You Live Grant (June 2022) which allowed us to help build our capacity, we can safely say that the funds received helped tide us over the tricky period so gave us time to bed down.   Chess in Wembley, and Brent specifically, appears to have a future as apart from our weekly sessions we:
1.     Main session in Allen Suite
a) Have held two of our Brent Junior Congresses (BJCC) at Chalkhill Community Centre (BJCC23 & BJCC24). [Note our first post pandemic was BJCC22 at Stonebridge Hub.]
2.     BJCC24 participants
b) Use Chalkhill Community Centre to host its home league matches, we now compete in three senior leagues (Middlesex League D2; Middlesex League F4, and Hillingdon League D3) and run three junior specific teams (Wembley Juniors, Willesden Juniors and a combined Willesden & Brent Junior team). The institution of junior teams has been a long held ambition but there were never sufficient numbers; it is good to see this ambition eventually come to fruition. [Note we are always looking for players to join our teams so if you’re looking to play more competitively do consider joining!]
3.     Hillingdon League Junior match - W&B Juniors (facing) vs.Harrow Juniors (30/10/2024)
4.     Middlesex League D2 match - WBCC (facing team) vs Hammersmith 2 boards 1-4 (30/10/24)
c) See that our junior session at Chalkhill is now at full capacity and we are now having to ask parents to go onto the waiting list. [Note there is still scope to attend the junior session on Monday at Cricklewood Community Library]
Finally, special mention must be made of an extra event the club will be holding this year at Chalkhill Community Centre, Brent One-day Secondary School Rapidplay Chess Tournament on 28th November 2024. For several years the club has been investigating the gap at chess at secondary level. Students who have a genuine interest are unable to develop or consolidate this interest as chess clubs either do not run or do not provide the level of challenge they seek. Quite often schools are even unable to allow students to learn chess as a skill under the Duke of Edinburgh programme as there is no-one with requisite skills to be a DofE Chess Assessor so another skill is learnt instead! Unfortunately, these students do not always then explore other options such as attending a local chess club so are lost to chess, they may return to chess as adults in their own right or when they have their own children but this tends not to be the case, so opportunity for these individuals to develop a lifelong love of the game is impacted at a critical phase of their life. As the pandemic showed, apart from people taking up chess for the first time online, many were returners to chess. This is not unique to Brent but chess in general as due to the demands and agenda of secondary schools leadership teams, chess tends not be considered anything other than a social activity, thus there is a lack of parity for chess as compared to other competitive activities such as traditional sports (athletics, basketball, cricket, football, netball, etc.), STEM clubs, Debating Clubs, Jack Petchey and a raft of other extracurricular activities that allow the young person to challenge themselves against their peers in other schools, locally and nationally. Many overlook the fact that chess likewise has its competitive element and in fact is academically beneficial. Who would not want students who as a matter of fact are able to think logically? Take ownership of their actions? Contemplate the consequences of their actions before they act? Etc. For readers of a certain age, it will be remembered in 1972 Grandmaster Robert ‘Bobby’ Fischer broke the Russian stranglehold on the World Chess Championship and opened the path to the current non-Russsian dominance through the likes of Vishy Anand and Magnus Carlsen to name but two!
As stated the club knew there was a gap but was never really in a position to tackle as apart from trying to discern which schools have chess as an extracurricular activity and how to form a working partnership, funding is an issue. Thanks to the ECF Grassroots Initiative, a scheme devised by the English Chess Federation on the back of the government investment in chess in August 2023, the club is now in a position to address this gap. Although chess is still not considered a sport in the UK unlike many other countries, with the government being prepared to invest in chess, especially trying to develop in deprived areas such as Brent, the club has jumped at the chance to try and raise chess profile in the borough further by hosting what is hoped to be the first of many secondary-specific events. Ostensibly it will provide competition for secondary aged students and to explore the possibility of instituting a formal competition amongst Brent Secondary Schools. If the latter comes to pass it means the club would have successfully revived the Willesden Chess League played by Brent Schools in the 1960s and 1970s. At present Wembley specific schools that are participating are: Ark Wembley, Lycee International, Preston Manor and Wembley High Technical College. At time of writing, it is thought that Ark Elvin will also be participating.   Onwards and upwards for Willesden & Brent Chess Club but more specifically for Chess in Brent!
Willesden & Brent Chess Club always welcomes new attendees no matter your playing strength, so if you do play chess or would like to learn do consider signing up! We also appreciate any volunteers to help with service delivery, so you can still be involved even if not a chess player!

'Artistic Autistic' Art Exhibition - Stonebridge, December 8th