Together Towards Zero relaunches with up to £5,000 available for community climate action projects

 

Sally Scooters

 From Brent Council

 

Residents and community groups are being invited to help create a greener, cleaner Brent as the council relaunches its popular Together Towards Zero (TTZ) community climate action fund.

 

The 15 June relaunch comes as the council celebrates awarding its 100th Together Towards Zero grant, marking four years of community-led climate action across the borough.

 

The scheme offers grants of up to £5,000 for one-off projects that help tackle the climate and ecological emergency while improving local neighbourhoods.

Since launching in 2022, Together Towards Zero has funded 105 community-led projects worth more than £295,000, including:

• Absolute Beginners Factory CIC – helping young people turn discarded nitrous oxide canisters into decorative vases through sustainable manufacturing techniques.
• Sally Scooters – running repair workshops to refurbish discarded scooters and reuse parts.
• StepwithSerg – delivering trainer repair and reuse workshops to reduce waste.
• Sufra NW London – transforming a community garden pond into a thriving wildlife habitat.
• St Mark's Church – creating a biodiverse community growing space by replacing artificial turf with raised vegetable beds.
• Sunahs Crisis Team CIC – hosting plant-based cookery workshops focused on sustainable food choices.
• Friends of Woodcock Park – carrying out a beaver viability study alongside community wildflower planting.
• The Enchanted Forest of Welsh Harp – leading mindfulness and nature-connection walks exploring urban ecology and biodiversity.

 

The fifth round of funding opens on 15 June and will remain available until spring 2027, or until all funding has been allocated.

 

Councillor Jake Rubin, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services, Employment and Climate Action, said:

 Communities are at the heart of Brent's response to the climate and ecological emergency. Together Towards Zero has shown how local people can make a real difference by delivering practical projects that bring environmental benefits to their neighbourhoods while strengthening community connections.

South Kilburn Regeneration – building what is needed or building what provides profit for developers? Brent Council to sell 143 units to U.S. private equity company

 

Guest post by South Kilburn resident Pete Firmin

South Kilburn Regeneration – building what is needed or building what provides profit for developers?

An acquaintance with more patience than me who closely follows Brent Council documents on the regeneration of South Kilburn recently unearthed the fact that the Council proposes to bulk sell the non-social housing in the current phase of regeneration to a U.S. private equity company, Principal Asset Management. A glance at their website shows Principal Asset Management has no interest in housing as such, but in maximising returns on investment.

This involves 143 `private market units’ in the current phase. Whether a similar deal would be used in the next phase of regeneration (for which a £1 billion contract is due to be awarded shortly) isn’t known, but clearly can’t be ruled out.

The justification for this deal given in Council papers is that the London sales market is "challenging.".

This is a clear indication that these flats are to be sold as `buy to let’. From the earliest stages of the regeneration of South Kilburn, many of the new flats have been sold on the Far Eastern market, this appears to be the first time flats are sold to a foreign owner as a job lot.

All this begs the question “why are flats being built for which there is no market?”.

We have been told from the start of South Kilburn regeneration 20 years ago that social housing to replace that being demolished could only be built if developers could also be built at market rates. This latest venture takes that one step further.

Britain’s, and especially London’s, housing crisis is a crisis of lack of housing which people can pay for while leaving them sufficient to live on. What is desperately needed is housing at social (or preferably Council) rents, not more housing they can’t afford. Terms such as “affordable” which developers and Councils love to use to show how much they care are a smokescreen. The legal definition of `affordable’ is up to 80% of market rent, i.e. unaffordable to anyone on average pay or below.

Principal Asset Management is believed to charge around £2,500 a month for flats in London, not something any of the tens of thousands on Council waiting lists can take on. This bulk sell off just feels like another way of helping the developers make a profit at little risk.

Developers frequently say part way through construction (as happened recently in Camden) that the percentage of social housing they committed to when they were given planning permission is no longer profitable and push for - and usually get - a lowering of that figure. They have Councils over a barrel in negotiations.

Such projects not only fail to deal in the slightest with the housing crisis, but also lead to gentrification of the areas under development, changing the nature of an area without necessarily improving the lot of the original residents at all. On top of which the social housing which is built is, more often that not, of poor quality and smaller and more expensive than that which has been demolished. Social engineering at its worst.

Brent Council needs to recognise that its current approach does nothing to deal with the housing crisis (if anything, it exacerbates it). It needs to not only stand up to developers and their demands, but also fight for a change to national policy. Shelter recently called on the government to “remove the historic debt local authorities owe to the government” for council housing. They say that £29 billion in “historic housing debt” is based on an outdated financial settlement from 2012; that it “sucks away money that could be invested in building new social homes”. Shelter calls for the government to “remove this debt from councils and put it on its own books without affecting the overall national balance sheet”. 

Working with other Councils to push for such a change could go much further to provide decent housing for all, rather than cosy deals only helping developers and private equity.

 

 

Public meeting tonight following the murder of Jamal Ringrose: 6pm Brent Indian Community Centre. Cllr Mary Mitchell sets out 6 key requests.

 

A week ago Cllr Mary Mitchell (Willesden Green) wrote to to the local following  following the murder of Jamal Ringrose, putting it into a wider context and making a number of requests:

  

Dear DCS Luke Williams, DS Tony Bellis and Insp. Naomi Wilder,

 

I am writing on behalf of many residents of Willesden Green who have contacted me regarding crime, antisocial behaviour, drug use and drug dealing in the vicinity of Willesden Green and Dollis Hill stations. There is a growing perception, which I share, that our area is not receiving the level of policing attention that residents reasonably expect and deserve. Residents have reported persistent and ongoing concerns including drug dealing, public drug use, antisocial behaviour, intimidation, theft, indecent exposure and violence. Many of these reports relate to the same locations and hotspots, yet residents have seen little evidence of sustained intervention or long-term problem-solving.

 

While individual operations have taken place, many residents feel that visible policing has diminished and that issues repeatedly return once short-term enforcement activity ends.

 

These concerns have been brought into sharp focus by a series of serious incidents over the past eight days.

 

Most tragically, fifteen-year-old Jamal Ringrose lost his life following a stabbing on Dudden Hill Lane. My thoughts are with Jamal's family, friends and the wider community, including the local business owners who came to his aid in the aftermath of the incident, showing the best of our community. I fully recognise that this investigation is ongoing and it would be inappropriate to speculate on the circumstances.

 

Separately, there have been two further incidents of knife violence in the vicinity of Willesden Green Station and the surrounding alleyways and public spaces that residents have repeatedly identified as locations associated with antisocial behaviour, drug use and criminal activity.

 

I do not suggest that these incidents can be attributed to any single cause, nor that they are necessarily connected. However, residents are entitled to ask whether longstanding concerns raised over many years have received sufficient attention and whether more proactive intervention could have reduced the conditions in which serious violence is able to emerge.

 

I therefore welcome your response to the following requests:

 

1. A commitment to immediate regular high-visibility patrols around Willesden Green Station, Dollis Hill station and adjoining routes

 

2. Participation in Multi-Agency Operation Walkabouts at an increased frequency when organised by the Council

 

3. Immediate efforts to reduce staff turnover, provide senior leadership responsibility, and reduce staff abstraction in Willesden Green

 

4. Formal joint operations between the Metropolitan Police and British Transport Police to tackle drug dealing, violence and antisocial behaviour linked to transport hub, with a greater focus on disrupting drug supply networks and repeat offenders operating within the ward.

 

5. A ward-level violence reduction strategy, including work with schools, youth services, community groups and local partners to prevent young people becoming involved in crime.

 

6. Strengthening of the Willesden Green Safer Neighbourhood Ward Panel as a forum for accountability, with a commitment for SNT attendance irrespective of competing priorities, and senior leadership participation.

 

I intend to share both this letter and your response with residents, as transparency and accountability are essential if public confidence is to be strengthened.

 

While I have no doubt that individual officers and frontline staff are working hard under considerable pressure, recent events indicate the collective response has not been sufficiently coordinated, sustained or effective.

 

It seems clear to me that the system as a whole is failing to prevent persistent antisocial behaviour and serious violence, disrupt drug-related criminality, support vulnerable people in crisis, and provide residents with the sense of safety they deserve.

 

I look forward to your reply and to working constructively with you to ensure that Willesden Green receives sustained attention and long-term solutions.

 

Green Party's Hannah performs miracles

 

 

Street protest against granting of Adult Gaming Centre licence to 1 Walm Lane, Willesden Green - Sunday June 14th 2pm

 

The Licensing Application for an Adult Gaming Centre comes up at Committee on Thursday (10.30am at the Civic Centre - public can attend, not available on line). LINK 

Brent Green Party have organised a community street protest meeting outside the premises at 1 Walm Lane (the former Lloyds Bank) tomorrow at 2pm to make the case against the granting of the licence. All are welcome to attend to make their voices heard.

Some of the 222 submissions will be read out.

 Before the May council election the three Green Party candidates  for Willesden Green ward made their views known in a submission to the Licensing Committee:     

The Brent Green Party formally objects to the application for a new Adult Gaming Centre (AGC) at 1 Walm Lane. Our objection is centered on the failure of this application to promote the licensing objectives, specifically the protection of children and vulnerable persons, in the context of Brent’s acute socio-economic challenges.

After detailing their objection (available on the link above) they concluded:

The data is clear: Brent is home to some of the most income-deprived children in the United Kingdom. Placing a 24-hour gambling venue in the heart of such a community, supported by a flawed risk assessment that fails to even identify local schools, is an unacceptable risk to public safety and child welfare. No amount of internal staffing or CCTV can mitigate the "invisible harms" of debt, family breakdown, and poverty that will radiate from this premises into the surrounding streets. We urge the Licensing Committee to put the safety of Brent’s children above corporate expansion and refuse this licence.

Other councillors, the GLA member for Brent and Harrow and Dawn Butler and members of the public have also made representations. 

Dawn Butler wrote: 

We know already that these businesses have a propensity to cluster in poorer communities,

which are more susceptible to gambling harm due to the hope that a big win will help them out of their situation.

 

This is a strong community, and it is being blighted by these shops, whose owners hold the area in complete contempt and disregard.

 

I wrote to 7,000 households in Brent, to ask them for their own experiences of gambling and the betting shops in Brent. This was going to form a response to the Government’s Gambling Review, the response to my call for evidence has been stark:

 

97.5% were opposed to betting shops

80% questioned why more shops were being given permission

75% called for the number of stores to be limited

62.5% detailed experiences of anti-social behaviour in the locale of these shops

 

I have heard from families who’ve faced financial ruin because of gambling and from so many people for whom their daily lives are blighted by the associated anti-social behaviour, in particular street drinking and drugs, which circulate in close proximity to these gambling

establishments.

 

To conclude, I strongly urge all to reject this application. The people of Willesden deserve a

vibrant, diverse high street that supports the well-being of all residents, not another exploitative gambling venue that deepens existing harms.

The Interim Director of Public Health for Brent wrote (extract only - also available on the link above):    

Brent is the fourth most deprived borough in London, with a younger-than-average population alongside high levels of ethnic diversity. Within Brent, Willesden also reports a higher than average prevalence of adults with severe mental illnesses (1.7% vs 1.2% Brent average). This demographic profile means Brent is home to a high concentration of groups known to have a greater risk of gambling-related harm. Evidence shows that these high-risk groups are much more likely to experience harm from gambling compared to their counterparts. For example:

 

• 21% of 18–24 year olds are classed as “at-risk” gamblers, compared to 10% of those aged 55–64

• 10.6% of people from minority ethnic groups are considered to be ‘problem gamblers’, compared with 3% of white groups

• Individuals who experience gambling harms are up to 15 times more likely to be at risk of suicide

 

Gambling venues are also known to be disproportionately clustered in areas of higher deprivation. This pattern applies both across Brent as a whole and within Willesden Green specifically. This is significant as research suggests a relationship between gambling behaviour and proximity to gambling venues. For example, studies have found:

 

• People living closer to gambling venues (less that 0.7km away) are twice as likely to be ‘problem gamblers’ than individuals living further away (more than 3.1km away) 

• The likelihood of young people (aged 18-21) encountering gambling problems, as opposed to never gambling, increases by 39% for each additional form of gambling operator located with their local area 

• Higher concentrations of gambling premises are associated with higher rates of ‘problem gambling’ 

• Those living in more deprived areas are more likely to gamble on faster-paced games such as scratch cards and slot machines - which are known to be more addictive.

 

The applicant’s own LARA identifies similar groups as vulnerable, supporting concerns that opening a further venue would do little to protect them from harm. It identifies numerous schools, colleges, medical centres, care homes, children’s play areas, hostels, foodbanks, and drug and alcohol support services, all within a mile radius of the proposed premises. It recognises that these groups are susceptible to out of control gambling, yet categories these risks as ‘low’. This assessment places disproportionate confidence in the proposed mitigation measures and significantly undermines confidence that the risks have been robustly or realistically evaluated.

 

In particular, the proposed controls rely heavily on staff to identify and respond to harmful gambling behaviours, yet the applicant proposes a minimum of only two staff members on site at any given time. Measures to mitigate harm also rely largely on signage and information available in-store, where there is no guarantee that individuals will take notice.

 

Public concern further reinforces these risks. Research indicates widespread anxiety about the impact of gambling venues on children and young people. The SMF report found that 44% of young people aged 14–17 agreed that the presence of gambling venues near their homes increases interest in gambling among their age group, while 27% reported knowing young people who had visited an AGC.

 

Finally, gambling is commonly described as a ‘hidden addiction’, as harmful behaviours often develop gradually without overt warning signs. Normalisation of gambling within everyday environments is therefore one of the most significant risk factors for harm, as it further obscures these early warning signs, minimising the idea that gambling can cause major harm, while increasing exposure for those who may be attempting recovery. Introducing an additional AGC in an area already saturated with gambling premises would further entrench this normalisation and intensify risk.

 

“You’ve got it in your face all the time – high road, on your phone, it’s everywhere. How do you overcome that when wherever you go, it’s right there, staring in your face?

 

 

 

 

The 'Queen of Tricksy Crime' is coming to Preston Community Library on June 25th - Author evening with Janice Hallett

 

Strike Day 18: Why NEU members at Woodfield School are on strike

 

Sainsbury's Alperton redevelopment of car park - consultation Thursday June 11th and Saturday June 13th

 

The Sainsbury's Barratt London leaflet says:

What's proposed:

New homes for local people

New green spaces

New retail and business space

Retention of the current Sainsbury's store

New customer car park for Sainsbury's store 

 

 The store and its car park from above (Google Earth)

 Ward map