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| A Valentine's Day from Stonebridge chidlren to Brent Council |
This is a letter from one of Stonebridge ward councillors posted on the Adventure Playgrounnd's Facebook Page LINK:
Dear Glynis,Clearly the hope is that the campaign will accept this but the struggle will carry on until the last Stonebridge kid whizzes down the zip wire crying out 'Stonebridge will Stay Forever!'.
It was unfortunate that all efforts to keep our cherished Adventure playground open was unsuccessful with the decision of withdrawal of the funding. It will be a devastating news to the Stonebridge community and environs who use this facility.
Regarding your concerns and some information you requested,I'll email you later today for those request and also enquire if their will be room for time to sort out the Staff that work in the Adventure playground instead of March 31st deadline.
Kind regards,
Ernest
Cllr. Ernest Ezeajughi
Stonebridge Ward
I wrote a message on the Facebook page amongst the messages of sadness:
We should not accept that funding is to be stopped until we have exhausted all campaigning opportunities and lobbied all councillors, MPs, candates etc Exactly as you have been doing so well. The Cabinet does not offically decide its recommendations until February 23rd and then they have to be approved by Full Council on March 2nd. Muhammed Butt may have decided funding will cease but are we saying that the rest of the process is therefore meaningless? It doesn't say much for local democracy if so. Let's not give up yet - look at the Kilburn Times fron page today.The Kilburn Times story is about a rise in youth cautions in the borough and includes a quote from Colin Hunter, a playground worker:
Without youth services it's far too easy for young people to be swayed by peer pressure and get involved with gangs and go down the criminality route, so the figure will rise.And Doug Lee wrote a message of defiance on the Facebook page:
IT IS NOT OVER We will fight on and even harder for JUSTICE . The gloves are off now and we at Bridge know how to fight and WIN There are at least three rounds to go .Come on everyone lets finish the job and finish it well We are not some walkover We stand our ground and always will . Bless all our supporters .
24 comments:
Interesting how this blog only highlights the concerns of well-read, middle class residents.
Is this what working class community struggle looks like?
Clearly you have never visited Stonebridge Adventure Playground and met the kids, their parents or the workers, or you would realise what nonsense you have just spouted.
I don't tend to hang around playgrounds talking to kids, Martin.
Any actual Brent resident would know that a high % of children in Brent are considered as suffering from child poverty. Born and bred residents, as well as those who have moved to and live in areas of Brent, and Stone bridge, know the true reality of their circumstances.
Martin - remind us - is your position a) no cuts (i.e refuse to set a budget) or b) different cuts (if so what £54m?)
I think you might find many in the middle classes are now part of the working poor.
You convey your sour mood effectively. But I'm struggling to make out your meaning.
Good grief. I spent months walking round Stonebridge in 2009/2010. I can't believe anyone can be so pig ignorant as to describe the people who use the playground as well read or middle class.
But then, it's anonymous.....
Doesn't matter if you've got no shot at power. You can say what you want.
Just like the Lib Dems used to...
Nasty. I am a Trustee of Brent Play Association so know the parents and workers well. Judge for yourself whether the people on this video are 'middle class', whatever you mean by that: http://youtu.be/pNZxP_guThc?list=UUMQdWx1-B7B-VRfD2-uETRw
I support the original position put in Point 6 of Kilburn branch motion to the All Brent Labour Meeting which was amended http://wembleymatters.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/brent-labour-support-campaign-on-cuts.html
And the position adopted by Brighton Green party http://wembleymatters.blogspot.co.uk/2015/01/breaking-newsl-brighton-green-party.html
Although the latter was not adopted by the leadership.
How dare anyone question the judgements and the priorities of The Leader!
How dare anyone question anyone's right to remain anonymous!
The bitter and the sour have a right to be heard!
Bile and Spite Unite and Fight !
Given that this blog exists primarily to drag Labour councillors' names through the mud, you probably shouldn't be so sensitive when people say "nasty" things to you, Martin.
Very brave to use Green's in Brighton as a model considering the mess they've got themselves into
*Dear Leader*
If they're not well-read or middle class, what does that make them?
Given that Labour councillors are responsible directly or indirectly for everything that happens to Brent people as a result of Brent council's actions it would be a little surprising if a Brent blog dealing with Brent politics and Brent people's concerns didn't have things to say about Brent Labour councillors.
Your over-sensitivity to this fact and Martin's (and most readers of this blog's) irritation at the persistent bitchiness of some sour and embittered little troll have very little in common.
You'd feel much more at home in some below-the-line comment area on some news website. Why not go there?
16:02 - Sorry, I suspect I expressed that badly because I was so cross. It was the insinuation that those fighting the closure of the playground were the privileged that annoyed the hell out of me. The people I met in Stonebridge were struggling to make lives, to raise their children and living in hugely difficult situations. They weren't well off in any sense of the word, but they were doing their best, despite being neglected and forgotten for far too long. The founders and campaigners for the playground are ordinary people doing an extraordinary thing, despite all the circumstances that mitigate against them.
Is it since the Labour Running of Rotherham council that an anonymous Brent Councillor thinks that they needn't bother speaking to our younger generation? Is this why Brent Youth Council were told to zip it?
I thought middle class gangs were residents associations?
Edited comment from Anonymous: 08:57 and 15:30 what are your thoughts on the fact that Cara Davani is still in office despite the Employment Tribunal finding of racial discrimination and victimisation? Have you got nothing better to do than to troll this blog? Did Brent residents not vote you in to represent them, why don't you do some work to actually earn the huge 25% pay rise you labour councillors took from the public purse, the same money that could have been put back into the community. To my knowledge no lies have been told about any of you on here, those of us residents are happy to read this blog which is the only way of finding what you little weasels get up.
Unfair. To weasels.
It's frightening to read how some people are so detached from reality.
Only just realised the doors are really looking set to close on this adventure 'lifeline' playground. This for a lot of the children within a good square mile or two is the only socialising outside of school that is safe, accessible and affordable. When this goes it is going to be catastrophic for this community. Is there nowhere else nearby that can be rebuilt on, such as Milton avenue? That whole strip Milton/Greenwood and Albert terrace (more locally known as the buffer) is falling apart. The 'desperate to get out of the decaying house residents' there would embrace the council if they decanted them, demolished and rebuilt. There's over a hundred house there, vast majority council that are in disgusting condition. Those hundred houses ripped down could be replaced with a state of the art block, build four or five high and there the council would have five hundred new homes, happy residents that could use the adventure and its facilities. The school the borough are saying they need to expand may even get enough children on its book to not be undersubscribed as it is most years along with the church primary school next door to it that is also undersubscribed most years. No upset, job loss, or deprivation of kids safe recreation. Have a look at the wornington green estate (in London W10) regeneration scheme to see how this housing shortage is being met without robbing the residents of its recreation facilities. They also have an adventure playground that they did think about demolishing (for a spilt second) but then managed to see the bigger picture. The problem with Brent council is its inability to see the bigger picture. Councillors in this case do not care about the users of facilities in this area because there's a fair unfortunate few that won't get round to voting in this area so the councillors don't worry about not supporting them dutifully.
Brent are and always will be a borough well behind the leading ones. Look at our neighbouring Ken and Chelsea, now part of a super strong tri-borough. Three times the strength, power and money and they're all boroughs that listen to their residents, bombarded with surveys from their councils when you live there, always requesting the residents views...Brent are and probably always will be losers. If there's anyone out there that can drill some sense into these idiots that are working for Brent regarding this robbery on the needy then please, please DO!!!
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