UPDATE: Planning Committee refuses controversial Co-op store application

Brent Planning Committee has turned down the planning application for a Co-operative store to replace a car repair workshop on Burnley Road, opposite the north entrance to Dollis Hill station.

The application had split the local community with the majority of those who submitted an opinion against. LINK

Book now for Grunwick commemoration mural workshops

Click on image to enlarge

CLICK HERE TO BOOK

This is your chance to partipate in designing a mural which will be installed on a prominent wall in Willesden in Autumn 2016. 

In 1976, six workers walked out of Grunwick Film Processing Laboratory in Willesden and ignited an historic two-year dispute which united thousands to demand better rights for poorly treated workers. 23rd August 2016 will mark the 40th anniversary of the Grunwick Strike, and offers a moment to remember, to commemorate, to celebrate and to learn.

Now the high street that saw 20,000 people come down in a single day to support the strike is looking pretty drab. As you arrive at Dollis Hill tube station and walk past the former Grunwick site to the main road, you’ll see plenty of plain, bare walls and unloved spaces.

We will be installing a mural close to the original site of the Grunwick factory to brighten up our high street with a permanent reminder of the power of our community; and to inspire future generations to come together to challenge injustice.

The workshops will be run by an experienced mural artist who will lead us in looking at a range of archive materials, including photographs and film. Using a variety of materials and printing techniques we will then create our own images of Grunwick which will eventually will be digitally combined to produce a design for the final mural.

Everyone aged 13 and above is welcome. You don't need any artistic ability as full guidance will be given, but if you have any photographs, press cuttings or memories of the dispute then please bring them along to share.

The workshops will run from 10.30am-3.30pm including a lunch break.

We are also running shorter workshops over three weeks on different dates at the Dudden Hill Centre, click here for details.

If you would like to contribute to the Crowdfunder which is riasing money for this project click HERE 

At time of writing £1,600 of the target £12,000 has been raised

Gladstone Free School opening delayed until September 2015

Paul Phillips, Principal Designate, has issued the following statement on Gladstone Free School, which was due to open in the Dollis Hill area in September 2014.


Gladstone School, the new Free School approved to open in NW2/NW10, is today announcing that it has been unable to agree terms on permanent premises in time for a September 2014 opening, and as a result is forced to delay its opening until September 2015.

The decision follows a recent policy shift by the Department for Education (DfE) that no Free School can be allowed to open until a permanent site has been identified and secured. The Education Funding Agency (EFA), the government agency responsible for Free School premises, has been in discussions on several proposed permanent sites but none has proved suitable for the school.

Announcing the news today Principal Designate Paul Phillips said, “At this late stage it is highly unlikely that permanent premises will be found to permit all necessary contractual negotiations to be finalised in time for a September 2014 opening. In the light of this the school has no option but to postpone its opening for a year. We know of many other Free Schools in London suddenly forced to defer for the same reason. As a parent-led group we are profoundly aware of the distress this decision will cause to parents and carers of year 6 children who had put their faith in the Gladstone School vision.”

The school had previously advised parents of the possibility of deferral soon after it heard of the DfE's policy change in early March. Several parents wrote to their MPs and to the Secretary of State for Education, Michael Gove to express their concerns.

Gladstone School will now open in September 2015, with the continued support of the DfE. Mary Pooley, Deputy Director of the Free Schools Group at the Department for Education said, “We have been delighted to work with Groups, such as Gladstone School, which share our vision to provide more children with the opportunity for an excellent education. It is very disappointing for us all that difficulties in securing a site will delay the opening of Gladstone School for a year. We will continue working to secure a site, and extend our full support to the school for a successful opening in September 2015.”

Chair of Governors and founder parent Maria Evans said, “This is heart-breaking news for us all, but there is still a vital job to do. The hundreds of Brent parents who have supported us over the last two years, and welcomed our ambitious and innovative vision, need the certainty that this school will open. We will be working in close consultation with Brent Council and the Education Funding Agency to secure the ideal site ahead of the admissions process for September 2015 entry.”

Saving William Gladstone Open Space for all of us

I am opposed to free schools and academies and so is the Green Party. The Liberal Democrats have gone along with free schools and academies in the Coalition and Sarah Teather changed her position from opposition to support when she became a minister. On that and much else I am passionately opposed to them.

However Liberal Democrat councillor Alision Hopkins has been vociferous in her opposition to the Gladstone Free School being built on the William Gladstone Open Space next to Gladstone Park and I think her reasons deserve a wider circulation.

Here is Alison's Guest Blog which is what she would have said at tonight's meeting. 

I’m really sorry I can’t be at the meeting tonight. I’ve a family funeral in Southampton which clashes.

For me, this is a very personal issue. I grew up at the Gladstone Park end of Dollis Hill Avenue, and played in the park and on the open space as a child. I know it well, and I know its history and value to our community.

Let’s be clear, first of all, about the kind of green space that’s threatened. This land has never been built on. Centuries ago it was part of Lower Oxgate Farm, later, market gardens and then allotments. It is now Metropolitan Open Land, which is the equivalent of Green Belt in London. It is protected by law.

Let’s also be clear that this is not about the school per se, it’s about the proposed location.

Gladstone School has claimed that they wish to build on the site of the old William Gladstone School. That site – where the school buildings once stood – is now houses and flats. The school wish to build on William Gladstone Open Space, which is its proper name, NOT Gladstone Playing Fields. And, for the sake of clarity, it’s in Dollis Hill, not Willesden as has repeatedly been stated.

The William Gladstone Open Space is precisely that. Open, green land that belongs to ALL of us. The school have also claimed the space is disused and run down. Their own press release refers to it as a “near abandoned “space! Perhaps they should tell that to the rugby players, the dog walkers, joggers, commuters and all the other people who use it. Perhaps they should also tell that to the people who simply love looking and enjoying one of London’s precious and all too few green lungs.

Gladstone Park isn’t merely “nearby” as the school claim. It’s part of the space they want, and any road from Parkside to the school would have to go through Gladstone Park itself. The importance of Gladstone Park and the William Gladstone Open Space cannot be overstated.

The school also claims that Brent Council considered building on the Open Space in 2005. That’s being economical with the truth, to say the least. In 2005, Brent looked at every piece of land they owned to identify a site for a second City Academy at Wembley. The William Gladstone Open Space came last on the list and was rejected out of hand as totally unsuitable. Nothing has changed since them.

I was contacted by the school in August last year and I, with another fellow councillor met them in September. I made it clear then that I thought any idea of building on the open space was utterly wrong, would be fiercely resisted and that other options were available. Indeed, I suggested several to them, including other Brent owned properties.

Residents then started to approach me, to express their fears for what is the heart of our community. They are the ones – as it should be with any grass roots campaign! – who are leading this and who have pushed this campaign along. They’re the ones who’ve spent every evening and all weekends knocking on doors. They’re the ones who’ve set up Facebook pages.

Kilburn Cosmos, our terrific local rugby team, would be devastated if these plans went ahead. It would mean the loss of one of their essential rugby pitches. And, by the way, over a quarter of a million pounds was spent on that pitch very recently. When Cosmos applied to build a tiny club house on the Open Space, they were turned down almost instantly by Brent Council.

William Gladstone school was closed due to failing rolls in the early 1990s. This was in part because of poor transport links and also because of the nature of our Dollis Hill feeder schools. Nothing has changed since then.

There are three local primary schools in Dollis Hill. One is Orthodox Jewish, one Catholic and the only non-faith school, Braintcroft is directly across the road from Crest Academy.  Crest is having £40 million spent on it and will be using brand new buildings from September.  Gladstone School tells me that they only approached Braintcroft to assess their interest last week! Neither Our Lady of Grace nor the Jewish school will act as a feeder school to Gladstone. It’s also very unlikely that Braintcroft would, as they feed to Crest and to schools in Wembley. What that means is that the pupils attending Gladstone would be unlikely to be local children who could or would walk to Gladstone School. Again, the 2005 Brent Council report clearly stated this.

The small primary school at the bottom of Parkside does cause some issues with traffic and parking at the beginning and end of the school day, as pupils travel from a distance. That school is, however a very good neighbour indeed and works hard to alleviate the difficulties. However, as part of their own small planning application, further double yellow lines will be put on Parkside.

The proposed site has no access roads. Parkside and Oxleys Road are both cul de sacs. Extending Parkside would mean encroaching into the park, and extending Oxleys Road would mean  traffic, including construction traffic driving directly through a quiet residential housing estate.

The Open Space is not served by tubes or busses. When Brent assessed the land in  2005, it scored the lowest possible mark for transport using the PTAL rating, which measures non car accessibility in general. That study also said that the railway line bordering the site made it difficult for primary schools in the south of the borough to get to the Open Space. , Those are the schools that  Gladstone School has canvassed and where any  interest seems to lie. There are no direct bus routes.  The  226 serves the south side of the park and is infrequent, requiring changing to other bus routes to reach most of south Brent. The 232 on Dollis Hill Lane is also infrequent and serves the St Raphael’s  Estate  and Brent Cross.  There’s a railway line, but that’s a goods and freight service, which also happens to carry waste as well as fuel to Heathrow Airport.

The school also claims they were asked by Brent Council not to campaign for the site and thus stir up local feeling. I find that hard to credit and have asked for confirmation from Brent officers. They also claim to have consulted widely: surely those claims are contradictory?

The school is now petitioning for Brent Council to consult on the proposed school. It actually isn’t down to Brent Council, for once, to consult with residents about the school and its location. That can’t happen until a formal planning application is sent to the council. It’s up to the school to talk to local people, and that’s been sadly lacking. I’m a local resident. I wasn’t contacted. I know that Braintcroft, for example, were only contacted last week. I’ve also been told that Gladstone School has been contacting schools outside Dollis Hill for two years.

As I said at the outset, this isn’t about the existence of the school, this is about proposals to use a location which is not only utterly unsuitable for the school, but deeply damaging to our community. I’ve rarely seen such a depth of anger and disquiet here. We love our green space and want it left for us and succeeding generations. Once it’s gone, it’s gone forever.

Sarah's secret: A Lib Dem reflection on Sarah Teather

I have published Labour and Green views on Sarah Teather's decision not to stand again. Here, in a guest blog, is the view from Alison Hopkins,  Liberal Democrat councillor for Dollis Hill

Sarah called me on Saturday to tell me personally of her decision not to stand again in 2014. I was and am very saddened, both on a personal and professional level. I’ve known her for many years, first coming into contact when, like thousands of other Brent residents, she helped me with a problem that no one else had managed to fix. I then got to know her better through her sterling and invaluable efforts to help the campaign against the Brent Cross plans, which meant chaos for Dollis Hill and the wider Brent area. I still remember how trenchant and forthright she was at public meetings with the developers and I realised then that this was a woman with a sense of purpose, fiercely intelligent and not afraid to say what she thought.

As a result of getting to know her better I decided to enter politics properly, having campaigned and worked locally for decades, as I could see that far more could be achieved within a more formal role. I campaigned for her in the 2010 general election and it was one of the most exhilarating, exhausting and rewarding things I’ve ever done – only bettered by being a councillor in Dollis Hill! Our team proved that despite the predictions of victory from Labour and figures suggesting otherwise, we could turn a notional loss into a pretty good win.  I’m absolutely sure that most of that was down to Sarah’s record of working her socks off for local people, knowing Brent in minute detail – I swear she has the electoral roll in her head – and to her brilliant local office.  Brent has had the luxury of a local MP, with help accessible five days a week to constituents: how many other constituencies get that level of commitment?

Her hidden secret is she's also a great pastry cook: the Brent Cross coalition were fed amazing cookies the first time we met her formally in the Commons and she’s notorious for feeding her helpers and staff.  Most people see her serious side, but I’ve been fortunate enough to see her sitting on my dining room floor giggling uncontrollably during my by election.

I’ve not always agreed with her decisions or the way she’s voted, but I’ve never had the least doubt that she hasn't thought long and hard about everything she’s ever done as an MP. I also know that any decision she makes comes from a strong sense of right and wrong, from conscience and from an ethical and moral framework that I wish more people generally had.  She gets angry with injustice, whatever its form, and she won’t pander to the popular or take the easy way out.

One of my neighbours sent me an email about her, and I think it says it all: “Really sorry she’s going. Worked hard and kept her nose clean.”  I’ve no idea what she’ll do next, but I’m absolutely certain that whatever it is, she’ll make a difference to people’s lives for the better, just as she has for the past decade in Brent.

Lorber has a laugh and claims only Lib Dems can beat Labour

Paul Lorber, leader of Brent Liberal Democrats yesterday denied my story that a potential bid for the leadership LINK failed to materialise when the challenger's backer withdrew support. Lorber said that he couldn't help laughing when he read my blog but went on:

There was of course no attempt to challenge my Leadership of the Lib Dem group – although as a democrat I would have no issue if there was.

Two individuals had originally put their names forward for the Deputy Leadership of the Lib Dem Group. One later changed his mind.

As you know it was the Liberal Democrats who won the Dollis Hill by-election despite all the predictions of an easy Labour victory. We also came a good second in the Wembley Central by election.

I think most people recognise that the only party which can beat Labour in Brent are the Liberal Democrats. Despite giving you a clear run in Barnhill Ward you failed to take advantage of this.

A Labour victory in 2014 is NOT a foregone conclusion and what they fear most is an effective challenge which only the Liberal Democrats can mount. What Labour hope for is fragmented opposition votes so they can win with just 40% of the vote.  

There are plenty of places where the Liberal Democrats are 2^nd to Labour where some sensible tactical voting will help to kick Labour out. Todays ‘brilliant’ performance from Milliband will make our task so much easier.

The reference to 'fragmented opposition votes' and 'sensible tactical voting' merits further analysis. What message is Lorber seeking to convey?

The Brent Green Party has not yet started their selection process for the 2014 Council Elections.  Labour Party insiders say that their selection process has produced a slightly different profile of candidates,  moving it closer to the current Camden or Islington model. Brent TUSC have said they intend to put up candidates on an anti-cuts platform and some independent candidates may emerge from the various campaigns that have been fought since Labour took office.

On the parliamentary candidate front Martha Osamore LINK has not responded to enquiries regarding her intentions regarding a bid for the Brent Central Labour nomination.

Dollis Hill-Lib Dem, Barnhill-Labour, Dudden Hill?

A game of cat and mouse between Labour and Lib Dems over a possible by-election in Dudden Hill seems to be developing. The Rev David Clues holds the seat for the Lib Dems at present but he has been living in Brighton for 6 months and the Brent and Kilburn Times hinted last week that he might resign soon.  Seems a bit of a waste of money when the by-election could have been held earlier this month alongside the GLA and Barnhill by-elections.

New Executive member Krupesh Hirani tweeted earlier today that he was off door-stepping in the ward for Labour and according to his blog LINK he saw Sarah Teather there and a couple of residents said they had been canvassed by Lib Dems.  I suspect the Lib Dems are just testing the temperature and will make a decision on whether Clues should hold on for the time being based on their canvassing returns.

With their current poor position in the polls and their failure to stand in the Barnhill by-election they are likely to be ultra-cautious and willing to endure the embarrassment of having a semi-detached councillor rather than face losing the seat.

Poor David Clues must be longing to be able to get on with his new life in Brighton....

Missing, presumed losing...Brent Lib Dems

I asked nearly  month again why the Liberal Democrats were not standing in the Barnhill by-election. This week they broke their silence telling the Brent and Kilburn Times that they did not stand in order to focus their efforts on the London Assembly and Mayoral elections.

Strangely enough I haven't received any leaflets from them on the GLA and Mayoral election. It has been refreshing to fight a by-election without a plethora of Lib Dem leaflets  and their often misleading presentation. The candidates in the Barnhill by-election have been straightforward with more of a focus on policies.

 I suspect that the Lib Dem leadership recognise that in Alison Hopkins in Dollis Hill they had an exceptional candidate with deep local roots and connections but who nonetheless had a narrow win. They have retained Cllr Rev David Clues in Dudden Hill despite his move to Brighton, thus avoiding putting a Lib Dem seat at risk.

Dollis Hill By-election hustings on Thursday

Pete Murry, Green Party candidate in Dollis Hill, will be attending this event:

Protests as Lib Dems dump paper mountain in Dollis Hill

I was out with Brent Green Party colleagues in Dollis Hill today enjoying a beautiful day, good company and meeting local people.

One seriously pissed of woman who was washing her car begged me not to put a London Green News  through her door. "Not another political leaflet! I'm fed up with all these political leaflets through my door every day.  Every day another leaflet. My place is covered in leaflets! No more leaflets!"

Clearly she is not the only one. We found one house where a bin was carefully placed beneath the letter box so the leaflets could drop straight in.  It takes a lot for political leaflets to replace pizza menus as the most hated junk mail.

So what is the cause of this?

The Lib Dem leaflets of course. Showing scant regard for the forests and even less for the feelings of local people they are now on about their 8th or 9th leaflet. A process could be called political fly-tipping on people's doormats.

What is worse,  as my previous posting showed, many of them are not immediately identifiable as Lib Dem leaflets. The latest have been printed in red to look, at a glance, like a Labour leaflet and today there was a blue one which was trying to mop up some Tory votes. Alison Hopkins name was prominent but the fact that she was a Lib Dem candidate hardly figured.

The problem with the Lib Dem's approach is that people's annoyance rubs off on all parties and the political literature which should be a vital part of deciding how to vote in a democratic system becomes discredited and therefore ignored.

Apart from LGN, which is a general Green newspaper for the whole of London, we will be distributing just one modest A5 Green by-election leaflet in the Dollis Hill by-election.

And the woman who was washing her car?

She allowed me to chat to her about the Green Party and why we need some independent Green councillors on Brent Council, while she continued to wash her car in the sunshine. Nothing for her to recycle except the air I breathed.

Dollis Hill By-election likely on March 22nd

It appears that the Dollis Hill by-election  will be held on Thursday Match 22nd but this is subject to confirmation over the next few days. A by-election in Barnhill will be on Thursday May 3rd if Cllr Judith goes ahead with her resignation in March and yet another 'hill', this time Dudden, will come up if the Rev David Clues reisgns after moving to Brighton.

Death of courageous Brent councillor

Cllr Alec Castle (Lib Dem, Dollis Hill) has died after a long illness. Alec Castle was a long-serving local activist and will be a great loss to the community.  He continued his work as a councillor and continued to chair committee meetings when others would have long given up.

He was a great fighter for the people of Brent. I would like to express my sympathy to Alec's friends and family.

Death of a valiant fighter for justice

Jayaben Desai (right)

Jayaben Desai, whose refusal to obey a management instruction to stay on and work overtime after another worker had been sacked for not fulfilling his quota, started the famous Grunwick strike, died just before Christmas. She was 77.

I have written elsewhere on this blog LINK how this strike in Dollis Hill, in the heart of Brent, was a significant milestone in the history of trade union struggle in the UK - and one that should feature when local schools devise their programmes for Black History Month

As someone who attended the pickets I well remember her inspiring presence in front of the Grunwick gates. This was a fight against exploitation based on race, class and gender and challenged the trade union movement's neglect of immigrant and women workers.

Here is Jayaben's own account of the working conditions at Grunwick:

On two sides there are glass cabins for the management so that they can watch you as well. He is English. He moves around and keeps an eye. You have to put up your hand and ask even to go to the toilet. If someone is sick, say a woman has a period or something, they wouldn’t allow her home without a doctor’s certificate, and if someone’s child was sick and they had to take it to the clinic or hospital they would say “Why are you going, ask someone else from your family to go”…

Even pregnant women who wanted to go to the clinic were told “you must arrange to go at the weekend.” On the rare occasions when a woman did go during working hours she would be warned that that was the last time. Everyone would be paid a different wage so no one knew what anyone else was getting. And to force people to work they would make them fill in a job sheet saying how many films they had booked in. If someone did a large number they would bring the job sheet around and show the others and say “She has done so many, you also must.”

 And here is a quote about George Ward, the boss, that sums up her strength:

He would come to the picket line and try to mock us and insult us. One day he said “Mrs Desai, you can’t win in a sari, I want to see you in a mini.” I said “Mrs Gandhi, she wears a sari and she is ruling a vast country.”… On my second encounter with Ward he said “Mrs Desai, I’ll tell the whole Patel community that you are a loose woman.” I said “I am here with this placard! Look! I am showing all England that you are a bad man. You are going to tell only the Patel community but I am going to tell all of England.”

Quotes from Amrit Wilson, Finding A Voice: Asian Women in Britain

Jayaben's funeral will be at Golders Green Crematorium  at 11am on December 31st. Her husband would like people to attend if they are able.