Wembley Housing Zone – is this an answer to Brent’s affordable housing needs?

  Guest Post by Philip Grant (in a personal capacity)

One year ago, the Brent Poverty Commission report by Lord Richard Best was published. The Commission reported that: ‘1 in 6 households (17%) live below the poverty line, doubling (to 33%) after housing costs are taken into account. More than 1 in 5 (22%) of children live in poverty, doubling to a startling 43% after housing costs.’ The report identified: ‘an acute shortage of social housing which has forced people into the private rented sector where rents are two or even three times higher.’

 

 

The following month, Brent’s Cabinet gave its full backing to the report’s recommendations, including those based on the key point that the Council needed to put ‘more investment in social housing’, and ‘build even more affordable homes.’

 

 

Next Monday (16 August), Brent’s Cabinet has the opportunity to put those recommendations into action, when they consider a report on implementing the Council’s proposals for the Wembley Housing Zone. I will set out briefly what is proposed, and why Cabinet members may wish to question how what Council Officers are proposing might be improved, to take better account of the Poverty Commission’s findings.

 

The Wembley Housing Zone (“WHZ”) was set up in partnership with the Greater London Authority, to speed-up the delivery of new homes. £8m of GLA funding was received, and part of this (£4.8m) was used by the Council to buy Ujima House in Wembley High Road. The other site (already Council-owned) which now forms part of the WHZ is across the road, where Copland School used to stand (whose buildings were demolished after Ark Elvin Academy moved into its new school further down the slope).

 

 

A detailed planning application for the site on the corner of the High Road and Cecil Avenue, and an outline application for Ujima House, were made towards the end of 2019. Although these were approved by Planning Committee in March and June 2020 respectively, the formal consents were not signed off until February 2021. 

 

It had been decided that the two WHZ schemes would be treated as one for “affordable housing” purposes, and Cabinet is now being asked to ‘approve the preferred delivery option for the regeneration of the sites’. The two sites between them will provide 304 homes, and it is proposed that 50% of these should be affordable homes. I will give a short outline of what is proposed for each site.

 

The planning approval for Ujima House (19/3092) would demolish the existing building and replace it with a ten-storey block. There would be workspace and a café on the ground floor, with 54 residential flats on the floors above. The 28 1-bed, 18 2-bed and 8 3-bed (only 15% of the total) homes would all be for rent by Brent Council at London Affordable Rent levels (not social rents - see below). 

 

 

The more detailed application for the cleared site at the corner of Cecil Avenue and the High Road (19/2891) would build blocks, between five and nine storeys high, containing 250 flats and maisonettes. 64 of these homes would be either 3-bed or 4-bed (26%). However, only 39% of the homes in this development would be “affordable”, and only 52 of the 250 are proposed to be for rental, at London Affordable Rent levels.

 

 

[These blocks would not be as grim as they look in the elevation drawings, as the plans include a courtyard in the middle!]

 

The affordable element for this larger site was set out in an “Approved Plan”, which was made a condition of the February 2021 planning consent. More than half of the London Affordable Rent homes (28) would be 3 or 4-bed. The plan also set out that the other 36 “affordable” homes (21 of which would be 2-bed) should be either Shared Ownership or Intermediate Rent (which would be cheaper than private rents, but not within the means of those on the housing waiting list).

 

 

There appears to be a discrepancy. The 52 + 36 affordable homes for the Cecil Avenue / High Road site in the planning consent make a total of 88. However, the WHZ report to Monday’s Cabinet meeting says that 152 affordable homes will be delivered (50% of 304), and to reach that figure 98 of the homes from the larger site would need to be affordable, not 88.

 

Fifty percent of affordable homes may sound good. But if only 106 of the 304 new units are to be for rent, and all of those at London Affordable Rents, how does that meet the Cabinet’s commitment to the recommendations of the Brent Poverty Commission?

 

London Affordable Rent levels are set by the GLA. They use a formula based on rent figures decided in 2017/18, which are then increased each year by the previous September’s Consumer Prices Index increase plus 1%. The 2017/18 figures used were around 50% of open market rents at the time, but were between 30% and 50% higher than the average “social rent” levels for the same sized homes charged by housing associations and London boroughs. 

 

An analysis available on the GLA website makes clear that London Affordable Rent should not be confused with social rent levels, and says: ‘social rent is the only housing type really affordable to lower income Londoners.’ That is why the Poverty Commission report said that Brent should seek to make more of its new “affordable” housing genuinely affordable, at social rent levels.

 

It appears that the Council Officers making these WHZ proposals to Cabinet are either unaware of, or have chosen to ignore, the recommendations on housing in the Brent Poverty Commission report. Their proposals would ‘bring the Cecil Avenue and Ujima House sites to the market together’, through the Council undertaking the construction on both sites, but “procuring” ‘a developer partner to share private housing sales risk.’

 

The Officer report to Cabinet says that their proposal is a “medium risk” strategy:

 

‘The Council takes and manages construction risk, which it has experience of doing through its housing and schools capital programmes, but a developer partner is sought to take and dispose the private sales housing, of which the Council has no experience. By financing construction, the Council can use lower public sector borrowing rates and reduce finance costs.’

 

One of the “risks” of following this route would be:

 

‘A developer may seek to influence the final scheme, compromising the overall place making vision and regeneration benefits for the area.’

 

If the Council is going to undertake and manage the construction on the two sites, why not make ALL of the homes it builds “affordable housing”, providing 304 Council homes for people (especially families) on its waiting list? Ideally, these should all be for social rent, for those most in need, as recommended in Lord Best’s report. If that is not financially viable, an alternative could be 50% let at social rent levels, with the other 50% (presumably the better ones on the Cecil Avenue site, which a developer would have wanted for “private sale”) at London Affordable Rent.

 

I can’t make any detailed suggestions on the finance side, as six of the seven Appendices to the Officer report are secret, because they contain “Information relating to the financial or business affairs of any particular person (including the authority holding that information)". It appears that the press and public may also be excluded from Monday’s Cabinet meeting while these matters are discussed!

 

 

However, it is clear from the report which is available that there are ongoing discussions with the GLA over funding for the scheme, about ‘increasing the amount and affordability of affordable housing’:

 

‘Reviewing WHZ financial viability, the GLA have also agreed in principle an additional £5.5m grant to deliver the scheme, but which is subject to confirmation.’

 

If the Council would go back to the GLA, and its 2021-2026 Affordable Housing Programme, with proposals for the Wembley Housing Zone to provide 100% affordable housing, that could provide the answer.

 

I believe that this suggestion is worth serious consideration, so I am sending a copy of the text of this article to all of Brent’s Cabinet members (sent Friday 13 August at 4:23pm). I hope that at least some of them will raise questions based on it, especially about the need for social rent homes to be considered, at the meeting on Monday.

 

I will also send a copy to the Council Officers involved, and to the Chief Executive, for their consideration, and so that they can either provide answers, or at least agree to go away and look at this matter again. 

 

The Wembley Housing Zone provides a major opportunity to meet some of the housing need identified by the Brent Poverty Commission. That opportunity should not be wasted!

 

Philip Grant.

Cllr Butt addresses St Raphael's residents on the delays in fill-in/rebuild development of the estate. Is it the full story?

 

 

On Twitter @LifeInKilburn  suggested this was not the whole story:

St Raphael's redevelopment delayed. What the Leader doesn't tell you is that the GLA have changed their funding criteria and that they will not fund housing that replaces current housing, making the full redevelopment option not financially possible.

This was a point also made by St Raph's Community group LINK 

Inside Housing LINK covered the GLAs change of policy in December 2020 and quoted Helen Evans of the G15 group of housing associations:

The new programme will mean that grant funding will only be available for additional homes in estate regeneration.

This is a big change from previous programmes, the extent to which it makes a difference will depend on how much the estate is being densified.

I believe estate regeneration, which already involves additional costs of demolition and loss of rental income, will become more expensive and unviable in some instances.

There may be some wriggle room for Brent Council and it could be that the delay is caused by protracted talks with the GLA. The GLA’s guidance states it will “consider funding these replacement homes in exceptional circumstances”, such as if homes have become “obsolete”. Does this apply to housing on St Raph's?

 Inside Housing continued:

Guy Slocombe, chief investment officer at Hyde, said he hopes the regeneration rules are “a broad generalisation” and that “some of the homes that are being regenerated are being regenerated because they are no longer fit for purpose”.

He continued: “Hyde has experience of large-scale regeneration which involves replacing homes that would not meet the decent homes standards. I believe that grant should be provided to replace these homes and I hope that... regeneration projects will be considered on their own merit.

Alternative funding may also be being explored. This is what the GLA document, Homes for London - Affordable Homes Programme 2021-2026, LINK  says:

Estate regeneration

 

The Affordable Homes Programme 2021-2026 provides funding for estate regeneration projects where the grant is used for additional homes. Funding will not be available for units that replace homes that have been, or will be, demolished.

 

Where homes have become obsolete the GLA will consider funding these replacement homes in exceptional circumstances, and only as part of a scheme that will increase the number of homes overall. 

 

Where councils are unable to fund replacement homes within their own resources, the GLA will look to provide alternative funding. Investment partners seeking to undertake estate regeneration are encouraged to submit bids under this programme for units that will increase overall supply and to discuss additional requirements with GLA officers where further funding is required to support the replacement of homes that have been demolished.

More than 17,000 people vote for the Green's Emma Wallace in Brent & Harrow GLA poll - FULL RESULTS

 

The Green Party candidate, Emma Wallace won the support of 17,472 voters in the Brent and Harrow GLA constituency. This gave her 10.3% of the overall vote and nearly 3,000 more votes than the Liberal Democrat candidate. Krupesh Hirani had a convincing win for the Labour Party and will succeed Navin Shah.  At his victory speech this evening  he made it clear he would represent everyone in Brent and Harrow, and not just those who had voted for him.

Greens also beat the Liberal Democrats in the London-wide Assembly election so together the three results confirm the Green Party as the third party in Brent and Harrow.

The full results  for the constituency are below (click bottom right for full page view). The winner of the London Mayoral vote and the number of London-wide Assembly Members for each party will not be known until other constituencies have been counted tomorrow and may not be known until the count and calculations have been completed which could extend into Sunday.

Count agents were concerned that some voters seemed to have misunderstood the Mayoral voting paper. The layout was confusing as a result of having so many candidates. Some voters appeared to have thought the first column of names was for first preference and the second column of names was for second preference votes or that they could have first and second choices in each column of names. Two single columm sheets would have been clearer. As a result many votes were invalid. (Mock ups below from @london_rocklad) A total of 8,747 (5%) voted for 'too many' in the 1st preference vote.

 

 

Interestingly, more than 70% of the total votes were postal votes.

See LINK

When are you likely to hear results from the GLA election?

 

Brent Council pulled out the stops today to ensure that voters and their staff were Covid safe at polling stations.

The above polling station in Wembley Park had perspex screens to protect staff, a one way system with good air flow, social distance markers on the pavement, sanitiser and covid marshals on hand to ensure compliance with covid safety measures. Voters were urged to use their own pencils or pens.

Voting boxes will go to Alexandra Palace for tomorrow's GLA count which will also be constrained by strict covid safety measures including a reduced number of counting staff and restrictions on the number of party counting agents. The Brondesbury Park by-election count will also take place in a separate room at Alexandra Palace with the count by a 'super team' expected to be completed after lunch, as long as no recount is required.

The GLA Brent and Harrow constituency count takes place tomorrow but some other London constituencies will not be counted until Saturday.  The Brent and Harrow result will most likely be announced on Friday evening but as this is the first count under Covid conditions that cannot be guaranteed.

Provisional declaration times for Saturday are 8pm for the election of the Mayor and 9pm for the election of London-wide assembly members.  If the declaration is held over to Sunday morning the timings are likely to be 10am and 11am.

Guidance on how to vote can be found here: https://www.londonelects.org.uk/im-voter/how-complete-your-ballot-papers

You can follow real-time election results on the electronic screens here: http://www.londonelects.org.uk

Why you should vote Green in the Mayor of London and London Assembly election

Guest post by 16 year old Aria Banerjee Watts

 

Aria on the campaign trail

This Thursday 6th May, Londoners have a chance to make their voices heard. The Mayoral and London Assembly elections, postponed due to the pandemic, are now happening and have lost none of their excitement and importance. 

 

This isn't a national election but it's still vital to get out and vote. This is a way to choose the people who will represent us and shape the future of our neighbourhoods and city. The Mayor of London's scope of work is much broader than people realise: the role determines the state of our housing, how green and safe our environment is, the quality of our communities and how efficient our transport is. They may not be debating the future of the EU or negotiating with the UN, but they have the all-important job of improving the city we live in. 

 

The Green Party has long been fighting for the UK to improve its environmental record and combat the Climate Crisis effectively. National level action is certainly needed, but change begins locally and this election is about making a concentrated difference in your borough and city. Due to the huge role the natural environment plays in our everyday lives, we have to vote for a Party who will protect it. We all enjoy the green spaces in our local area, and we suffer when we walk to school or work along busy, polluted roads. Not only do the Greens want to make positive environmental change, they want to involve citizens too, because they recognise how important our opinions are. 

 

The Green Party's manifesto is not just about environmental issues, but also about better housing, transport and safer streets. In fact, these are all connected: we need to have greener homes with less energy loss to save money and conserve fuel and have more efficient transport systems to help commuters on roads and bridges that are not disruptive and environmentally damaging. These things are important for all cities, but particularly London. We need an Ultra Low Emissions Zone to protect our health from rising air pollution. Where so many people are struggling to find affordable housing, we need the Greens who are committed to prevent the loss of council housing and allow people to plan for new homes through a People's Land Commission. 

 

This election is unique - you can vote for two different mayoral candidates of your first and second preference. This will be on the PINK ballot paper, where you have to select two different names for your first and second choice. Sian Berry is the Green candidate. 

 

In addition to voting for a Mayor, you will also vote for 2 London Assembly members, one who represents your constituency and another who is a London-wide Assembly Member. The first is on a YELLOW ballot paper and the second on an ORANGE ballot paper. For the constituency member, you select a named person but for the London-wide member, you just pick a party. Please consider voting for the Green Party.

 

The proportional representation system of this election is more representative than the "first-past-the-post" system of general elections, and gives smaller parties, like the Greens, a better chance of being elected, allowing London’s population to be more accurately represented.  So please use your vote to support smaller and committed candidates.

 

During the pandemic, we have all found a new spirit of community, an appreciation for nature and our local area and have realised how much pollution improved when commuting paused for a while. Difficult times lie ahead for many people so we need a supportive Mayor who can help Londoners find houses, jobs and support services.

 

We've realised how much power every person holds to make positive change and shape a better, greener future. This election now gives us the chance to vote for a party who wants a new start for London, who believes in the same things as us and wants to fight to protect them.

 

As young Londoners who can't yet vote, we need adults to make a responsible choice for our future. We want to grow up in a safe city, free from crime and pollution with affordable houses and jobs. London really is a special city, that's why you should vote Green to give it a fresh start and make it even better for future generations.

 

Vote Sian Berry for Mayor, 1st choice candidate (PINK ballot)

Vote Green Party for London-wide Assembly Member (YELLOW Ballot)

Vote named Green candidate for Constituency London Assembly Member (ORANGE ballot)

 

 

Emma Wallace Green Candidate for Brent and Harrow interviewed: 'In a fairer electoral system your vote really counts - vote Green to get green'

 

Emma Wallace at Headstone Manor Park

Journalism student, Liam Moran, who studies at Kingston University, interviews Emma Wallace, Green Party candidate for the Brent and Harrow GLA constituency

How are you feeling in the run up to election day?  

 

I am really looking forward to it!  Greens are feeling really positive about the outcome of the London elections, with more and more people saying they are voting Green.   We are hoping to see a Green wave in London, as we have seen in many other European cities who now have Green mayors.

Our two Green Party Assembly members, Sian Berry and Caroline Russell, have made a big impact at City Hall over the last five years, holding the current Mayor to his promises and pushing him to act on a wide range of issues, repeatedly.   With a Green mayor and more Green members in City Hall we can do even more to ensure that London is the Greenest city in the world.  

 

How has your campaign been so far?

 

The campaign has been really good.  I've visited and met so many great people, both online and in real life in Brent and Harrow over the last six months and heard about many of the issues people are facing, from the destruction of local environment and trees, to housing concerns and transport issues.  I've been campaigning with residents to push TFL to change their trackside habitat management policies and I've visited many of our beautiful parks and nature reserves, including Bentley Priory and the Welsh Harp and heard about the ongoing, longstanding issues impacting them.  I've helped out at Harrow's foodbank, the London Community Kitchen, and learnt about the incredible work they are doing there to support zero waste, zero hunger in North London.  I have also met a number of community groups to hear about their concerns around new planning developments, which are being proposed on green spaces.   If elected, Sian Berry, as London Mayor, and I as Brent and Harrow Assembly Member, are committed to listening and bringing diverse voices into City Hall to make sure our policies work for everyone.  

 

The Green party is a grassroots party, which depends on its volunteer and it has been so heartening to see people come out and help leaflet and spread our message over the campaign.  I am so grateful to them.   Sian Berry and the London Green Party have put together an incredibly comprehensive manifesto, including radical ideas to make London a healthier, fairer and greener city and it has been a pleasure talking about these policies on the doorstep and at hustings, seeing resident’s positive response to them.  

 

What is the main issue you will be focused on if you are elected?  

 

Whilst the impact of the pandemic is still being felt around the world, the Climate Emergency is not going away and must urgently be addressed if we are to avoid going over a 1.5C rise in global temperatures.  We are the only party that has a clear plan to tackle the climate crisis, setting urgent targets to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2030.  The Green Party will take action through a holistic response, focusing on creating sustainable and insulated housing, developing a joined up and green public transport system, investing in walking and cycling, protecting and preserving our green spaces and trees and creating green jobs to transform our economy post Covid.  

 

What would you say to people who might be unsure about going out to vote in local elections as they do not believe that they are important? 

 

The London Elections have a much fairer voting system than other elections and consequently, your vote really counts!  The mayoral and general Assembly Member votes are a form of proportional representation, so if you vote Green, you get Green.    I encourage everyone to put Sian Berry as your first choice for Mayor, the Green Party as their London wide London Assembly vote and Emma Wallace as your Brent and Harrow London Assembly candidate.  Friends of the Earth have also just ranked Sian Berry's manifesto as the most climate-friendly and so it's clear.  If you want green, you have to vote Green!

 

A chance to hear from your GLA candidates at Mencap Hustings tonight 6pm

 

Zoom link: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87086823773

Hear from local London Assembly candidates on Wednesday and ask them a question 7-9pm

 From Brent Friends of the Earth

Join the Brent Friends of the Earth and London Assembly candidates to hear how they plan to tackle the climate crisis. Wednesday 7-9pm

About this Event

An opportunity to hear from the local London Assembly candidates about how they will address the Climate Emergency and other environmental challenges. The candidates will outline their existing proposals and respond to questions from local groups as well as the wider community.

REGISTER HERE

Note - due to a glitch you cannot register if you leave the question box blank. If you do not wish to ask a question just type 'No question' in the box and you will be able to register. 

Brent Friends of the Earth: GLA Hustings on the Environment - 7pm April 7th

 

 From Brent Friends of the Earth

On 6 May 2021, we'll vote for the next Mayor of London and future London Assembly Members – including our representative for Brent and Harrow.

The London Assembly holds the Mayor to account on decisions that directly impact our everyday lives, from tackling air pollution to improving public transport and creating more green space.

The people we elect will have the power to push for a clean, green and fair future – locally in Brent and Harrow and at a national level too. So, we need to make sure that our constituency’s candidates have the climate and environmental emergencies on their agenda.

Brent Friends of the Earth is hosting an online hustings with the London Assembly candidates at 7 pm on Wednesday 7 April. Join us remotely via Zoom to find out where candidates stand on important issues and ask them questions of your own ahead of the election.

I'D LIKE TO ATTEND

Brent and Harrow Greens launch crowdfunder to help Emma Wallace change London for the better - please support her

 Brent and Harrow Green Parties have launched a Crowdfunder to help Emma Wallace, our candidate in the GLA election, in her campaign. DONATE HERE

This election is held under a fair voting system so every vote counts, which makes it one of the most important election campaigns the Greens can fight.  

Greens have a great record of delivering on the London Assembly.  From getting the Mayor to declare a Climate Emergency to winning £45 million worth of funding for youth clubs.  Sian Berry and Caroline Russell, our two Green Party London Assembly members, get stuff done and we can get more Greens in the Assembly to do more!

We just need your support and hopefully your donations, because we are committed to using our platform in the Assembly to demand real change.  

We will fight for action on the climate emergency so we can create the greenest city in the world.

We have a clear plan to keep London moving. We’ll move past polluting cars and invest in the future of travel public transport, walking and cycling.

And we will bring fresh thinking to housing, aiming to make sure no one is struggling to put a roof over their head.  Every donation to this Crowdfunder is about reaching voters locally.    

In Brent and Harrow we need to reach and win over as many residents as possible.  Your donation will help us reach Londoners on social media, via the post and over the phone. 

We can’t rely on billionaires and corporate donors like the other parties.  We are a grassroots movement and your donations can help get our message through and win the support we need. 

Thank you so much,

Emma Wallace, GLA Brent & Harrow Candidate

CLICK ON THIS LINK TO DONATE

P.S. Because we're a political party

·       Please note all donations will go to Harrow Green Party to help our campaign to elect Emma Wallace to the London Assembly.

·       We're required to run permissibility checks on donations over £500. These will be completed as pledges are made. For the same reason, we cannot accept anonymous donations over £500.

·       If you make multiple donations to us, they may be aggregated for our reporting purposes.

·       Your details will appear in our election returns if valued over £500, and if you donate over £7,500 your identity will appear on the Electoral Commission website

Promoted by Martin Francis on behalf of Emma Wallace and Brent and Harrow Green Parties c/o 23 Saltcroft Close. Wembley, HA9 9JJ.