Readers of this blog will know that many questions have been raised about Cllr Muhammed Butt's refusal to allow any scrutiny of Trustees' actions over Barham Park.
Barham Park was gifted to the people of Wembley by Titus Barham (HISTORY HERE) but Butt gained control of the Trustees by making himself their Chair and other members of his Cabinet fellow Trustees. They claim that they represent the people of Wembley and refuse any other representation.
In his role as the all-powerful Chair, Cllr Butt has refused to let people speak at meetings of the Trustees to raise issues over the accounts, plans to redevelop and privately market park buildings, his relationship with the developer and fairground entrepeneur George Irvin, the sale of two workers' cottages in the park to Irvin, and Irvin's gifts of free fairground ride tickers to councillors (see links below).
There is a Trustees' meeting on Monday morning where a payment bu Irvin to the Trustees of £200,000 will allow a restrictive covenant protecting Barham Park to be removed, enabling Irvin to build four three storey houses inside the park on the site of the cottages. (CGI above). Irvin has already received planning permission for them from the Council pending settlement of the covenant issue. Observers reckon given the sale value of the proposed private houses, situated in a beautiful park with vehicle access and nearby rail connections, the payment is quite a bargain.
Unsurprisingly, local councillor Paul Lorber has asked to speak to the Trustees about the issues raised. Equally unsurprisingly Chair of Trustees and Leader of the Council, Cllr Muhammed Butt has refused:
The Brent Officer concerned responded:
As is usual practice I’ve consulted with the Chair and, as a result, can advise he is not currently minded to allow any requests to speak at Monday’s meeting. Whilst it will not, therefore, be possible for you to address the meeting in person you’ll obviously still be more than welcome to attend to observe proceedings. We’ll also be webcasting the meeting live, which you’ll be able to follow, as an alternative, via the following link:
The
Petition signed by 1,170 people will be presented to at the full Brent Council
Meeting on Monday 18 September held at the Brent Civic Centre, Engineers Way,
Wembley starting at 6p.m.
The
Petition calls for Barham Park to be protected from development so that it can
continue to provide "recreation for the public" as Titus Barham
intended.
Local
people are angry at Brent Council for granting planning permission for extra
houses on the site of two cottages despite the Sudbury Neighbourhood Plan specifically
forbidding this. They are also angry at the Council leadership considering
lifting a covenant which the Council put in place itself just over 10 years ago
to prevent more house building on the site.
Lastly
local people are amazed that Labour Councillors spent £25,000 on an architects
study and are now considering kicking out long established community groups
operating from buildings in the park so that they can go ahead with a £3 to £4
million "hypothetical" scheme to build hotel rooms or convert spaces
for Airbnb accommodation for visitors to Wembley Stadium.
In
doing this the Labour Leadership are ignoring the wishes of Titus Barham who
gifted his home and gardens in 1937 so that local people could have a Public
Park for their enjoyment and recreation. Barham Park is the 3rd most visited
Public Open Space in Brent.
While
the original buildings may not be special, they do have important historical
connections which are of interest.
1.
Part of the buildings date back to 1780s and are known as Crabs House after
their owner.
2.
In 1801 the land and the House were bought by John Copland who was a bursar in
the Royal Navy and served with Horatio Nelson in 1805 when Nelson lost his eye.
3.
In the years up to his death in 1843 John Copland acquired around 350 acres of
land in Sudbury/Wembley which stretched all the way from the site of the former
Copland School (now Ark Elvin Academy) all the way to Harrow on the Hill.
4.
John Copland is buried in one of the inaccessible vaults at Kensal Green
Cemetery.
5.
His only son was killed while also serving in the Royal Navy and his land was
inherited by his two unmarried daughters.
6.
The daughters were big local benefactors and over the years they paid for the
building of St John's Church in Harrow Road Wembley (George Gilbert Scott was
the architect), a local village school, a cottage hospital and a workers’
institute used to train apprentices, and which contained the first local
library. They lived in Sudbury Lodge - a large house built in the middle of
what is now Barham Park. They too are buried in Kensal Green.
7.
On the death of the sisters in the early 1870s their House and lands passed on to
General Robert Fitzgerald Copland-Crawford. The adding of the name Copland to
Crawford was one of the requirements. The General was a son of a soldier who
served with Wellington at the battle of Waterloo and in his later years General
Robert Fitzgerald Copland-Crawford claimed that he was the last man alive who
could remember the sound of British guns as they were defeating Napoleon Bonaparte.
8.
Two of his sons (educated at Harrow School) were great sportsman and played
both cricket and football. They represented Scotland in the first 4 friendly
Scotland v England football internationals that took place between 1870 and
1872. One of them scored the very 1st Scottish goal against England.
9.
Most of the family died out in the mid 1890s and there is a family monument to
them in the grounds of St John's Church.
10.
Sir George Barham, the founder of Express Dairies acquired Sudbury Lodge and
most of the lands in 1895. An express Dairies Farm existed in the current area
of One Tree Hill Open Space, Chaplin Road and Farm Avenue. Barham Primary
School stands on part of the old farmland.
11.
Sir George Barham is credited with modernising and cleaning up the milk
industry. He was at the forefront of improving hygiene and many inventions -
including the introduction of milk bottles.
12.
On his death in 1913 the land passed on to his two surviving sons George
(always known as Titus Barham) and Arthur. Arthur later became a partner in
United Dairies (formed during the 1st World War) which later became Unigate.
13.
Titus Barham continued to grow Express Dairies which in the years after his
death became the biggest operator of Supermarkets in the UK under the name
Premier.
14.
It is however because of this involvement in community causes that Titus Barham
deserves to be remembered. He was a successful and wealthy businessman who used
his wealth to support good causes. He supported the building of Wembley
Hospital, donated money to buy the Tennis Club in Sylvester Road, welcomed
local people to his home for his "Rose Sundays". In 1936, a year
before his death, 8000 local people attended his open house event.
15.
Titus Barham is referred to as "Wembley's greatest benefactor".
16.
In 1937 Wembley received its Charter to become a Borough Council. Titus was due
to become the Wembley 'Charter' Mayor' and donated £4,000 (around £300,000 in today’s
money) for the purchase of the Mace and Chains of Office regalia. Sadly, he
died in July 1937 on the same day that Wembley was officially due to become a borough and he its
Mayor. The ceremonywas postponed until October.
17.
Titus was keen to ensure that all Wembley residents had an opportunity to
celebrate the creation of the Borough Council and he had paid in advance for a "tea
party" for the tens of thousands attending the old Wembley Stadium on 2 October
1937:
18.
Even more importantly on his death Titus Barham decided to gift his home (now
renamed Barham Mansion) and his beloved gardens to local people for "the
recreation of the public". With the house came his 'eclectic' collection
of items collected over many years which eventually formed the founding
collection of items used for the creation of the Brent Museum at the Grange
(now in Willesden Library)
19.
His gift eventually became Barham Park. While Barham Mansion, used during the
2nd World War by the military, fell into disrepair and was demolished in 1955
the Park and the original buildings remain. They have been home to the Barham
Veterans Club since 1946. The Barham Park Public Library was opened on 31 May
1952 and served local people for almost 60 years - but was sadly closed by
Labour Councillors in 2011 when half of Brent's libraries disappeared.
20.
On a sunny day Barham Park is full of people enjoying themselves. The old
buildings are a hive of activity - with the Community Library, run by
volunteers, serving our local community.
I
hope that this brief summary - highlighting the lives and contribution of the
people who lived in Barham Park - explains local people believe that Barham
Park should continue to be used for the "recreation" of local people
and not to for developers profit or commercial interests.
Local
people love their local park and will fight to preserve it to be enjoyed by
local people now and in the future.
The
views of local people should not be ignored. We do not want more house building
in the park or hotels which only benefit developers and not local residents.
Please support us.
I am writing on behalf of the Barham family to object to the building of even
more houses within Barham Park.
As you will know Barham Park was the family home of the Barham family from
around 1895 to 1937. From 1913 it was the home of Titus Barham and his wife
Florence who spent a great deal of time and money to plant and improve the
gardens. While it was a gated and fenced private home and gardens Titus would
open it to the public on a regular basis. As supporters and founders of the
then recently built Wembley Hospital, Titus and Florence held many fundraising
events in their home and gardens.
As you will also know Titus and his wife were major benefactors, supporting
many worthwhile causes in Wembley and Sudbury. In recognition of this Titus was
selected to become the Charter Mayor of the newly formed Wembley Borough
Council. Sadly he died on the very day the Charter was to come into effect.
Prior to his death in 1937 Titus had arranged to gift his home and gardens
expressly “for the enjoyment of local people” . This gift became Barham Park.
As you will also know this charitable endowment placed responsibility on Wembley,
and later Brent Councils, to manage and look after the Park in the best
interests of local people.
The two houses in the Park close to the railway were built specifically to
house Parks Department workers who helped to maintain and look after the Park.
The building of those two houses, although maybe questionable at the time,
could be justified because of the link with the Park and it’s purpose. No such
link exists now and will not certainly exist if and when the two houses are
replaced by the proposed 4 taller buildings whose sole purpose is not to house
Parks Department workers working in Barham Park, but simply to generate a
rental income for their owners.
I also understand that the Council has had a long-standing policy of protecting
Parks from intrusive development. While the original building of the two houses
may have been questionable the proposed building of 4 larger and taller houses
is an affront to the wishes of Titus Barham.
As Councillors, you and members of the Planning Committee reflect on the action
of one of your predecessors, namely Titus who was a Wembley Councillor for 4
years, and continue to respect and protect his generosity specifically for the
enjoyment of local people.
On behalf of the Barham family I would therefore urge you and your Council
colleagues to REJECT the latest Planning Application and to uphold Titus
Barham’s express wish that his gardens should be used for the enjoyment of
local people and nothing else.
Please present my appeal as outlined in this message to all Councillors in
Brent and especially to the members of the Brent Planning Committee.
Following on from Philip Grant’s excellent Wembley history series - especially the last one about Sudbury, perhaps I can provide an update on Butler’s Green.
A very large part of Sudbury was originally massive green open space called the Sudbury Common with a large number of farms being established over the years.
John Copland who was a Purser (Sort of accountant/purchase manager) on British Navy ships and served during Horatio Nelson’s time at the Battle of the Nile acquired a property called Crabbs House on what is now Barham Park. Over the next 40 years he continued to acquire land in the area and at his death in 1843 (he is buried in a vault in Kensal Green cemetery) he owned around 350 acres of land stretching from the Triangle in Wembley all the way to the bottom of Harrow on the Hill - this must have also included what is now Butler's Green.
At some point in the 1870s that part was acquired by William Perkin when he moved into Sudbury near to the present Methodist Church.
Sir William Perkin (he was Knighted in Early 1900s) is probably Sudbury’s most famous person in the world.
As a young boy he was very keen to pursue scientific education. While experimenting with tar (residue of coal) trying to create a substitute for anodyne he accidentally created a purple liquid substance. When trying it on some cloths he realised that he actually created a first synthetic dye for colouring cloth. Following a few more experiments, tests and refinements his dye product turned out to be much more reliable and longer lasting than natural dyes used at the time.
He set up a factory in Greenford and started manufacturing dyes as a business. It was a big success and young William is claimed to be the founder of the modern clothing industry which his colour dyes revolutionised.
In the 1870s when he moved to Sudbury the population was tiny and most of the land was still open fields. Like in other nearby places the population explosion came as part of the arrival of the Railways with the Sudbury & Harrow Road station opened in 1903 and Sudbury Town a year later.
Sir William Perkin died in 1907 and the land that is now Butler's Green was purchased by Wembley District Council in 1920 from the Trustees of his Estate. As Philip mentioned in his article it was renamed Butlers Green after Edwin Butler who became the first Mayor of the newly formed Wembley Borough Council in 1937.
He only became the 1st Mayor because Titus Barham who was due to be the “Charter Mayor” and who paid £4,000 for the mace and chains of office (over £250,000 in today’s money) died on the very day he was due to take up the his office.
I am one of the Trustees of Barham Community Library based in Barham Park. Philip Grant has kindly presented a number of his history talks in our library and we hope for more in the future. We are always keen to help local people learn of the local history of our area but also to pursue improvements with a bit of art.
Despite its important local history Butlers Green has been somewhat neglected in recent years.
We therefore decided to bring a bit of colour to the area by creating a Thank You Mural to all the workers and volunteers who continued to support our community during the Covid 19 crisis, on hoarding erected around a disused toilet block.
The Mural was designed by Alessandra Grasso, who is Barham Community Library ‘artist in residence’ with the help of her sister Francesca and others.
The idea was supported by Sudbury Town Residents Association and Daniels Estate Agents. It has been paid by a small Love Where You Live Grant and donations from local people.
Barham Community Library and Sudbury Town Residents Association plan more murals to brighten up the Sudbury area and are identifying more sites and raising funds.
Artists Alessandra on the left and Francesca on the right.
The disused toilet block is leased by Brent to U.K. Power Networks. Hoardings had to be placed on 3 sides as the brickwork is cracking up.
They were painted white with fading paint and a bit unsightly.
We decided on a colourful makeover with people, animals and flowers. Young children passing by love the animals and the overall reaction was positive.
We also painted other bits and provided a Notice Board for local history and local information.
We asked the Council to improve the outlook of the 2nd disused toilet next door which is also unsightly.
The bear in the picture is our mascot ‘Titus Bear’ after Titus Barham. The bear was part of the Barham Coat of Arms.
July 5th
2018 sees the 70th anniversary of the founding of the National
Health Service, and there will be a community tea party in Wembley’s Yellow
Pavilion the following day (Friday 6th July, from 1pm to 4pm) to celebrate
the event:-
But
what medical facilities did the ordinary folk of Wembley have before the NHS
was set up, and who provided these? I was invited to provide some “local
history” information for this NHS70 event, and I would like to share some of it
with “Wembley Matters” readers here.
Ever
since Tudor times (after Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries who had often
provided some health care to the areas around them) the Church of England
parishes were expected to provide care to poor people within their district.
Every year each parish appointed two or three local men to serve as Overseers
of the Poor, raising money to meet the costs of providing “relief” and (if they
were lucky) some basic medical care.
Most of
Wembley was in the Harrow parish, but in the 1840’s two spinster sisters, Anne
and Francis Copland, who had inherited their father’s estate at what is now
Barham Park, campaigned for Wembley and Sudbury to be made a separate parish,
and paid to have St John’s Church built in Harrow Road, not far from their
home. They were great philanthropists, providing
money for a school, and a workmen’s hall (including a small library).
Anne Copland, c.1860
In 1871 (the year before she died) Anne Copland
gave money to build and endow a Village Hospital. The site is now Wilkinsons,
in Wembley High Road, near the junction with Park Lane.
Charles Goddard,
Unfortunately,
Anne had said that only the interest (at 4%) from the investments she had given
the hospital could be used to fund its running costs, and the hospital had to
stop taking inpatients in 1883. After that, the building became a doctor’s
house, at which the sick could be seen, and given medicines from a dispensary.
The doctor living in the former cottage hospital, Charles
Goddard, became Wembley’s first Medical Officer of Health, when it was
made a separate District Council in 1895. He held that post for around forty
years, and in 1924 he called a public meeting to propose that a new hospital be
built. There was a lot of support from local people, and Titus Barham (who
owned the Express Dairy Company, and lived at Sudbury Park, which had been the
home of the Copland sisters) donated land at Chaplin Road, which was part of
his own dairy farm, as a site for the new Wembley Hospital. Barham also
donated £2,000 towards the cost of building it, and he and his wife Florence
were active in organising fund-raising events for the project as well.
The foundation stone for the hospital was laid
in October 1926, a Board of Management for the hospital was set up, and the new
hospital was opened on 2 June 1928 by the Duke and Duchess of York (later King
George VI and Queen Elizabeth, who became the Queen Mother when their daughter
succeeded to the throne in 1952).
Wembley Hospital,
around 1950.
When Titus Barham, who had been the hospital’s president, died in 1937, he left a further
£20,000 to Wembley Hospital in his will. But as a charity (a bit like St Luke’s Hospice today), it needed to regularly raise
money from other sources. One of the ways this was done was by holding an
annual hospital carnival week, with a Carnival Queen, street parade and various
fundraising events. Another important source of funds was a “hospital savings
scheme”,
where by paying contributions of sixpence a month (made by 20,000 of the 90,000
residents in Wembley and Kingsbury in the late 1930’s) local people were
entitled to free treatment in the “public wards”.
The Anne Copland Ward at
Wembley Hospital, around 1950.
When the NHS was set up in 1948, Wembley
Hospital was absorbed into this new service, but although its management had
changed, it still provided the same type of care to its patients. Like many
other hospitals, as well as training local young women as nurses (under the
supervision of the Matron), Wembley also benefitted from some who came from the
Caribbean (another 70th Anniversary! – LINK
Christmas time in the
Children’s Ward, Wembley Hospital, 1950’s
Wembley Hospital’s role diminished over time,
especially after the new District Hospital at Northwick Park was built in the
late 1960’s, but its site in Chaplin Road is still providing a range of health
services for local people (me included!) as the Wembley Centre for Health
and Care. So, Happy
70th birthday NHS, and thank you.
Philip Grant
Acknowledgement
All images are from the Wembley History Society Collection
at Brent Archives.
Saturday 8 July was the 80th Anniversary since Titus Barham "Wembley's Greatest Benefactor" donated his home and gardens in Sudbury which became Barham Park.
Friends of Barham Library held a Celebration 'Vintage' Tea Party in honour of Titus Barham as a Thank You for his generous gift. As the gift took place in 1937 thirty seven lucky people, whose names were drawn out of a hat, including 6 members of the Barham family, were served a traditional afternoon tea. The Tea Party was held inside the Community Library itself specially decorated for the occasion.
Gaynor Lloyd and Paul Lorber, two Trustees of Friends of Barham Library, and the waitresses dressed up in a traditional 1937 way, to serve and entertain the invited guests.
To make sure that no one missed out the following day Friends of Barham Library opened their doors to their Community Library in Barham Park and served strawberies and traditional scones with cream and jam to around 150 people who came to a picnic in Barham Park and watched a Kino Van showing films of how people lived in the 1930s.
Milk & More, a Muller Company which took over part of the former Express Dairy business, donated the cream, jam and many other items for the Party. All the work putting on the event was carried out by local Volunteers.
