Barnet Council today premiered a video about the history of the Welsh Harp made be their Local Studies Department:
The Golden Age of the Welsh Harp
– continues the series of descriptions of the 1st edition 25 inch to mile
ordnance surveys from the London Borough of Barnet’s library service local
history collection by examining sheet 11/10. At first it looks as if there is
very little on the map, but film explores the rich history of the Brent
Reservoir (universally known as the Welsh Harp), during it’s golden age in the
mid 19th century from the building of the lake, to the building of the railways
and the coming of the suburbs. Stories include, monks, floods, drownings, pumps
and propellers. Most interesting of all is the story of William Perkins Warner,
and his endeavour to create London’s foremost holiday and visitor attraction.
Thank you for joining me again, on this third stage
of our journey through the history of “the Welsh Harp” (our local reservoir –
not the musical instrument!). In Part 2, we saw how the enterprise of W.P. Warner
had made the name of his tavern synonymous with the reservoir beside it. This
time we’ll explore changes, on and around the reservoir, into the 20th
century.
1. The Kingsbury dam and its overflow,
c.1900. (Brent Archives online image 1341)
At first, not much changed. The area of water was
mainly surrounded by the meadows of local farms, and attracted visitors to the
countryside just beyond the expanding urban sprawl of London. Water flowing
over the dam to feed the River Brent was a popular sight, across the fields of
Gravel Pit Farm at Neasden. West Hendon had developed slightly, but there was
still lots of open space nearby.
2. Cool Oak Lane, with its causeway and
bridge across the reservoir's northern arm, c.1900. (Barnet Local
Studies Centre image 3284)
The Metropolitan Railway’s Neasden Works expanded, with a new power station to supply its
electric trains, which were introduced from 1905. The Canal Company, which
still owned the reservoir, refused to let the Metropolitan use water from its
Feeder for cooling purposes, so they had to sink two wells for that purpose. It
was the First World War that finally brought more industry to the area.
The airfield at Hendon already had a small aircraft
factory, run by the Grahame-White company, when the war broke out in 1914.
Other companies making planes for the rapidly developing aerial warfare were
soon active in the area, such as the Aircraft Manufacturing Company (“Airco”) in Colindale and Kingsbury, Handley Page
in Cricklewood and later Hooper & Co in North Wembley. In 1917, Handley Page designed a prototype
seaplane, hoping to sell it to the Royal Navy, and their R200 was test-flown
from the Welsh Harp. They did not receive an order, so
the seaplane never went into production.
3. Scale drawings of the Handley Page R200
seaplane. (Courtesy of the R.A.F. Museum, Hendon)
By 1917, the slopes of Dollis Hill down to the
reservoir were also the home of the Mechanical Warfare Department. Its role was
to design and test tanks, for use to try and break the trench warfare stalemate
on the war’s western front. By 1918, one of the designs it was working on was a
modified version of the Mark IX tank, and on a misty morning in November 1918
the world’s first amphibious tank was tested on the Welsh Harp reservoir.
4. A Mark IX amphibious tank entering the
Welsh Harp, November 1918. (Image from the Tank Museum)
Earlier this year, a friend interested in military
history sent me a link to a short film that includes (at the end) footage of
this test. It had been used as part of a French article on First World War
tanks, and was described as a ‘Duck Tank being tested on the pond of Dolly
Hill’! This “top secret” Department remained at Dollis Hill until 1921, before
being moved to Hampshire. Its main buildings, surrounded by a high wall, were
in the Humber Road area. It is remembered in the street name, Tankridge Road,
and a section of the wall remains at Walton Close.
5. Remaining section of Mechanical Warfare
Department wall, Walton Close, Dollis Hill, c.2010.
6. Aerial view of the reservoir in 1919,
with West Hendon beneath the plane’s wing, and Dollis Hill beyond.
The local aircraft industry was badly hit when the
Government scrapped its contracts for planes once the war had ended. One
company at Hendon made use of the unwanted aircraft to offer pleasure flights
to paying customers. The photograph above appeared with an article on the
subject in “Flight” magazine, in June 1919, and shows a view across the
reservoir to Dollis Hill.
7. The railway viaduct, seen from the
Edgware Road bridge, 1921. (Barnet Local Studies Centre image 871)
The 19th century had seen first canals,
then railways, develop as important methods of transport. This scene from 1921,
of the Midland Railway viaduct crossing the eastern arm of the reservoir, was
soon to change dramatically as the rise of motor vehicles meant a need for
better roads. The North Circular Road was constructed during the 1920s to help
heavy commercial traffic avoid having to drive through Central London. Its
proposed route would take it just south of the Welsh Harp, and by 1926 this
section of the reservoir was filled in, and the River Brent put into a culvert,
so that the road could pass under the brick arches of the viaduct.
8. New housing at Dollis Hill, and over the
reservoir at Kingsbury, late 1920s. (Brent Archives image 570)
The construction of the North Circular Road opened
up the northern slopes of Dollis Hill for development, and by the late 1920s
new streets were appearing between Brook Road and Links Road. These can be seen
in the photograph above, together with what must be the start of the Post
Office Research Centre at the top of the hill. Across the reservoir, new
suburban homes were also being built in the Church Lane and Wood Lane areas of
Kingsbury. In 1928, Willesden Urban District Council bought 40 acres of land on
the Kingsbury side of the Welsh Harp, planning to use it as a cemetery, which
would lead to disputes that lasted until 1965!
The rapidly growing population at Neasden and
Dollis Hill prompted Willesden Council to open a recreation ground on their
side of the Welsh Harp. They also built a Neasden branch library, overlooking
it, at the corner of Aboyne Road and the North Circular, which opened in 1931.
In keeping with a growing fashion for open air activity, this had a reading
terrace at first floor level.
9. The reading terrace at Neasden Library,
1931. (Brent Archives online image 2926)
One of the open air activities which had grown in
popularity at the Welsh Harp during the 1920s was “sunbathing”, although it was
not popular with everyone. By 1930, there was growing opposition among local
residents to the visitors who came to the reservoir’s banks to bathe in the
nude. One man complained to the Council that, while walking home to the Edgware
Road from Old Kingsbury Church on a Sunday evening, they had come across ‘a
bunch of stark naked men…. Hardly a pleasant sight for a man to have to pass
with his wife!’
Matters came to a head one weekend in June 1930,
when 40 men and women of the Sun-Ray Club (‘some wore no clothes, others wore
slips or bathing drawers’) were confronted by a crowd of around 200 local
people. Despite the presence of four policemen, who told them that the
sunbathers were on private land, with permission from the owner, and that they
had no right to interfere, the crowd attacked the bathers and drove them away.
Kingsbury Council dealt with the issue in a more dignified way, when they
received a deputation (not a new idea) from the National Sun and Air
Association in May 1931, although they also decided against sunbathing!
10. Extract from the minutes of a Kingsbury
Urban District Council meeting on 6 May 1931. (Brent Archives)
On the reservoir itself, the Brent Sailing Club was
formed at the Old Welsh Harp Inn in 1930. A less tranquil use of the water also
began the same year, when the London Motor Boat Club held its first speedboat
racing event at the Welsh Harp. Larger speedboats were also used to give thrill
rides for paying customers, as shown in this newsreel film from 1932.
11. A motor boat race on the Welsh Harp
reservoir in 1937. (From the collection of the late Geoffrey Hewlett)
The 1931 speedboat racing season had celebrity
guests at its opening, the aviator Amy Johnson and actress Anna Neagle. Amy had lived at Roe
Green for nine months, before the solo flight to Australia that made her
famous, and then had a flat at Vernon Court in Hendon Way. By coincidence, it
was Anna Neagle who starred as Amy Johnson in a film about her life, after her
tragic death in 1941, while flying as a wartime pilot in the Air Transport
Auxiliary.
12. Anna Neagle and Amy Johnson at the Welsh
Harp, April 1931. (From: ‘Amy Johnson – Queen of the Air’)
The south-east corner of the reservoir saw rapid
industrial development along its main roads, and on the reclaimed land, in the
late 1920s and through the 1930s. One of the factories by the junction of the
North Circular and Edgware Roads made mattresses. The company was Staples, and
the busy corner was soon known by that name. The traffic lights here became
well-known for the jams that built up, as seen below in 1937.
13. Staples Corner in 1937, with the mattress
factory bottom left. (Barnet Local Studies Centre image 4920)
When war came again in 1939, Dollis
Hill again had a part to play. Secret underground bunkers were built for the
Admiralty at its Citadel office building, on the corner of the Edgware Road and
Oxgate Lane, and for the Cabinet at “Paddock”, beneath the Post Office Research
Station in Brook Road. It was rumoured that a flying boat was moored on the
Welsh Harp, ready to fly Churchill and other key leaders to safety from their
reserve War Room if necessary, but I have no proof for that story. It was the
research station that developed the first electronic computers, used at
Bletchley Park for code-breaking during the war, and Tommy Flowers, who led the
team that made them, is remembered by the modern street name, Flowers Close.
14.
The aftermath of the West Hendon bombing, February 1941. (Barnet Local Studies
Centre image 5105)
It was not those
key targets that were hit during the Welsh Harp’s worst bombing raids of the
Second World War. Early in 1941, Germany was testing new designs of
high-explosive bombs, and dropping a single bomb in a raid, so that its effects
could be seen afterwards. One of these exploded above the Ravenstone Road area
of West Hendon on the evening of 13 February 1941, flattening 40 homes, killing
more than 80 people and making around 1,500 homeless. At the opposite end of
the reservoir, a V2 rocket hit one end of Wykeham School in March 1945. Luckily
no children were there at the time, but seven people were killed in nearby
homes.
Just as it had during the First World War, the
reservoir played its part between 1939 and 1945. A Hendon Sea Training Corps
was formed in 1941, and its young volunteers learned some boating skills on the
Welsh Harp, as well as on land at a school in Algernon Road. Production at many
factories was changed, to produce equipment for the war effort. Hickman’s works
on the North Circular Road had been shopfitters, but by 1943 their carpenters
were building wooden landing craft, which were tested on the reservoir before
being handed over to the Royal Navy. LCAs were “Landing Craft, Assault”, which
carried a platoon of up to 36 soldiers, from ships around ten miles offshore,
onto the beaches of Normandy on D-Day.
15. The Hickman's workers aboard a completed
landing craft, 1943/44. (Image shared by the son of a worker)
Next weekend we’ll visit the Welsh Harp in more
peaceful times. I hope you will join me then, for the final part of this
series.
The financial press reported over the weekend that private equity investor and tax exile Guy Hands is contemplating a £2.5bn bid for Quintain in a move to get into the privately rented sector.
Quintain's owner, Lone Star, is said to want to sell by early next month and other bids are expected. Hands' acquisition would be through his Terra Firma (registered in Guernsey) property arm Annington formed in 1996 to buy up 57,000 Ministry of Defence Homes.
Of interest to Quintain's Tipi privare rental clients is that recently the National Audit Office (NAO) LINK criticised the deal stating that the MOD had lost out on billions of pounds through the sale and will face further costs through substantial rent increases imposed by Hands' company when a rent freeze ends in 2021.
Nearer to home Hands' company Terra Firma was involved in evicting social tenants from Sweets Way, West Hendon. LINKLINK
Hands made a big loss on EMI LINK and his Four Seasons care homes LINK is in difficulty.
Brent Council is now faced with establishing new partnerships with new owners of both Quintain and Wembley Stadium. It has a lot of eggs in one Wembley basket. They will certainly have to be sharp to keep up with Guy Hands and Shahid Kan!
West Hendon residents put up terrific resistance to social cleansing by Barratts and Barnet Council
From Sian Berry, Green Party London Assembly Member
The Mayor’s manifesto pledge to estate residents will be broken unless his estate guidance is rewritten from scratch.
That’s my verdict on Sadiq Khan’s ‘good practice guide to estate
regeneration’ for councils and landlords on how to handle estate
regeneration. The document is out for consultation until 14 March and
it’s vital Londoners respond to it to say it’s not good enough – see how to send in your comments in just a few minutes here.
My full response to the draft guidance
says it is worse than useless – it rips up the Mayor’s manifesto
promise that ‘estate regeneration only takes place where there is
resident support’ and does nothing to ensure residents on estates can
block demolition of their homes.
The language in the draft is vague and it is unclear what, if any,
conditions will be imposed on how councils and landlords to qualify for
funding or the Mayor’s support for planning applications.
Most importantly for residents, the Mayor plans to break his promise
and not let them make the final decisions for their estates or say there
should be an independent ballot. How can they trust any part of the
engagement process when they know their views and plans can be
completely ignored at the end?
I say the guidance needs to be rewritten from scratch, working with Londoners to get it right.
My response to the draft guidance outlines three key demands on the Mayor that Londoners should ask for:
1. No demolitions without an independent ballot
2. Clear conditions for councils to meet, or no GLA funding
3. Expert support for resident-led plans
I ask for full transparency on the current state of estates, and on
all aspects of the business case, social and environmental impacts of
council’s plans.
The final guidance also needs to set measurable goals so the Mayor
can be held to account, including goals to reduce the number of homes
demolished and for a number of resident-led plans to be adopted.
In 2013 there was a cross party campaign opposing the redevelopment of the West Hendon Estate in Barnet which borders on the Welsh Harp. The biggest scandal of course is the treatment of social housing tenants on the existing estate. Despite an amazing resistance they have effectively been socially cleansed to make way for a luxury development.
There is another scandal which has changed the local landscape for ever. A luxury multi-storey block now dominates that end of the Welsh Harp and while its residents enjoy a wonderful natural landscape from their flats, those on the other side of the reservoir are greeted by a huge tower block on the edge of a nature reserve and Site of Special Scientific Interest.
There was cross-party opposition to the development from Brent Council LINK but Barnet went ahead supported by Eric Pickles who was the Communities and Local Government Secretary at the time, as well as Boris Johnson, the London Mayor.
Three years on the extent of Barnet Council's social and environmental vandalism is clear as the development steams ahead. Campaigners warned that the proposed multi-storey block was completely out of character with the surroundng area, suited more to a development in the City of London that outer-London suburbia. The fear is that this will set a precedent for further develpment on the banks of the Welsh Harp.
Readers will remember that there was a broad-based campaign opposing the Barratt Home development on the banks of the Welsh Harp Reservoir at West Hendon. Mainly low-rise social housing was to be replaced by luxury private tower blocks close to a nature reserve and SSSI. LINK
Unfortunately the campaign did not succeed and Barnet Council went ahead with the scheme. West Hendon Estate residents through their Our West Hendon campaign are fighting what they see as social cleansing of a community and working with Sweets Way residents to challenge Barnet Council Their passion can be seen in this video taken at a Barnet Council Meeting on July 28th when they presented their petitions:
Walking the Kingsbury side of the Welsh Harp on Sunday it became clear what an intrusive eyesore these blocks will be. Sold on the basis of the wonderful green view of the Kingsbury bank that the new residents will see, on our side we will see tower blocks the tallest of which is 24 storeys.
The Minutes of the last Joint Welsh Harp Consultative Committee highlight some of the issues that are emerging during the building works for resdients and for the Nature Reserve.
Looking across from the Kingsbury side to West Hendon, the nature reserve is on the stretch of water in between
Extract from Minutes:
It It was noted that the outcome of the
public enquiry regarding the Compulsory Purchase of the West Hendon Estate was
due shortly and further information would be circulated to all members with the
minutes of the current meeting.
·
A short written update was provided by Terry Garner (Principle Planner, LB
Barnet) regarding the position of SSSI Warden. It was commented that this
information had been shared at the last meeting of the committee. The London
Wildlife Trust (LWT) would be hosting the position and the queries regarding
whether any charge would be made by Barratt London for the provision of office
space remained outstanding. Dianne Murphy (Chair, LWT Barnet) advised that the
job description for the position was due to be signed off imminently; the post
would be advertised in the coming weeks with interviews being held in September
2015. It was anticipated that the Warden would be in position in time for the
next committee meeting in November.
·
Concerns were raised regarding the level of noise from the development and the
impact on the birdlife of the Welsh Harp. The committee agreed with the view
that the planned measures to inhibit noise were ineffective. It was further
noted that the contractors were not complying with the restrictions on working
hours as stipulated in the conditions of the planning permission. Roy Beddard
(Welsh Harp Conservation Group (WHCG)) noted that there had been no discernible
impact on bird populations as recorded by the monthly monitoring surveys
conducted by the WHCG. It was agreed that the results of these surveys could be
circulated to the committee and the Chair agreed to explore this issue and
provide an update to the committee prior to the next meeting.
·
Clive Cohen (LWT) raised concerns regarding the impact of the development on
water quality and suggested that officers explore funding opportunities to
enable regular monitoring to be conducted. A member highlighted that the
Environment Agency (EA) did undertake monitoring of water quality. The Chair
agreed to seek comment on this matter from the relevant officers.
·
The committee reviewed the written update from Nathan Smith (Barratt London)
regarding the use of prohibited roads by contractors. Members of the committee
reported that the issue was ongoing. The Chair encouraged members of the
committee to report any incidents. It was noted that it was not always
practical to take down the necessary details to enable accurate reports to be made.
Possible solutions were discussed by the committee including the installation
of cameras by Barratt London and the continued use of banksmen as it was
possible that this acted as a deterrent. It was agreed that the continuation of
this problem would be raised by the Chair with the planning officers in Barnet
and Barratt Homes. Representatives from Barratt Homes would be asked to attend
committee meetings in the future.
·
Councillor Langleben raised the issue of the impact of the Brent Cross
Regeneration works on the Brent River Stream. The Chair undertook to write to
Barnet Planning for an update to be provided at the next meeting.
'Plain Jaine' sent in a comment in response to Viv Stein's letter in the Kilburn Times regarding Brent Council's environmental cuts and the FoE submission on the budget. LINK In her letter Viv asked readers to imagine what Brent might be like after the cuts. Jaine's article was too long to publish as a comment so I publish it below as a Guest Blog.
Viv, thank you for comments.
But for us Residents, this is
something I don't need to imagine, this is not a figment of my
imagination, this is happening right now. In the street where
I live, it is not cleaned regularly although when it is the regular guy does
do a good job, however it's getting less and less frequent.
Getting regular fly-tipping removed a constant battle, at least a few emails, photographs
and threats of embarrassment normally does the trick, but hey they're REACTIVE
not PROACTIVE.
Brent Council are actively
engaging with developers to build on our parks to hell with the residents and
their needs and desires for accessible Green Open Space, ( which in Wembley is
less than 50% of what should be provided) their slogan "
a better cleaner, environmentally friendly Brent".
Get real! this is just PR on behalf of
the LB Brent. They have already implemented many of the cuts already, I
have the photographic evidence. We have consultations
to engage the public, but WE the public never find out about them until the
last minute, because, Hey! they are not actually publicised. How
does that work? A recent FOI request was refused, although to the prior
to the request the majority of information was on LB Brent system and readily
available has become extremely difficult for them to retrieve and we were
informed, that should we be serious in our request please pay £480.00 we may be
able to supply this information?
The Welsh Harp Area hold's a special
place in my heart. Somewhere I could go and feel at one with nature,
tranquillity, walk, feed the Ducks, Swans, see Frog Spawn , to get away from
the rubbish that is happening on my doorstep. Beautiful landscape that
has now been defiled by Barratt Homes and Barnet Council, who have flatly
refused to accept the findings of the West Hendon Residents , the
original residents who resided in the location only to discover
they have been consistently been mislead, fraudulently represented, , abused,
and betrayed by the Planning System and have a real case to fight under
Human Rights legislation.
Surely there must be a way forward,
With regard to the Nature Reserve ant Teaching Facility, I recall that
Carey's Group supported this as part of their Charitable Trust and giving back
to the community surely we can engage more business partners in Brent to help
keep this afloat?
Is there no way back?
Should we align ourselves with the
self proclaimed saviours of LB Brent, QUINTAIN PLC ,
who are developing Wembley with so called prestigious housing developments, the
new North West Village?
Poetic Licence has gone mad!!, 1 acre of
green space, with a lot of nice landscaping and plants, some which are far from
the definition of a Village, I hereto explain:-
To be a Village a settlement must
list the following of amenities
have:-
1a
church,
2 a village hall or
community centre,
3 a school(though not
necessarily),
4 some shops, usually
including a post
office,
5a village
green,
6 allotments,
7places to
work,
8 a public house,
9 Houses etc.,usually to
include Private, Council rented and Privately rented to give a mixed
community.
10a Parish Council or Parish
Meeting.
Nice concept shame about the delivery.
Hey who am I?
Having grown up in a Real Village
with a Duck pond, Social club/Community centre, Church with
Warden, Women's Institute, Social Club etc.
Are LB Brent climbing in bed with
"The Devil's Advocate?"
Are we, the residents of Brent
going to continue to endorse this alliance or are we going to a take a
stand, reject the council's austerity measures, be proactive and
support anyone or organisation, irrespective of our sympathetic
allegiance to any political party.
We need to protect Our
Future, Our Children's Future, Sustain our Community and Green
Space to ensure all of us grow up in the best natural
environment we are able to experience, embrace and appreciate
everything that nature has to offer from now to infinity 3.14.
Martin, my apologies if I am
thought to be shouting
Campaigners from Our West Hendon and Barnet Housing Action are currently staging a sit-in at an exhibition by Barratt Homes at the community centre in Marsh Drive, West Hendon.
The current occupants of social housing on the estate are being ousted to make way for a luxury private development by Barratts (See previous posts on Wembley Matters including LINK )
The campaigners have set up an online petition to Boris Johns, Mathew Offord MP and Boris Johnson: LINK
Why
is this important?
Our
West Hendon are a group of concerned residents on the West Hendon Estate that
believe that the developments taking place benefit private developers at the
expense of our community.
We fear the development is going to force many people
from our community out of the estate and possibly out of London. We are
therefore making the following demands of Barnet Council, Barnet Homes, Barratt
and Metropolitan Housing Association
Ensure
the following:
1) That all 'non-secure' tenants be granted 'secure or flexible'
tenancies
2) The right for all members of the community (irrespective of type
of tenure) to remain and be rehoused on the W.Hendon estate
3) A Freedom of
Information Request to see a copy of the developers Viability Report that
clearly documents their need to lower the % of social housing on the estate
4)
That IF the viability report proves that it is not viable to maintain the
current level of social housing on the new development that any member of the
community that must leave the estate be housed as close to their support
networks in W.Hendon as possible AND be given a 'secure tenancy'.
Readers will remember Save The Welsh Harp, the campaign to stop Barratts building tower bocks on the banks of the Welsh Harp which had been occupied by the West Hendon Social Housing Estate. LINK Barnet Coucil and Boris Johnson approved the scheme despite widespread oppositon and now tenants are being forced out. This message is from Our West Hendon:
Our West Hendon are running out of time. Non-secure tenants are rapidly
being forced out of their communities and Barratts has refused to
negotiate 'like for like' settlements with the leaseholders.
Private
tenants face yet another move and secure tenants are reluctantly due to
be moved into the new but massively inferior builds. It appears the only
way to deal with the council and the developers is now to take direct
action. Please join us in solidarity this Saturday 13th from 7am-1pm at
Marsh Drive Community Centre NW9 7QE.
We know the only way to stop this
pan-London gentrification is if all affected communities now come
together. Alone we are few, together we are many!
As luxury flats, marked to foreign residents and investors, go up across London, including here in Brent at Willesden Green Library and in nearby Barnet at West Hendon, renters are taking action as local people are priced out of the market:
Liberal Democrat and Conservative councillors tonight joined the Brent Council ruling Labour group to condemn Eric Pickles' decision not to intervene in the West Hendon redevelopment on the banks of the Welsh Harp reservoir and nature reserve.
The Barratt Homes development in Barnet was narrowly approved by Barnet Planning Committee but opposed by planners in neighbouring Brent. The reservoir straddles both boroughs.
The news was received only shortly before the Council was due to discuss a Labour motion calling for Pickles to intervene because of the scale of the development (flats of up to 29 storeys) and the damage it would do to a cherished and rare open space.
An amendment was quickly tabled condemning his failure to intervene and was passed unanimously in a very rare show of party unity.
