Barry Gardiner raises St Modwen (Wembley Central) scandal in House of Commons debate on the Building Safety Bill

 

Barry Gardiner MP (Labour Brent North) in a welcome intervention yesterday raised the issue of the St Modwen development in Wembley Central Square in the House of Commons debate of the Building Safety Bill.  SEE LINK to previous post

I am not sure what is worse for leaseholders: the fact that they are in constant fear because their homes are not safe, the fact that they cannot afford to make them safe and are being harassed by greedy managing agents, or the fact that they are trapped in their flats without any easy option to sell and move on with their lives. Today’s statement and the Bill do not fundamentally change that for all the reasons the Father of the House, Sir Peter Bottomley, set out in his brief but excellent speech.

During the passage of the Fire Safety Bill, Ministers promised that these issues would be addressed in the Building Safety Bill. Lord Greenhalgh said:

“it is unacceptable for leaseholders to have to worry about costs of fixing historic safety defects in their buildings that they did not cause” and that

“building owners are responsible for ensuring the safety of residents”, and he said that they should

“protect leaseholders from the costs of remediating historic building defects.”

I do not know what the correct term in Parliament is for someone who make promises that they do not keep, but I know what they call them on the streets of Brent North: they call them a Government Minister.

Extending the scope and duration of the Defective Premises Act 1972 in the Building Safety Bill shows that the Government do not understand the extent of the problem. I ask the Minister to explain to my constituents who live in the Wembley Central development how it will help them. The original developer of their homes, St Modwen, has washed its hands of these defective properties. It sold them to an offshore company in Jersey in 2018, following the introduction of the new building regulations. It was in partnership with Sowcrest, which is now in a very convenient liquidation. So who exactly does the Minister think my constituents can chase here? What are the Government prepared to do about buildings with obscure corporate ownership?

I first contacted St Modwen in 2017, immediately after the Grenfell tragedy. It repeatedly assured me that the buildings were safe and in 2018 confirmed in writing that no fire safety defects had been identified. I am now told that the cladding on this building is the same as that used in Grenfell Tower and the fire safety report has identified fire stopping defects throughout the construction process. In May this year, St Modwen agreed to a takeover bid of £1.2 billion from Blackstone. Can the Minister tell me how this Bill will make them accountable for their actions? It was not the leaseholders who decided to use flammable cladding or to leave out fire stopping in voids or cut corners—developers made those decisions. My constituents have neither the deep pockets nor the legal expertise to fight these corporate chameleons, who start off in London and end up in Jersey as a different company. This Bill shows that the Government either do not understand or do not care. The companies can afford lengthy litigation; leaseholders cannot.

Finally, the Minister must explain why there is so little progress on the building safety fund. I wrote to St Modwen on 23 June. I still await a response. I have written to Fidum, the new managing agent for the new owners. I asked it about its application to the building safety fund for the removal of unsafe cladding. I have received no response, but Fidum now tells residents that it missed the closing date of 30 June for the second application because it is still waiting to have eligibility—

TOMORROW: BOOK LAUNCH: Selma James’ new anthology Our Time Is Now: Sex, Race, Class, & Caring for People and Planet - OffSide Books, Willesden Lane 6.30pm

 

Kilburn is packed with hidden treasures, one of them is Selma James, a local writer, well-known anti-racist campaigner and feminist icon, recently honoured with the Sheila McKechnie Long-term Achievement Award.  

 

On Friday 23 July OffSide Books, a cozy community space in NW6 hosts a book launch to celebrate Ms James’ new anthology, Our Time Is Now: Sex, Race, Class, & Caring for People and Planet. 

 

Selma James defined and identified unwaged caring work as a core issue for the women’s movement and launched the Wages for Housework Campaign (WFH) in 1972.

This much-anticipated follow-up to her first anthology (Sex, Race, and Class – The Perspective of Winning), compiles decades of James’s work with a focus on more recent writings, including a ground-breaking analysis of CLR James’s masterpieces, The Black Jacobins and Beyond a Boundary, and an account of her formative partnership with him. Her experience in the movement for Caribbean federation and independence is reflected in her introduction to Ujamaa, the socialism that Tanzanian villagers built and in her work with Guyana, Haiti and Venezuela. 

Selma James turns 91 this year, her work spans 60 years, including founding the Crossroads Women’s Centre in Kentish Town. Her writing shines, inspires and sheds light on every corner of the movement for justice and change.  

At OffSide Books, Selma will be discussing her work with a Q&A, and signing her new book. All welcome!

---

Our Time Is Now: Sex, Race, Class, & Caring for People and Planet is available HERE.

Sex, Race, and Class – The Perspective of Winning is available HERE.

WHERE: OffSide Books, 92 Willesden Lane, Kilburn NW6 7TQ

WHEN: Friday 23 July 2021, 6.30-8 pm

Free open air summer screenings at Wembley Park begin next Thursday with 'Bend it Like Beckham'

 

Wembley Park's response to my query re Covid19 precautions at these events:

Public safety is Wembley Park’s highest priority and Wembley Park continues to follow the government guidance for COVID-19.

 

All events, as part of the Summer of Play programme, are set within a spacious, outdoor setting and some measures will remain in the public realm for the public to use whenever they want to.

SUMMER ON SCREEN 

 

29^th JULY – 5^th SEPTEMBER

 

North-West London’s Free Open-Air Cinema.

 

From Thursday 29 July, Wembley Park’s popularfree outdoor cinema, Summer on Screen, will return for five weeks in the Events Pad, across from the London Designer Outlet, on Wembley Park Boulevard. 

 

 

Visit Summer on Screen for an exceptional outdoor cinematic experience of hand-picked films under the summer night sky, with a choice of socially distant deckchairs or beanbags for a comfortable experience. 

 

 

Choose from 18 cinema gems including cult classics, magical musicals, and family favourites. Guests can see smash hits like the acclaimed play Hamilton, or for those in the sporting spirit, Bend it Like Beckham will show on the launch night of July 29, when the Olympics fever will be in full swing. 

 

 

An array of Bollywood classics will also be shown, including Manmarziyaan as well as educational and popular documentaries from National Geographic which will be screened in the day. 

 

 

Best of all, screenings are completely free, so be sure to arrive early for pre-show entertainment, food, drink, and to secure seats.

 

 

Film Schedule (with more dates to be confirmed in due course):

 

Thursday 29^th July: Bend It Like Beckham 

 

Friday 30^th July: Hamilton

 

Saturday 31^st July: Frozen

 

Sunday 1^st August: Manmarziyaan 

 

Sunday 8^th August: Lion King 

 

Thursday 12^th August: Dodgeball 

 

Saturday 14^th August: Ratatouille

 

Sunday 15^th August: India’s Indpendence Day, screening presented by UK Asian Film Festival – showing ‘Khape’.

 

Thursday 19^th August: Cool Runnings

 

Friday 20^th August: Bohemian Rhapsody 

 

Saturday 21^st August: Tom and Jerry (2021)

 

Sunday 22^nd August: Batti Gul Meter Chalu 

 

Thursday 26^th August: Eddie the Eagle 

 

Friday 27^th August: Yesterday

 

Saturday 28^th August: Paddington 

 

Sunday 29^th August: Happy Endings 

 

Thursday 2^nd September: Happy Gilmore

 

Friday 3^rd September: A Star is Born 

 

 

When:            

 

Thursday 29 July – Sunday 5 September.

 

Where:          

 

Events Pad, Wembley Park Boulevard.

 

Price:            

   

Free.

Call for Council to declare Brent a 'Right to Food borough' to overcome food insecurity - sign the petition

 

A newly formed group has launched a petition calling on Brent Council to declare Brent a 'Right to Food borough'. The petition is HERE and its explanation below:

 

We are seeing a crisis of food poverty born out of the political choices and systemic failings created over the past four decades which have now reached a tipping point for so many in our communities. The figures are devastating for one of the richest nations in the world, highlighting the pervasive food inequality in the UK today.

The pandemic has exacerbated existing food insecurity, with a massive increase in emergency Council assistance and the use of Food Banks in our Borough. Sufra NW London food aid reported a 200% increase in demand for food aid during the initial three months of the pandemic alone, and the situation is likely to worsen as the furlough scheme is scrapped and rent eviction bans are lifted. Food poverty is the result of structural injustices connected to health, housing, employment and wider social inequalities. It needs systemic solutions that empower communities with public resources, including land, retail space and procurement directed toward a more just and sustainable local food system.

Brent Right to Food was launched on Saturday 10 July with the aim of bringing together the various community initiatives seeking to address food insecurity in our Borough. 

We ask Brent workers, residents and communities to join our call for 

(a) the Leader of the Council Muhammad Butt to declare Brent a Right to Food Borough in support of the national campaign led by Ian Byrne MP

(b) the development of a Brent Food Justice Strategy in partnership with local food organisations that can ensure all Brent residents have access to affordable, nutritious and culturally-appropriate food every day of the year across their whole lifetime

Cricklewood Broadway & Wembley Hill Road planning applications approved along with Adult Gaming Centre in High Road, Willesden

Both applications were approved at yesterday's Brent Planning Committee. Only Cllr Fleur Donelly-Jackson voted against the Cricklewood Broadway/Hassop Road application on grounds that it did not mean the LA's own policy guidance. The Wembley Hill Road St George Hotel/Allied Irish Bank application was approved unanimously. There were no resident speakers against the Cricklewood Broadway application and councillors were told that Barnet Council and Cricklewood Terrace Residents' Assoication had made no submission.

 

There was a speaker on behalf of Mostyn Avenue residents on the Wembley Hill Road application who said there was no established demand for yet more hotel space, was concerned about disruption during building works and parking issues. She corrected the developer's agent claim that the Allied Irish Bank building had been empty for years. It has been occupied by a church that has done good work during the pandemic.

 

A further application, not covered previously on this blog, was for an Adult Gaming Centre on High Road Willesden. Planning officers had advocated restricted hours rather than the 24/7 opening requested by the applicant, who could see no justification for the restriction.

The Planning Committee approved the application with 8am-10pm opening Sunday to Thursday and 8am to Midnight Friday and Saturday.

Has tonight's Cricklewood Broadway/Hassop Road planning application slipped under the radar?

 

View on Cricklewood Broadway (existing and proposed)

A major development on Cricklewood Broadway and Hassop Road appears to have slipped under the radar of local residents. The application LINK will be decided at tonight's Planning Committee. 448 letters were sent out by Brent Council and there were only four responses. One in favour and three objections. Opposite the site, actual in the London Brough of Barnet, is the Railway Terraces Conservation Area. Barnet is listed as a consultee but, along with all the other consultees, their submission is not published on the Brent Planning portal.

 

To attend meeting on BrentLive CLICK HERE

Hassop Road - front view (existing and proposed)

The Planners' report summarises:

Retention and refurbishment of buildings at 42-56 Hassop Road, demolition of buildings at 32-40 and 60-74 Hassop Road and replacement with 3 storey building accommodating 2,679 sqm of floorspace (Use Class E) and 8 self-contained flats, refurbishment of ground floor retail at 249-289 Cricklewood Broadway including creation of retail arcade between Cricklewood Broadway and Hassop Road, change of use of 1st floor of 249-283 Cricklewood Broadway and creation of 2 to 3additional storeys above 249-289 Cricklewood Broadway accommodating a 157 unit co-living scheme and ancillary facilities including laundries, cinema, shared living/kitchen/dining rooms, storage and shared workspace and new facade to front and rear of 249-289 Cricklewood Broadway

 

The two existing floors of the Cricklewood Broadway building will be re-furbished, with the ground floor retained in retail use and the first floor converted to shared living/co-working accommodation. The building will be extended upwards by three additional floors, each providing additional co-living accommodation. An arcade will be provided, linking Cricklewood Broadway to Hassop Road, and will have shops on its southern side, and some ancillary accommodation for the co-living units (gym and concierge) on its northern side. The units are laid out at a ratio of just under 7 rooms per shared kitchen, dining and living room and small kitchenettes are also provided within the rooms. Other communal facilities will include co-working spaces, lounges, gym, cinema, external amenity space, managers office, concierge, and storage areas. Floors three to four will be stepped back from its front and rear elevations and the maximum height of this building will be approximately 17m at its southern end and 20m at its northern end.

 

The Hassop Road building will involve the refurbishment of Nos.42-56 and its upward extension by an additional floor, and the redevelopment of 32-40 and 60-74 Hassop Road to provide a three-storey building. Due to the gradient of the road, maximum height will range between approximately 9m and 12m.The ground floor will continue to be in employment use whilst the upper floors will accommodate 8no. self-contained flats.

 

Public realm improvements between the two buildings are proposed to make the street more pedestrian-friendly. This will be achieved through the provision of a shared surface, the planting of trees (approximately 23no.), the removal of the ad hoc parking and their replacement with two dedicated parking bays and two loading bays, and cycle parking. Catenary lighting is also proposed. Improvements are also proposed along the Cricklewood Broadway frontage with additional plantings, seating, and cycle parking.

 

Regarding the Railway Terraces Conservation Area they say:

Although the proposed development will be visible from the Conservation Area and will directly face the listed Milestone LINK , it must also be viewed within the context of the existing developments external to those heritage assets. 

 

Visibility does not necessarily equate to being harmful because it could be argued that views from the Conservation Area, such as along Kara Way, towards the site will be enhanced due to a replacement building, albeit larger, that is more sympathetic in terms of its overall design and materials. At worse, the impact of the development is considered neutral.

 

 On the 157 unit co-living block the planners state:

PolicyH16 of the London Plan acknowledges that co-living is a type of housing that will help to meet a particular need, that is, single person households who cannot or choose to not live-in self-contained homes or HMOs. The policy does not restrict the accommodation to particular groups by occupation or specific need (e.g., for students, nurses, temporary/emergency accommodation) but such schemes must be of at least 50 units.

 

Given the density of living accommodation in that block and the fact that it has lifts for disabled people who will require PEEPs (personal emergency evacuation plans) councillors will be keen to look at fire safety. I have embedded the report below - it is worth looking at page 9.

Click bottom right for full page.

Brent night time economy businesses encouraged to sign up for Women's Night Safety training

 From Brent Council

Brent Council in partnership with Night Time Economy Solutions is spearheading a new scheme to train staff working in night-time economy businesses, such as, pubs, restaurants and bars, on how to recognise vulnerable women and customers at their venues by offering free Vulnerability Training.

The council signed up to the Women's Night Safety Charter, which is part of the London Mayor's Tackling Violence Against Women and Girls Strategy, and pledged to keep women safe at night-time venues.

Women and girls have a right to feel safe and to enjoy night-time activities without fear of attack, harassment or unwanted attention.

Our aim is to encourage Night Time Economy businesses to sign up for our free vulnerability training to support staff in developing clear policies and procedures around victims reporting incidences of assault or harassment, creating a safe environment for women on their premises, identifying and supporting vulnerable customers and staff and to recognise, respond and report these crimes.

After attending the 3-hour training session, each business will receive a resource pack that will include training materials, best practice tools and a window sticker to show customers that they are in a safe environment for women at night.

Cllr Promise Knight, Lead Member for Community Safety and Engagement said: 

 

Following the spate of horrific, high profile attacks against women in the past year, we are committed to working with our night time economy businesses to help them recognise the huge role and responsibility they have in keeping women safe in their venues and recognising vulnerable women and staff who may feel threatened and need help.

With the end of lockdown restrictions and nightlife returning to normal, clubs, bars and late night venues will start to resume full time activities, with the potential increase of assaults against women and young girls.

The Council will continue to support businesses to ensure they continue to be vigilant and keep the safety of women and customers a priority.

For more information and to sign up for a place, please contact Cathy.Hickey@Brent.gov.uk