Work on Chalkhill Park to start in October

School Councillors at Chalkhill Primary have received a response from the ward councillors to their letter asking when work on the new park on the site of the old  Chalkhill Health Centre will start and be completed:

Thank you for taking the trouble to write to us about the proposed park in Chalkhill. It was a pleasure to meet you on our walkabout and it is clear to us that you feel very strongly about this issue.

We share your concern that it seems to have taken a very long time to get things started. However, the good news is that we now expect work to start on the site in October. If everything goes to schedule, this should mean that the park will be completed by April next year to open in May 2012. This will mean that, by this time next year you should be able to look forward to your summer holidays with a lovely park to play in and enjoy.

We will let you know if there are any changes to these plans. Do get in touch again if there is anything else you would like us to look into for you.

Keeping Up with Brent Cuts

I reproduce below an extract from the weekly digest of the local press I circulate to Brent Green Party members. It provides an over-view of the latest news on cuts. The Willesden and Brent Times (WBT) e-edition can be accessed HERE  and the Harrow Times HERE

The contrast between Ann John's comments and the WBT editorial is interesting. The financial reasoning behind the Kingsbury High School academy decision is also significant.

HOW CAN WE AFFORD NEW CIVIC CENTRE WWOp14 (lead letter),  PLAN WILL COST US FOR NEXT 25 YEARS WBTp16, HOW WILL THIS BE PAID FOR? HTp24 Letter from Shahrar Ali as Green Party GLA candidate for Brent and Harrow questioning the financial and environmental claims made for the new Civic Centre currently under construction.
ROAD SWEEPING REDUCTIONS 'WILL MAKE US THE DIRTIEST OLYMPIC BOROUGH' WBTp2 Martin Francis criticises Brent Council's proposed cuts in street cleaning and the abandonment of the seasonal leaf service.
LIBRARY PLANS ARE 'UNLAWFUL' WWOp1 Coverage of the first day in court of library campaigners' application for a judicial review of the Council's decision to close 6 of the 12 Brent libraries. The claim is that the decision failed  to take into account local needs, could lead to indirect discrimination and that the decision was 'predetermined'.
LIBRARY SELL-OFFS ON HOLD WBTp4 Council plans to sell-off two library sites were deferred until August at Monday's Executive due to the judicial review.
JOBS FEAR AS HOSPITALS TRUST FACES £92M FUNDING CUT WBTp2 The NW London Trust (Central Middlesex, Northwick Park, St Marks) is to lose 24% of its budget. Doctors say that it cannot achieve these savings and will fall short by £25-40m.  Health Emergency say that 'it is the people whose care can be put off who will suffer. It is people waiting for operations, older people who need long term treatment and front line staff who will lose out. If staff do not lose their jobs, their their workload will increase....The government has asked for a cut too far'.
CALL FOR ACTION OVER HOSPITAL WAITING LISTS WBTp5 Hospital waiting lists have soared by 10% in Brent with 3,000 people on the lists.  Cllr Zaffar Kalwala (Labour, Stonebridge) says expected cuts will make it worse. The Trust confirmed the rise but said they are on track to better their 18 week target for referrals within the Trust.
NEIGHBOURHOOD POLICE REVAMP IS 'NOT TO MUCH TO WORRY ABOUT WBTp5 21 sergeants in the Safer Neighbourhood Teams will have to reapply for the 16 jobs that will remain after cuts. Chief Supt Gardner said that the wards to be reduced are still being considered but that the issue had been anticipated and that Brent invested in three detective sergeants and four detective constables to investigate neighbourhood crime ;so in fact this will not impact on Brent'.
HOMELESSNESS TO 'SOAR' AS CUTS BITE SAYS CHARITY WBTp9 Cricklewood Homeless Concern say that reductions to public sector provision and caps on housing benefit have led to a 'sharp increase' in homelessness. CHC after 20% cuts is struggling to deal with the average 150 people a week who seek their help. More than 10,000 people in Brent are affected by the benefit cap and are already in force for new claimants and will affect existing claimants early next year.
GOVERNORS VOTE FOR ACADEMY PLAN HTp8 The Chair of Governors of Kingsbury High says that one of the reasons for applying for academy status was their need for increased funding  because the equalisation of funding between 6th forms and further education colleges means they would lose £1,016 per student in their 400 pupil 6th form by 2013. FUNDING OF FESTIVALS WILL STOP WBTp2 Brent Executive cut the money for religious festivals in the borough on Monday saying it was unfair to give the money to certain religious festivals. Cllr Paul Lorber said the religious celebration had been open to all and were designed to improve relations between communities. In answer to his question about th Council's retention of fireworks night Cllr Ann John said this had been retained for health and safety and not religious reasons.
MANY SERVICES ARE STILL BEING IMPROVED DESPITE CUTS WBTp15 Column by Ann John, Labour leader of Brent Council who says that despite the cuts 'it is not all doom and gloom' because regeneration is continuing and they've resisted government attempts to force up council rents to unaffordable levels.  She says the Council is making Brent a greener borough through schemes to increase recycling, tackle fly-tipping and getting rid of old inefficient buildings.
COUNCIL MUST LISTEN TO VOICE OF THE PEOPLE WBTp16 Editorial which says that campaigners on various issues could 'hardly have failed to have noticed that the town hall is ignoring your views'. They cite the libraries issue, parking permits and day care centres. On the Stonebridge Day Centre they say, 'Brent council will say they had no choice; but "following orders" is no excuse, the council should have fought to keep the centre, they could have found an alternative to closing it. They could have listened to the people who pay their salaries and expenses, whose votes they canvass for at elections - the very people they are supposed to represent.'

Kingsbury High NOT Academy Campaign on Facebook

Support the students' campaign HERE

Kingsbury pupil: 'Academy status will not benefit us'

A report on the pupils' strike is now on the Willesden and Brent Times website HERE

Extract: One of the pupils, who asked not to be named, who took part in the demonstration said:

We all went into school but when the bell went everyone stayed in the playground. We stayed there for about an hour and students handed out leaflets. A meeting was called by the headteacher at 11.30am which we attended but we don’t feel our questions were answered properly. We don’t think academy status will benefit us. It can affect teachers pay and conditions and we don’t want our good teachers to leave. Funding isn’t guaranteed. Letters have been going to parents which are very one-sided.

Jenny Jones Battles Against Traffic Pollution

200 Kingsbury High School Students Strike

The school students strike at Kingsbury High School did go ahead today. Around 200 pupils stayed out of lessons, chanting and protesting when the bell went. They demanded a meeting with the Head who agreed to meet them later in the morning. At this meeting, complaints were made that once again only one side of the academy argument was given. There are plans for an important school council meeting at the start of the new term.

Note: This year marks the 100th anniversary of the 1911 Children's Strikes when pupils marched out of schools all over the country inspired by industrial unrest at the time. They made their own demands on issues such as corporal punishment and homework.

Incineration Fight: Haringey Today, Wembley Tomorrow?

As plans emerge for new waste management sites in Brent as part of the West London Waste Management Plan, some of which are likely to be incinerators, events in North London show us the way forward. The West London Waste Authority consulted on possible sites for waste management facilities but NOT on the processes and technologies which will take place in them. These will be detailed when planning applications are made to local Councils.

Things have reached that stage in the North London Waste Authority and a formidable campaign has developed around a huge incinerator at Pinkham Way.. Thanks to Haringey Greens for this Guest posting: Their interesting and informative blog can be accessed HERE

A packed public meeting organised by Barnet, Enfield and Haringey Green parties at Hollickwood School close to the proposed waste processing plant, attracted over a hundred people on Thursday (21st July) last night. As recently as this Tuesday, Haringey Council ‘put on hold,’ the plan because as they say on their website, the North London Waste Authority (NWLA) has failed to provide enough detail on the proposals. A decision on planning permission for the development will now be delayed until April 2012, by which time the NWLA should have submitted a more detailed plan.

The speakers at the event were, Colin Parish, a local resident and founder of The Pinkham Way Alliance, Darren Johnson, Green party Greater London Assembly Member, and Quentin Given, Coordinator of Tottenham and Wood Green Friends of the Earth.

Quentin, in his statement to the meeting said, “There is a problem with waste, and what we do with it. London’s Boroughs should be more self-sufficient in waste management and we need to move away from incineration, and waste sites should aim to minimise road movement of this material, which clearly this plan does not. We should also be concerned about the effects this plant will have on wildlife, which is under pressure everywhere.”

Colin, in his statement said, “This factory, will be seventy five feet high, with a chimney almost double that size. The NWLA say that this site is an ex sewage works, but that was fifty years ago, it is now lovely woodland. The plan is for over one thousand vehicle movements a day, in and out of the plant, twenty four hours a day, and we must fight it. This is the worst traffic junction in London in the daytime, and these plans will make this situation even worse.” He also made an appeal for donations to help his group’s legal costs, which he said was the best way to stop the plan going ahead.

Darren agreed that the legal challenge was very important but said “Local residents are a force to be reckoned with, and this had had an effect on Haringey Council’s action in delaying a decision.” He went on to say, “The politics is also important, the Mayor of London can, at the end of the day, decide on whether this plant is built, and with the decision delayed until April 2012, this makes it a big issue at the Mayoral and GLA elections in May next year, which is brilliant timing. This plan is based on the low levels of recycling which we have in London, but we could be achieving over 80% recycling, like they do in many countries in Europe. If we recycled more, we wouldn’t need such large plants as are being proposed. I noticed on the way here to this meeting that the recycle boxes are tiny compared to the big grey wheelie bins. It is also unfair on the people of this area to be expected to take the waste from several boroughs.”

A lively questions and answers session followed the speeches, with general opposition to the plan from all parts of the room. The meeting resolved to continue the fight against this massive scale waste plant, which would have a devastating effect on people’s quality of life in this part of north London.

UK Without Incineration Network LINK 

Animation of the Incineration Process HERE 

Shahrar Ali (Green Party GLA Candidate for Brent and Harrow ) has written up the Pinkham, Way meeting HERE

Philip Pullman: Why it is wrong to close our libraries

I think it is a bad idea for councils to close any libraries because all libraries are treasure houses which should be looked after and protected.

Children especially are the people who can be nurtured into a love for books in libraries which they don’t easily find anywhere else.

Libraries are the only place where they can get the love of books that will engender a life time love of reading.

It is important because it is the fundamental thing that makes us civilised human beings

Follow this link to see full report of Philip Pullman's comments on the Willesden and Brent Times website LINK