'Transformation' of health & care in Brent - Public Meeting

From Brent NHS Clinical Commissioning Group

You are invited to a public meeting and workshop to discuss our plan to transform your health and care system. The five year plan is a collaboration between Brent CCG, Brent Council and NHS providers in the borough.

This event will take place on Monday 26 September from 6.30pm at Brent Civic Centre, Engineers Way, Wembley, HA9 0FJ

Last year the government outlined a new approach to help ensure that health and care services were built around the needs of local populations. To do this, every health and care system in England was asked to produce a multi-year plan.

To develop and deliver plans locally, 44 'footprint' areas throughout the country were established. Brent sits within the North West London (NWL) footprint which is being coordinated by the NWL group of Clinical Commissioning Groups (CCGs). The plans are being developed in partnership with the eight Local Authorities and NHS providers in the area.

Cllr Krupesh Hirani, Cabinet Member for Community Wellbeing said:

Residents' opinions' are absolutely key to the successful development and delivery of Brent's plan, especially in delivering the long-term outcomes we want to achieve for our patients and the wider public. The development of future services that will better enable this vision to become a reality will rely on strong and consistent patient and public engagement throughout the process.

In order to hear your views, we encourage you to come along to the event on Monday 26 September.

Dr Ethie Kong, Chair of Brent CCG said:

Join our conversation in making health services work in a sustainable and efficient way across the borough. We are committed to an NHS that fits residents' needs, so come along and tell us what you think of the work we have done so far. We look forward to working with the patient and public to continue to shape our health strategy over the coming years. 

  Register your interest HERE

Help bring in the Brent fruit harvest

Last year's mulberry harvest

Fruit picking groups in Brent have started harvesting local fruit that would otherwise go to waste in local gardens. Two Transition Town groups (Kensal to Kilburn Fruit Harvesters and Willesden Fruit Harvesters) along with Mapesbury Residents' Association (MapRA) pick fruit which they share with local schools and community groups.

Last year the three groups between them collected over three tonnes of apples, pears, elderflowers, plums, grapes, blackberries, mulberries and medlars. The fruit is given to local schools and charities including the MS Society, the Salvation Army, Mayhew Animal Home, St Mungo's, Brent Food Banks, and church homeless groups, and is made into delicious juice, chutney, jam, jelly, cider and wine.

Kensal to Kilburn Harvesters are gearing up for their showcase stall at Queens Park Day on Sunday 18th September, where they make and sell hundreds of glasses of fresh apple juice using a traditional fruit press.

Janey McAllester from Kensal to Kilburn Fruit Harvesters says, It's such a great feeling to lead a pick of fruit that would otherwise rot on a lawn and give them to our friends who cook for and run the local food bank - feeding those in need from local trees!

“We'll be juicing local apples and selling chutney made from them at Queen's Park Day, and hope to meeting people who would like to join us picking or have us pick their trees - it's always such a great way of introducing what we do.”

Viv Stein from “Willesden Fruit Harvesters” says, “Picking fruit is great fun for people of all ages, it helps out tree owners with too much fruit, and is much appreciated by local community groups. So far this season we've had a fun day out blackberrying, picked a hundred and fifty kilos of fruit from local gardens, and are making jam from our local bounty.”

Gerry Weston from MapRA says, “There seems to be plenty of fruit this year; we are looking for more people to get involved.”

Local Fruit Harvesters was set up in 2009 by Brent residents Michael Stuart and Viv Stein, and has become part of the borough's two Transition Town groups - Kensal to Kilburn and Willesden, and taken on by MapRA in Mapesbury. The Willesden group pick fruit in Willesden, Dollis Hill and Cricklewood. The award-winning project is part of the national Abundance Network. The fruit gets shared out between garden owners, volunteer pickers and distributed to local schools, charities, restaurants and shops on a non-profit basis. The projects have also trained over seventy people to prune fruit trees. To get involved email kensaltokilburnharvesters@gmail.com, willesdenharvesters@gmail.com, or gerry@mapra.org.uk.

Join local action on air pollution monitoring

From Transition Town Kensal to Kilburn 

Air pollution is a current hot topic:

We will be carrying out some pollution monitoring in the TTKK area, putting up tubes on 24th September - see below if you would like to join in.

There will also be a public meeting on the subject on the evening of 21st September.  All are welcome.  More details below.


If you would like to join me to put out some monitoring tubes round our area at 3pm on Saturday 24th September please email me on janeymcallester@gmail.com.  We are joining a project run by the London Sustainability Exchange and will put the tubes out for ten days, collecting them on the 8th and sending them back for analysis, so it would be great if you are available on that date too.  There will then be comparison with other areas and discussion of the results - we can meet again to talk this through and decide how we want to use the information.  Let me know if you'd like to join in.

Public meeting

The next meeting of Brent Connects Kilburn is scheduled for 7-9pm on Wednesday, 21 September 2016 at London Interfaith Centre (aka St Anne and St Andrew's), 125 Salusbury Road NW6 6RG. The first item on the agenda is Air Pollution in Brent: What's Being Done About It?

Who's responsible for monitoring and assessing air quality in Brent? What effect has air pollution on health and wellbeing? How can we improve air quality in the borough?

Join us for a BBC ‘Question Time’ style interactive session for answers to these and other burning questions on tackling air pollution in Brent. Brent is one of the London boroughs that has recorded some of the worst nitrogen dioxide levels, according to air quality monitoring statistics.

Come and find out more, increase your understanding of the positions of these key stakeholders and support Brent’s ongoing commitment to ensuring the borough is a safe place to live, work and play.

Panellists

Aaron Kiely, Campaigner – Friends of the Earth

Tony Kennedy, Head of Transportation – Brent

Jennifer Barrett, Senior Regulatory Service Manager – Brent

Oliver Lord, Principal Policy Officer (Air quality / green transport) – Greater London Authority

Four new constituencies proposed to cover Brent. What constituency would you be in?

The Boundary Commission has published far-reaching proposals on the borough's parliamentary constituencies.  In today's proposals they aim to reduce the total number of seats in England and Wales by 50, evening out the numbers in each constituency. London would be reduced by 5 constituencies.

 Brent wards would be spread over no less than four constituencies: Kenton, Wembley & Harrow on the Hill, Willesden, Queen's Park and Regent's Park.

These would replace the present Brent North, Brent Central and Hampstead and Kilburn constituencies.

The Brent ward constituencies would be as follows:

Ward		Proposed Constituency	Current Cllrs
Alperton (3)		Wembley & Harrow on the Hill	3 Lab
Barnhill (3)		Kenton	3 Lab
Brondesbury Park (3)		Willesden	3 Con
Dollis Hill (3)		Willesden	3 Lab
Dudden Hill (3)		Willesden	3 Lab
Fryent (3)		Kenton	3 Lab
Harlesden (3)		Willesden	3 Lab
Kensal Green (3)		Willesden	3 Lab
Kenton (3)		Kenton	3 Con
Kilburn (3)		Queen's Park & Regent's Park	3 Lab
Mapesbury (3)		Willesden	2 Lab 1 Lib
Northwick Park (3)		Wembley & Harrow on the Hill	3 Lab
Preston (3)		Wembley & Harrow on the Hill	3 Lab
Queens Park (3)		Queen's Park & Regent's Park	3 Lab
Queensbury (3)		Kenton	3 Lab
Stonebridge (3)		Willesden	3 Lab
Sudbury (3)		Wembley & Harrow on the Hill	3 Lab
Tokyngton (3)		Wembley & Harrow on the hill	3 Lab
Welsh Harp (3)		Willesden	3 Lab
Wembley Central (3)		Wembley & Harrow on the Hill	3 Lab
Willesden Green (3		Willesden	3 Lab

Kenton Constituency

Wembley and Harrow on the Hill

Queen's Park and Regent's Park

In its commentary the Boundary Commission states:

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In the borough of Brent, we propose
a Willesden constituency, which includes eight wards from the existing Brent Central constituency, and the Hammersmith borough ward of College Park and Old Oak from the existing Hammersmith constituency, and Brondesbury Park ward from the existing Hampstead and Kilburn constituency.

We propose two further constituencies that include wards from the borough of Brent. We propose a Kenton constituency, which includes four wards from the existing Brent North constituency, and five Harrow borough wards – Kenton
East, Kenton West, Queensbury, Belmont, and Edgware – from the existing Harrow East constituency. (It should be noted
that there is already a Queensbury ward from the borough of Brent in the Brent North constituency, making two in the proposed Kenton constituency.) 

We also propose a Wembley and Harrow on the Hill constituency, which includes three Harrow borough wards from the existing Harrow West constituency, five wards from the existing Brent North constituency, and Tokyngton ward from the existing Brent Central constituency.

The electorate of the existing Westminster North constituency is currently below the electoral quota. To bring this constituency within range, we propose including the Brent borough wards of Queens Park and Kilburn from the existing Hampstead and Kilburn constituency. (It should be noted that there is already a Queen’s Park ward from Westminster in the existing constituency, making two in the proposed constituency.) To reflect the change we propose this constituency is called Queen’s Park and Regent’s Park.

The consultation on the proposals is HERE

Brent SOS Libraries urge Cabinet to keep their pre-election promise on Preston Library

This letter has been sent to Brent Cabinet members prior to tonight's meeting.

 

Re: Preston Community Library

Report for consideration at Cabinet meeting on Tuesday 13^th September 2016

I write as chair of Brent SOS Libraries, an umbrella group supporting library campaigns and community libraries across Brent. The contents of this email have been approved by the four community library groups at Kensal Rise, Cricklewood, Barham and Preston. I have been made aware of the report relating to redevelopment of the Preston Library site, which I understand you are due to consider at the cabinet meeting tomorrow, Tuesday 13^th September 2016.

It is well known that a clear pre-election promise was made at a public meeting on 7^th May 2014, when the Brent Labour Party promised to “offer the building at a peppercorn rent to any local community group who can provide a sustainable community library... that is our pledge. We will not open to competitive tender in order to give preference to local groups.” You were present at that meeting and supported that pledge.

Since then, volunteers in Preston have worked extremely hard to set up and sustain a community library in the building. Despite the constraints placed on them by sharing the library building with local schools using it for overflow classrooms, library volunteers in Preston have developed an amazing local resource, which is providing valuable services to the community. As you probably know, Preston Community Library is a registered charity. In addition to providing books, study space, and computers with internet access (vital for people who have no or limited computer or internet access at home), they also run, among other things, ESOL classes, a film club, and writing projects for children and young people.

Representatives from Preston Community Library meet regularly with those from the other community libraries setting up across Brent (Barham, Kensal Rise and Cricklewood), as part of the umbrella group Brent SOS Libraries. In recognition of the importance of our work, we have recently received a grant of £45,000 over two years from the Council’s Voluntary Sector Initiative Fund for support and development of services across the four libraries. We were one of eleven bids from a total of 43 applications to be successful.

The four community libraries have also started to work with the Brent Library Service and we have met with them on several occasions this year. In July we were very pleased to participate in the Culture Open Day at Willesden Green Library, an event which we planned jointly with the Library Service. We look forward to working more closely with the Library Service in the future.

In the circumstances, I was most surprised to read the report prepared for the Cabinet, which makes no reference to the pre-election promise. The proposals contained in the report breach that promise by proposing open market tender and a significant annual rent for community space. A community library is not going to be able to pay the sorts of sums proposed. Libraries are not designed to be profit making, they are providing a free service to the community. This is understood at Kensal Rise and Cricklewood, where the libraries will only pay a peppercorn rent. The hard work and goodwill of the many volunteers supporting Preston Community Library, and the benefit that it provides, should not be disregarded in this way.

Any proposal for future use of the Preston Library site should honour your pre-election promise and should recognise the value, including the social value, of the work done by Preston Community Library. PCL should not be subjected to an open market tender process and should not be required to pay more than a peppercorn rent. If the site is to be redeveloped in some form, PCL should be provided with space in the new development on the same basis, and you should provide them with alternative accommodation whilst the site is being redeveloped.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Laura Collignon 

Chair, Brent SOS Libraries

Chair of Operations Group, Friends of Kensal Rise Library

Battle of the Lords Wednesday on Energy policy

On Wednesday 14 September 2016, Lord Lawson of Blaby and Lord Turner of Ecchinswell will give evidence to the House of Lords Economic Affairs Committee’s inquiry into ‘The Economics of UK Energy Policy’.

Lord Lawson is a former Secretary of State for Energy. Lord Turner was the first chairman of the Climate Change Committee that was established in 2008. They will be asked for their views on the current Government’s energy policy.

The Committee is exploring the present mix of policy interventions and subsidies in the energy market. The core question which it is seeking to answer is: “What are the failures, if any, in the energy market and what measures are needed to correct them?”

Questions the Committee is likely to ask include:

1      Are the Government’s objectives for energy policy the correct ones? 

2      How successful has recent Government policy been in achieving those objectives?

3      What role should the Government play in the energy sector? Is the right balance being struck between the roles of government and the private sector?

4      Should the terms of the agreement to build Hinkley Point be revisited?

5      Should the UK proceed with developing its shale gas reserves?

6      Should the UK be concerned about energy security given rising imports of oil and gas?

7      Are you surprised that domestic energy bills have not reduced in line with falling wholesale prices? 

The evidence session will take place at 3.35pm on Wednesday 14 September 2016 in Committee Room 3 of the House of Lords. 

Resident questions Brent Council's arithmetic on Preston Library housing plans

A local resident has sent the following message to Brent Cabinet ahead of their discussion on an officer's report on the future of the Preston Library building.

Dear Cabinet member,

I wrote to councillors last week about why it is important to support Preston Community Library.

Since then I have looked more carefully at the report for Tuesday's cabinet, and have realised that the figures in it for housing just don't make sense.  I think you will need to adjourn the report so that officers can give you corrected information.

The report states that if you just built five flats on the library site, there would be an expected income to the Council of £158,000, including £51,000 from the community space.  The difference [£107,000] comes to an average rental income per flat of £411.54 per week, which is clearly not accessible for people in housing need.

For the larger site, the figures are £420,000 -£51,000 = £369,000.  At 19 flats this is £19,421 rent per flat, or £373.48 per flat.

The current rent you charge [2015-16] for a council home is £101.99 for one beds, £115.56 for 2 beds and £127.63 for 3 beds.  LINK 

This means that if the properties are let to social tenants you will not get anything like the rents the reports says.  If you are to rent to private tenants then the rents in the report are still much lower than other flats in the area. An example of a flat a couple of minutes walk away is HERE.

Income to the Council also needs to take account of Housing Benefit, which will reduce the income considerably.

The chair of South Kenton & Preston Park Residents Association has, I believe, written to you about the values quoted in the report, including the non-viability of achieving £51,000 from community groups, and also about the unusual and extremely high development costs of building these flats.  To meet housing need it would be much cheaper for Brent to purchase some of the flats and houses for sale in the district.

I feel that if this report is approved, then the planned for gains will not materialise; those in housing need will get no benefit, citizens will lose their valued library and it will be an embarrassment to the Council.  I hope that you will reject this report.

yours sincerely,
Linda Green

Brent set to double fly-tipping fixed penalty to £400

The October Brent Cabinet meeting will discuss a proposal to double the Fixed Penalty Notice for fly-tipping to £400.  Following the introduction of legislation on May 9th 2016 Brent Council set the default level at £200, reduced to £120 for early payment.

If agreed by Cabinet the new rate will be £400, the maximum upper limit, reduced to £180 for early payment.