Sewers again - Wembley Hill Road works until February 14th

Wembley residents sighing with relief after the completion of the sewer works in Wembley High Road now have another set of works to cope with.

Brent Council have announced:

There are emergency road works on Wembley Hill Road near the junction of South Way which require three way temporary traffic signals to control traffic. These works are essential due to the sewer backing up into a property on Wembley Hill Road.

Thames Water will be working extended hours and seven days a week to complete these works as soon as possible.

Advice to motorists is where possible please avoid the area especially during peak times.

Dockless bikes will only have a 'marginal' effect on cycling take-up

Following my story on the experimental scheme for dockless bicycles in Brent LINK, a spokesperson for Brent Cyclists commented:

Dockless hire bikes have been a success in some other cities in the world and so we think they would be a good experiment for Brent. It’s important to realise, though, that their effect on cycling take-up will only be marginal, as the perceived safety factors that are the reason most Brent people do not cycle will remain. The main things that would increase cycling in Brent, as always, are good cycle lanes and paths and low-traffic streets, which separate cyclists from heavy traffic for most of their journey.

'Blazing row' at Aggregates Consultation ahead of Planning Committee discussion next week

--> It was not a good day for Capita yesterday. Their share price dived and Barnet Unison sought assurances regarding their workers from Barnet Council. Then Capita employees had to meet the angry residents of Dollis Hill alone when planners and Barnet councillors did not turn up at the consultation on the proposed aggregate superhub. A full account of the meeting is available on the Times series site HERE
Residents were not impressed:

Capita, left alone to buffer Barnet Council from the angry public, told the crowd at The Crown that the waste transfer site is owned by the public sector so we can have confidence in it. Oh, the irony! EasyCouncil is now Mike Freer’s Frankenstein monster.

Anne Clarke

The Capita team at last night PR event to promote Barnet rubbish and aggregates facilities. I actually felt sorry for them. No Childs Hill councillors as ever.

Cllr Lia Colacicco   

As I left the so called consultation meeting tonight, someone asked me if I thought Barnet were incompetent or lying. 

I think if their lips move, they’re lying and they are at the competence level of a single celled organism. 

An utter shambolic mess. I got here at six, and the previous presentation, or should I say blazing row, was still going. It blended nicely into the following one. 

Apparently the way Barnet propose to ensure no lorries enter Dollis Hill is that we all need to report them. Oh, and if there’s some kind of disaster at the dump, there’ll be a phone number to report it, too. 

Toys went out the pram bigly.

Alison Hopkins

Meanwhile the agenda for the Barnet Planning Committee for February 8^th has been published LINK and the Superhub recommended for approval.  bAny resolution by the Planning Committee is subject to direction by the London Mayor.

I embed below the Officers’ responses to the consultation submissions:

Bridge Park redevelopment: 'HEAR OUR VOICES!' Please sign the petition

I have been asked to publicise this petition. You can read a previous article about the background here: LINK

 Petitioning: cllr.ernest.ezeajughi@brent.gov.uk


In February 2014 Brent Council proposed the redevelopment of Bridge Park Leisure Centre. In January last year the Brent Cabinet gave formal approval for the "Purchaser" GMH to enter into a Conditional Land Sale Agreement (CLSA). This means that the Council will now engage with the local residents, users and members to ensure that certain conditions regarding planning and financial assurances are met. We, the local community and members have a vested interest in ensuring that we are consulted in any decisions made.  Bridge Park Leisure Centre was open by Prince Charles in 1987, and has welcomed people from all walks of life. People of all cultures and ages have enjoyed the facilities for over 30 years. We don't want to see Bridge Park become a privately run leisure centre, where we the local community become the OUTSIDER.  

We want to be CONSULTED, we want to be satisfied that our voice is HEARD.

Redevelopment is a must, but let us have a say!!!

Sign the petition HERE

Barry Gardiner, in 'total support' of anti-academisation campaign, calls Public Meeting on February 8th

The delegation to Barry Gardiner MP in Westminster Hall yesterday

From the National Education Union

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On the last day of their three days of strike action this week, members of NEU at The Village School, Kingsbury, London were addressed by Louise Regan, NEU NUT section National President. She praised their steadfast campaign to prevent their school from becoming a privatised academy. 

Those three days have seen a significant advance in the campaign to stop the privatisation of this outstanding special school. On Wednesday 31^st January Barry Gardiner, MP for Brent North in the constituency of the school, met with a large delegation of NEU members in Parliament. He told the delegation that he is totally supportive of  the campaign and has written to the Kay Charles, Headteacher and Cllr Sandra Kabir, Chair of Governors and Brent Labour Whip, giving them a long list of searching questions to answer. 

He has written saying that he is “concerned over the proposal”. He goes on to say that the consultation is one sided “without setting out any of the problems or pitfalls”. “The Village benefited from £29 million capital investment from Brent Council … Is it right that this public money and the capital assets should be outside of effective democratic control?” He further says, “If the academy were to struggle financially or academically there would be no back up from the local authority.”

Barry Gardiner is so concerned that he has arranged a public meeting at 6pm on Thursday 8 February at the Brent Civic Centre. Parents, staff and local people are invited to discuss the proposal. He feels that the rushed consultation has not given enough time for debate. 

Brent Central MP Dawn Butler has also written to Cllr Butt asking about the status and reasons for this academisation. Writing to a constituent she said it “concerns me to hear of the potential academisation” and that “many teachers and parents … have significant concerns”. “I am disappointed by this decision and believe the school should remain part of the local authority”.

The position of Cllr Butt and Cllr Kabir are becoming increasingly isolated and untenable. We wait to see the promised letter from Cllr Butt saying that the school should stay with Brent LA. 

Hank Roberts said, “Jeremy Corbyn and the national leadership needs to reign in the words and actions of those who purport to be putting a Labour position, whilst in reality supporting Blair’s privatisation of education agenda”.

Concern over safety on Olympic Way after last night's match at Wembley Stadium

Photo: Daniels Estate Agents

The photograph above was taken from a high vantage point above Olympic Way at 10pm as fans made their way to Wembley Park station from the Spurs v Manchester United match. As usual stewards held fans back (bottom centre in high visibility jackets) while the station platforms were cleared.

The match had the highest ever attendance at a premier league match which Spurs celebrated:

However, on Facebook others were concerned about such large numbers packed into a restricted space.  One person remarked, 'A tragedy waiting to happen' and another, 'Nothing learnt from Hillsborough it seems.' A Brent resident said, ' Looks scarey to me. Please remind me not to go to Wembley Stadium for an event, or on an Event Day. I forget, most of us residents that can, already avoid the entire area just in case it's an Event Day.'

A year ago today I publicised Spurs application to remove the capacity cap and increase the number of events.

 The next big match,which may record a new record attendance is Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal on Saturday February 10th, kick-off 12.30 pm. 

I advise families not to take their children to change their  books at Wembley Library on that day!

Bid for equality, to end the ban on opposite-sex civil partnerships

From Equal Civil Partnerships
 

This Friday morning MPs will debate Tim Loughton’s private member’s Bill to end the ban on opposite-sex civil partnerships. Currently, civil partnerships are available only to same-sex couples.

The Bill is titled: Civil Partnerships, Marriages & Deaths (Registration Etc.) Bill. 

Following recent ministerial changes, the government has gone back on its commitment to support reform. It now wants more time to deliberate. Nevertheless, it estimated that a majority of MPs back equality. 

A petition calling for equal civil partnerships has over 80,000 signatures. 

View and sign the petition HERE: 

Find out more about the Equal Civil Partnerships (ECP) campaign: www.equalcivilpartnerships.org.uk

Peter Tatchell, human rights campaigner, is backing the Bill; having championed equal civil partnerships since they were first proposed in 2003 for same-sex couples only. He said: 

It’s time for ‘straight’ equality. It cannot be right that same-sex couples now have two options, civil partnership and civil marriage, whereas opposite-sex partners have only one option, marriage. 

In 2016, the Isle of Man became the first part of the British Isles to open up civil partnerships to opposite-sex couples. If the Isle of Man can have civil partnership equality why not the UK?

The government’s public consultation in 2012, involving over 200,000 submissions, found that 61% of respondents supported allowing opposite-sex couples to have a civil partnership. Only 24% opposed. 

In a democratic society, everyone should be equal before the law, with the same rights and responsibilities. It is outrageous that for 14 years successive governments have been unwilling to legislate equality.

The founders and lead opposite-sex couple in the Equal Civil Partnerships (ECP) campaign are Charles Keidan and Rebecca Steinfeld. 

Charles Keidan explained: 

Currently, more than three million unmarried couples in the UK cohabit. That’s an average of over 4,500 couples per parliamentary constituency. Two million children in the UK have parents living together as unmarried couples. 

Over 80,000 individuals have signed our petition in support of equal civil partnerships. The vast majority of those polled are in favour of the extension of civil partnerships, according to Populus. 

Same-sex civil partnerships remain popular in the LGBT community. The number formed in England and Wales rose from 861 in 2015 to 891 in 2016, an increase of 3.4%, according to the Office of National Statistics. There is every reason to believe they would appeal to a sizeable number of different-sex couples if they were legalised.  

Rebecca Steinfeld added:

The current situation is self-evidently unfair. Civil partnerships promote stable families and protect children. They should be available to everyone. There is no such thing as common law marriage. This leaves unmarried couples and their children vulnerable. 

Couples choose not to marry for many reasons: its history, cost and past bad experiences. The State’s responsibility is to protect children, not judge their parents: children should not be placed at risk, just because their parents don’t marry. 

The number of same-sex couples opting for civil partnerships increased last year, despite the introduction of same-sex marriage. This shows that the demand for civil partnerships is not going away and it is likely that many different-sex couples would like this option. There is cross-party support for equal civil partnership legislation.

Sufra Foodbank struggling to fill shelves asks for help from volunteers

From Sufra North West London

The food bank is struggling to keep up with demand and our shelves are almost empty. Help us to fill the food bank!

Volunteer with us on Saturday 10 February 2018 and Sunday 11 February 2018 for a 3-hour shift at ASDA Wembley Superstore, distributing "shopping lists" and encouraging customers to make a food donation.

We're looking for happy smiles and lots of enthusiasm. Sign up now.

Shift Timings:

Saturday 10 February 2018
- 10 am to 1 pm
- 1 pm to 4 pm
- 4 pm to 7 pm
- 7 pm to 10 pm

Sunday 11 February 2018
- 11 am to 2 pm
- 2 pm to 5 pm

Sign up HERE