London Renters Union to put their demands to Cllr Butt and Cllr Southwood later this afternoon

 

Following Saturday's very successful and often moving Community Assembly  organised by English for Action, Brent members of the London Renters Union are meeting with Cllr Butt and Cllr Southwood this afternoon to discuss their key demands. Wembley Matters has documented a number of cases locally and here as background are some cases from the LRU:

A recently joined LRU member, a single parent with 6 children, 2 with disabilities, and with English as a second language, had been placed 2 years ago by the council directly into a flat with a rat infestation, thus discharging the duty. When the boiler broke down she tried to complain to the council, but was only told that she could make another homeless application, and not passed on to the enforcement team.

A property guardian facing a 75% rent increase from DotDotDot (partially as his partner moved in, and also a large rent increase on top of that). DotDotDot are a property guardianship company with a contract from Brent council to fill flats in the South kilburn estate - Labour has committe to lobbying to bring the rents down, so why are they letting DDD get away with this? The renters a proposal to run the flats as a short-life housing coop if DotDotDot say it isn't financially viable for them... - https://twitter.com/ldnrentersunion/status/1504518653290725381?s=21

This issue is really draining me mentally, I can’t focus at work, I can’t sleep well nowadays, I can’t eat well and it’s affecting my health. I am scared of being homeless.

 These are LRU's demands as determined by members real life experiences:

1.    Hold Landlords Accountable. Don't give licences to landlords until they prove the accommodation is the right standard. Use your powers to make the landlords fix our problems - and to make them pay when they don’t. Employ more workers to do this with the money from landlords. 

2.   Work with renters. Meet with Brent LRU regularly, and come to a public meeting after the election to show that you are keeping your promises. Tell local people that they can join London Renters Union for solidarity.

3.   The right to stay in our communities. Don't force people to move out of Brent when they come to the council for housing help. Never say that people are "intentionally homeless". Brent’s temporary accommodation is not good enough - tell us your plans to change this.

4.   Reduce Rents. Tell the government to Control Rents to stop landlords increasing the rent when they want.

5.    Support and solidarity. Give us the right to have appointments to see a real person. This is very important for some disabled people, and if English or reading is difficult. No long, difficult online forms. 

6.   Homes for us. Build housing for the working-class. Don't allow new buildings to be only for the rich. Learn how to negotiate with the big companies so we don't always lose and they always profit. 

You can support these deamnds by taking  E-Action to write to your local councillors HERE

 

1.Hold Landlords Accountable

LRU sees licensing as a key tool against the exploitation of renters, and wants to see a strong consultation for borough-wide licensing. However, an effective enforcement strategy is necessary for licensing to be worth it for renters as well as councils, and also for the majority of properties which are unlicensed. 

·       Expand licensing borough-wide, and expand the enforcement team in order to meet the needs of renters.

·       Ensure that all homes meet the minimum energy efficiency standards, fine landlords that are illegally renting F and G rated properties, and create a local economic recovery scheme using GLA funds and local businesses and apprenticeships to get PRS properties up to B rating as per the Climate and Ecological Strategy.

·       Use the new capacity to ensure that landlords meet the terms of the licence before the licence is issued, and through regular inspections until it expires.

·       Use the rent repayment order scheme against landlords who continue to flout the licensing laws.

2.Work With Renters

The council should meet regularly with Brent LRU, and let renters know about the union.

·       Create a liaison point who will promptly respond to any issues involving LRU members

·       The Cabinet Lead for Housing and the Leader should attend a public meeting of renters within the first 6 months of the administration to update on progress on the housing commitments.

 

3.The Right to stay in our communities

Everyone has the right to stay in their community and with their families and support networks. 

·       Brent Council should end the practice of forcing working class people to choose between leaving London or being declared ‘intentionally homeless’ and become at risk of street homelessness - support people to stay in Brent.

·       Brent Council is building temporary accommodation in order to reduce the reliance on private landlords, which we applaud. However, many renters will not be able to access this block - the council should set out minimum safety and quality standards for ‘temporary’ accommodation and take enforcement action against landlords that refuse to meet them. 

·       Councils should ensure they are giving appropriate weight to invisible disabilities such as chronic mental health issues when making housing offers.

 

4. Bring the rents down

Our demand

·       Council leaders should add their voice to the housing movement’s call for rent controls so that no one is forced to pay more than a third of their income on rent.

·       Brent Council should pass a motion calling on the Government to introduce affordable and effective rent controls, and should put pressure on the opposition to back them. Brent Council should collect and publish data on rent levels.

5.   More accessible housing and support

Disabled people, those with English as a second language and with other support needs should be able to get the advice and support they need to exercise their housing rights in a way that works for them. Councils should ensure that both housing itself and advice and support services are as accessible as possible to tenants. Councils should:

·       Ensure that council advice and support is clear, rights-based and easy to access by the individual themselves without needing to rely on another person. Support should be able to be accessed through multiple channels (such as email, telephone, face-to-face), and long and complex online forms should be eliminated.

·       Set out a multi-pronged strategy for informing tenants about their rights, recourse when they are not met, and entitlements to grants such as Disabled Facilities Grant.

·       Set out a clear expectation for landlords and letting agents within the borough to ensure that there are multiple channels of communication through which tenants can approach them.

 

6.  Development

Social housing must be prioritised in all developments. To ensure just and responsible development in Brent, the council must:

·       Prioritise housing the huge numbers of people on the waiting list in new developments. 

·       Build more, larger 4 and 5 bed houses (both council and private developer) to deal with chronic overcrowding in the borough. The waiting list for a three- or four-bedroom council house in Brent is 17 years.

·       Brent Council didn’t respond to journalists about whether it has a strategy for keeping developers to their s106 agreements - how is this happening currently?

 

 

 

 

Densification along with misleading figures on community space and green space provide ammunition for South Kilburn residents to fight for a better deal

 

As tables were being cleared after the usual community meal at the Granville Centre in South Kilburn, Leslie Barson  of Granville Kitcheh stepped forward to introduce the evening's rather special speaker.

 She said, 'I have been thinking - you can't have a project without a place to do it. And you need a project for the place.'

The Granville and Carlton Centres have done so much, so many projects, over the Coviud crisis and proved its essential role in the community along with Rumi's Cave (now relocated in Harlesden) and had kept people together: 'We now understand its relevance.'

The planning application approved at the beginning of 2020 is to be actioned over the next few months.

Dr Pablo Sendra from UCL who had led the research project 'Co-designing social infrastructure for resilient communities in post-Covid cities' addressed the crowded room full of local residents. A rare collaborative effort between community and academics.

In his talk Pablo made a number of key points:

Researchers estimated that the Granville Centre over 65 weeks had provided £344,760 worth of volunteer labour,

Quoting the Mayor of London that organisations, projects and buildings need to be more connected and relevant he asked, 'How can the community be more involved in how the building and its spaces work?'

As a result of regeneration South Kilburn had increased in density and needed more community spaces. The 'Community Hubs' hailed by the Council were places to ask the Council for support, rather than for organising activity. Bland spaces were being provided that people did not feel comfortable in. [Later I mentioned the 1970s 510 community centre in the Harrow Road with its old settees and arm chairs, kettle in the corner, that people treated as home from home and housing many organisations involved in anti-racism, immigration, education and campaigns against SuS.]

The former hall in the Granville where people used to meet has been converted into an 'enterprise space' . Overall the research showed that the Council estimate of a overall loss of  community space of 5% had not included the Granville, Carlton and Rumi's and in fact the loss was 60%.

The workspaces were rigid, enclosed office spaces but the UCL survey showed that people wanted much more creative spaces for activities such as pottery and music.  At a time when people were used to working from home the space offered had to be more than a desk and internet - otherwise people would continue to work from home.

Green spaces were also important. Brent has a very low ratio of green space per person and regeneration will decrease the amount of green space.  And of course densification is going to increase the population significantly. During the pandemic green space became an important outdoor safe space for mental and physical health as well as a place to catch up with neighbours.  It also lent itself to food production and community gardening.

Summarising the recommendations (full details below) Dr Pablo Sendra listed:

1. No loss of community space

2. Creative and well-equipped workspaces

3. Address potential conflict between users (quiet activities versus noisy or messy)

4. Welcoming space to socialise

5. Diverse types of community spaces

6. Spaces for emotional support

7. Activities for young people

8. Flexible and well-equipped green space

9. Local food production and gardening

10. Inclusive process for decision making

11. Involvement of the community in the running of the buildings

12. Work on a resilient funding model.

In discussion questions were asked about the possibility of legal action against Brent Council over its decisions in the light of the research findings. whether the council had carried out a lawful consultation and how the council's action stood regarding the Equality Act.

Asked what next Pablo said that it was now a matter for the community to mobilise itself using the research findings to ensure that they maintained, managed and improved the good space that they had.

After the meeting Leslie Barson said:

Granville Community Kitchen is  very pleased to have this research that identifies and clarifies what needs to be done and why to safeguard The Granville and The Carlton as multi purpose community spaces. We hope the Council will find it useful too and help the South Kilburn community achieve the report's recommendations.

Pete Firmin, a local resident, queried:

When Brent says there has been little loss of green space with regeneration in South Kilburn, I wonder whether they take account of the fact that much of the green space previously was open to all, yet now much of such space is reserved for residents of certain blocks. And green space now is more more patchwork - many smaller spaces, rather than larger ones which allow for ball games etc.

 

The report implies that the Granville/Carlton Centres, whatever else is going on there, are under community control. They never have been and are not now. They are under the control of Council-appointed bodies, with South Kilburn residents having very limited say in their use.

Frogs galore in Barn Hill pond as Spring bursts into life

 

 Frogs on Barn Hill pond ©AmandaRose

Local photographer Amanda Rose caught these frogs in noisy action yesterday in Barn Hill pond, Wembley.

Recent restoration work on the pond seems to have worked its magic and there is frogspawn at both ends. According to Amanda the frogs were happily singing, unaware of the heron that held them in its beady gaze.

More photographs and a video  of what Amanda called 'an army of European brown frogs' are available on the Alamy site HERE

 

What Climate Emergency? Brent Council paves over its own front gardens

 

2 and 4 Cranhurst Road, Willesden Green before refurbishment

After

Willesden Green resident Simon Campbell has written to his councillors about the paving over of the front gardens of two Brent Council properties in Cranhurst Road, Willesden Green:

I am contacting you all regarding No’s 2 &4 Cranhurst Road NW24LN and their current refurbishment.

I have checked with Brent Council who confirmed that these properties are owned/managed by Brent Council and so will be responsible for overseeing the works being done to the properties.

The issue I have identified is the builders have completely removed any vegetation/garden with water permeable materials and instead installed a large expanse of non-permeable paving. (see attached)

Victorian housing stock such as these, were designed with water permeable front gardens to allow the clay subsoil adequate access to moisture so issues do not arise from subsidence and provide a green amenity.

As can be seen, previously there was planting, some biodiversity and drainage as there should be, and contrast this with the barren sterile environment that has replaced it. Brent Council like every other Local Authority does not allow such interventions for obvious reasons, so I cannot explain why this approach has been taken?

I would hope and expect that Brent Council would lead by example as regards best practice.

Brent needs as much greenery as possible; it also needs to decrease the amount of surface runoff going into the sewer system – this intervention fails on both counts.Making the properties more susceptible to future subsidence issues is not an advisable strategy. 

Can you please investigate and find who is responsible for overseeing these works and let me know when this aspect can be remediated?

 I raised this matter on the 'chat' at last night's Brent Environmental Network event: Creating greener communities: Why nature and biodiversity is vital and pointed out that there is not even the excuse that this will be used as car parking - it is a walled frontage.

Brent Council – We’re happy to give Labour Cabinet members publicity (except in the six weeks before the local elections)

 Guest post by Philip Grant in a personal capacity

A recent Brent Council tweet.

 

There have been several articles recently about the number of social media posts by Brent Council with photographs of Cabinet members in them, and “tagged” to their personal social media accounts. In one of these, Martin asked “Is Brent Council promoting candidates ahead of the local elections?”

 

In a comment under that post, I gave the text of an email I had sent to Brent’s Chief Executive, Carolyn Downs, raising my concerns over a Brent Council Instagram post. It appeared on my private Instagram account as “recommended” for me, because I follow Brent Culture Service. I wrote:

 

‘The Instagram post was about banner advertisements against litter dropping, on lamp posts in Ealing Road, near Alperton Station. The colourful banners had been designed by students at Alperton Community School, and the photograph quite rightly showed a group of students and their teacher, standing in front of one of these banner advertisements. 

 

However, also appearing in the group photograph were Cllr. Muhammed Butt and Cllr. Krupa Sheth. There is no reason why they were necessary to publicise this latest Brent Council "success", but it appears that Brent Council's official social media is giving them plenty of photo opportunities recently - even more than usual!

 

 

This incessant promotion of Labour councillors (albeit members of Brent's Cabinet) is wrong, especially close to Council elections, and I hope that it will be stopped immediately. It gives unfair publicity to one political party.’

 

 

I was particularly concerned, because the post was about Alperton, where the local election on 5 May is likely to be hotly contested, as the LibDems won a seat there from Labour in a 2020 by-election. Since his election, Cllr. Anton Georgiou has represented Alperton Ward residents, and has tried to hold the Council Leader and his Cabinet to account on a number of issues.

 

 

I have now received Brent’s reply to my email, from Debra Norman, the Council’s Legal Director. I will set it out here, in full, so that readers are aware of the official position on this:

 

 

‘The corporate communications team exists to communicate the policies and initiatives of the council and the positive impact they have on the borough and its communities.

 

 

The council operates a Leader and Cabinet model of governance in accordance with the Local Government Act 2000.  This means that most decisions about council services and activities are made by the Leader chosen by full council and the Cabinet he appoints, or by officers to whom they have delegated decision-making.  This group of councillors, therefore, has a different role in the council from other councillors and a particular responsibility to champion and explain to the community the activities and decisions of the council that fall within their respective portfolios. 

 

 

The council’s role description for the Leader includes the following:

 

 

·      To promote flagship projects of strategic significance to the borough.

·      To ensure the effective communication of policies and recommendations of the Cabinet.

·      To take a lead in forming partnerships with other local, public, private, voluntary and community organisations.

 

 

The role description for Cabinet Members includes the following:

 

·      To act as spokesperson within and outside the Council on those services.

·      To ensure effective communication of the decisions related to the portfolio responsibilities to the Council, the community and all appropriate agencies/bodies.

·      To take a lead on external partnership working in the relevant area of responsibility.

 

 

Cabinet Members are, therefore, properly and appropriately used as the official spokespeople for matters falling within their portfolios. 

 

 

Social media channels enable a quick and low cost way for the public to receive news and updates from the council. However simply following the council does not ensure that you will see every post. All of the three main platforms used by the council (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) give preference to posts that contain images and video content, showing them to a wider audience. The communications team tailor their content accordingly, based on what performs best. Pictures with people usually do well.

 

 

The formal pre-election period begins from 24 March in Brent, when notice of the election will be posted. This is the date the Code of Recommended Practice on Local Authority Publicity, issued by the government under s 4 of the Local Government 1986, identifies as the sensitive pre-election period during which local authorities should not publish publicity that identifies issues or views with individual members or groups of members. 

 

 

I can reassure you that the council and its communications team will be complying with the Code from 24 March.  Until then, it is business as usual and the council’s approach to communications, which reflects that members of the Cabinet act as representatives of the council for their portfolios and help to communicate the work of the council, continues. 

 

 

Specifically regarding the photo of the schoolchildren and the Cabinet Member for Environment and the Leader of the Council to which you refer, the high street banners and accompanying video have an important message about caring for our local environment. The message is more powerful because children from Alperton Community School were involved in the initiative. The timing of the photo call (and subsequent social media post) worked for the school and we wanted to ensure the news was shared well in advance of the local election on May 5 and two weeks ahead of the start of the sensitive pre-election period.’

 

 

This statement appears to confirm what I have observed for a long time – that Brent Council only puts out ‘positive’ stories. There is no “balance” in their output, and they are happy to use members of the Cabinet, who ‘help to communicate the work of the council’, in the photographs which they use to get the Council’s social media posts noticed. If you want a picture that conveys a story which isn’t “positive”, you have to produce it yourself!

 

 

My parody publicity picture for Brent’s Cecil Avenue Council housing development.

 

 

It is clear that Brent Council, and its Corporate Communications Team, have been happy to give photo opportunities and social (and other) media publicity, linking Labour Cabinet members to “positive” Council stories, for most of the past four years. They will only stop doing so six weeks before the local elections. Does that give the Labour Party and its candidates an unfair advantage in those elections?

 

 

Philip Grant.

 

Workers, Unions and the Cost of Living Crisis - video of panel discussion

 

From the Green Party Trade Union Group

The cost of living crisis engulfing the UK has the potential to define our politics. But what are the political implications of the rising cost of living? How can workers and trade unions respond? And how does the Green Party navigate the crisis? To discuss these and other questions, we welcomed an array of expert speakers, well-placed to offer insight into the crisis and its political impacts: - 

• Kate Bell, Head of Rights, International, Social & Economics at the Trades Union Congress (TUC) 
• James Meadway, Director of Progressive Economy Forum and former adviser to John McDonnell 
• Andy Beckett, journalist and author of 'When the Lights Went Out: Britain in the 70s' 
• Emiliano Mellino, organiser and labour journalist with the Bureau of Investigative Journalism
• Molly Scott Cato, Green Party spokesperson on Finance & Economy

 

Local Election Environmental Hustings on Zoom March 22nd 7pm

 

Brent Friends of the Earth will be hosting a virtual hustings on 22^nd March 2022, in advance of the local Council election on May 5^th

 

With (in alphabetical order):

• Councillor Muhammed Butt (Labour) - Currently Leader of Brent Council
• Councillor Anton Georgiou (Liberal Democrat) - Currently representing Alperton Ward (or possibly another LD candidate)
• David Stevens (Green Party) - Candidate for Welsh Harp Ward
• Plus a representative of the Conservative Party (to be confirmed)
  

 

Speakers will be given an opportunity to outline their Party’s policy, and answer questions from local people on environmental matters. The meeting will cover topics related to climate change, including questions on energy costs, housing, transport, the natural environment, air quality, waste and other matters of concern to local people.

 

There will be an opportunity to submit questions for candidates in advance, as well as raising questions at the meeting. If you have a question you would like to put to the panel, please email us with the text of your question, and let us know if you would like to ask it yourself or have it put to the candidates by the chair.

 

The meeting will be chaired by locally based barrister, broadcaster and author, Hashi Mohamed, who will put the questions and challenge candidates on their policies.

 

BOOK ON THIS LINK (FREE)

 

Celebrate Nowruz (Persian New Year) with children's activities at Sufra Saturday March 19th