Northwick Hospital & NHS Trust 'disrespecting' staff and patients over what appear to be secret plans to close the much needed Hydrotherapy Pool funded by donations. Link to Petition.

November 2014: A hospital group held a party to celebrate raising more than £90,000 to buy new patient equipment.

The League of Friends of Northwick Park Hospital has donated the money to pay for a sensory room, a hydrotherapy pool and gym equipment. 

 

March 2020: Publicity after refurbishment of the Hydrotherapy Pool at Northwick Park

 

  JULY 2025: Silence from North West London University Health Care

Many readers have drawn my attention to a Change petition opposin the closure of the hydrotherapy pool at Northwick Park Hospital. I have spent the last few days trying to confirm the closure decision, seeking documents online providing reasons for the closure and details of any consultation undertaken and several times asked the Trust's press office for a statement.

The result has been silence so I have very little to go on but have decided to go public despite this and publicise the petition. Plans such as this should not be kept secret as they affect the public in Brent, Harrow and surround areas and, of course, the Trust should be publicly accountable. The Trust was not shy of publicising the pool in earlier years and its website still mentions the provision:

 The Northwick Park Hospital website today

 

   

The petition to NHS Trusts, Board of Northwick Park Hospital and Northwick Park Hospital:

Every day, I grapple with chronic pain and discomfort, and for me, and countless others like me, the hydrotherapy pool at Northwick Park Hospital is not just a facility; it's a lifeline. It's one of the very few forms of exercise that alleviates our suffering. Unfortunately, we are facing the closure of this essential service, an act of cruelty by the hospital board that could have severe consequences for our community.

Northwick Park's hydrotherapy pool is the only one of its kind within miles, providing a unique and irreplaceable service to those with severe pain. People from all over London come here to seek relief because other services are simply not available to them. This closure means taking away the only method of physical relief many patients can tolerate and benefit from.

But this pool is more than just therapeutic relief; it's a community hub. For many patients, this is their sole opportunity to connect with others who understand their struggles. The closure would not just remove a crucial health service, but also heighten the isolation faced by people with chronic illnesses.

The impending closure could also mean that patients would have to endure increased pain and reduced mobility, as they no longer have access to the specialized care provided by hydrotherapy. This decision could lead to deteriorating mental and physical health outcomes for many individuals.

Please join me in urging the board of Northwick Park Hospital to reconsider their decision. We need to keep this vital lifeline open for all those who rely on it. Sign this petition to keep the hydrotherapy pool at Northwick Park Hospital open and accessible for the community that depends on it. Act now to stop this closure. 

Currently the petition has 1,995 signatures. The issue is urgent as I understand the plans is to close the pool at the end of August when so many people will be away. SIGN HERE  

A contribution from a member of staff under the comments section of the petition suggest that both staff and patients have been treated wuth disrespect in the way te proposal has been handled:

I left the LNWH NHS Trust yesterday and I still feel the urgent moral duty to protest the closure of the hydrotherapy pool that I have referred patients to countless times. It is a vital treatment method for the physiotherapy department. The patients that are referred to hydrotherapy are often post-traumatic injury, or people with severe arthritis, or severe back arthropathies which cannot be managed surgically. This means they rely on the pool for their only possible form of exercise to maintain a sense of a community, enjoyment, and slowing their condition worsening. With no appropriate alternative, many of these patients will not leave their homes other than hospital appointments and feel even more isolated. 

I believe the executive board are closing it as a change of strategy to move any service that can be managed in the community, to the community. The announcement has been immediate and without due process which should have included stakeholders in the community, the physiotherapy department, the 'League of Friends' charity (who paid to refurbish the pool and were not informed of the plan to close it), and the local council. I am aware that this is not an essential part of the process to close the pool and the Trust is trying to cut their overheads as soon as possible given the recent political manifest. 

However, the method that they are using goes against all of the Trust's own values, and having spent the last 5 years abiding by the same values, the disrespect to both staff and the community alike is astounding. Personally, I have no issues with the change of strategy, However, I believe the pool should remain open. Whether this remains under the  Trust's management, or until an appropriate community trust / organisation can take over, or a suitable alternative is provided. Please show your support for the physio team at the NHS trust and for the patients we try to help.

 Another comment  stresses the contribution of local fundraisers to the Hydrotherapy Pool:

As a NPH disabled staff member of 44 years and a hydro patient for roughly 25 years (until covid started) I am disgusted to hear of the threat of closure of the Hydrotherapy Pool. This pool has been a lifeline for thousands of patients over the years. If it had not been for the hydro pool i would of been disabled off early retirement years ago as nothing else helped with my multiple joint pain from various forms of arthritis. A bit of a back story. This pool would not have been built in the first place if it was not for the charity work of the League of Friends for round about 5 years of buy a bug campaign. Back then this was on all the news channels and you could not walk the high streets in Wembley or Harrow without seeing charity bug sellers. Even Wembley stadium and arena events they had bug sellers. It will be such a shame if this closure goes ahead.

A patient I see regularly at my allotment site and have noticed the improvement in her condition wrote:

I am so disappointed to read this news!! Over the past 21 months my hydrotherapy sessions at Northwick Park have been so therapeutic and have improved my mobility tremendously allowing me to walk and move around without constant pain. Regular sessions have helped me not only to improve physically but have also provided mental health benefits through speaking with others in a similar situation. This form of non weight bearing exercise is essential. Please reconsider your decision NPH.

A member of the public has filed a Freedom of Information request asking who is responsible for decision making about the service, reasons for closure, what consultation had been done and what other alternatives were considered. They also asked for minutes of relevant meetings.

In a message to Wembley Matters, Linda writes:

I have been going to the hydrotherapy pool for a long time. I am not sporty and not good at exercise, so it helps me by providing a routine of exercise each week. We have an intensive half hour led by a physiotherapist. I go to a lower limbs class because I have had two hip replacements, and it has helped to strengthen my muscles and improve my balance, both before and after operations. Balance is fundamental because hip replacements are never as strong as your original ones, so you must not fall. The support of the warm water helps you to do things that are too difficult to do in normal exercises on the ground. I also have some problems with my knees, but it has helped me enormously to do exercise without pain. The water supports you, so you don't hurt yourself by falling whilst doing the exercises. If I miss a week or two I can feel stiffness coming back, so I need to go regularly.

 

The people who go to the same weekly sessions also get to know each other. There was a very elderly woman who came recently who had a lot of trouble walking and needed help to get into and out of the pool. After a few weeks she was getting in and out easily by herself and was much more mobile. Most people are older, but sometimes younger people come for the therapy after accidents and injuries.

 

I would hope that Brent Council and our councillors will be taking up this issue and the decision called in for scrutiny.

 

 

Desultory response from Cllr Krupa Sheth on the future of the Welsh Harp Environmental Education Centre despite passionate pleas for children's engagement with nature

 

 

Leo Batten, who helped set up the Wesh Harp Environmental Education Centre more tha half a century ago made a passionate plea for its continuation at yesterday's  Welsh Harp (Barnt and Brent) Consultative Committee.

Unfortunately the responses were far from positive. Leslie Williams, from Brent Council, made it clear that there would be no daytime space for the WHEEC in the new SEND 16-25 building saying that it would be 'fully utilised' during curriculum time by the 16-19s and available for education groups only at other times.

This would be of no use to the primary schools that have been using the centre for morning and afternoon sessions for decades. Initial discussions envisaged shared use of the new building with the WHEEC and I understand that current plans include provision for 60 local school children to visit each day during term time. Thames21 withdrawal from running it seems to have led to the dropping of the idea. 

Cllr Krupa Sheth, Cabinet lead on the Environment, made it clear that the Council would provide no money to keep the WHEEC going but campaigners. who are getting together now (despite it being the holiday season), will be urging the Council to  shake off its lethargy and start searching for solutions.

 Thames 21 who usually attend the Committee were not present last night.

Oasis at Wembley: Timings, road closures & diversions; Friday 25th July & Sat 26th; Wed 30th July, Sat 2nd Aug & Sun 3rd Aug

 

Save Bridge Park Community Rally on Sunday 2pm - 6pm : 'Let's come together to keep the fight alive!'

 

'Discriminatory' Live Facial Recognition technology deployment at this year's Notting Hill Carnival questioned

The BBC reports that the Metropolitan Police are to deploy Live Facial Recognition at the Notting Hill Carnival this year. LINK The technology has been used in Brent in Wembley Central and Kilburn High Road,

Lord Boateng AKA Paul Boateng raised concerns about its use in the House of Lords ealier this month and was backed up by Green peer Baroness Jones AKA Jenny Jones.

Lord Boateng was MP for Brent South from 1987 to 2005. He asked (They Work for You):

My Lords, a US Government study suggests that facial recognition algorithms are far less accurate in identifying African-American and Asian faces than Caucasian faces, and that African and Asian women are 10 to 100 times more likely to be misidentified than Caucasian ones. The study identified 99 developers, including Intel, Microsoft, Toshiba and the Chinese firms Tencent and DiDi Chuxing, as potential problems in this area of procurement. What research are the UK Government going to commission on this, and how are these firms to be treated for the purposes of procurement by police forces in this country?

Lord Hanson (Minister of State at the Home Department) responded:

 My noble friend touches on important issues and again, I refer to the point I made earlier to the noble Baroness. A survey of the existing use of facial recognition technology estimated that there was no discrepancy between gender and race. My noble friend shows slight dissatisfaction with that potential outcome, and I say to him that those are the very factors we want to look at in the guidance my right honourable friend is considering bringing forward. Self-evidently, if we are going to use facial recognition technology, it needs to be accurate, regulated, proportionate, intelligence-led and organised in a way that does not discriminate against sex, race or any other characteristic.

Baroness Jones was not convinced on safeguards:

 My Lords, noble Lords have had the opportunity twice in the last month to be briefed by the Met Police on facial recognition. On both occasions, including when Minister Johnson from the other end was present, it was clear, as the Met admitted, that it does not have clear oversight, which the Minister also admitted in an earlier answer. When are the Government going to provide some clear regulations? In what other area of public-facing policing do the police make up their own rules?

Today Responding to news that the Met plans to use facial recognition at this year’s Notting Hill Carnival, Big Brother Watch interim director Rebecca Vincent said:

It is worrying to see the Met resorting to the use of invasive live facial recognition technology at this year’s Notting Hill Carnival after scrapping it when a prior trial led to widespread outcry on the grounds of bias. We know that LFR is less accurate in scanning minority faces, so using it to target attendees of this beloved cultural celebration is particularly sinister. Plans to use this dangerous and discriminatory technology should be immediately scrapped.

This planned deployment is even more concerning given the continued lack of a legislative basis, leaving police to write their own rules with no accountability or oversight. Capturing biometrics on a mass scale will not make London safer. The Met should channel its resources into a proper on-the-ground police presence to deal with actual criminals rather than compromising the privacy rights of millions of innocent carnival-goers and local residents.

 

No statement from Brent Council on the future of the Welsh Harp Environmental Study Centre as schools break up for the summer holiday

 

Pond dipping nets stand ready for what may be the last groups to use the Welsh Harp Environmental Education Centre

 

Today marks a week since Brent Council were asked for a statement on the future of the Welsh Harp Environmental Education Centre.

 

Today also marks the last day of term. A lively crocodile of excited primary children walked by the nearby allotment this morning, oblivious to the fact that they might be the last to make use of the Centre.

 

As far as I can ascertain local schools have not yet been informed of the withdrawal of the charity Thames21 from managing the  Centre or of any transitional arrangements while a new sponsor is sought.

 

A prettty poor show that raises doubts about Brent Council's commitment to our young people and their education  about the climate and ecological emergencies that will shape their future lives.

 

 

 

Brent Jewish Network meet Brent Council leader to express their 'strong support ' for Nablus twinning as positive step towards international friendship and understanding

 

Brent Jewish Network delegation with Brent Nablus Twinning Association outside Brent Civic Centre, 16 July 2025

A delegation of the Brent Jewish Network met with Brent Council Leader Muhammed Butt on Wednesday (16 July 2025) to express strong support for the borough’s proposed twinning with Nablus, arguing for this positive step towards international friendship and understanding. 

 

The diverse group included synagogue members, secular Jews, young people and elders. They shared their own experiences of visiting Nablus, the vibrancy of its city life, the warmth with which they were received by its people and the difficulties that their communities face under illegal Israeli occupation. They pointed out that visiting Nablus as visible Jews did not cause any hostility whatsoever from its people, who were unfailingly hospitable. They noted that Nablus, as home to Muslim, Chrisitan and Samaritan Jewish communities, was a great twin city for proudly multicultural Brent. 

 

The group expressed its dismay at the recent intervention in this matter by the Board of Deputies of British Jews. They reaffirmed that a significant threat to community cohesion is the false conflation of Jews with the Israeli State and the fraudulent presentation of every Jew as being in support of the Israeli war on Gaza. They explained that the Board, by choosing to assert these falsehoods, was directly undermining community cohesion in Brent.

 

The group also reaffirmed that the Board is not representative of the whole Jewish community, evidenced by its failure to include the Reform synagogue in Brent or any non-Orthodox synagogal bodies in its delegation to the Council. The Board’s highly sectarian attitude was demonstrated by its recent disciplining of 36 of its own elected representatives for expressing mild anti-war views. 

 

Following the meeting, Brent Jewish Network member Daniel said:

 

We congratulate Cllr. Muhammed Butt and Brent Council for the progress made on the Nablus twinning project. Nablus is a city that I was privileged to visit in 2015, where I was received with warmth and hospitality. Much like Brent, Nablus is a bustling, vibrant place. It is diverse, with many different communities living together. People in Nablus have much the same problems as us - unemployment, housing scarcity, inflation - in addition to facing a brutal Israeli occupation. Twinning is an exciting opportunity to build links with the people of Nablus in a spirit of friendship and solidarity.

 

It is pure chutzpa for the Board of Deputies to criticise anybody’s efforts towards community cohesion. Their intervention into Brent Council’s democratic process has nothing to do with defending Jews or community cohesion, but instead has everything to do with their steadfast support for Israel. Rather than affirm the separation of local Jews and the Israeli state, they knowingly conflate the two. We urge the Board of Deputies to step back from sectarianism.

 

Cllr Butt thanked the Network for their support for the twinning project and remarked that it was important to hear the alternative view of the local Jewish community to the one presented by the Board of Deputies delegation. He said that the council will continue to seek engagement will all parts of the local Jewish community, including the sections represented by the Brent Jewish Network. They were told that the meeting was helpful in documenting that the council was proactively engaging Brent communities

 

Kenton Residents' Association formed

 

From Kenton Residents' Association Brent

A group of Kenton residents had an initial gathering on the evening Wednesday 9th July to discuss the formation of the ‘Kenton Residents’ Association Brent’ at the Harrow Masonic centre in Northwick Circle, Kenton.

 

A packed hall of well over 100 residents gave support to the initiative led by local Kenton ward councillor, Sunita Hirani, and long-standing Kenton resident, John Poole.

 

Shirley Holmes, Brent Council neighbourhood manager for the Kenton and Kingsbury Connects Area, chaired the first part of the meeting before opening up the meeting for questions and discussion.

 

There was strong support for the idea of Kenton Residents’ Association Brent (KRAB) and several residents came forward to volunteer in a temporary capacity to help set up the association with the aim of having a formal meeting in September where a constitution will be presented and adopted and officers elected.

 

Speaking after the meeting, Cllr. Hirani said she was amazed at the turn out and that it clearly indicated a desire from local residents for the formation of a residents’ association.

 

The meeting was sponsored by the Harrow estate agents, Empire Chase.