Cuts in Safer Neighbourhood Team

I have described the local policing and PCSO situation as "dire" and others agree.  How else should one describe when Willesden Safer Neighbourhood Team is down to 1 PC and 1 PCSO. Some very effective PCSO's have been accepted for training at Hendon to become full police officers and we do not begrudge them extending their careers. However the result is the break up of a very effective and accessible team who will no longer have the personnel to take forward all the priorities we have established with the local community.  It is ironic that the Mayor of London's office, having drastically cut funds for policing on one hand, are recruiting potential new officers on the other. Any fuss about the potential closure of Willesden police station fades to insignificance in comparison to losing the officers themselves.

Burney Surgery saved!

As earlier posts show (search this blog for Burnley posts), I have been very active in persuading Brent PCT to abandon their proposal to close this surgery and relocate patients to other doctors. I was in regular touch with patients in both Willesden Green and Dudden Hill Wards who were very upset by the proposed closure. Following representations from all Willesden and Dudden Hill councillors, the PCT had second thoughts and undertook to commission a new management arrangement. Now NHS Brent has completed an open tender procurement process for the Practice, with the successful bidder being 'social enterprise' company, Innovision Healthcare Ltd based in North London, working extensively with Enfield, Haringey and Camden PCTs. Innovision will also be managing the local enhanced service for homelessness for Brent. The contract has a start date of 1st November 2011, with the same members of staff and the Willesden Health Centre location. I also understand that other GP practices could be relocated to the Willesden Centre and that a better location within the Health Centre would be sought.  Patient power can still work in these troubled times for the NHS!

Proceeds of Crime Act

Attended the Brent and Harrow Trading Standards (TS) Advisory Board meeting last night. Delighted to hear that the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA) is supporting joint work between Trading Standards and Planning Services. TS is currently conducting a number of financial investigations on behalf of other council departments including some related to planning. This involves recovering income from landlords in relation to residential properties that have been illegally - without planning permission - converted into flats or HMO's then rented out.  This is good news for the campaign I've encouraged in Willesden, where some properties without planning permission could end up being taken to court to recoup ill-gotten rental profits.

Saving the Burnley Practice

I have been in regular contact with aggrieved Willesden and Dudden Hill patients registered with the Burnley GP Practice as we had heard that there were plans to close this surgery and to distribute patients to other practices – few of which are within easy access for older or mobility impaired residents. Residents did not know why the practice was threatened, especially as a “post code” lottery existed, with the Willesden area (NW2, NW10) having fewer GP’s per 100,000 population than other areas of the borough. Following complaints to the Primary Care Trust by myself and other councillors, meetings were held so patients could express their concerns. Thanks to the campaign, the Burnley Practice is not under threat and efforts are being made to secure its position and larger accommodation in or near the Willesden Centre for Health and Care.

Jubilee Line closures

There was a time when I felt lucky to have a Jubilee line tube station a few minutes from where I live. But for the past two years, the line has been closed most weekends for engineering work which was supposed to be completed last summer. Replacement buses - some really old looking bone-shakers - trundled down my road to cover the part of the line closed. I mean to ask Mayor Boris how much the replacement bus service has cost and what do Jubilee line drivers do when the line is closed - do they have "gardening leave?" Recently, some unlucky passengers were stuck in hot carriages for up to two hours when there was a fault on the line. I regularly ask when the upgrades will be finished. The latest news indicated this Bank Holiday weekend will be a key test for the signalling system on the J5 section, hence the closure of this section of the line on Friday, Saturday and Sunday.  It should provide a good indication of progress towards final completion, now indicated to be the end of June. Here's hoping!

Farewell, Alleygates

My Labour group can be very proud of the alleygating scheme we initiated in our previous administration, 2002-2006.  The scheme identified problem alleys at the rear of shops and houses, clearing any dumping then sealing off the alleyways with strong gates with residents given keys.  Over 100 sites and over 30,000 homes protected. Brent Lib Dems acknowledge that the scheme has proved an effective way of clamping down on anti-social behaviour, but claim the credit was theirs as they “introduced” the scheme. The Fib Dems tend to be strangers to the truth and will generally blame the Labour administration for virtually everything.  Cuts from the Con Dem coalition have forced us to cut or discontinue really effective services like alleygating but they lay the blame solely on Brent Labour group.  There is even a striking fib about how one ward intended to use some of its Ward Working funds to gate more alleys, but it was a “disgrace” that the proposals were “blocked” by the Labour administration. Definitely not true! Ward Working records show the ward was able to spend over £10,000 to implement new alleygating schemes during the last financial year. In fact, the ward in question - Alperton - has had the most schemes implemented over recent years (16).  Regrettably, there will be no more for some time. The picture shows the little alley in Dean Road, Willesden before it was “alleygated”.

School places

All London Councils has warned that their boroughs face a predicted shortfall of around 70,000 school places over the next four years. The forecast shortage is largely concentrated in primary schools, but begins to feed through into secondary schools in the 2014/15 school year. Around 11,000 pupils are already being taught in temporary classrooms in the capital due to insufficient funding. London received £210 million from government in the 2011/12 funding allocations, but needs around £520 million to ensure every London pupil has a permanent school place. Brent officers are working hard to create sufficient places for our primary age children.

Sarah Teather MP and library closures

My colleague Cllr James Powney has found this surprising gem of support from MP Sarah Teather. Appearing on Radio 4's Question Time, there was a question on library closures. She said that the closure of libraries was an “enormous cause for regret”, however she is in principle in favour of the direction that Brent Council are taking Library Services in the borough when she says that councils should look for solutions, such as ‘co-location’, whereby a number of departments provide services from a location. Maybe her Lib Dem colleagues will help rather than just criticise essential decisions. Unfortunately, she also rehashes the old story generated by Lib Dems that a former Labour administration had policies to close a number of libraries. They have never been able to back this untruth with evidence because it is just that - an untruth.

More on Burnley Practice campaign

Attended a meeting for patients of the Burnley Practice on Friday. The PCT had called the meeting to discuss what patients might want in the option 1 bid our campaign had secured.  The consultation goes on until the end of January and the notice of tender will be published on the Brent PCT web site in February.  We had a questionnaire to complete to say what services we might expect from a re-tendered practice. Additional opening hours was top of most people's wish list.  If all goes well, the contract will be awarded by June 2011. Although some patients are taking a rather cynical view, I do believe the campaign has been successful and there is every intention to keep the practice open at the Willesden Centre for Health and Care.

Progress on Burnley Practice campaign

Patients of the Burnley Practice at Willesden Centre for Health and Care will have received a letter letting them know the PCT have opted for option 1: putting the practice out to open tender to keep it at its current base - the Willesden Centre for Health and Care.  This marks a success for the campaign by patients and ward councillors against the original proposal to close the surgery and to disperse patients to other doctors. We were warned that if Option 1 did not succeed, the PCT would disperse the patients to other surgeries - not a simple task to move around 3,000 patients in an area already acknowledged to be short of doctors.  The PCT has at last listened to the concerns of patients and we now await the recommendations being agreed at the NHS Brent Board meeting 25th November.  (For background, see More on the Burnley Practice)

Planning objections

 I take a particular interest in planning applications for conversions or new build in the ward.  Some developers are very greedy and try to pack too much in the space available. When I send objections, they usually cover concerns about over-development or poor quality accommodation or amenity for potential occupiers. Some applicants go on to appeal to the independent inspectorate and are often refused at that level. Have just heard that one of my objections went as far as the Magistrates Court where an owner was found guilty of breaching an enforcement notice which required him to remove a very large extension.  He was fined £4,000 and ordered to pay the Council’s prosecution costs of £2,663.60. It's good to see the borough's planners get support from the independent inspectorate and the courts.

More on the Burnley Practice

I have been involved in supporting the fight to retain the Burnley Practice, a GP practice now at the Willesden Centre for Health and Care. Brent NHS was proposing to shut the practice and to disperse patients to other GPs. Having settled into the facilities at the Willesden Centre, patients now find their surgery is at risk yet again, in spite of assurances over the years to resolve concerns.  I worked with other councillors in leading objections and attending meetings with Primary Care Trust staff and patients.

It is really important for councillors to take up issues like this, especially to resolve a problem in an area where there are fewer GP’s per 100,000 population than other areas of the borough.  The issue was also raised at the council’s Health Partnerships Overview and Scrutiny Committee which recommended as follows:

“The Health Partnerships Overview and Scrutiny Committee recommends that NHS Brent carries out an open tender process for the Burnley Practice registered patients service. This is to ensure that the service continues to be delivered from Willesden Centre for Health and Care and to avoid dispersal of existing patients in an area which already has fewer GPs per head of population than other areas of Brent.”

As a result of the objections and meetings, a further look at options for the Burnley Practice and further meetings are expected before the final decision is made next month.

Freedom Pass in danger?

The Mayor of London, Boris Johnson, has announced  that he would no longer be supporting the London Councils position on the Private Bill regarding the Freedom Pass. The Mayor's support for this Bill also formed part of a five-year deal on concessionary fares that were believed we have been reached with the Mayor. This included, in exchange for part-funding, the Mayor’s commitment to free travel in the AM peak and a cap on the borough contribution to the Freedom Pass. This deal no longer stands. Without the cap, costs for boroughs could increase from the capped amount of £266M to around £302.9M on current figures. This can be described as the Tory City Hall failing to honour its side of a deal – a deal which the London boroughs sought in order to protect the Freedom Pass and council taxpayers.

Lechmere Road dumping

This terrible mess left at the High Road end of Lechmere Road. This road is right in the centre of the High Road opposite the library - a normally busy site.  There are houses nearby, so amazing that no one spotted the dumper.  Had heard that some personal information left behind, so with luck, the miscreant can be charged. In a few weeks (1st October) the charge for the collection of bulky waste will be abolished as the Labour group promised. Dumping of this sort will not stop overnight, but stopping the charge is expected to help.

Houses in multiple occupation: End of protection?

Have recently read an article by Tom Lloyd in the journal “Inside Housing” and was very alarmed to discover that Housing Minister, Grant Shapps, is overturning rules governing houses in multiple occupation. This means that landlords could change the status of a property from a standard house to a house in multiple occupation without seeking planning permission, reversing changes in the Town and Country Planning Order 2010, which were introduced by the Labour government in April last year, shortly before the general election. This appears to me to be a gift to landlords which many do not deserve.  It is said that councils will still be able to require landlords to seek planning permission to create a HMO in areas where such properties are deemed to be a problem. This has to be true of Brent.

Planning controls

Good to see that the Planning Service continues to judge some proposals for converting houses into flats as unacceptable. In a number of instances, policies H17 and H19 are cited as reasons:

"The proposal is unacceptable in principle in that it results in the loss of a family dwellinghouse, for which there is a recognised need in Brent, without the replacement of a family sized unit. By reason of the limited original floor area of the building and its location on a heavily parked street, the dwelling house is insufficient in size to be considered for conversion and would increase the demand for on-street parking, to the detriment of the free and safe flow of traffic."

The Burnley Practice

In recent years I have been in regular contact with aggrieved Willesden and Dudden Hill patients registered with the Burnley GP Practice. This surgery was originally in Burnley Road but it closed in 2001 when the doctor left without warning.  Patients were transferred to the Roundwood Practice at the Pound Lane Clinic with the promise of a return to a surgery in the Burnley Road area. Eventually the practice was relocated to Willesden Centre for Health and Care, but the inferred intention has always been to find appropriate premises suitable for local residents. 

Recently there have been indications that there were plans to close this surgery and to distribute patients to other practices – few of which are within easy access for older or mobility impaired residents. There is genuine concern that one of the options being considered is to disperse the lists and a petition with over 150 names has been submitted.

Having settled into the surgery at the Willesden Centre, with patients familiar with its facilities, they find their GP practice is at risk yet again, in spite of assurances over the years to resolve concerns. Many residents will not understand why the practice is threatened with closure or what alternative arrangements are possible, but it is recognized that a “post code” lottery does exist in Brent, with the Willesden area (NW2, NW10) having fewer GP’s per 100,000 population than other areas of the borough.

As this is a community rather than a party political issue, I have sought the support of co-councillors for Willesden Green and Dudden Hill Wards, all of whom put their names to a letter of objection to the PCT Director.  We also supported a meeting with PCT staff and about 40 patients. This was a good meeting where patients could express their concerns and could feel they were listened to. As a result, a further look at options for the Burnley Practice and further meetings are expected.

Trading Standards Success

The Local Government Association has highlighted how criminal assets are recovered by local authorities under the "Home Office Incentivisation Scheme".  This lets councils to recover up to 37.5% of money confiscated, using powers under the Proceeds of Crime Act to conduct financial investigations and to undertake enforcement work against benefit fraudsters, counterfeiters, etc. The Brent and Harrow Trading Standards Service is given as an example which uncovered a fake handbags scam, leading to fines of £400,000, of which £132,000 went to the boroughs.

Road works at the Library Centre junction

There are very mixed feelings about the TfL funded works at this central area of Willesden. The work on the paving around the library is good and the trees on part of the High Road and in Brondesbury Park are generally appreciated. It appears that the work will correct the flooding problem at the site. Concerns included the removal of the guard rails, the trees and the traffic disruption. The intention to provide pull-ins for deliveries to shops created more problems that they solved as buses could not pass large vehicles parked there. As a result, one of the the central islands and its trees were removed. Because of these problems, the work will not be completed until the end of August. Local traders have collected a petition for the council to explain the problems and this will go to Highways Committee at its next meeting in October.

Willesden Green Post Office

“Campaigning” is an overworked word in the Liberal Democrats’ vocabulary. A Thesaurus definition of a campaign is given as “vote-seeking activities”. True, even if it leads to no discernable action or result.  The franchising of the Willesden Green Post Office in 2006 is an example. A flurry of banners and photo opportunities followed PO Ltd’s intention to franchise the Crown PO to a limited company. Such “campaigns” tend not to last long.

My approach has been different and has continued to recent months. It may not achieve much change but monitoring has been persistent. I wrote to both PO Ltd and PostWatch in 2006. My first objection was that the franchise company was not listed at Companies House at the time of the consultation letter (10th April), although in this, the company was described as “newly registered”.  In fact, it was not registered until 19th April. This was misleading and cast some doubt on PO Ltd statement that there were “rigorous procedures” in the selection of franchise partners.

In my second objection letter, I asked whether the potential for renting empty rooms above the Post Office had been considered to reduce the subsidy and provide income to maintain the current service in PO Ltd hands. This information was described as “commercially sensitive” for both parties, but reading between the lines of the fuzzy reply, was more of a incentive to the potential franchisees than to the Post Office in maintaining a public service.

In recent months the franchisee submitted a planning application (since refused) to develop flats in the upper floors of the building. There were more questions for PO Ltd which retains the freehold ownership of the building according to Land Registry records. I therefore asked whether PO Ltd was aware of the application, would PO Ltd benefit from revenues from the flats or will the franchisee be the sole beneficiary, and if so, would some of the revenue go towards improving services, such as reducing the regular long queues?

Yes, they knew of the application, but no, cannot answer the others as information exempt from the Freedom of Information Act. A situation to watch for a while longer I believe.

Is the policy of other parties so different?  It is Lib Dem policy to privatise post offices by selling off 50% and using the proceeds to subsidise the existing network. What is missing is any idea about what to do when the proceeds run out and you are left with a unprofitable retail network. The Conservatives also planned to privatise the Post Office in 1994.