Chapter Road speed cushions

Chapter Road recently had a resurfacing and residents were pleased with it. That was until some had to cross the central speed cushions. I had a number of complaints that cushion were too high and some were uneven. Highways officers got the contractor to redo the cushions. But with some, problems remained and the contractor had to return to remedy. Third time lucky I hope, but if residents still experience some problems, they can let me know.

Youth unemployment

More than a million people under-25 are unemployed in Britain. According to the “Metro”, Damian Collins (Conservative) thinks that young people without a job should busk to earn their fares to find jobs and to work for less than the minimum wage. 
If this is the Tory attitude to getting young people back to work, it shows they are out of touch with the real world. 
It's certainly a new twist to “get on your bike”…

Cuts in welfare payments

According to the Daily Mirror, a study by "False Economy" has said that disabled people and single-parent families face cuts in welfare payments as councils bear the brunt of Coalition spending cuts. The study analysed 65 local authorities' plans for the new council tax support scheme and found an average cut of 20% hitting the most vulnerable. I first raised the likely impact of the cuts in an earlier blog: "Abolition of the national council tax benefit".  It was clear from the start that particular groups would be disadvantaged. This study highlights what was expected, a big hit on the most vulnerable.

Registering private landlords?

A good deal of councillor case work involves helping tenants of private housing to get essential repairs done.  A London council  - Newham - is said to be the first in the country to initiate a licensing scheme for private landlords with the aim of eradicating poor quality accommodation and imposing fines where no improvements are made. Another borough, Waltham Forest, is considering a new landlord accreditation scheme as a way of pushing up standards in the private rented sector.  However, such schemes need adequate resources to be managed. It would be good if Brent could adopt a similar scheme but fear it will be some time before it could be afforded.

GCSE results

Lots of young people got their GCSE results last week. Students in Brent have done well again, putting the borough’s schools amongst the most successful in the country.  However, the examination regulator, Ofqual, has begun an inquiry into GCSE results after admitting a problem with the grades issued in some examination papers.  It appears that the grading levels has changed during the year at the behest of Education Minister, Michael Gove, and levels given in June GCSE examinations were different (and more stringent) than levels given to students sitting the same exams in January. Colleges are thought to have based offers for students to join A level courses on the earlier GCSE levels and some students finding they just miss out because of the changes.  My own granddaughter could miss getting into the course she wanted because she got a ‘C’ rather than a ‘B’ in maths.  There may be many more young people marked down unexpectedly by the minister’s interference.

Selling school playing fields?

With the interest in sport and sports facilities at its highest as a result of the wonderful London Olympics, it is a shock to find that a school in a London Borough - Conservative Wandsworth -  has got permission from Michael Gove, Secretary of State for Education, to sell five acres of playing fields at Elliot School, Putney. He has approved  22 applications to sell school playing fields in England since 2010.  So much for Prime Minister David Cameron's most recent pronouncements!

Chapter Road development completed

The opening ceremony of the Grunwick Place development at Chapter/ Cooper Road, took place on Friday 22 June. The development comprising four, 5-storey blocks of residential units, has been completed by Durkan‘s Specialist  Works Division on behalf of Brent Housing Partnership, after a 4-year gap when the building works stalled  when a  previous contractor  went into  receivership. The site is of historical significance as it is where the ‘Grunwick  Dispute’ took place between 1976 – 1978.  The Dispute ‘was a long  running industrial dispute involving trade union recognition at the Grunwick Film Processing Labs in Willesden. Led by the late Jayaben Desai, a group of mostly female, immigrant, East African Asian strikers were dubbed “strikers in saris” by the news media.  To commemorate the long running dispute and the workers’ leader Mrs Desai, a plaque has been erected on the new pedestrian route and cycleway.

Voting registration

From 2014, each individual will become responsible for ensuring they are registered to vote. This is a change from the current system under which the head of a household completes a canvass form giving details of each individual eligible to vote at an address. There are fears that this move will see millions of people drop off the electoral roll. The Electoral Commission has estimated registration levels could drop from 80% to 65% as a result of the change and will skew support for political parties with conservative voters thought to be more likely to register than Labour voters.

Willesden Green Town Team

In June 2012 the Willesden Green Town Team moved into Unit 1, Queens Parade, Walm Lane to host a space to communicate developments to the local community. The Town Team which started to form the month before wanted to be more visible and feel part of the New Windows on Willesden Green project. In the Unit you can talk to the WG Town Team about plans for events and community activity.  Town Teams are being established across the country to bring local aspirations and ideas to influence emerging local and national policies and strategies relating to community, environmental and business development.  By encouraging strong cross-sector partnerships and developing a vision with community and political support, there is a greater opportunity to harness public and private investment and to action more sustainable change.


If you want to get involved email Peter Paddon at Blue Consulting at: peter.blue@btinternet.com.

Graffiti vandal in prison

A Graffiti vandal who daubed businesses, canals and train stations and has been described as one of the Tube's most prolific offenders, has been jailed for a year.  Harry Conway spray painted his tag 'ZeRX' on numerous local shops and restaurants close to his home in Liddell Gardens, Kensal Rise, and was believed to be part of the 'YAM' crew that stood for Young And Mad or You Ain't Much. He was sentenced at Harrow Crown Court where the judge told him: "This is a three year period where you applied graffiti on both public and private properties, damaged London Underground and railway property, British Waterways property - some of them permanently - and caused damaged to commercial and residential property.  "To say more about what you have done, and what I have seen in photographs of your work, would be to entrench this course of offending and give it some sort of dignity, of which it is completely devoid, and in reality is nothing more than deliberate, persistent and shabby vandalism. Conway is said to have caused £70,000 worth of damage.