Bemerton residents vote to adopt new estate management responsibilities
With over 700 homes, the Bemerton estate's TMO is the largest in Islington
Over a hundred Bemerton residents turned out last night (September 27th) for the AGM of the estate’s Tenant Management Organisation (“BVMO”).
They marked the tenth anniversary of the TMO’s establishment by voting unanimously to transfer a range of further service responsibilities to the TMO from the Council’s home management organisation, Homes for Islington (“HfI”). These include communal heating, lumber collection, estate parking and estate lighting.
The TMO already manages a wide range of estate services – like caretaking, refurbishing void properties and lift maintenance. In return, the Council (through HfI) provides an annual grant to the TMO. As the TMO takes-on new services, HfI increases the amount of grant given to the TMO. This way, more of the rents and service charges stay within the estate’s control.
Over the past 3 years, the local ward Councillors have encouraged and assisted the TMO to take-on new services from HfI. The TMO is the largest of its kind in Islington and has built-up a solid record of estate management.
But the TMO does more than simply manage the estate and its services. BVMO has adopted the strapline “improving the quality of life on the Bemerton” and this reflects residents’ desire to see their TMO deal with many aspects of life on the estate: anti-social behaviour, improving the general environment and helping young unemployed residents get into work.
The TMO is also the host body for the new Ward Partnership “Team Cally”. BVMO employs the Neighbourhood Coordinator for the area and played a big role in running the annual Cally Festival this year.
Cllr Paul Convery says “the residents have given the TMO a big vote of confidence this year. Last night’s AGM had an exceptionally upbeat atmosphere and was undoubtedly the most successful that I have attended. As local councillors we are doing whatever we can to support greater self management to the Bemerton.”
Memorial Garden for Jessie Wright unveiled
The garden is a fine remembrance of Jessie
The Jessie Wright Memorial Garden was officially opened on Sunday afternoon, September 25th. The ribbon was cut by her friends and pink balloons were launched.
The garden was created by a group of young women from the Bemerton with the support of All Change Arts, Team Cally, BVMO and Islington Council. It is located next to Kinross House, just outside the home where Jessie lived on the estate. The young women say it is a lovely memorial for their friend so tragically murdered last year.
Suzanne Lee, Artistic Director for All Change said “This has been a hugely positive project, led by the young women themselves, to create a beautiful garden to remember Jessie, and to provide a positive contribution to their community. The garden includes plant pots and a trellis designed and made by the young women, working with All Change artists and supported by local volunteers and youth workers.”
In developing the garden, the girls chose colours and a style to reflect Jessie’s, and will be a lasting memorial to someone who died so young.
Mains water pipe bursts on Bemerton and cuts-off homes for 12 hours
Digging through a foot of reinforced concrete to unearth multiple fractures in this 1960s era cast iron water main
Around two hundred Bemerton homes had their water supplies cut-off for 12 hours following a mains burst on the estate yesterday, September 5th.
The burst pipe occurred outside the block at 1-12 Stranraer Way and flooded a number of garages under Stranraer Way and Tayport Close. Basement flats in the controversial Choudhury Mansion were also inundated.
Normally a burst water main is the responsibility of Thames Water but this pipe is laid under the estate grounds and so Homes for Islington brought-in a contractor to fix the problem.
Meanwhile hundreds of packs of bottled water were delivered to Perth House, Stranraer Way, Tayport Close whilst a gang of HfI contractors tackled the fifty-year old pipe buried deep beneath reinforced concrete. During the excavations several breaks were revealed where the pipe broke several times and contractors made two permanent repairs.
Cllr Paul Convery commented “Full marks to our housing management’s technical people. They don’t have to handle burst water mains that often. But they got the pipe fixed and water turned back on to houses by 6.30pm which is a lot quicker than it typically takes Thames Water to do the same thing. A number of people suffered some flood damage to possessions stored in garages and we need to look at whether they can be compensated for loss.”
Combined enforcement operation closes-down Pappeos nightclub
The venue is located on a shopping parade in a densely residential part of Caledonian Road
Co-ordinated by Islington Council, the police, fire brigade, licensing and planning authorities have acted together to close-down the controversial venue at 169 Caledonian Road.
Warnings by the Council earlier this month were disregarded by the club operators and, on the night of Saturday 13th August, a club night was held which – at 4am – descended into mayhem with scores of drunk patrons fighting in the main road outside.
Prompted by the further risk of an unlicensed all-night “DJ face-off” gig tonight (Friday 26th August), the agencies have issued a raft of legal orders against the venue’s owners to cease operating as a nightclub. A squad of police has been put-on stand-by to ensure the club operators do not attempt to open tonight. They are equipped with powers to close-down any unlicensed event.
In June 2010, the venue secured a license for music, dance and alcohol, but the owners have not been given a planning permission for use as a nightclub. Nor do they have a permit to open later than midnight on Mondays to Saturdays or to operate at all on Sundays and Bank Holidays.
Earlier this week, senior staff from the Council’s Public Protection Division visited the club operators and issued a series of warnings and served legal orders. The combined actions by the authorities include:
- The fire brigade visited the venue and issued the owner with a revised fire certificate limiting the safe capacity to just 100 people
- A planning Enforcement Notice and associated Stop Notice requiring the premises to be only used between 8am and midnight Mon-Sat and to be closed entirely on Sundays and Bank Holidays.
- A second planning Enforcement Notice and Stop Notice to prevent the use of the premises as a club, wine and cocktail bar and music and dance hall.
- Noise abatement orders have been served under powers in the Anti-Social Behaviour Act 2003 and the Noise Act 1996
The venue does not have planning permission to operate as a nightclub or to open beyond midnight Monday to Saturday. It sought a planning permission for longer hours which was refused by the Council in December 2010. Although the club could appeal against the latest enforcement orders, it will have to comply by 5th October and theoretically could stay open. But beyond that date, failure to do this could lead to a prosecution. Similarly, the club owners could be prosecuted by the fire authorities if more than 100 people are admitted to the club.
Cllr Paul Convery adds “Islington Council is also considering a formal review of the venue’s drink, dancing and music licence. The Labour majority on the Council’s licensing committee has overturned the previous Lib Dem administration’s soft policies and has recently begun to apply much stricter decisions. On review, it has recently struck-down several previously granted licences.”
1am ... Alice and campaign team celebrate after the result is declared
Alice Perry was elected on August 11th with the highest share of the vote scored by Labour in any election since the early 1990s.
Labour won 52% of the vote in St Peter’s ward. The Lib Dems came second with just under 20%; the Tories were third with 17%; and the Green candidates received just 8% of votes cast.
It is worth remembering that St Peter’s Ward had been held continuously by the Lib Dems for the two decades between 1986 and 2006. The Ward is where the Tory Mayor of London lives and a key issue in the campaign was opposition to his plan to sack a quarter of all police Sergeants in Safer Neighbourhood Teams – including the Sergeant in this very Ward.
The poll represented a humiliating defeat for the Tory candidate who, at the start of the by-election campaign, claimed he “smelled blood” yet managed just 381 votes. St Peter’s is claimed to be a Tory “target seat”.
Paul Convery said of the election result “We’re very proud of Alice. Born and bred on the Cally, she will prove to be an outstanding Councillor over the coming years. Rupert Perry and I were both elected first in 1990. That was the year when the Lib Dems were almost wiped-out across Islington. St Peter’s was the sole ward they managed to hold. Times have really changed when this former bastion of Lib Dem and Tory support has voted decisively for Labour.”
Pappeos nightclub – high risk event this Friday is cancelled
Pappeos club is a controversial venue now subject to a license suspension, planning enforcement action and noise nuisance control
A large scale all-night “DJ face-off” event at Pappeos club due on Friday (August 12th) has been cancelled after the Council and Police threatened the club with a closure order. Written confirmation from the club proprietor was received late on Wednesday. Without this assurance, the Council and Police would have sought an immediate closure order from Highbury Magistrates today.
The latest problem emerged when it became clear that the operators intended to mount a large scale all-night event called “Man Ah Steppa (Starbwoy vs Stullesha)” and widely advertised through social media. Advertising says it would have run from “Friday at 9:00pm – Saturday at 1:00pm” without any form of licensed permission.
The owner of the club has been told to make sure that cancellation advice is immediately sent out. As yet (Thursday morning) this has not been done by the event organisers. The police and licensing officials will be reinforcing this message during the rest of Thursday and daytime Friday. Contingency arrangements are being made in case people arrive and find the venue closed.
Pappeos club is a controversial venue located at 169-171 Caledonian Road. There are homes located all above the shops on this street block and opposite. Over several years, the venue has slowly changed from being “banqueting rooms” suitable for wedding receptions into a nightclub without having obtained permission for the change. There have been numerous incidents and complaints about noise and nuisance caused by the club late at night.
Controversially, last year, the owners obtained a license for music, dancing and alcohol but have still not sought planning permission for the change of use. The Council has been undertaking planning enforcement action to prevent the venue being used as a nightclub. Statutory noise nuisance notices have also been served by the Council. And, because a number of conditions attached to the granting of the music, dancing and alcohol license have not been confirmed, the Council has announced that the license has been suspended.
Labour’s Alice Perry says “we need to fight for our community”
Alice is a governor at St Andrews primary school ... where she was a pupil herself
It’s polling day tomorrow (Thursday 11th August) in the St Peter’s by-election for a seat on Islington Council. Labour’s candidate is Alice Perry who was born and grew-up in the heart of our neighbourhood. She went to school here and still lives in a flat on the Cally Road a street away from her parents’ home.
On the eve-of-poll, Alice writes a heartfelt statement about why Islington needs to change.
“In some ways Islington has been transformed almost beyond recognition from the place where I grew up. But I remember, as a child, the days of going to a crumbling school and seeing good people struggling to make ends meet. While, I didn’t completely understand why at the time, it is clear to me that Tory policies caused this and I fear the same might happen again… and as before our community will be abandoned by the Government.
“When the Lib Dems ran the Council they tried to block free school meals, whilst spending taxpayers’ money on hanging flower baskets on Upper Street. The Lib Dems simply don’t see the borough’s inequality as a blight that must be tackled urgently. I am standing to be a Councillor because I do.”
“I do not accept that thousands of Islington residents should live in overcrowded housing. I do not accept that thousands of children should grow up in abject poverty in jobless households. I do not accept that someone on the Packington Estate should have a life 15 years shorter than someone in Putney. One of my political heroes Ken Livingstone has demonstrated how local government can be a powerful force for improving the lives of ordinary people. Islington’s Labour Council has the power to effect the changes that should have been made long ago.”
“One of my best friends went to Islington Green School. He left with no qualifications. He couldn’t hold down a job and got into trouble with the police. Then Labour’s New Deal paid for him to do an art course at City Lit. He then did an art foundation and a fortnight ago graduated with a BA in Fine Art from Central Saint Martins. A world of career opportunities is now open to him. Labour made this possible. Labour policies transformed his life. Yet too many young people in Islington are condemned to a bleak future. Too many are not in education, training or work. The Conservative government’s policies are hitting young people very hard. As a councillor I would support practical solutions that counter this. I would support community schemes that aim to pull people out of the cycle of poverty that sees many trapped.”
“It is heartbreaking to see how my primary school classmates from poorer backgrounds have aged so much faster than have the children from middle class families. People’s lives are cut short from smoking, poor diets and inadequate housing. I am proud of the council’s excellent policy offering all primary school children a hot, nutritious, free school meal. I am proud that despite massive budget cuts Islington is building thousands of new homes.”
“I am standing as the Labour candidate in the ward where Boris Johnson lives. For the first time in 20 years it is a straight fight between Labour and the Tories. It is vital to send a strong message to the Tory-led government and the Mayor of London – that our community rejects their unfair cuts, which hurt the poorest the hardest.”
She concludes saying “we are living in scary, uncertain times. Right now, the riots throughout London and UK are terrifying. But our city has a future and that is why this by-election is important. We need to stand up for equality; we need to fight for our community.”
Catherine West, Leader of Islington Council, has condemned the criminal damage and destruction
Islington police kept order and the Borough was calm last night (Monday, 8th August) whilst shocking incidents of rioting, arson and looting occurred elsewhere throughout London. On Sunday night, there had been minor attacks on shops in the Caledonian Road and Holloway Road and reports of aggressive behaviour by gangs of teenagers around the Angel.
Overnight the police have reassured residents and shopkeepers that Safer Neighbourhood teams are out patrolling as usual and rapid response teams will be also out patrolling and responding to calls from the public. Police reinforcements have been brought-in from outside London so that local police teams are not drawn away from their home patch if further major incidents occur.
The Leader of Islington Council, Cllr Catherine West, attended a civil emergencies meeting with police and fire chiefs on Monday and afterwards said she “totally condemns the criminal damage and destruction which sadly spread into Islington last night. There can be no justification for these acts.” She thanked the police “for all their hard work in containing trouble” and added that her “thoughts were with our neighbours in Haringey as they begin to rebuild their community following much more serious disturbances.”
Yesterday afternoon and this morning (Tuesday 9th August) Islington Council’s leadership has been visiting affected parts of the Borough helping with reassurance. Executive Councillor Cllr Richard Watts has echoed the calls of the acting Metropolitan Police Commissioner and urged all parents to “keep all our young people safe and out of trouble by keeping them in tonight.”
On the Cally, local councillors have been visiting businesses after shopkeepers closed-up early yesterday evening on fears of further trouble. Cllr Paul Convery said “I’m glad there has been no repeat of Sunday’s minor disturbance when one shop on the Cally was raided by youths and alcohol stolen. Shopkeepers are naturally worried but we all need to remain calm. The Council is doing business as normal, waste collections, street sweeping and all other public services are operating as usual.”
New zebra crossing for accident hotspot on York Way
Hundreds of new homes will shortly be completed alongside this section of York Way
After a campaign led by local Councillors and residents, a new zebra crossing is planned for a dangerous part of York Way.
The new crossing would be located on a section of York Way that was rebuilt in 2005 to replace a length of victorian railway viaduct. But the new road was engineered to a high-speed specification that causes traffic to accelerate quickly.
The conditions are worsened because two bus stops are located near the brow of a curve and slight incline in the highway. This turns the proposed crossing location into a blind spot for many drivers.
York Way is the boundary between Islington (to the east) and Camden (on the west side). Islington residents leaving the northbound 390 bus service face a very hazardous road crossing; and in a few months time, when several hundred new apartment homes on the Camden side are completed, a similar dangerous crossing will be created for people aiming to get a southbound bus service.
Councillor Paul Convery says “I am very pleased the Council can proceed with a new crossing point on York Way. I remain concerned that further measures may be needed to slow-down traffic on this stretch of road. Otherwise a zebra crossing may not be a sufficiently safe way to cross. I am therefore also pressing to ensure there is a decent sized ‘island’ refuge in the mid point of the new crossing.
“This section of highway was designed by someone with little real understanding of how to engineer an inner city residential road. It often feels like a suburban bypass that was built for speed not pedestrian safety.
“York Way is a problem road for many reasons – not least because Islington is not the highway authority – it is Camden’s responsibility so decisions on making York Way more safe are complicated by having to deal with a different local authority.”
Caledonian Road tube station gains heritage listing
Probably the most distinctive building on the Caledonian Road
Caledonian Road underground station has been granted Grade II listed status. In a landmark announcement, sixteen London Underground stations have been granted this protected status reflecting their unique design and contribution to the life of London.
All the stations have historic and architectural significance, illustrating the development of the capital’s Underground system. Many were designed by Leslie Green whose ‘ox-blood’ red tile facades, pioneered the use of a strong and consistent corporate image which has become recognised around the world.
Caledonian Road station is an exceptionally well preserved example of Green’s design and is probably the most distinctive building on the entire Caledonian Road.
Caledonian Ward Councillor Rupert Perry says “this is undoubtedly one of the finest surviving Picadilly Line stations but it is not the only one. Holloway Road station is an equally good example and – more pertinently – so is the York Way tube station which has been closed for many years but which is a strong candidiate for re-opening when the Kings Cross railway lands are redeveloped.”
Labour Councillors representing the Cally neighbourhood in Islington 