Author: tgntra

Email from BVAG re Neighbourhood Plan.

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Neighbourhood Plan – Council start to wriggle

Confronted with new statutory obligations to process neighbourhood planning applications the Council can no longer rely on delay to stop us. Our new application, amended to take account of their ever growing and evolving demands, was submitted on 20th February.

We have now received the letter below in which they are clearly trying to carve themselves enough room to refuse the application. Also see our response below, inviting the Councillor concerned, Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Planning and Transport, Mark Williams, to come and address an open meeting to make out his ‘concerns’ and hear our responses face to face.

The claim that we are not representative of the local community is pretty rich:
Whenever we have consulted locally on planning issues we have invariably attracted many times as many responses with negligible resources as the Council have with all theirs.

Equally unlikely to provide them with an excuse is the claim that we have insufficient support from the Estates: It was them who dictated the very substantial enlargement of our application area to include the large number of Estate blocks. We can hardly be expected to have invested heavily in publicity in an area introduced on their obstructive whim – especially as they have shown every intention of refusing our application if they can possibly find an excuse. As it happens, we have far more followers and members from the estates than they were able to interest in the paltry meeting they organised in February.

Their most desperate line is that neighbourhood planning groups must be adoration societies for their respective local authority planning departments:
What’s the point of the provision for a referendum in the Localism Act if differences between local plans and those of the local authority are not permitted?

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Parking permit update: Tabard Gardens Traffic Management Order

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RE: Tabard Gardens Traffic Management Order

Dear Mr Davis,

I would like to provide you with an update regarding the proposed Traffic Management Order to be implemented in Tabard Gardens. As you are aware we consulted on this with residents some time ago and the proposal was approved at Community Council around December 2014.

I can confirm the following steps that need to be completed;

· A survey of the estate still needs to be conducted to define the parking bays, boundaries and also location of signage to be installed. This has been scheduled for Thursday 26th March 2015 to be attended by the Estate Parking Manager and the Resident Services Officer.

· A report will then be submitted to officers within the Council for them to produce a Traffic Management Order that reflects how the service will operate within the agreed areas. It is especially important that this part of the process is correct and fit-for-purpose.

· A public notice will then be sent out to notify all residents of the Council’s intentions.

· Should we encounter no resident opposition then this process should now take no longer than 42 days. However should we encounter any significant challenge from the public notice, then the implementation will be delayed while this is worked through.

This process involves work and co-ordination across several teams and divisions within various disciplines, and so I will be doing what I can to ensure no further delays within the Council and within this process.

I am sorry that this is taking longer than was originally anticipated, but as you can see we have a clearly defined series of steps in place, and I will ensure that as we complete each stage you are all notified of progress.

Have a good weekend.

Kind Regards

Russell Edwards
Resident Services Manager
( Office: +44 (0) 20 7525 7377
Ê Fax: +44 (0) 20 7525 1799
: Email: russell.edwards@southwark.gov.uk
*Address: Southwark Council, Area Housing (North Team), Housing Services Department, PO Box 68119, London, SE1P 4GP

Kings College Sexual Health Study.

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Kings College Sexual Health Study

Kings is about to start a large trial of 3000 participants to evaluate access to sexual health services in Lambeth and Southwark. We are inviting young people, aged 16-30, who live in Lambeth and Southwark to participate. Once enrolled, and consent has been given, participants will be allocated to one of two ways of accessing locally available sexual health services via two distinct websites. They will be encouraged to get an STI test.

After 6 weeks we will contact each person and ask them about their experience, and any barriers or problems they faced. We will give each person £10 (cash) for this feedback. After 6 weeks we will also check the tests and results at the sexual health service they used. This is completely confidential and will not be shared with anyone.

To find out more www.gettestednow.org.uk

Has the public been deceived over affordable housing at Bermondsey Spa?

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This is ‘The Exchange’ in Bermondsey, Notting Hill’s latest completed development in Southwark and part of the Bermondsey Spa regeneration scheme. All but three private and two shared-ownership units in this 205-home development have been sold and of those that remain the private flats are priced at over £1m and the shared-ownership flats require a minimum salary of £73,986 to qualify.

Demolition of 54 council homes on the siteThe development should also have had 44 social rented units, to replace the 54 council homes demolished to make way for ‘The Exchange’.

44 social rented units were duly proposed in Notting Hill’s planning application for the site and that’s what was confirmed in the planning officer’s report. Paragraphs 27 & 29 of the GLA planning report also confirmed that the development proposed 44 social rented homes. However, after approval was given Southwark Council and Notting Hill signed-off the s106 legal agreement with something completely different – 44 ‘affordable rented’ units (ie. up to 80% market rents) not 44 social rented units.

Officers report states 44 Social Rented homes but S106 Agreement says Affordable Rented units

The change in wording is subtle but the consequences aren’t; according to Southwark’s own figures, a 1-bed social rented flat in Bermondsey (SE16) costs an average £97 per week, compared to £273 per week for ‘affordable rent’ at 80% market rent.

More details here: http://35percent.org/blog/2015/03/18/stand-up-for-more-social-housing/

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