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Ambitious plans for Old Oak Common a step nearer

It’s not strictly local but the ambitious plans to develop Old Oak Common in Acton will surely have an impact here.  According the the BBC news website Eric Pickles, Secretary of State for Communities, has approved plans to redevelop Old Oak Common.  The plans include:

24,000 new homes

55,000 new jobs

A massive new station for Crossrail and HS2 by 2026

There’s also talk of QPR moving to a new stadium there though their plans have miffed Cargiant in Scrubs Lane as QPR seemed not to have discussed their plans with them and they own a big chunk of the land concerned.

 

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Plans for 300 flats on BT Telephone Exchange site in Gordon Road, West Ealing

Gordon Road, Ealing - ariel view

 

The has been quite alot of toing and froing over this BT Telephone Exchange site in Gordon Road but the Council has designated it for residential development. The developer is Telereal Trillium and their plan is for a two phase development:

  • Redevelopment of Rome House and the adjacent car park for up to 155 flats
  • Redevelopment of Castle House into new terraced housing along Gordon Road and 3 new residential blocks of up to 166 new flats
  • Use of the existing access on Gordon Road
  • Generous communal and private amenity space including children’s playspace

The developer is holding an exhibition of their plans at the Drayton Court Hotel on Thursday 5th February 2-8pm.  They want to hear people’s views on their plans.  There will be feedback forms at the exhibition or you can comment online

 

 

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Successful petition means full Council meeting to debate future of Solace Centre

The Solace Centre in West Ealing is the borough’s only mental health drop-in centre and has been threatened with possible closure – see here for previous story.  The users have been working flat out to save their centre and now have over 2,000 signatures on their petition.  This means they are allowed the right to a full Council Chamber debate – Tuesday 27th starting 7pm. The meeting is at the Town Hall and is open to the public.

I think most of us are well aware of the Council’s need to make some very tough decisions about cuts to services. However, this is where we need some joined up thinking and not to simply see budgets in isolation from their consequences on budget holders in another area of care.  For example, what happens if the Solace Centre is closed and even just a few of its users end up in hospital or community services?  What is the cost of running the Solace Centre compared to the cost to the NHS/West London Mental Health Trust of looking after someone.  The cost of running the Solace Centre seems to be about £150,000 pa with the Council paying some £110,000 or so of this and the West London Mental Health Trust paying the balance.

I found the following on the BBC News site for 10th April 2014 which makes interesting reading even if it is not an exact comparison for the Solace Centre:

‘Rethink Mental Illness published the report with the London School of Economics.

The report said it costs on average £13 a day to support someone with psychosis or schizophrenia in the community.

It said this compared with the £350 average daily cost of keeping a mental health patient in hospital.’

The point about joined up thinking is that whilst the Council may save money from its budget if it closes the Solace Centre it runs the risk of passing on greater costs to the NHS at an overall increased cost to taxpayers if just a few of the Centre’s users end up in hospital as a result of the closure.

 

 

 

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Exhibition of plans to redevelop a major part of Ealing Broadway town centre – Thurs 29th – Sat 31st Jan

Benson Elliot, which bought a large section of the Ealing Broadway town centre at the end of 2012, are about to reveal their plans for the area between Ealing Broadway and The Arcadia Centre – area outlined on the map below.

map
They are holding an exhibition next week on Thursday 29th, Friday 30th between 4pm and 8pm and Saturday 31st between 10am and 4pm at 7a The Broadway (a shop opposite the station).

Full details can be seen here

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Drug arrests made in raid on Chignell Place

According to the Ealing today website Chignell Place in West Ealing is cordoned off by police.

Chignell Place is an odd little cul-de-sac off the Uxbridge Road.  In Kensington, Knightsbidge or Mayfair a little dead-end street like this would be prime property whereas in West Ealing it has a bit of a suspect history.  I can remember it once had a night club and a rather good Caribbean restaurant.  Now it has some cafes and other small businessses. It has, and has had for a long time, an edgy feel to it and I know many people who quite simply won’t go there as they don’t feel safe.  I can remember going there a few years ago to count the number of shops for a WEN survey and in no time at all someone was out an at my side asking what I was doing and why.  There have been stories of traffic wardens being afraid to go there to enforce parking rules and even of yellow lines on the road being painted out.

More news when we have it.

UPDATE Tuesday 20th January

The police made six drug-related arrests and found quite large quantities of the now-illegal drug khat.  The police said the raid was carried out as a a result of community concerns over drug dealing and anti-social behaviour.  This is certainly true as I have been to various meetings over the past few years where exactly these problems have been raised, particularly over Chignell Place. There have also been complaints about drug dealing and anti-social behaviour in and around St James Ave directly across the road from Chignell Place, so this police action is welcome news.  In the long run we need to find a way to make the pedestrianised area at the top of St James Ave more well used by locals as it’s a dead space at the moment and consequently attracts drug dealers because they won’t be disturbed by people walking by.  WEN has tried to do something with this space, including a monthly craft market, but we never managed to find a way to succeed. I know the West Ealing Business Improvement District team is working on an idea for St James Ave, so I hope sooner rather than later something will come to fruition that changes the nature of this area and gives us a good reon to go there and make use of it.

More details on the Ealing Today website

 

 

 

 

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Explore Ealing’s amazing arts and culture – Saturdays 31st Jan and 7th Feb

Launching ‘The Story So Far’
Do you want to find out about the amazing arts and culture in Ealing? Then why not come along to the launch of The Story So Far on Saturday 31 January? It will be a fun-filled, jam-packed day of arts, music, dance, crafts, and storytelling.

Funded by Arts Council England the project is the first of its kind and will be bringing together and connecting the many creative organisations and individuals in Ealing under the umbrella of The Story So Far. It is a partnership between Ealing Council, Cultural Community Solutions Libraries, Acton Arts Forum and the local arts sector, and will link arts and literary venues and activities from one end of Ealing to the other.

The first of two launch events will be taking place at the Dominion Centre and Library in Southall on Saturday 31st January from 11am. The second will be at Acton Library, in the Everyone Active Acton Centre, on Saturday 7th February from 11am. Both events are free and everyone is welcome (no tickets required).

Rachel Pepper, project co-ordinator, said: “The launches promise to be a great way to start The Story So Far, bringing literary, visual and performing arts together in the two new library spaces. There has already been a great deal of interest in the project and these events will give a flavour of what is to follow.” (Acton Arts Forum)

The day will kick off with explosive beats from Dhol2Dhol Indian dhol drummers; mesmerising performances from The Refügees Sufi-Jazz musicians; and a special appearance from WAPPY Young Poets who recently worked with Benjamin Zephaniah. There will also be showcases from Stories in the Street; Ealing Chinese Mandarin School performance; Society Dance, Shavanarthanalayan Indian dance; Afghan Academy performance; Pitshanger Poets; Kathakali Dancers youth dancers; Constellations poetry and Vishvam Tabla.

As well as the amazing performances for you to watch and enjoy you can also explore your creative side at a variety of taster sessions and workshops, including playwriting with OPEN Ealing, postcard making with Gunnersbury Museum, ARK’s Arabic calligraphy, weaving and tapestry with Aruna Reddy, badge making, ‘Anthropomorphic: when humans go wild’ taster and more.

Join popular storyteller and musician Richard Neville, who will bring the library alive with his passionate storytelling for children and their families. Meet the friendly library staff who can sign you up to the library today for free, you can even choose out of a variety of magical illustrative library cards by Jackie Morris to take away with you.

There will be lots of stalls where you can find out more and get involved with some of Ealing’s arts and cultural activities. Some of the artists and arts organisations taking part include the ARK, Pitshanger Pop Up, University of West London creative arts, Ealing Autumn Festival, 40:20 Art Group, I Goddess Creation, Pitshanger Poets & book sales, Carl Gabriel carnival art, W3 gallery, Westside Radio, W5 productions, Zaid art, A&A Photography, Acton Muslim Walks, South Acton Imagination Library, artist & film maker Alison Lumb and APPLE arts.

There will be a programme of activities, events, workshops and performances from February with something for everyone. Check The Story So Far website, Facebook, and Twitter pages and sign up for the newsletter for the latest updates, or email ssf@actonartsforum.org

We welcome you to join us for a whole day of fun, free arts activities for all!

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Ealing Music & Film Valentine Festival 10th-15th Feb – celebrating Ealing’s Polish Heritage

‘Ealing has a massive world-class heritage of music and film.  Our film studios defined the British Film Industry; our musical traditions include Rock, Classic, Jazz and Voice.  This year – our third – we are focusing the programme of music and film around a theme of Our Polish Heritage; this is an incredibly rich heritage for us in terms of both composers and performers – of all genres.  Our aim is to bring together world famous musicians, actors, film producers and a host of celebrated performers to give us all an insight into their artistic world, bringing their talents to as wide an audience as possible. Remembering that The Festival Trust’s charitable aim is to invest any surplus in helping young local people develop their cultural skills and awareness through targeted support to projects, local schools and youth organisations.  As last year we have a focus on young players and artists, and we are including some in the programme as part of our charitable outreach support and investment in the young talent in Ealing.’

There is masses going on over the five days with classical music, Polish folk music, jazz, films talks and much, much more.  You can find out full details and how to book tickets on their website.

 

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What future for West Ealing’s Solace mental health drop-in centre?

Most of us have probably never come across the Solace Centre in West Eaing.  It’s tucked away at the end of Bowmans Close and well off the beaten track.  Yet, this mental health drop-in centre is suddenly at the centre of a storm with the Council threatening to close it as part of budget cuts.  This decision has been put on hold following the recent death at Ealing Broadway station of one of its users.

The Council’s plan was to close the centre and give users their own personal budget to purchase appropriate care and services. However, I’ve walked past this centre hundreds of times on my way to the allotments across the road and have always been struck by the groups of people sitting outside talking, laughing and just relaxing together.  The people have always been friendly and seem happy there.  I cannot see the logic of closing it down as how can a personal budget replace the opportunity for users to meet, socialise and feel safe?

My colleague Eric Leach has written this about the Solace Centre:

‘On the face of it if the centre is providing a valuable cost effective service why can’t it be funded by the NHS West London Mental Heath Trust (WLMHT)? WLMHT currently provides £47,000 annual funding for the centre which pays for the weekend opening of the centre.

Alternatively why can’t funds be found from Ealing’s £29+ million 2015/16 Better Care Fund (BCF)? This pooled fund is operated by LBE and the Ealing Clinical Commissioning Group. BCF exists in order to facilitate integrating health care and social care. The budget has not been finalised but should be in February 2015.

Maybe WLMHT and the Ealing BCF could jointly fund the $151,000 annual running cost of Solace?

More on Solace and to sign the Save Our Solace Centre petition ‘

There’s more about this story of the Ealing Today website

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Plans for redeveloping the Sherwood Close Estate now available

The plans for the demolition and redevelopment of the Sherwood Close Estate is now on the Council’s website. Here’s a summary from the application:

 

The Proposal: Demolition of all buildings within Sherwood Close (including 209 residential units, parking structures and ancillary buildings) and the construction of 305 new residential units (88 x one-bedroom, 157 x two-bedroom, 52 x three-bedroom and 8 x four-bedroom in a mix of housing tenures) in four apartment buildings varying between two-storeys and nine-storeys high and a row of three-storey townhouses; a 70 sq .m community space (D2 Use Class); associated energy plant room; refuse and recycling facilities; storage for 410 bicycles; 122 car parking spaces (comprising 86 spaces on-street and 36 spaces in an under croft parking area); site-wide hard and soft landscaping including public, semi-private and private amenity space and public realm improvements; the closure of part of Sherwood Close and reconfiguration of the public highway including the construction of two new north-south streets between Sherwood Close and Tawny Close, and the construction of new pedestrian / cycle routes between Sherwood Close, Tawny Close and Northfield Avenue and other associated works.

 

This is a major redevelopment right in the middle of West Ealing.  It will take some years to complete as it has to be done in stages in order to rehouse residents whilst the old blocks are demolished.  Like all such developments  there will be a mixture of types of housing, including a nine-storey block of flats for sale on Northfield Ave at the top end near the junction with Mattock Lane.

There are a lot of papers to read through for this application so more news once I’ve had the chance to look at them in more detail.

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Photography, playwriting and more with OPEN Ealing’s new season’s activities

OPEN Events, Classes and Lectures for 2015
For all enquiries, please email info@openealing.com. Or visit our website www.openealing.com for more information.

All classes and events listed will be hosted at: Green Man Lane Cafe, West Ealing, Singapore Road W13 0EP.

“OPEN Music” workshops for you and your child…
Acclaimed local musician Keith Waithe is running a series of musical workshops for you and your child, culminating in a special one-off concert. Come along and enjoy a truly family activity.
It is a 10 week course; ideal for your children aged between 7 and 11 years old; and starts on Thursday 15 January 2015.
Make Thursday afternoons between 3.45 and 5.15pm in the Green Man Lane Café a date with your child.
Each session costs parents £10, children are FREE! (Green Man Lane residents pay £5 and other concessions £6). If you pay for the whole course in advance, one session is free of charge.
Places are limited to 15 so please book early.
For enquiries and to book please email OPEN. We’ll take a break for half term (16 – 20 Feb). The Café is situated opposite the mosque and next to the surface car park in Singapore Road
Keith is an award winning flautist, composer, teacher and expert proponent of a vocal ‘gymnastics’ system. He is the founder and leader of the Macusi Players – a world music jazz band that blends rhythms from the Caribbean, South America, Asia and Africa.

Playwriting Workshops
Do you want to know how to create a play and write your own script?
Wally Sewell, OPEN’s Playwright in Residence, leads this course which is open to anyone interested in writing plays, at any stage in their creative development, including beginners.
When: Tuesday 3 February 2015
Where: Green Man Lane Café
7-9 pm
£10 per session (discounted prices for signing up for the whole course in advance). Special concessions for Green Man Lane residents (£5). Other concessions for unemployed/OAPs/students (£6).
(Please bring some proof of identity and address when you come to the class.)
Workshops will consist of exercises and discussions, writers being encouraged to bring in ongoing work (if you have any) to be read and discussed by the group.
Participants will work towards writing a short play to be staged by professional actors (script in hand) in a showcase evening.
Wally Sewell is an independent artist-programmer, as well as a writer. He is a member of Actors & Writers London and has been working with OPEN since 2011.
Digital Photography Workshop
Rod Morris – Award winning Photographer and Film maker has devised a course for you to gain a practical understanding of the workings of your DSLR camera so you have the confidence to work creatively and fluently.
When: Thursday 5 February 2015 for 10 weeks
Where: Green Man Lane Café
7-9 pm
£10 per session (discounted prices for signing up for the whole course in advance). Special concessions for Green Man Lane residents (£5). Other concessions for unemployed/OAPs/students (£6).
(Please bring some proof of identity and address when you come to the class.)
Course topics include Shooting in RAW V JPGS Colour temperature and white balance Noise: Low light photography ISO settings Metering modes Aperture and shutter speed functions Depth of Field Exposure – Exposure compensation
The course culminates in an exhibition showing your work taken during the course.
Rod Morris is an award winning photographer and film maker currently engaged in projects at home and abroad including ‘Faces’; ‘City of Ghosts’ and ‘Runaway’. He is based in London and is represented by Millenium images and Getty. www.rodmorris.co.uk

History of Modern Art Lectures
Are you interested in modern art and want to have a better understanding of it?
Nick Pearson, contemporary artist and art college lecturer, returns to OPEN with his entertaining and informative series of History of Modern Art Lectures
When: Wednesday 11 February 2015
Where: Green Man Lane Café
7-9 pm
£10 per session (discounted prices for signing up for the whole course in advance). Special concessions for Green Man Lane residents (£5). Other concessions for unemployed/OAPs/students (£6).
(Please bring some proof of identity and address when you come to the class.)
An introduction to the historical development of modern art in the western world. The course begins with Romanticism and Realism in the late 1800s and continues through the major movements of western 20th-century art up to the ‘Young British Artists’ of re-cent years. This is a full module of the kind you would do at art college, but is jargon-free, accessible and applicable to anyone with an interest in modern art, at any level of knowledge or experience. There are notes (but no homework!) and the level at which you learn is entirely up to you.

OPEN Events
Playwriting Finale – Tuesday 20 January 2015
The Autumn term of playwriting workshops culminates in a short play created by the course participants on Tuesday 20 January 2015 at 7pm. The short play will be performed by professional actors as a ‘performed reading’.
To get further details and book your seat please email OPEN – info@openealing.com

“6×10” Short Plays
Celebrate the new year in style – an evening at OPEN theatre with the first 6 x 10 performed reading on Saturday 24 January 2015.
You won’t have time for the winter blues with these short plays performed by professional actors and steered by Wally Sewell, OPEN’s Playwright in Residence and Anthony Shrubsall, Artistic Director.
The 6 x 10 format of short plays are per-formed with script in hand creating a fresh, immediate, instinctive theatrical audience experience.
The performance starts at 7.30pm and tickets cost £8. (Tickets for Concessions cost £6 and tickets for Green Man Lane residents cost £4.)
Want to ensure you have a seat? Email OPEN and reserve your place.
For the first time we are delighted to offer pre-performance dinner at the newly opened Green Man Lane café. Coco Labelle is a delightful fusion of Mauritian, Caribbean and European food with a menu designed to tickle your taste buds. Doors open at 6pm.
Places for dining are limited so you must email OPEN to reserve your place and avoid disappointment.
For more information and to reserve your seats please email OPEN – info@openealing.com

The Green Man Lane Café is part of the recent housing development, It is on the corner of Singapore Road nearest the surface car park – opposite Brownlow Road.

Full details on OPEN’s website