Working together to make West Ealing a better place for residents, businesses and visitors.
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Topics of the meeting included: Lammas Park East Lodge and flood alleviation; West Ealing Community Library; policing; Your Town Your Voice; West Ealing Action Group; Victoria Hall; Stop and Shop+; and updates on the many local development sites including Dean Gardens, Gurnell, Majestic Wine Warehouse site, Manor Road, Waitrose, and the old Woolworth’s site.
These notes are not intended to capture everything that was said at the meeting. They are just trying to capture some of the main items discussed.
1. East Lodge
The original planning application was withdrawn. Over 3,000 objections. Questions asked about why the lodge has not been included in a conservation area. Cllr Manro explained the delay caused by the staff member involved having to leave and took time to recruit a replacement. A new application may yet come forward.
2.Lammas Park and Flood risk works
The Council has authorized flood risk alleviation works in three of its parks – Lammas, Dean Gardens and Belevue Park Park. The aim is to capture excess surface water and then release it slowly back in to the sewer systems in order to avoid flooding at times of heavy rain,
The Lammas Park works have caused much local concern over the area of park taken up, delays in works and worries about e-coli in the water. Cllr Driscoll, cabinet member for climate action, spoke to this and explained the actions being taken by the Council and Thames Water to investigate possible misconnections to the sewer systems and rectify any problems. The works have yet to pass their final tests, so no date yet for completion.
3.West Ealing Community Library
Catherine Fitzgibbon is leading the group negotiating with the Council to take on the lease for the library which is run by volunteers. Her priority at the moment is to recruit new directors to join the board of West Ealing Community CIC which will be the organization taking on the lease. It is a small not-for-profit organization and needs to strengthen its governance in readiness for running the library. Anyone interested in joining the board please email – info@mywestealing.org.uk
4.Law and Order
David Highton, chair of WEN, said he was clear that our local MP Deirdre Costigan, our local councillors and the police themselves are all well aware of the level of concern about anti-social behaviour, drug dealing and drug taking in West Ealing.
He stressed the importance of people reporting ASB so the police have a record of it as this helps decide how they will deploy their teams. (details of ways of reporting are on the WEN website – www.westealingneighbours.org.uk )
There will be a new team of eight police who are being recruited for Ealing Broadway town centre. He said it was important that West Ealing was included as part of the town centre so they would spend time here.
5.Town Teams/Your Town Your Voice
This is a new initiative. Each of the boroughs seven towns now has a town team set up to encourage local community involvement in deciding how to spend their allocation from the initial £480k budget for the borough. They will later be able to have a say in how the 10-15% of moneys from the Community Infrastructure levy will be spent. The team covering West Ealing is in the process of setting up guidelines for organisations wanting to apply. The one for Hanwell is not looking for applications.
6.West Ealing Action Group
This is another newly set up group. The Mayor of London has allocated £50k to improve the West Ealing high street, re-purpose empty shops, explore night-time activities and more. Any group interested in joining can email Cllr Manro – manros@ealing.gov.uk
7.Victoria Hall
The largest public hall in Ealing is owned by a charity. The Council wants to dispose of it to a hotel developer. Friends of Victoria Hall (FoVH) have been battling to save it for the community. The final phase of the legal battle over its future comes to a head in November. FoVH are looking for funds to help pay their costs – https://savethevictoriahall.weebly.com/
8.Stop and Shop
Some confusion over the introduction of a new scheme by the Council. The main reason for the new scheme is to stop people parking for hours or days in these short stay spaces. The Council has no way of knowing how long people have been parking in these so little or no enforcement. Under the new scheme people will have to register first before parking for their free 30 minutes. However, they can then extend their stay by paying for more time.
There was concern over people who did not have the smart phone needed to use the parking app. Cllr Driscoll explained there are alternatives such as some high street shops offering ‘pay point’.
Later clarification: The transaction charge is 10p and not 20p when using the ‘pay by phone’ app. We are in the final year for the 10p charge. It might go up in the future.
9.Development sites
Dean Gardens car park
Cllr Manro confirmed that the work on this site will almost certainly have to be demolished and a new contractor found to start again.
Green Man Lane
Phase 4 soon to be underway once a new contractor has been appointed.
Gurnell
The leisure centre and housing are separate projects. Work on the leisure center should start early 2026
Kwik Fit site
Demolition has started. No date yet for the building work.
Majestic Wine Warehouse site
A change of plans means it will now be student accommodation with towers of 17. 14 and 5 storeys. The Council has negotiated a cash payment because of this change and loss of potential social housing.
Manor Road site
Much concern about the management Manor Road by the contractor and many felt it was an accident waiting to happen. Cllr Manro will ask for this to be checked.
Orion Park
A contractor should be appointed soon
St James Ave
A change of plan to a more modest development as Luxgrove haven’t found a housing association willing to but the planned social housing element. So, no bridge over the street joining the two sides.
Waitrose
No plans to start building until 2026. Waitrose have set up regular meetings with local groups to try to keep them informed about plans and progress. WEN is one of the groups involved
Old Woolworth’s site
Another Luxgrove development site. No work started yet.
Are you concerned about the future of West Ealing? Do you want to be part of an organisation dedicated to its improvement and transformation?
Become a Board Member of the West Ealing Community (WEC) Community Interest Company (CIC)
The WEC Community Interest Company (CIC) manages the West Ealing Community Library (WECL). This is a key activity in fulfilling its commitment to creating a vibrant, inclusive, and thriving neighbourhood for everyone who lives, works, or visits West Ealing.
We’re looking for passionate, forward-thinking individuals to join the WEC Board and help guide our mission. If you care about building community, sustainability, and local impact in West Ealing — we want to hear from you!
💼 What Does the WEC Do?
WEC was established to “carry out activities which benefit people who live, work or visit West Ealing”. We are and continue to support and develop initiatives that:
🧠 Who Are We Looking For?
We welcome applicants from all backgrounds. You don’t need board experience — just a commitment to West Ealing and a willingness to contribute your time and talents. That said, we’re especially keen to hear from people with skills or experience in:
| Skill Area | Why It Matters |
| People management, recruitment and training | Having motivated staff, volunteers working to deliver our aims |
| Finance & Budgeting | Ensuring responsible use of funds and financial sustainability |
| Legal & Governance | Supporting our growth, compliance and ethical decision-making |
| Fundraising & Grant Writing | Securing resources to grow our impact |
| Marketing & Communications | Raising awareness and promoting our work |
| Community Engagement | Building trust and participation across diverse groups |
| Urban Planning & Regeneration | Shaping the physical and social landscape of West Ealing |
| Environmental Sustainability | Driving green initiatives and climate resilience |
| Arts & Culture | Enriching local life through creative programming |
| Small Business Support | Strengthening the local economy and entrepreneurship |
🤝 What’s In It for You?
📩 Ready to Get Involved?
To express interest or learn more, email us at info@mywestealing.org.ukor call David Highton on 07968 819016.
Let’s build a better West Ealing — together.
In this edition:
View the newsletter here.
In this edition:
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In this issue:
View the newsletter here.
St James Church has been unoccupied since the summer of 2018. All manner of ideas have been proposed for its use but it looks like the Church of England wanted to keep it as a religious venue.
Just before Christmas we suddenly saw scaffolding going up and builders’ trucks coming and going. It didn’t take long for information to emerge about the building being taken over by the Assyrian Church, St Mary’s Cathedral, which was until very recently in Hanwell.
Their website has full information about their faith and all their activities in the community.The formal opening will be on the weekend of the 15th and 16th February so no wonder there’s so much work going on to be ready in time.
It’s a relief to see the building brought back into use, so we welcome the new church to our local community.
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Draft response from West Ealing Neighbours to Live West Ealing proposals.
The deadline for comments is 31st March 2024 and the survey can be found here
General points:
There are no reasons given in the proposals as to why £8.6 million is to be spent on these ‘designs’. There are no explicit references to problems which need to be solved. What is more, no evidence is presented to support these changes to be made to deal with ‘unknown’ problems’. Finally, there is no evidence presented as to how these design changes will perform both quantitatively and qualitatively.
These plans will potentially create new areas for anti- social behaviour as detailed below. How do the police fit in with this plan in terms of dealing with anti-social behaviour?
With the creation of new seating, green spaces and play spaces, what are the long-term maintenance plans for the upkeep of these? How will the immediately local community be encouraged to get involved to ‘oversee/supervise’ these new spaces?
Singapore Road and Witham Road are basically service roads and they, and the nearby areas, are frequently very badly littered despite the efforts of the volunteer litter picking group LAGER Can. If this littering isn’t tackled these areas will stay deeply unattractive and no amount of attempts to enliven them with seats and greenery will encourage anyone to stop and enjoy the new spaces. How can the buildings along these roads have more active frontages to deter flytipping, littering and anti-social behaviour?
What analysis has been undertaken to assess the impact of the loss of car parking spaces, e.g. Leeland Road and Witham Road car park, on local shops and businesses?
1.Broadway
It makes sense to align road crossings with main north-south streets to improve and speed up access for pedestrians
WEN supports plan to stop parking and loading on Broadway as long as this can be enforced and there really is access for deliveries on parallel roads such as Leeland Terrace, Singapore and Witham Road.
2. Lido Junction
Will pedestrians still be able to cross in all directions on the red-light phase?
3. Dean Gardens
The widened shared cycle and pedestrian paths should be segregated with markings to keep the two groups separate and avoid possible collisions. Some cyclists travel fast, too fast, along the existing route.
With the proposed one way traffic on Leeland Terrace – with eastbound vehicles and westbound cycles – will cyclists from the west use the eastbound vehicle route to enter Dean Gardens and on across to Mattock Lane? If so, is this desirable? Westbound cyclists can simply ride through Dean Gardens and continue westbound along the cycle route.
Good that area taken by new and/or wider cycle paths to be compensated for by path removed from south-west corner.
No commitment to major improvements to the lighting in the park.
4. Green Man Passage
Will the proposed new planting and greenery need maintenance? If so, who will do this as it’s unlikely the Council will do much maintenance. What efforts will be made to encourage nearby business and residents to ‘look after’ the area? Green Man Passage can get very badly littered. What plans are there to keep the area clean and tidy?
Improved lighting is essential along the full length of Green Man Passage.
What is happening to the seemingly derelict piece of land next to the Serbian Church? This has been empty for a good few years since the church’s plans for it were rejected.
5. Witham Road Car Park
As above, what plans are there to maintain the public seating area so it does not attract anti-social behaviour? Again, this area can get very badly littered, so how will this be tackled?
This is a well-used car park. A loss of five spaces for yet more cycle stands is not ideal. Nor is the loss of some parking on Witham Road. These spaces are vital for the survival of local businesses.
6. Jacob’s Ladder
Again, how will the play features/area be maintained? This area has great potential for anti-social behaviour. How will this be managed?
What has happened to the original plans for a pedestrian route from Jacob’s Ladder, through the Green Man Lane Estate, to Singapore Road? This should be a key pedestrian route but it is currently blocked and no sign of it being opened up.
Funds would be better spent improving the fabric of Jacob’s Ladder and the route to the north where there is poor visibility between the bridge and the road.
7. Manor Road
Plans seem sensible
8. Leeland Road
Priority here must be ensuring pitches for the weekly market. Allied to this, what are the plans to ensure the market traders will have access to enough parking spaces on Saturday mornings? They have lost parking in Maitland Yard and no immediate prospect of that returning. Will they be able to continue parking in the library car park? Will adequate power supply points be made available for stall holders?
Yet more parking spaces lost to the detriment of local businesses and local residents.
9. Green Man passage (south of Witham Road)
This alleyway can get badly littered, not least by charity shop donations being there for the Cancer research shop. Improved lighting is essential.
10. Singapore Road
Is this cycle route one that cycling organisations have called for? Is there any evidence Singapore Road is used as a ‘rat-run’ – it seems unlikely? It’s not a very convenient short cut to avoid the Broadway. The loss of 24 parking spaces looks likely to be a major problem, not least for the West London Islamic Centre for Friday lunchtime prayers.
11. Leeland Terrace
Makes more sense as a safer cycle rote than Singapore Road as it links to route through Deans Gardens and on to Mattock Lane. Even so, what evidence is there that it is used as a short cut to avoid the Broadway.
Funnelling all Sainsbury’s traffic along Leeland Terrace from the junction with Coldershaw Road is a questionable move as it is likely to cause jams at the junction of Leeland Terrace and the Broadway with traffic wanting to turn right in to he Broadway. Much local traffic from the streets to the south wanting to go west will also end up in this queue or start using alternative routes via side streets to reach Coldershaw Road or Boston Road to avoid likely queue on Leeland Terrace.
12. St James Avenue
Again, how will the proposed seating and play area be maintained? This plan could be widened if an agreement is reached with the church authorities to use its green spaces in front of and to the side of the church.
13. Melbourne Avenue
One major problem for Melbourne Avenue is the poor drainage. The narrow gulley is never cleaned so quickly blocks up and the area is easily flooded when it rains.
Better lighting is essential as the area is dark late night.
This is an area plagued by anti-social behaviour almost all day long. It attracts street drinkers and drug dealing. The police know this but little ever happens to tackle this problem.
Once again, who will maintain the planters and seating? The planters are largely full of rubbish and do not often get cleaned by the street cleaners.
There is already public art in the form of a mural on Sainsbury’s front wall. I suspect most people aren’t aware of it. Any new public art should be managed by OPEN Ealing – soon to be running the library. It would be more of an attraction for the area for the public art to change of a regular basis – could tie up with SET in St James Ave?
14. Walsingham Road, Bedford Road and Brownlow Road
Again, seating in Bedford Road will need maintaining.
David Highton
March 25th 2024
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