Author Archives: racheltripp

As with so many other issues, street cleaning can feel a bit incendiary, so part of me hesitates to post this. But here goes… I had a couple of weeks where I had a small flurry of emails from residents … Continue reading →

Am SO delighted that this cold and grey January has been brightened up by the launch of the Forest: an online magazine for Forest Gate. Dreamed up, hosted and promoted by the ever-creative Aiden at Tracks E7, his newest creation … Continue reading →

I have to admit that when I first heard someone say there was a plan to put astro-turf on Wanstead Flats, I assumed that it was a rumour that was unfounded. Quite apart from anything else, I remember vividly meeting … Continue reading →

We had such good news at Council last night that I had to log on quickly and share it. I know that James Asser, Nilufa Jahan, and a dedicated bunch of officers have been working hard behind the scenes for … Continue reading →

I wanted to share an email that I received about the process to review Newham’s Local Plan. There is lots of information online about what a deceptively boringly titled ‘Local Plan’ is, but in essence it sets out a vision … Continue reading →

I wanted to share with Forest Gate North residents, but also with anyone else concerned about the housing crisis, a letter that my colleague Councillor Daniel Blaney and I wrote to the Newham Recorder this week. ‘Genuine affordable homes plans … Continue reading →

Sasha das Gupta, Anam Islam and I put together a letter to Newham Borough Commander Richard Tucker. We sent this to him, but also wanted to give residents a chance to read it and to be transparent about how we … Continue reading →

I receive a large amount of casework relating to repairs to Newham-owned and managed Council homes, as well as repairs and maintenance by Newham-owned but Housing Association managed properties. When I got the following update from the Cabinet lead for … Continue reading →

I have had an increasing number of queries recently about trees, and specifically about street trees. I think there are probably a few reasons for this. The first being that in general Forest Gate residents do love greening, and trees … Continue reading →

A few weeks ago now in one of our councillor briefings we heard from our Public Health team about a really fascinating piece of research they’d commissioned, looking at the issue of self-isolation. I was stunned to read in the … Continue reading →