Forest Gate North – Rachel Tripp's councillor blog

Rachel writes…

We love our small businesses in Forest Gate. But I’ve had a couple of reminders recently about how precarious life can be for the small, independent businesses that we depend on so much, not only for coffee, food, and vital supplies, but also because they supply the vibrance and local character that lifts our local high streets. The first reminder was the reading about the ‘Just a card‘ campaign on social media. This campaign is based on a quote from a small business owner, ‘”If everyone who’d complimented our beautiful gallery had bought ‘just a card’ we’d still be open“. It aims to encourage consumers to realise the importance of small purchases, and not to be embarrassed to purchase something small instead of nothing at all.

I was also part of a conversation with Laura and Alicia from Woodgrange market, who pointed out that our wonderful local market is still very much in need of more customers, more people supporting them through purchases. They particularly struck me when they pointed out that some of the people moving to Forest Gate from other areas of London might think that markets like Woodgrange are ‘part of the furniture’ and may not realise that it is still a relatively new innovation, and always appreciative of every bit of custom. They also reminded me that there are plenty of other local businesses that sometimes get overlooked.

With that in mind, Ellie, Seyi and I were thinking of Small Business Saturday (which is again this coming Saturday on the same day as the Christmas lights switch-on, and the Food Festival at the market) and wondered if we might be able to work with local residents to do something to help support our local businesses.

So we are launching a mini campaign for this weekend! #forestgateshoplocal

We’ll be tweeting and sharing pictures of our favourite local purchases on social media using this hashtag. We would love it if you wanted to join in – just  tweet a picture of something you’ve bought locally and use #forestgateshoplocal to be part of it.

This could be something you’ve picked up from the market, an item from the Durning Hall charity shop, shellfish from the fish monger’s, absolutely anything at all. We will collect together the pictures and share the best ones in a blog post. (I have to admit I am a regular at the local shops, but am still hoping to discover some new gems and tips.)

So please, this weekend, come into Forest Gate and enjoy our local shops. It’s a big weekend, too:

The market is open from 10am – 4pm.

The Forest Gate Christmas lights switch-on takes place from 5pm at the marketplace, with festive performancse from live bands, local musicians and school choirs, along with mulled wine and mince pies from CoffeE7. Our Mayor Robin Wales will switch on the lights at 6.10pm

There is a Food Festival at the marketplace until 9pm with international food and drink for sale.

Whilst you are enjoying all that, share your favourite purchases with the hashtag #forestgateshop local, help to promote our local businesses, and follow all three of us to get some tips on where you can do your Christmas shopping locally, supporting local people who do so much for our community.

Find us on twitter:

• Rachel @rectripp
• Ellie @elliecrobinson
• Seyi @seyiakiwowo

See you there!

Seyi writes…

The Forest Gate Community Garden’s photo showing so many local residents and Councillors painting the hoarding has been shortlisted by Capital Clean Up so they need as many votes as possible to win – let’s show everyone how great Forest Gate is and what amazing people live here!

All you have to do is follow this link, then follow the instructions.
Hurry, though – only a short time for this (Friday 23rd November).

Please pass it on to as many friends and family who live in London as you can.

https://www.london.gov.uk/…/capital-clean-up-photo-competit…

Seyi writes…

Domestic and sexual violence affects approximately 1 in 4 women in the UK. The United Nations (UN) has designated 25th November as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women and is marking the occasion with 16 days of action.

As Deputy Chair of the Crime and Disorder Commission my first personal objective last year was for the commission to review Newham’s Domestic Violence service. Newham has the second highest volume of reported domestic violence in London, and 40.7% of all crimes in the borough are related to domestic violence. Since 2011, there have been six domestic violent homicides in Newham, the most in London.

We heard from the then lead member Cllr Ellie Robinson who gave us a fantastic overview of the Newham One Stop Shop service which is a service for residents who are experiencing domestic or sexual violence and need support. We also looked at preventive work taking place within in Forest Gate Community School in order to understand how safeguarding is tackled and how our young people are being taught about relationships. Forest Gate School in my opinion are leading in this area and we’d like them to share their best practice with other schools  We then looked at housing to get a better understanding of the options open to the Council when it becomes clear a tenant is being affected by domestic violence. Our review and recommendations report will be going to the next Newham Cabinet meeting for comments this Thursday, 5pm, East Ham Town Hall and will be publicly available shortly afterwards.

Newham One Stop Shop is a service for residents who are experience domestic or sexual violence and need support. If you or anyone you know needs support please call 08454512547

Ellie writes…

This is very possibly the most boring and niche blog post so far, but if you are reading this it may well be something you will also be interested in!

I produced this document some years ago and share it with various groups who want to  understand the workings of local government and the best way to influence it. It is not Newham specific and, be warned, it isn’t very exciting.  Enjoy!

How local government works.

Seyi writes…

For those living around Forest Gate Station you should have all received a consultation pack about the proposed plans and ideas for the Crossrail development both to the station and the local area around it. If for some reason you’ve missed it or we’ve missed you not to worry you can add your comments on the Newham Council website. The deadline in Friday 20th November.

Plans have come a long way since Councillors informal consultation on the sweatiest day of the day and through informal discussion with key stakeholders in Forest Gate.

There will be a few more public consultation meetings if you have any questions or concerns you would like to discuss:

Friday 6th November, 7-8pm at Forest Gate Youth Zone (This one is really for youth and young adults)

Thursday 12th November, 6-8pm at The Forest Gate Community Neighbourhood Centre (also known as #TheGate). Members of the Council design team will be at this meeting.

Seyi writes…

Maryland is where I grew up. It’s where I went to Primary school, dance school, visited my first Polling Station with my mum, learnt how to ride a bike, its where I played out with friends and its where I played knock down ginger (apologies for that!!). So Maryland has and will always have a special place in my heart and I’m genuinely so grateful that I can represent Maryland as part of Forest Gate North on the Council.

BUT sometimes being so emotionally attached to the area you represent has its low points. For example, just after becoming elected in May I went on a police patrol to learn about the hotspot areas for crime and anti-social behaviour. Although it was pretty cool be cruise around the ward in a police car by the end of the patrol my heart was heavy. (for obvious reasons I can’t reveal all of what I learnt that afternoon) I couldn’t believe the roads I used to play on and houses where my school friends used to live had been taken over by drug users/dealers, prostitution activities and to be honest un-neighbourly people. I was also taken back by the amount of rubbish on the roads and the number of local businesses on Leytonstone High Street that have closed or look a bit run down.

After a while of sulking I made a commitment to myself that by the time my term on the Council was over (May 2018) I would have helped restore a commUNITY in Maryland just like there is in the East side of the ward #ForestGreat. I’m not going to sugar coat it, IT HAS BEEN HARD, at times during the last 18 months, I think it would have been easier to pull out my tooth and hairs on my eyebrows and eyelashes than trying to get residents and local businesses in Maryland to engage with me and the Council! *sighs*. But after a lot of doorknocking and introducing ourselves, mobile Councillor surgeries at Maryland Primary school and Nooks Cafe, Street stalls on the High Rd, joint street stalls with the local police, picking up lots and lots of casework we had a breakthrough! We had our first Maryland residents meeting in the Summer, then we had another one in September which resulted in a new Maryland community litter picking group. A resident kindly offered to design and deliver flyers to inform Marylanders of the next meeting. And numbers began to grow. No longer did residents want to just complain they wanted to do something so I suggested our next meeting should be about the Quietways route  and improving the High Street.

I was about 15 minutes late for our October meeting (my previous council meeting over ran) and I walked into a very busy Nooks Cafe. I assumed the 8 people near the Council officer were the only people in Nooks Cafe for our meeting… oh how wrong was I. The packed Nooks Cafe were full of people who wanted to hear more about the Quietway route and help improve the local area. This then sparked a great conversation about regeneration in Leytonstone and how we could work together. One lovely resident gave a short presentation on the history of Maryland point and his ideas for the cross rail consultation.

Last week Friends of Maryland had their first steering group committee meeting at Nooks​. Due to the growing number of residents attending the residents meeting (which is fantastic by the way) we thought it would be helpful to have a steering committee of people who want to play leading role. We first looked at the Detailed Site and Policies consultation document and put together some proposals. The deadline is Friday so you have a bit of time if you would like to add your thoughts here.

We then agreed on a few priorities for the Friends of Maryland residents group these are: Flytipping and Littering, Regeneration and Urban Realm and Community Cohesion.
The group have agreed to hold a walkabout to identify hotspot areas but also good spaces for things like planting and maybe a street party. They have already formed a community litter picking group and we as a Community Neighbourhood will do our best to support that.

As part of priority 1 the group are now working on a petition to get Leytonstone High Road on a waste timed collection. Having had several meetings and walkabouts with various Newham council officers from Waste Collection and Enforcement team we all think this is one of the major contributing factors to the significant number of rubbish bags on the High Street which is attracting fly-tipping and litter. So in order for Maryland to be on a waste time collection a growth bid needs to be submitted Executive Member for Infrastructure and Environment but given the cuts to our budget we’ll need to put in a very strong case. I do think in the long run a waste time collection will save the council money so hopefully that + a petition from local residents and businesses will help put forward a convincing argument.

If you live in Maryland and would like to get more involved in the residents group. The next meeting is Tuesday 17th November, 7:30pm at Nooks Cafe where Newham Council Enforcement Officer will be giving a presentation answering any questions.

Seyi writes…

If you’re interested in engaging with the plan-making side of strategic regeneration planning (I mean who isn’t) then you may want to add your comments to the Details Sites and Policies document .

As part of the consultation on this plan, the Council have previously carried out two stages of consultation (on an Issues and Options and a Pre-publication version of the document). During these stages there is more scope to influence what goes into the document. Once we reach Proposed Submission stage as we now are, the views we are seeking are in regards to the ‘soundness’ of the plan, which relates to four tests set out by the National Planning Policy Framework to determine if there is a firm (legal) basis for the policies produced.

As soon as this plan is adopted by the Council (following submission to the Secretary of State and Examination Hearings) the Strategic regeneration team will be undertaking a full review of the Local Plan. This will look at both this DPD and the adopted Core Strategy, which sets out the Borough’s strategic priorities. At this stage officers will be carrying out consultation again, undoubtedly seeking groups to work with on engagement exercises and providing platforms for the community to tell us what they think. Officers can also use any commentary provided now as part of that process, so feedback is welcomed! A group of residents in Maryland came together to put forward their proposals, if you are a part of a local group that would like to get involved in this please do get in touch with us and we’d be happy to support you.

In relation to Maryland this DPD:

-> Sets boundaries for the newly designated Maryland Local Centre, this has policy implications in terms of the sorts of uses that can be located inside / outside the Local Centre (designed to help Newham’s centres function as successfully as possible).

-> Sets out new spatial designations near Maryland for LMUAs (Local Mixed Use Areas), MBOAs (Micro Business Opportunity Areas) and CFOAs (Community Facility Opportunity Areas). These first two designations identify places where business uses (that conform to certain criteria) can be located – it seeks to ensure commercial uses and residential uses co-exist peacefully without either stifling space for new businesses or having adverse effects on residential amenity. The CFOAs identify suitable locations for community facility uses, this addresses problems we have had in the Borough with community uses springing up in unsuitable or inaccessible locations and relaxes the existing position that such uses can only be in town centres. There are also a couple of new housing sites identified nearby.

More generally, the DPD also sets out policy to:

(1) address the proliferation of problem uses (betting shops / takeaways)

(2) locate specialist housing (student, hostel, older people) in suitable and accessible places and ensure minimum quality standards

(3) improve the sustainability of new development in regards flooding and biodiversity

(4) ensure that a range of issues aren’t made worse by establishing ‘cumulative impact’ zones.

The deadline is midnight on Friday so you have a bit of time if you would like to add your thoughts here.

Rachel writes…

Another quick post to highlight an interesting local event, this time the open day being held by the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque on Upton Lane.

You might remember that the mosque held an open morning as part of the Forest Gate arts trail in the summer. I went along and was treated to a tour of the premises, which are surprisingly big, and also arrestingly tranquil and peaceful, even though it’s right on the hustle and bustle of the main road. I was very struck by how friendly and welcoming Khalil Laher, the Imam there was, showing me around the various parts of the mosque and answering all my questions, and I was equally struck by the beauty of the tiled interior.

On Saturday November the 7th, the mosque is holding another open day, from 11am – 6pm. I would urge interested residents to go along and get a glimpse of this building. I admit I was almost a bit nervous before I went in during the summer; I suppose I was worried that I might be intruding in some way. But actually the warm welcome I received showed that the people at the mosque were delighted to show their building and explain some of their worship and faith. I loved not only the chance to see it, but also the feeling that I was sharing just a little in something that’s so important to many of my Forest Gate friends and neighbours.

Rachel writes…

Newham Cyclists (whom avid readers of this blog might remember as the group who got Seyi onto a bicycle….!) are holding a public meeting on Monday at the Wanstead Tap. I have given a link to their flyer at the bottom of this post, but here is all the relevant information:

‘PUBLIC MEETING
Monday 2nd November 2015 7pm at The Wanstead Tap
(Arch 352, Winchelsea Road, E7 0AQ)

Please come along and join us for this public meeting where Jack Skillen, London Director of Living Streets will be talking to us about the benefits of creating a “walking nation”.

Living Streets is the UK charity for everyday walking. We want to create a walking nation where people of all generations enjoy the benefits that this simple act brings, on streets fit for walking www.livingstreets.org.uk‘

I will be attending the meeting for various reasons. The first being that Newham Cyclists are a very pleasant, committed bunch of people some of whom I’ve been in contact with variously and individually but not met officially face to face yet and I’d like to see them and find out more. The second being that the Wanstead Tap is an extraordinarily great place, and worth a visit generally (if you’re reading this, and you’ve not been, I highly recommend a visit. Go to buy craft beer, and stay for the tea and the cakes, and lately also a weekend range of toasties).

But I am mainly going because I increasingly believe that the only sustainable way forward is for us to all, where we’re able to, walk and cycle much, much more. I think in everything we do, as a council but also as individuals and community groups, we need to provide opportunities for people to walk and cycle, and to create physical spaces that make this as safe and easy as possible.

I think this for a whole host of reasons, including climate change and pollution, but also for reasons of physical health, mental health, community building, and general pleasantness of our surroundings! And I am looking forward to finding out more about how we can help to make this happen, and to turn what is at the moment my ‘general feeling’ about the desirability of this into something a bit more concrete that I can learn more about.

I am interested generally in how this happens, but also am increasingly aware that it might be difficult. The consultation over some early ideas about the Quietway through Forest Gate North, and some of the opposition currently going on to ‘Mini Holland’ in Walthamstow have helped me to realise that there are a whole range of people who don’t feel the same way as I do. If that includes you then please do talk to me about it – I’m keen to understand your concerns and where you are coming from.

I also know from experience that a desire to cycle isn’t quite the same as putting it into practice. I have now owned my own bike for a year, and in that time have used it, I think, on two occasions. Largely due to my own laziness, I confess, but there you have it. Rome wasn’t cycled across in a day, as they say.

If you’re interested at all in walking and cycling, and in finding out more about Newham cyclists or Living Streets, do come along on Monday to the Newham Cyclists meeting. And if you see me there, please do say hello.

Living Streets flyer 1
(on a related note, if anyone knows how to easily insert a pdf into a WordPress post as an image, I would be very glad to hear from you! In the meantime, my apologies.)

Rachel writes…

Like many other residents, we have been watching events unfold in refugee camps with a mixture of horror, compassion, sadness and disbelief. Many people in Forest Gate have already donated items for the camps in Calais (a big shout out to Jane and Anna who collected items after the very successful Jumble Trail) and a Forest Gate based group has already met together to discuss co-ordinating some action.

Now, every Community Neighbourhood area in Newham is holding a meeting to discuss how to raise funds for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

Our meeting is this coming Wednesday the 21st October, from 6.30pm until 8pm, at the Gate library. If you have an idea for an event you’d like to hold, or if you have a vague idea for an initiative that might help to raise funds, if you’re part of a group that wants to do something but doesn’t know where to start, then please do come along, we would love to have you there. The format of the meeting will depend on who comes along, and what they want to do, but depending on numbers we will aim to group people together to make plans, and will look at how we can support the things you want to organise.

There is a meeting taking place in each of the Community Neighbourhoods, and you can see this page of the Newham website for more information. If organising isn’t your thing but you’d like to donate, then you can make a donation online here.

If you’re interested in being involved, then do come along to the Gate this coming Wednesday, and I look forward to seeing you there.