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Should parking revenue be spent on Fordwych road safety?

The Fordwych Residents Association (FRA) has been calling for road safety improvements in our area for a number of years. Residents have raised a number of issues, and we’ve requested that Camden Council take action to:

  • Stop the rat-run through our area, which runs both ways along Westbere Road – Minster Road – Fordwych Road – Mill Lane
  • Stop HGVs – and especially skip lorries – using residential streets in our area as a short cut
  • Reduce the speed of traffic in our area and enforce the 20mph speed limit
  • Make road junctions and crossings safer – especially for children walking to and from Hampstead School and for the young children attending nurseries in our area.

One of things we’ve been told by the council is that money is tight and they may not be able to afford to act on our suggestions.

However, it’s been pointed out that the council receives large sums from the sale of parking permits. The money raised by the sale of permits is meant to be ring-fenced for transport and road safety spending.

The FRA thought it would be interesting to find out how much is raised in the zones in our area: CA-P (Kilburn) & CA-Q (Fortune Green).

You can see the PDF map of the council’s parking zones here

We asked for the figures since the permit scheme was introduced (around ten years ago) – but were told the figures were only available from 2010/11. The figures include funds raised from the sale of all permits – residents, visitor, e-visitor, parking permission, business & doctors.

  • 2010/11   £774,463
  • 2011/12   £754,083
  • 2012/13   £820,251
  • 2013/14   £870,466
  • 2014/15   £807,090 (to date)

These seem like significant sums to us. We also asked for a breakdown of how the money has been spent in our area. Unfortunately, we weren’t given this information – but instead were directed to the council’s annual parking reports, which can be seen here.

Although the reports give some useful information, there is no breakdown of how the money is spent. We think the council could be a lot more open and transparent about what these funds are used for so that those paying for the various charges and permits can see where their money is going.

James Earl
Chair, Fordwych Residents Association
www.fordwych.org.uk
@FordwychRA

Guerilla gardening in Fordwych Road

Residents in the north of West Hampstead may have noticed some lovely flowers popping up around the base of the trees in Fordwych Road. But it’s community spirit that’s also blooming in the NW2/NW6 herbaceous borders.

Fordwych Road treepit

If this sort of guerilla gardening sounds up your street, or you could see it on your street, then put July 11th in your diaries.

Naomi Schillinger, author of Veg Street and popular urban gardening blog Out of My Shed, will be giving an introductory talk on setting up community garden projects. These can range from the tree pits pictured above to full-scale vegetable beds.

The talk takes place at Davina House, the redbrick building on Fordwych Road, next to St Cuthbert’s Church and runs from 7-7.30pm. The event is hosted by newly formed Garden Friends NW2, which is heading up a ‘Green-up and Clean-up’ Fordwych Road initiative. You can contact the group at gardenfriendsnw2@gmail.com.

The Garden Friends has also launched an Adopt-a-Treepit project on Fordwych Road. As one of its advocates told me “The huge thing is meeting your neighbours over the flowerpits. Fordwych has been rather faceless until now”.

James Earl, chair of the Fordwych Residents Association, said “It’s great to see the planting and it’s really brightened up Fordwych Road. Local residents have been in touch to say how much they appreciate the plants and flowers. Thanks to all those who’ve put in the effort to make this happen.”

Friendliness is blossoming along Fordwych Road and there’s even a Herb Corner in the offing too.

If you can’t make the talk and want to know more about treepits, then read Naomi’s blogpost on the topic here: http://outofmyshed.co.uk/2013/01/15/edging-a-tree-pit/.

What, where, when: Fordwych Residents Association

What exactly IS a residents association, and why might you want to become part of your local one? To kick off a round-up of all the local ones, James Earl introduces the Fordwych Residents Association, which he chairs.

“The Fordwych Residents Association (FRA) is a long-established and active group in the local area, representing the views of members and residents in its immediate area and the wider West Hampstead community.

The area covered by the FRA is essentially Fordwych Road and its adjoining streets. This means we cover a diverse area, from Maygrove Road and Kilburn in the south – up to Richborough Road and Cricklewood in the north.

The FRA normally has meetings every two to three months, which are open to anyone living or working in our area. Our next meeting is on Monday 4th March. We also have a Christmas event and organise social events, such as a party for the Diamond Jubilee last year.

The issues we cover include the ultra-local: such as pavements, litter and bins – to recycling, local planning applications and the policing of the area. We also work with a number of other West Hampstead groups, such as WHAT (West Hampstead Amenity & Transport) and were one of the first local groups to support the formation of a Neighbourhood Development Forum. We work closely with our neighbouring residents associations, our ward councillors, the Sidings Community Centre, Friends of Maygrove Peace Park and the Cricklewood Improvement Programme.

In terms of planning issues, we were heavily involved in discussing the plans for the 1 Mill Lane development (and the new green space behind it) – as well as the new developments on Maygrove Road.

For those wanting to know more, you can see our website: www.fordwych.org.uk and follow us on twitter @FordwychRA.

If you would like to join and/or be added to our mailing list, please email: info@fordwych.org.uk.”