West Hampstead Life

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Great Get Together Weekend – Jo Cox would have been proud of West Hampstead

It was a hot weekend in West Hampstead but with the ‘Big Lunch/ Jo Cox Great Get Together there was some really cool stuff going on. On Saturday night it was cycle-powered outdoor cinema and on Sunday a number of Big Lunches in the ‘hood.

By popular demand the first outdoor screening of the summer, organised by the Friends of Fortune Green, was back to cycle-power. The film was ‘Arrival’, which overall proved a popular choice although the audience of over 325 either loved it (“it was best film I’ve seen in ages”) or didn’t (“what was that all about?”); but even those who didn’t quite get the film enjoyed that fantastic atmosphere. Normally, by the end of the film it’s sweaters and blankets but not this time as it was still 23 degrees at 11pm.

Outdoor film – a cool thing to do on a hot night.

Before the film started MC Simon Inglis thanked FOFG for putting it on and electric pedals for the system, and wished a speedy recovery to Councillor Flick Rea, in the audience with her arm still in sling. He also asked for donations to help fund the film, and the audience responded generously giving £925; so next up the kids-friendly film on August 12th (date for your diaries).

After the late-night film screening it was a gentle start for the Big Lunches on Sunday. Down in the Iverson Road Space, Monica Regli from MILAM reported that “It was sweltering hot so we had to keep moving the tables but we had a really good turnout. She heaped praise on member Carlotta Fiocchi-Sassoon the main organiser, although “everyone chipped in (and a special thank you to Sidings)” Monica was especially pleased that there was a great community spirit, “you could hear everyone networking and swapping information. Just what the country needs right now – a really positive effect.”

Mingling on Iverson at the MILAM lunch.

Up in Fortune Green ward it was take your pick. Probably the award for best village fete atmosphere was the Ravenshaw event on Glastonbury Street – although with a street name like that you can’t but help have a great atmosphere. It was a really well planned , but their secret weapon was their paddling pools! Popular on a hot day with the kids … and eyed enviously by the adults. Their raffle raised a tidy sum for a local charity and #Grenfelltower.

Jimmy the juggler kept the kids entertained

A short walk away Hillfield Residents Association had about 75 adults and kids turn for their Big Lunch. Co-organiser Sandie Evans said “I’ve met the nicest people – and how did I NOT know Neil and Amanda – they live practically opposite and we’ve both lived on the Street for over 15 years”! Hillfield’s secret weapon was resident Jimmy who just happened to be juggler and kept the kids entertained for hours, although thankfully for him given a brief break by the arrival of police horses.

Everyone loves a police horse!

For the cultural historians among you that old buffet staple potato salad is out (there was none), pasta salad came in second place but the winner by far was couscous salad – there was enough to resurface the M1. Hillfield’s raffle was for #troysmission, the West Hampstead toddler with cerebral palsy whose mum is seeking to raise £50,000 for a potentially life changing operation for him.

Couscous – the new potato salad

And a short walk away from Hillfield, neighbours Gondar Gardens and Agamemnon, 65 of them, sat down under four massive gazebos (on a very hot day) for their lunch. Their secret weapon was magician, Tom Grubb, who kept the (admittedly by this stage slightly boozy) residents bamboozled.

Tom the Magician bamboozled the boozy residents of Gondar Gardens (although some were on the water!)

Chairman David Yass said “There was a very nice community feel – one of my neighbours said to me I’ve lived here 30 years and met someone who lives across the street who I had never talked to before – isn’t that wonderful.” WHL can’t really put it any better than that.

June 18, 2017
Property News: West Hampstead tenants’ extra expectations

I’m worried that I’ve started to sound like a broken record. Every two months I write about the rental market for West Hampstead Life, and every two months I say the same thing: demand for rental property in West Hampstead is sky high.

I promise you that this isn’t laziness on my part. Demand for rental properties in West Hampstead continues to grow, especially for one and two bed flats. These flats are regularly on the market for just a matter of days before contracts are signed and a move-in date is set.

Although demand has been continuously high for many years, not everything remains the same though. One thing we have noticed over the past year is that our applicants now have an excellent knowledge of the local rental market. They do their research, they understand how the market operates and aspirational levels are rising too. They’re familiar with the property specifications found in new build developments and they expect this standard of presentation from all rental properties. We regularly feed this information back to our landlords and encourage them to treat their rental property as a business, by injecting regular investment into the property by way of new carpet or a new kitchen if needed.

Demand might be strong but applicants won’t accept a property if it doesn’t match their expectations. In order to let property as quickly as possible so we can avoid void periods, we advise landlords to present the flat to the best of their ability. Presentation is key when attracting tenants, and that includes communal areas as well as the property itself. The entrance of a residential building is equally important, and landlords who own flats in a period conversion should consider joining forces with other owners to smarten up communal areas if necessary.

Feedback from tenants in 2015 highlights that proximity to an underground station is high on most of their wish lists. Properties further than 10 minutes from the tube are slower to let and applicants would rather compromise on square footage if the location is good. It’s always been about an applicant’s lifestyle choices, and proximity to excellent transport links is more important than ever.

As I mentioned earlier, applicants have a better knowledge of the local property market than ever. The internet is key for sharing information and it’s great to see more and more people aware of what is happening in the local market. Perhaps because of this applicants are very sensitive to price, and they are prepared to negotiate to reach an agreement that is acceptable to them. Landlords who are also prepared to negotiate a bit will find their property lets more quickly.

In order to provide the very best service to applicants, tenants and landlords we’ve needed to expand our business. I’m thrilled to welcome two new Lettings Negotiators to the Paramount team, and I look forward to sharing their experience of working in West Hampstead with you over the coming months.

Spencer Lawrence
Lettings Director
Paramount Properties
150 West End Lane
West Hampstead
020 7644 2314

Sponsored article

February 10, 2015
Win a pair of tickets to The Tricycle Theatre’s new show!

A Series of Increasingly Impossible Acts puts the audience in charge, exploring the mighty failures and great triumphs of human endeavour. Each night the audience helps choose the protagonist and the rest of the Secret Theatre Company puts them through their paces as they try to achieve the impossible in this riotous and uplifting show. Read our review here.

The Tricycle Theatre has kindly given us a pair of tickets so that a lucky West Hampstead Life reader can go to the 7.30pm performance on Thursday January 22nd.

To enter, just email with the subject line “A Series of Increasingly Impossible Acts”, and include your name and mobile number.

The closing date for entry is midday on Monday 19th January 2015.

The winner will be selected at random and notified by email on Monday January 19th 2015. If no response is received within 12 hours, another winner will be selected.

January 16, 2015
School, 106 flats and workspace: Liddell Road planning application is in

The Liddell Road mansion block from Maygrove Road

The council’s controversial plan to build a school, flats and employment space on the Liddell Road industrial estate took a step forward on Friday when the planning applications were submitted. Yes, applications plural.

Although all the documentation that accompanies the applications is presented as a coherent set of documents, the applications themselves are split into Phase 1 (the school) and Phase 2 (the residential and employment). Given that the school is contingent on the apartments being built and sold, this seems strange. One thought is that that council expects it might run into some problems with the residential part of the plan – which is what locals have objected to most – but doesn’t want to jeopardize the start date of the school.

The final applications are to build 106 residential units, of which four are designated “affordable“: three intermediate and one social housing for a wheelchair user. These will be split across an 11-storey tower block of 40 flats and a 5-storey “mansion block” fronting Maygrove Road of 66 flats. The school will be a two-storey infant school that is an extension of Kingsgate Primary School in Kilburn, and will house 420 pupils. The employment space is a 5-storey managed workspace falling under class B1.

B1 building use is use for all or any of the following purposes:
(a) as an office other than a use within class A2 (financial and professional services),
(b) for research and development of products or processes, or
(c) for any industrial process, being a use which can be carried out in any residential area without detriment to the amenity of that area by reason of noise, vibration, smell, fumes, smoke, soot, ash, dust or grit.

Liddell Road mansion block

There are a lot of documents to wade through if you want to get an overview of the scheme. As always, the Desgin & Access statement is the best place to start, but it runs to 246 pages. The appendix of views will be of particular interest to many locals. You can access all the documents from Camden’s planning website, but West Hampstead Life has merged all 246 pages together, which you can download here (large PDF file).

Locals have objected to the scale of the residential development, specifically the height of the tower block (which at an earlier consultation stage was going to be 14 storeys), and the lack of affordable housing (which was initially zero), when the council is expecting to make a £3m surplus from the development and has received a further £6.7m central government grant for schools.

There is one section of the document that many will find especially galling. After setting out a perfectly valid case for the low affordable housing quota (by Camden’s own standards, there should be ~50% affordable housing), the developers (remenber, that’s the council) then try to pass blame onto campaigners who wanted a lower tower block.

The precise number of flats intended for the site has always been fluid. At one point it was 120, at another 100, at another, 105. We’ve now ended up with 106. Amid all the documentation, WHL has yet to unearth the viability calculations that explain precisely how the affordable housing quota has been determined. Apparently the housing market can be thanked for this sudden largesse although quite what role it has played is of course unclear. Many will also be irked by the implication above that the council would love to have had more affordable housing if it wasn’t for those pesky locals demanding a lower tower, given that the council’s original plans had no such units until locals started clamouring for them despite a bullish housing market at the time the plans were first drawn up. There are no doubt some who would like to know how many affordable units would be possible if 14-storeys had been retained in order that people could make an informed trade-off.

Liddell Road tower block from Maygrove Peace Park

In response to the objection that such a low affordable housing quota runs contrary to Camden’s own policies on vibrant mixed communities, councillors are keen to say that the development of 156 West End Lane will deliver 50% affordable housing. It’s a bold promise they may find difficult to keep, and it is unclear how West Hampstead residents are expected to judge one application on the basis of another development, especially when the latter is not even on the drawing board after Camden “deselected” the developer last month.

Residents have also objected to the siting of the tower block at the eastern end of the site, where it most overshadows the Sidings Estate and Maygrove Peace Park. Newly-formed residents association MILAM has challenged this several times but the architects and the council have decided to retain it in the east. Their argument can be found in its extensive Q&A document. There will also be a new main access road into the development, although the existing access road will be retained.

Consultation on the applications has been extended to take account of the Christmas holidays, so anyone who wants to comment on the application has “at least” until January 30th to do so. The Neighbourhood Development Forum, whose draft plan is quoted many times in the application documents, is also running a survey to try and get as comprehensive a view as possible on locals’ thoughts. You can fill in the survey here.

Given Camden Labour’s overwhelming majority on the council, it is hard to see how this plan would be refused by the development control committee when it comes to a vote. There could still be some tweaks here and there of course, but it is a stark example of the problem in the planning system when councils are both developer and ajudicator of the same proposal.

Liddell Road tower and workspace looking east

Artist’s impression of Liddell Road mansion block from Maygrove Road

Liddell Road development overview

The Liddell Road brickwork will be mostly red

View of Liddell Road development from the Black Path

December 21, 2014
What have I missed since October 20th?

A fire at the Brondesbury Medical Centre on Kilburn High Road on Tuesday night caused the Tricycle Cinema to be evacuated. Although some damage was done to the upper floor of the GP practice, no-one was hurt and the surgery reopened on the Thursday.

Camden granted estate agent Foxtons the change of use permission it needed to open in the former post office on West End Lane. This prompted a flurry of interest in a 2013 piece that sought to find the collective noun for estate agents.

The Area Action Group meeting (the first public meeting since the council election) was suitably lively, with the usual complaints about council services and mixed reactions to the proposed Overground station. WHL live tweeted proceedings.

Pimp my bins via @HandyAndyNW6

This Thursday we’re hosting WHalloween Food Fest at the streetfood market. Find all the sign-up details here.

A date was set for the start of the 24hr tube service on Fridays/Saturdays. But what about the noise for people living near stations?

Waitrose opens on Tuesday – having caused considerable excitement among (almost) everyone. The ribbon will be cut at 7am(!) by the chair of trustees of the West Hampstead womens’ centre. The bench outside Waitrose that has been removed during the works is to be replaced.

A former England cricketer cut the ribbon at the official opening of Aqua Pharmacy’s new premises on Mill Lane.

The Gallery’s refit started. And Mill Lane Bistro is closed until Wednesday for a refit.

Kilburn chippy Fin City tweeted a plea for more customers.

Some curiously possessive stickers appeared around the area.

There’s always a petition to sign – the latest one is for a pedestrian crossing on Shoot Up Hill.

The London Review of Breakfasts tried Café Bon.

Police were alerted to a man who exposed himself just off Lymington Road.

A local Labour faction have lambasted the (Labour-dominated) council’s plans for Liddell Road. Much of what they say resonates with some residents’ comments, though completely ignoring the school being built rather weakens their argument.

Meanwhile, a Nora Connell has been writing the same letter to all the local papers (a hard-to-decipher ramble about UKIP). She claims to be a parliamentary candidate for Hampstead & Kilburn representing the “Connell Canto Party”.

Apparently, Hampstead & Kilburn is the 8th most pro-immigrant constituency in the UK and the 12th most pro the EU. Doesn’t bode well for UKIP’s chances here next year. [paywall]

The Wet Fish Café’s wall-mounted guitars are all made my a local luthier. A relaxed gig earlier in the week showcased the instrument.

An inquest heard that a former Broadmoor patient died after slitting his wrist at his Maygrove Road flat in a supported housing block.

It was the 50th anniversary of the Beatles second ever performance at the Kilburn State. They were paid £850.

A new teacher training institution opened at the Kilburn end of West End Lane.

After The Economist looked at Aldi in Kilburn last week, this week the Financial Times covered the High Road’s Afghan restaurant Ariana II.

Fury is our Film of the Week. Read our take on all the local film offerings this week.

REHAB Halloween at Love & Liquor is our Gig of the Week.

Lots of local businesses are in the running for Time Out’s favourite places awards. Click on NW6 (Kilburn) to see the categories and contenders. Monday’s the last day of voting.

The premises that used to be Helena’s Hair Care at 78 Fortune Green Road is apparently destined to be… another salon.

Tweet of the Week
https://twitter.com/eton_mess/status/524480865808945152

October 27, 2014
October’s Area Action Group – as it happened

October 26, 2014
Election Special: Hear the candidates in their own words

As people gathered outside Emmanuel School on Monday night for the hustings, we were inside trying to get microphones to work. Despite one or two technical glitches early on, the message still came across loud and clear – people remain interested in what their politicians have to say.

Excitement builds (photo via Richard Olszewski)

The livestream of the event sadly failed (note to the school: Get a better Wifi connection!), but we do have a record of the whole evening, with just over a minute missing.

If you’re not hardcore enough for the whole thing, then here’s how the evening played out in bitesize pieces.

First up we had the three-minute party speeches.

Keith Moffitt for the Liberal Democrats focused on their record as councillors across the two wards

Ian Cohen for the Conservatives stressed their candidates’ expertise and focused heavily on the local issues

Philip Rosenberg for Labour talked about the party’s record in the Town Hall under the pressure of budget cuts

Juan Jimenez for the Green Party (apologies to the Greens, but this is where we lost a minute of the recording)

Magnus Nielsen for UKIP talked a lot about his family history but less about what he’d do for locals.

Dave Pearce for TUSC (Trade Union and Socialist Coalition) talked about cuts, jobs and housing security.

We then went on to discuss:

Rubbish – with issues of costs, enforcement and the contract with Veolia coming to the fore

Schools – specifically the different parties’ view on whether they support the proposed free school in the area.

Mansion tax – where much was made of the LibDems’ U-turn and there was an entertaining heckle!

Camden’s complaints procedure – would Sainsbury’s do a better job of managing the process?

Cycling & parking – is a wholesale review of parking restrictions needed?

Delivery lorries – everyone’s in agreement that Tesco lorries are a problem, what are the solutions?

Support for the Neighbourhood Development Plan – almost – almost – universal!

Getting the vote out – here’s where UKIP talk about removing the vote from some people

156 West End Lane – school? Community venue? What do the parties think?

Affordable housing – what does it mean?

And finally, how the candidates would fight our corner in the Town Hall (which led to one or two very odd replies).

If you want to watch everything in one go to get more of the atmosphere and hear what gets applauded and what doesn’t, then settle back with a cup of tea and a biscuit.

And a closing word:

The sincerity & dedication of the candidates stood stands out at the #whamp #hustings – local politics involves commitment!

— John Mennis (@JfmJm) May 12, 2014

May 18, 2014
Hustings hoo-ha takes away from real issues

Monday night’s hustings for West Hampstead & Fortune Green wards in the local elections turned out to be popular. Some 150 people turned up to Emmanuel School hall to hear what 21 of the 26 candidates across the two wards had to say.

One of those candidates – UKIP’s Magnus Nielsen – took all the headlines the following morning after a peculiar answer to the question of low voter turnout where he mused that perhaps all the efforts made in the 19th century to extend the voter base might have been misguided.

The audience reaction – more laughs than gasps – tells you how little it resonated with voters. Yet, with one headline grabbing soundbite, the rest of the candidates’ efforts to discuss the issues that actually matter to local residents have been subsumed.

It was fairly clear that Nielsen was playing to the gallery with this and other bon mots throughout the evening. What West Hampstead voters – and quite possibly UKIP itself – might have found more disappointing was that Nielsen clearly hadn’t prepared a meaningful three minute pitch to voters unlike all the other candidates.

A lengthy intro about why someone with a Danish name was standing for UKIP means that half of his three minutes was about the war, and the other half consisted of a few digs at the EU.

There was nothing about West Hampstead, or even Camden and it rather felt as if it had been dreamt up at the last minute. Such a lack of respect for the audience and the electorate suggests that, despite the occasional bout of political hubris (“when I’m elected councillor”), the likelihood of Nielsen sitting in the council chamber for the next four years is even slimmer than it might have been at the start of the evening.

May 18, 2014
Eight week Mill Lane closure

Part of Mill Lane will be closed for eight weeks starting on Tuesday May 6th. There has been surprisingly little notice of this. The work is to replace metal gas mains with plastic mains.

The National Grid says

“The closures and restrictions will be introduced in phases as the work progresses from Shoot Up Hill towards Westbere Road.

Mill Lane will be closed between Shoot Up Hill and Fordwych Road with access maintained via local diversion routes

Fordwyich Road will be partially closed at the junction with Mill Lane, with access to properties being maintained via local diversion routes

Mill Lane will be closed one way Westbound between Westbere Road and Fordywch Road with access being maintained cia local diversion routes.

Some areas of parking will need to be suspended to facilitae excavation operations and traffic flows around our work areas.

It’s not clear whether these closures are just the first phase of closures or all the closures listed together. More information as we get it!

May 4, 2014
What have I missed since March 10th?

The much anticipated new smokehouse restaurant, One Sixty, had its soft launch. Preliminary reports (including from yours truly) were very positive. Walk-ins start from Tuesday.

Jimi Hendrix didn’t just play West Hampstead; the woman who brought him to the attention of his manager was from Cholmley Gardens!

Edward de Mesquita, Hampstead creperie owner and erstwhile Tory council candidate for West Hampstead, is in a very serious condition in a Paris hospital after a car crash.

“This house in West Hampstead always puts on a lovely floral display”
by Mairéad Roche

As Camden undertakes its annual tree removal program, cutting down dead or dying specimens, it may have inadvertently solved the area’s litter problem.

The Metro’s property section had a big and very positive piece on West Hampstead (and some kind words about West Hampstead Life).

The new greengrocer on West End Lane, replacing Picasso’s, has eschewed a fancy, clever name.

Fortune Green’s Nautilus featured in Time Out as the best fish & chips in north London.

Talking of Fortune Green, this Sunday is Love our Green Sunday – more on this and other Friends of Fortune Green events here.

West Hampstead Women’s Centre celebrated its 25th anniversary.

The Accurist building on Blackburn Road may well be turned into a block of 25 flats (mostly one-bed).

UKIP is expecting to field council candidates in all local wards in May’s local election. In 2010 it had just one candidate in one ward (Swiss Cottage).

The 18-storey tower blocks in South Kilburn are coming down as part of the huge redevelopment there.

“It’s like Hampstead without the wankers“, local author Susie Steiner on West Hampstead.

Back in 1949, the Kilburn Empire tried to stage a boxing match between “Battling” Barbara Buttrick and Bert Saunders. The fight was pulled, but Buttrick went on to pave the way for women boxers. Sadly for up-and-coming boxers male or female, there’s a strong rumour that Gloves Boxing Club is closing.

A man was stabbed in the leg in a “mass street fight” in Kilburn.

Scarlet Johansson’s Under The Skin is the Film of the Week. All the local screenings listed here.

The gig of the week is raising funds for UNICEF. Check out this and all the local music events coming up in the area.

The first #whampsocial was a big hit (not least the £5 cocktails). The next one is March 26th at Frida’s bar.

Whampdinner at Guglee was also great success, though quite what The Black Lion thought it was when they reserved us space in the bar beforehand is anyone’s guess.

Building work on St James’ to give it a dual use as a post office will start on March 24th.

The Crediton Hill pebbledash drama was put to bed as the planning inspector overturned an appeal. The pebbledash must return.

Tweet of the Week

Once again migrants changing the face of established #whampstead community. First chiffchaffs of the year arrived + singing in the cemetery.

— Richard Burdett (@rgburdett) March 16, 2014

March 17, 2014