Residents start Stamford Hill Neighbourhood Forum in advance of Localism Bill
Cllr Linda Kelly (centre) with other members of the new Stamford Hill Neighbourhood Forum committee
Local residents in Stamford Hill have set up a new community group to improve the neighbourhood.
The Stamford Hill Neighbourhood Forum had its first meeting at the Birdcage Pub on Wednesday 2 November, which was attended by around 60 residents.
Conservative councillor Linda Kelly was selected as its chair; its newly-installed vice-chairs are Liberal Democrat councillor Dawood Akoon, former Labour councillor Stephen Sartain and Mrs Sarah Lew. A committee of twelve was also elected to run the group.
Councillor Linda Kelly said: “I am very happy this Forum has been started. I firmly believe the Localism Bill is the first piece of legislation for a very long time which gives people back their rights, and an equal say on how their environment is developed not only for this generation but for future ones.
“I welcome the opportunities it offers to preserve our past and develop for a sustainable future; the success of this Bill is in our hands, not those of local councils.”
The Forum has been organised in anticipation of new powers to be given to local communities under the Localism Bill which is currently making its way through Parliament. The area it represents includes the the north Hackney wards of Lordship, Springfield and New River, together with the adjacent Haringey ward of Stamford Hill.
If and when they are passed into law, the provisions of the Bill will enable community organisations to propose alterations to planning and other regulations that affect their area.
The group aims to ensure the neighbourhoods covered by the Forum have a sustainable future, which it says it hopes to achieve by fostering community cohesion.
It’s a shame this “new” group seems to comprised (from the photo) almost entirely of former councillors, several of whom have previously been rejected either by their party or local people at previous elections, and one of whom was convicted of election fraud. I wonder who they claim to represent and how they will be accountable to the local community? Kathy B, E8
This is a Tory ‘front’ group; plain and simple. Of course, you’d only begin to ‘smell a rat’, as it were, if the Citizen had bothered to mention, for example, that there are three former and current Tory councillors -Sills, Coggins, and Kelly – on the front row alone.
As a Stamford Hill resident who is very active in the community, I’d love to know where this meeting was advertised, because I didn’t see it anywhere.
Since the Citizen is so interested in the forum’s activities, perhaps it would like to carry out some real journalism and tell us when and where the next meeting is?
the majority of people who live in Stamford hill area are Conservative and yes one would expect a larger number of Conservative in the SHNF, as of what i know and i have done my research the SHNF is compiled by all sects of the community, everyone is welcome to join and become a member.
The SHNF is a wide spread group that accepts all and is open for all.
no matter who you support, if its labour or lib-dems or the Greens, this group welcomes all, and has members from all differnt politicle parties besides,
Their are over 30 different groups and minority group members who are in the SHNF.
I would just write some of them down here, Christians,Muslim,Irish,Jewish, Caribbean,African,Polish, and the list goes on.
If you have seen the latest pictures, you would see the truth. Their was a Event at Mascara Bar where over 80 people attended. I sew it Advertised online , on social media as facebook and twitter. as i am a teenager , thats where i am hanging around and get updates (Social Media). I attended the party towards the end but had a good time and was very welcoming into the SHNF.
Please don’t comment if you don’t have your facts right!!! anyone can criticize!
This reads like a press release. This is a self appointed group with no mandate. Its intention is to overturn planning rules, as under the Localism act it will become responsible for drafting new regulations which Planning Officers will
be obliged to follow when they come to decide what can be built and what can not. This will lead to massive extensions to houses that are currently not allowed. Please Hackney Gazette some more incisive reporting
what a waste of space!
Self appointed by the people of the Neighbourhood, so yes your right it is self appointed by the people of the area.
anyways it is obvisionally you have not seen the mandate, that is all over the web?
about extensions, well thats up to the people in the Neighbourhood to decide , and that is the exact purpose of the Localism act, The peoples rights.
now let the residents and business owners of the area to live life without bullying behavior from others.
thank You
its about time this bullying stops!
It is interesting to compare the submission by the Clapton Pond neighbourhood forum with that of the Stamford Hill neighbourhood forum. The Clapton Pond forum has conducted proper, open and wide research into whether a neighbourhood forum is wanted or needed and the remit the forum has put forward is considered, professional and for the benefit of the residents and community as a whole. In stark contrast the Stamford Hill forum has not been properly researched, is not inclusive and the submission is narrow, shoddy, amateur and lacking in any form of proper detail. it is easy to believe one of it’s primary functions is intended to be as a vehicle for passing and approving inappropriate planning applications including one would expect those for St Mary’s Lodge and other like projects – otherwise why does SH neighbourhood forum propose putting 4 wards together whose needs and wants are all very different?
Stamford Hill is not the same as Clapton Pond!
Stamford Hill has a splinter group who are trying to rid the area of the minority like the Polish,Jews and the Muslims they call them self the ”hackney planning watch”, When bearing in-mind what their record proves, they are nothing but the ”Ethnic Planning Watch”, which are a small group of mainly, white, middle class NIMBY’S.
Hackney are consulting about delegating planning powers to this group. Object by writing here:
ldf@hackney.gov.uk
http://www.hackney.gov.uk/neighbourhood-planning.htm#stamford