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Almost five years ago the council launched its ten point plan for Clapham Junction. It was one of those things that was more aspiration than anything. The council had little control over the implementation of most of the ten points, but it did form a great basis for lobbying by creating a coherent vision of what Clapham Junction could be with the implementation of some small, and some not so small, changes; the council had a powerful voice because it was arguing not just for some ill-defined investment, but a series of deliverable improvements.

And the council has had some great successes:

  • Clapham Junction is on the extended Tube map (albeit as London Overground)
  • There are new routes, like the West London Line
  • The East London Line is scheduled to take passengers to and from Stratford in time for the Olympics
  • Lifts are being installed on all platforms
  • A new entrance is being built, with council investment, at Brighton Yard
  • Oyster is accepted at the station

It’s a superb example of how the council can still shape the area, even through is doesn’t necessary have total control over everything in its patch.

But despite all this the station was still named the country’s second worst. So now the council has published its new ten-point strategy:

  1. Complete the East London Line extension to Clapham Junction, to interchange with the West London Line, creating an orbital rail route around London.
  2. Connect Clapham Junction to the Underground by bringing forward the long delayed Crossrail 2 project and an extension to or connection with the Northern Line at Battersea Power Station.
  3. Open a new station entrance to St John’s Hill, in Brighton Yard, to reduce overcrowding and provide step-free access to the platforms.
  4. Improve the station environment and facilities.
  5. Provide new rail services to Heathrow and Gatwick Airports.
  6. Improve the routes between the town centre and the station, and declutter the areas outside the station.
  7. Improve interchange between rail and bus services, with taxis and for cyclists.
  8. Increase the capacity of the station by lengthening platforms and improving access routes.
  9. Improve train frequencies with more Metro-style ‘turn up and go’ services on local lines and all long-distance services calling at the station.
  10. Improve public transport information, convenient ticketing and signage.

It will be fascinating to see the results over the next few years.

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St John's Hill Festival - balloonsSt John’s Hill Festival
I’m cheating a bit with this week’s photo, since it’s not mine, but was taken by Emma Jane Clark at last Sunday’s St John’s Hill Festival. I’ve used it without permission but hope she doesn’t mind because I really like it.

And congratulations to everyone involved in putting the festival on. It was a great day and, like all the other festivals, carnivals and street parties being put on in our town centres this year really showed the strength of our businesses despite the recession. It’s also with a sense of shame that I have to admit to finally trying Fish Club. It’s one of those places (note how I resisted the ‘plaice’ pun) that is perhaps just a little too out of my way, but given my background – of coming from the fish and chip capital of the world – it’s criminal I’d not given them a go… and they weren’t found wanting. I had a superb haddock and chips with mushy peas, and for me to say that is saying something!

Roehampton Street Drinkers
I’ve been involved in discussions about these for some time, but these are now becoming public – especially since a public meeting held by the police on the issue last week. There has been a problem with street drinkers in the area for some time, which appears to be worsening. Stuart King, the Labour candidate, has picked up on this and is now calling for the council and police to move them on to another area (although he doesn’t specify exactly where he thinks they should be street-drinking).

The council is looking at a real, long term, solution, that doesn’t involve restricting everyone’s rights to enjoy the green spaces in the area and doesn’t just move the problems of addiction from one area to another. We have been using Equinox as outreach workers, with some success, in the area for some time, helping the drinkers conquer their alcohol addiction and are looking at what sort of enforcement we can take with individuals to ensure those less willing to face their problems.

We’re currently in talks with the police (who would be responsible for the enforcement side) to ensure the resources are there to make sure both elements of the carrot and stick approach work.

Gun crime and violence in Wandsworth
Of course, a lot of my time and attention has been taken up by the recent spate of violent crime in Wednesday, I wrote about this in a post on Wednesday and do not want to repeat myself. However, I do want to repeat the central point I made that Wandsworth has been, and remains, a relatively safe borough in London terms.

This is not to belittle the seriousness of the events and shouldn’t be taken to mean that they are not being taken seriously. However, if there is any solace to be taken from gang-related crime it is that it tends to remain inter- and intra-gang and, except in rare cases, members of the general public remain unaffected.

Like I say, this is not to say the council or the police do not take it seriously and are not working hard to arrest those responsible and prevent further incidents, but it does mean that headlines like the Wandsworth Guardian‘s ‘Carnage on the streets’ are very wide of the mark. There is no more reason to worry about going about your daily business this week than there was last week.

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St John's Hill FestivalThe first St John’s Hill Festival takes place this Sunday (13 September). The event will take place from 11am to 5pm on the pavements and in participating shops on St John’s Hill between Plough Road and Marcilly Road.

The festival will have the usual mix of entertainment, food and drink and, naturally, shopping! It follows on from this year’s highly successful Lavender Hill Street Party and Northcote Road carnival and will be well worth a visit.

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At last week’s Northcote Road Carnival I was having a chat with Essential Local magazine about the event. One of the things they asked for was a quote about the day. And it was virtually impossible to give, because pretty much anything you could say was put on the bottom of a list of other (far more important) people saying much the same thing: fantastic day, congratulations to organisers, excellent atmosphere, etc.

So I tried to take a broader view and pointed to how it illustrated the unique offer and character of Northcote Road, which in turn illustrates the unique offers and characters of Battersea.

If you consider Clapham Junction as a hub, whatever direction you walk you are in Battersea, but each is a very different bit of Battersea. To the north, you go up Falcon Road, Battersea High Street and Battersea Square. To the east, my own favourite bit (obviously) Lavender Hill. To the south is St John’s Road and Northcote Road. And finally to the west St John’s Hill. While each share similarities, accidents of history, architecture and even traffic management means each has it’s own character and style. They attract different types of resident, different types of shop and different types of shopper – even though they are just minutes walk from each other.

While I’ve found it fascinating watching each of these evolve over the 12 years I’ve lived in the area, what has been most exciting is the past few when, it seems, there’s been a much stronger sense of community developing – and the resurgence in street-party style events has been one of the most visible aspects of this.

Last year saw just Lavender Hill hosting an event. This year they were joined by Northcote Road and St John’s Hill are planning an event in September. This isn’t limited to Battersea, only slightly further afield Old York Road will be having their third street party later this year and Southfields are looking at their first event this year.

I’m not quite sure what has prompted these events. Clearly there will be an element of seeing the success of one event and wishing to emulate it – but that is slightly simplistic, since a huge amount of work is required to organise one of these days, along with a significant investment in time and money.

But whatever the reason I’m glad that it is happening. One of the real shames of London (and I know I’m as guilty of this as anyone) is that we’ve lost our neighbourhoods – and anything that helps restore that community spirit can only be a good thing.

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One of my colleagues, Piers McCausland, has written a little piece over on ConservativeHome about the lack of local control of business rates.  Assuming many readers of this blog do not read ConservativeHome’s local government pages I have copied the article below.

It raises an interesting point.  Part of what makes a successful community are the businesses that settle there, and, therefore, surely the local government should have more control over what they are taxed.  Of course, it was a previous Conservative government that centralised control of business rates, partly because they were being abused by some short-sighted councils who saw business rates as an easy and relatively painless source of extra revenue, resulting in excessive rate rises for the area’s businesses.

However, we’re now seeing those very businesses we want to encourage being hammered by central government’s failure to appreciate the impact of the end of transitional relief.  The council is doing all it can to help businesses in the recession, but in some cases businesses faced bills that had quadrupled in size before the government belatedly stepped in.  Piers raises the case of a launderette on St John’s Hill that faces closure because it just cannot afford the rates bill.  I am sure it’s not the only business in a similar situation.

Piers’ article:

Business rates must return to local control or the Government will tax successful enterprises out of business

Cllr Piers McCausland is a member of Wandsworth Council and argues that the setting of business rates must return to local control.

Small businesses have financed the Government and have helped local councils pull up many rundown areas by their bootstraps.  But precisely where these partners have succeeded, they are being pilloried by this Government.

Instead of fiscal sympathy in an economic downturn for those who have successfully regenerated their areas, they have bitten the hand that feeds them.  Business rates have climbed into the stratosphere with retailers the hardest hit.

Soon the prosperous tomorrow will be replaced by rows of steel shuttered parades in your ward and wards across the country. For in truth there is precious little many local councils can do, though Wandsworth is proposing a hardship contribution for the hardest hit.

This blight is largely made at the centre with its demand for uniformity in business rates throughout England and Wales.

Businesses with a potentially prosperous tomorrow and “indigenous” businesses alike within these areas are hit.

In my ward, a launderette on St John’s Hill has seen its net business rate skyrocket.  Its proprietor for 30-odd years says his margins are so tight it will have to close.  The clientele is mainly working class. Where will these people go then?

The answer must be local accountability.  The setting of local business rates must return to local control. The quality of local council policy and administration has improved since the early 1980s.  It must be given a chance to shine here.

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Tooting High StreetUpper Tooting Road

Last night I attended a meeting of the St John’s Hill traders to discuss the use of A-boards on the street outside their shops.  It is fair to say that the council’s enforcement of this had put a few backs up, not just there, but also on my own ward on Lavender Hill.

As with so many things, it is a balancing act, the council has to consider the needs of residents, some of whom may have accessibility issues and need to have clear pavements as well as the needs of businesses who want to advertise their businesses to the passing trade.  I would throw in a third consideration, that allowing businesses to display outside their store actually enhances the look of the street.

And of course what’s right for St John’s Hill is not necessary right for the rest of the borough.  We have a real problem in Tooting, especially places like Upper Tooting Road where pedestrians are forced to compete for narrow pavement with overflowing shop displays and illegal traders.

However, the compromise that council officers are proposing seems sensible and workable, allowing shops to use and enhance the pavement while also ensuring a minimum clearance so pedestrians can use the street without having to weave around obstacles.  The basic plan allows displays directly outside the shop, and requires a minimum 2 metres clearance on the pavement – so the narrow pavements of Tooting won’t be overcrowded and the wide streets of Lavender Hill and St John’s Hill won’t be barren.

Obviously nothing’s perfect, and this will have be reviewed once in place to make sure there are no anomalies, but the response of the St John’s Hill traders was uniformly positive, and hopefully everyone will be happy with the outcome.

The new enforcement protocol will come into force next month after going through the council’s Planning and Transport Overview and Scrutiny Committee and Executive.