We know that residents living in and around Northcote Road are facing the loss of the sort of local traditional shop that serves their everyday needs. As independent retailers face rent rises and rate increases their futures are threatened. We have lost several well-loved shops in the last year and several others - most notably the cheesemonger Hamish Johnston - are under threat.
Wandsworth Council too is forced to look on as shopping areas change due to a lack of powers. It simply does not currently have the powers to prevent a butcher's shop closing and a multiple taking its place. Unless we start to act now, we could soon be faced with a clone street, indistinguishable from any other with the same chains and the same products.
Today the friendly neighbourhood feel of the street is in danger. While national planning policies appear to be moving in favour of the big stores a number of local independents are concerned at the prospect of rising rents as landlords try to cash in on the area's undoubted popularity.
Almost 7,000 signatures were collected on the street and the shops during two weekends of canvassing. A broad spectrum of people queued up to sign and express support, many of whom came from areas outside SW11 specifically to shop on Northcote Road.
The plan will look at the potential for forming a new community trust which could manage and invest in the street and preserve its unique character.
National Sustainable Communities Bill Campaign A private members bill that if made law will empower local people to make their own decisions and to drive government policies on sustainable communities. On 23 November 2006 Nick Hurd, MP for Ruislip-Northwood, and son of Douglas, came top of the ballot for private members' bills in the House of Commons and agreed to champion the Sustainable Communities Bill and take it through Parliament. It has cross party support from more than 400 MPs - a strong majority.
Publicly backed by David Cameron, on 15 June 2007 the Bill passed its third reading in the House of Commons and will now proceed to the House of Lords. If successful there it will have started a process of 'bottom-up' government that hopefully signifies the end of the 'Whitehall-knows-best' variety of politics. Much of its success can be attributed to the unprecedented level of grassroots support this campaign has enjoyed from communities all over the country.
But it isn't quite over yet - it still has to go through the House of Lords before it will become law. So we still need to take action at a local level and get involved in shaping our own local community.
Planning Local Development Framework (LDF) Wandsworth Council is drawing up a borough planning framework called the Local Development Framework (LDF) to replace existing development plans. There are a number of consultation periods involved in designing the LDF and so a number of opportunities for us to contribute and influence Council-led policies that will protect the Northcote area in a way that retains its distinctive character. This is a complex process to that has been underway for some time now and will continue throughout 2007 and into 2008.
By getting some of our ideas on how we would like Northcote Road to be supported into the Council's Core Strategy Document, they will benefit from the force of law and could be making some impact by autumn 2007, although the formal plan may not be adopted until 2009.
The most recent consultation closed on 15 December 2006 and we submitted our suggestions which you can read in detail here.
In short, we proposed:
The whole of Northcote and Webbs Road is regarded as one unit. This means that any financial grants and loans available for town centres would be available to the whole of each road.
Northcote Road is designated a Local Shopping Conservation Area. By this we mean that any new development must be able to demonstrate that it will sustain and add to the vibrancy, vitality and diversity to the road. This is a new idea but we claim that it is commensurate with government guidelines. If Wandsworth Council wishes to match its words with deeds then it should embrace this strategy.
The Council did not mention a strategy for street markets in its draft document. But we have strong views about the value a flourishing market can bring to the street. We will therefore be seeking ways of promoting and nurturing a more active market than now.