Forum Topics

Pass the bucket!

From Guy's latest newsletter:"Tuesday morning I meet with a resident and the dedicated and lovely Councillor Linda Green – who I’m very sad won’t be standing for re-election..."They really can't help themselves, can they?

Phil Andrews ● 3095d17 Comments ● 3093d

Isleworth Lib Dem candidates

I see from a Facebook post that the Lib Dems will be fielding Rob Thorpe and Joe Bourke in Isleworth in the upcoming elections.  Also they will be seeking local views tomorrow (Saturday 24th) on South Street in the vicinity of the Co-Op from 12pm.With the Tories evidently all over the place in the ward and Labour descending to ever new levels of dodginess I hope Rob and Joe appreciate the potential that Isleworth offers to any genuine, serious, community-focussed alternative which is prepared to put in the work.  If they go for it they have a chance, if they mount a token campaign then they'll get a token vote.All the above info is second hand, so apologies if it is in any way inaccurate.

Phil Andrews ● 3096d5 Comments ● 3093d

Re-Open Church Street Now! - Public Meeting 10th March at 1.00pm

The Brentford and Isleworth Conservative Association have issued a flyer detailing a public meeting to be held on the 10th March at 1.00pm.Venue -  Royal British Legion, 5 North Street, Isleworth, TW7 6BT.The heading reads Re-Open Church Street Now!

Brian McMillan ● 3112d31 Comments ● 3093d

Brompton Bikes

Not strictly to do with Brentford anymore unfortunately but I noticed yesterday that you can now hire Brompton Bikes by Twickenham StationThey are stored in lockers and the design looked very good indeed and  I am sure that Mobikes could learn a lot from thishttps://www.bromptonbikehire.com/docks/3149-london:-twickenham-station

Paul Fisher ● 3099d15 Comments ● 3094d

Recycling - or  maybe not?

Last night's Evening Standard "A west London council was to day accused of misleading the public over recycling as it admitted that all waste from street bins goes to landfill or is incinerated. Hounslow said that despite providing separate recycling receptacles with its public bins, the waste is not sorted and it is all disposed of together.A resident brought the practice to light after he challenged council workers that rubbish from his flat - above a shop in Chiswick High Rd.- was not being recycled, having seen the bags being thrown into a general waste lorry." "A council spokeswoman said the bins marked recycling were part of an obsolete trial. She said: "Hounslow Highways have completed some trials in the past promoting recycling from litter bins and had placed dual-use bins on the network for this purpose. However, these trials have not been successful as the recycling was predominantly contaminated with non-recyclable materials. We are again working with partners to agree solutions for the future."

Vanessa Smith ● 3097d2 Comments ● 3094d

BLACK PLASTIC FOOD POTS/TRAYS

I'm starting a new thread as - originally put it at the end of the Christmas recycling one which has got too long and is all past and done.   My daughter in Brentford received a note in her recycling box to say that LBH could not recycle black plastic food pots and trays - nothing about this in Chiswick and the council continue to collect these in the plastics recycling.   I think it's something to do with the dye used - what is the correct procedure please, Philippa or Guy

Jennifer Selig ● 3163d23 Comments ● 3095d

Ballymore - high street regeneration

I thought the demolition has started for the a 3rd part of the whole plan. Are there any key dates that could be disclosed?- when is the demolition meant to be finished for this first part?- when is building meant to start?At the same time, what is the status about the 2 other parts? Any details about next steps?It would be great to get this level of detail if possible moving forward.Thanks!

Sebastien Liaudet ● 3096d2 Comments ● 3096d

Controlling population growth

Adam says "Of course my preferred deterrent of controlling population growth is seen as blasphemy by many people, so in the meantime we'll have to do something a tad less extreme."What would be the reaction if the Government only applied benefits to the first child and refused to offer any assistance to subsequent children?   Would that make some families limit the size of their families.  Afterall, we don't need more children to help with milking the goats or ploughing a furrow.   I read somewhere that each child in this country costs thousands of £'s to rear.   It therefore behoves parents to reproduce a child only when they themselves can afford to pay for it.   Seems very draconian but how else?  We as a country ain't got much more room for any more people.

Jennifer Selig ● 3098d10 Comments ● 3096d

Heathrow noise & safety

In case anyone wants to complain about being woken up in the wee small hours by some snot nosed pilot juggling his throttles on approach, the email addresses are noise@heathrow.com and communityschemes@heathrow.com.  And since I was woken up early today and therefore am in a grumpy old combative mood, here’s an email I’ve sent. I added on the safety question as I’ve been meaning to ask it for a while now.Dear SirThere only appears to be these two emails on your website to send an email to.  My noise issue below is clearly going to the correct department, but perhaps you can forward my safety one to the relevant manager.Noise:What exactly was 04:42 hrs flight that passed over Kew/Brentford up to this morning?  It was sufficiently loud that it woke me up, despite double glazing and closed windows.  Was it one of those Russian built planes that don't have proper engines, or just someone playing with the throttles?Once awake of course, I then heard the 04:44, 04:47, 04:54, etc 'heavies' coming in from their overnight transcontinental flights.Within the reports downloadable on your website, you note that noisy aircraft at night are fined £4000 per decibel.  Given that you took 1 hour of my sleep, which has made me a little tired and grumpy at work today, can you please compensate me from this fund.Safety:I couldn't find anything in your documentation that puts a quantitative risk figure on the annual chance that an aircraft doesn't make it to the runway and instead lands through the houses or towns on the approach.  Can you direct me to the risk analysis report, which I am sure you keep regularly up to date, and am equally sure is available under freedom of information.I ask because there appear to have been quite a few instances of 'fuel emergencies', with aircraft coming in on fumes and not being able to line up in the landing pattern. Indeed, I was on one of these a few years back; commenting to my BA pilot neighbour that a long-haul flight I'd been on had come straight in and landed on a Friday evening, he suggested it had probably been about to run out of gas.  We all know about the Concorde that ran out of fuel whilst taxiing to its gate, and the flight that just cleared the perimeter fence before ploughing through the grass verge of the runways, so there's been enough for you to calculate the annual probability that one doesn't make the airport.Similarly, the Russian flight this week that dropped its cargo on take-off, the 747 that took off from Schipol and flew into a block of flats (I was living close to it at the time so remember that one well), the Concorde from Charles De Gaul, and numerous other take off incidents, have allowed quantified risk probabilities to be calculated for all airports for crashes into populated areas on take-off and landing.I'd like to know what the risks at Heathrow are, both for landing and take-off with respect to fatality numbers and property destruction.  Specifically, I'd like to know the calculated return period for third party fatalities.I hope you can help on the above two topics With kind regards

Lorne Gifford ● 3103d1 Comments ● 3097d

Garages - Albany Road

Can someone explain how you are supposed to get your car out of the garage when this happens?https://ibb.co/jD164chttps://ibb.co/frWHAH

Ian Fillingham ● 3102d14 Comments ● 3097d

Heating Engineer / Plumber Recommendation

Looking for Recommendations for a Heating Engineer / Plumber who can advise on the best heating, cold water system, for a small flat and install.Please, don't include the usual suspects often recommended on the forum

Bernard Allen ● 3098d0 Comments ● 3098d

Is the Ballymore development past its best before date?

With news today of yet more High Street retailers heading towards collapse including more bastions of British Retail a sign that the Brentford Development is a disaster waiting to happen?The anticipated High rents, rates and expectations of blue chip retailers coming to Brentford must now be nothing more than a rose tinted pipe dream.Developments with limited parking, lack of infrastructure, a lunatic decision to move an arts centre in a unique position with no more than a bunch of trustees with very little idea how to achieve viability, overdensificaction and not a single infrastructure improvement or protection of existing open spaces and facilities for elderly, health or recreation, inability to maintain what exists are hardly going to make this an attractive area.So should the plans for the development not be reviewed with urgency to incorporate facilities and housing for older citizens, better infrastructure and flexibility to counter the massive reduction in retail and catering businesses.?It's been looking dodgy for a while now but the shrinkage in retail is far more sever and rapid.Government needs to sort out the debacle of business rates permanently. As with the Morrisons site, the initial approval for a massively risky and damaging proposal, ( recommended by LBH planning ) is indicative of the recklessness playing into the hands of developers has become and the willingness of LBH elected representatives and officers to cosy up to such types in places like Cannes really ought to be fully investigated.

Raymond Havelock ● 3100d0 Comments ● 3100d

Council report on trf of parks contract obtained through FOI (Freedom of Information request)

Sharing this, as I think people should be aware of the council's plans for parks.Cabinet Report Parks Tranformation

The plan seems to be to drive as much revenue out of them as they can and reduce the maintenance. It doesn't sound as though money raised will be spent back on the parks.People using parks are now being referred to as customers, rather than park users or the public. Sounds as though you will be welcome if paying to attend an event or to access a pay to use facility, but not otherwise.The notion of a local Authority as providing public services seems to be lost.A Lampton 360 company will run parks and be responsible for developing them. Accounts available on other Lampton 360 companies have virtually no information in them, so no chance the public will know what money is raised through parks and what its spent on.One mention of Friends groups in the last paragraph to say they will be consulted with other stakeholder on new specifications, which it says elsewhere in the report will be reduced.

Steve Jones ● 3111d10 Comments ● 3102d

Life long CPZ parking permit

There is a car parked in BRS zone now with a parking permit valid until 15/03/2099! It is for Area R. Does anyone know what is it?

Alex Shpinkov ● 3103d9 Comments ● 3102d

Lost cat

Our lovely tabby cat is missing. He's not difficult to identify, he has one eye. Please call on 07880 796687 if you think you've seen himThank you

Lesley Mitchell ● 3106d1 Comments ● 3103d

Hounslow's planners make 'Private Eye' yet again.

Just who do Hounslow council pay any attention to?In this latest 'Eye' Nooks and Corners column Hounslow are heavily criticised for approving a development called Albany Riverside on the old Watermans site. These will be'significantly higher' than existing buildings which are 'largely screened from view to anyone standing in Kew Gardens'.'Historic England says the buildings, the tallest of which will be seven storeys, will cause multiple instances of harm to the setting. In a letter to planners they show how the new buildings will clutter the backdrop to the palace. At present, their letter explains "the parkland and historic buildings are framed by trees and sky alone. The whole effect is picturesque, humane and has taken centuries to develop". This goes on to say "This clearly harms the experience of visitors to Kew and obscures the Arcadian qualities that are a defining feature of the environment".The Chiswick Curve turned down by Hounslow is due to go to appeal in June. apprently Historic England 'have warned Hounslow planners that allowing Albany Riverside would set an "uncontrollable precedent for further new buildings within the hinterland of the world heritage site." I just wonder how a member of the planning committee one Cllr. Lambert thinks supporting closing 'picturesque' Church St.  which in the great scheme of things is pretty small beer squares with this decision which will impinge on such an important national and international heritage site?

Vanessa Smith ● 3108d28 Comments ● 3104d

Will local Labour consult its own members?

I see local Labour will be holding a "local manifesto consultation" at the Civic Centre on Monday to thrash out the policy platform on which it will be fighting this year's local elections.According to its Facebook page, Momentum Hounslow is petitioning for the adoption of a radical manifesto which, after all, would only bring it into line with the national party and the manifesto with which it fought the general election last year.We know the attitude this lot take towards consultation with ordinary residents but will they, I wonder, be any more inclined to listen to their own grass roots members?  Or will they treat them will the same contempt as they show to the rest of us?I reproduce below the full wording of the petition, purely in the interests of debate:Commit to an anti-austerity manifesto in line with Labour’s 2017 national manifesto*  For a no-cuts Hounslow Labour budget*  Council houses for Hounslow’s people, not private build for developers’ profits*  State schools, not faith schools or academiesWe call on  Hounslow Labour group councillors to Commit to an anti-austerity manifesto in line with Labour’s 2017 national manifestoTo support Hounslow’s people, with distinct policies from the Tories’ austerity agenda, we call on Labour councillors to support the following pledges for the 2018 Local Government Elections.*  A no-cuts budget *  Stop privatisation of services and bring contracts back in house where possible*  Withdraw pledge not to increase council tax. Consider alternative options, including raising it by up to 6%, or a progressive tax, where those in higher value properties see a larger increaseSpecific policy commitments to include:Housing*  All homes built on council-owned land to be council houses, using Public Works Borrowing Board funds up to the max Housing Revenue limit*  Freeze council rents, stop evictions related to rent arrears.*  Use CPOs or Empty Dwelling Management Orders to acquire properties that have been empty over the long term*  Double council tax on empty properties*  Provide shelters for rough sleepersSocial Care*  Restore carers, meals on wheels and home help*  Re open day care centres that have been closed over the past 8 years*  Bring service contracts back in house, paying London Living WageHeathrow*  Make clear Labour’s opposition to third runway in our public campaigning*  Join the anti-third runway campaign Local Council NetworkEducation*  Build new state schools as annexes to existing schools, as an alternative to faith and academy schools *  Restore Youth Centre funding and re-open those which have been closed over the past 8 years

Phil Andrews ● 3108d21 Comments ● 3105d

The Chiswick Invasion Friday 2nd March

The Chiswick Invasion, a concert held at Chiswick School, is returning for the third year running - with a rock stellar line-up for the 2018 concert in aid of Nordoff Robbins, the charity that transforms lives though music therapy. Please click on the link to purchase tickets.https://www.gigantic.com/chiswick-invasion-chiswick-school-2018-03-02-17-30

Liz Gers ● 3121d4 Comments ● 3106d

Brrrrr

Tucked up, snug as a bug, and warm as toast ... and would like to say thank you to all those people out working in this weather.  Keep safe. x

Sarah Felstead ● 3121d7 Comments ● 3108d

ENERGY BOOST on Monday

Energy Therapists will be at the London Buddhist Vihara, The Avenue, W4 1UD on Monday, 12th March, between 11am and 1pm (last session 12.45).  The session takes about 15-20 minutes and I am sure that you will feel really good at the end of that time, with lots of vital energy to enable you to enjoy the rest of your week!  A number of therapists come each month and give their services free.  The Vihara kindly allow us to use the hall at no charge so a donation is most welcome as this enables us to give all donations to the Vihara.These sessions are not related to any religion, everyone is welcome.

Pat Smith ● 3110d0 Comments ● 3110d