Category: West Ealing

Clamping down on street crime

The Walpole and Elthorne Ward police teams have jointly launched a new coordinated operation with the support of additional specialist officers drawn from across the Borough.  The aim is to tackle prolific crimes including street drinking, drug dealing and general Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB).  We will be targeting hotspot areas such as Dean Gardens and West Ealing Broadway.  There will be a specific emphasis on tackling street drinkers in public areas, as local residents have identified this type of ASB as being their major concern because it has a detrimental impact on the whole local community.  Officers will particularly enforce the Controlled Drinking Zone dispersal powers.

Already, the first two days have been very active with Operation Sparta, our visible policing support team, conducting 20 stops on our most prolific street drinkers and dispersing them from the area.  The uniformed team are supported by a specialist plain clothes team and together they have arrested a man in Dean Gardens for being drunk and disorderly and failing to comply with a dispersal order, and two people for possession with intent to supply class A drugs on Leeland Terrace.

This operation runs in conjunction with Operation Freyja on Elthorne which has been targeting active drug dealing in Chignell Place.  Operation Freyja has been active for the last five months and produced some good results including a multi-agency raid with the Council and ongoing plain clothes proactive work leading to 36 arrests and the closure of a ‘drug factory’.

Officers can be contacted on a dedicated mobile phone (07824 529679) or via our office number 020 8721 2949 which gives you a direct link to Police Officers to contact them and report any street drinkers congregating or causing any Anti-Social Behaviour.  There is also an answerphone facility if officers are busy dealing with incidents or the 101 number; alternatively we can be contacted by our email at walpole.snt@met.police.uk.

The neighbourhood teams will not only be taking a firm line against ASB, they will also be gathering evidence to support a ‘Public Spaces Protection Order’ (PSPO) in West Ealing which when granted will provide Police Officers a number of powers to deal more robustly with street drinkers.  Powers include confiscation of alcohol, dispersal of groups and banning ‘legal highs’ as well as restrictions on the use of playground equipment in Dean Gardens by adults.

Other successful multi-agency initiatives

The Police and Ealing Council’s Safer Communities Team have been working together to tackle anti-social outdoor drinking across the Borough and to identify and tackle problem areas, individuals and premises.  Police Officers have been joined by outreach workers from RISE, Ealing Council’s commissioned drug and alcohol intervention service.  Recently Walpole SNT in partnership with the Council have been successful in obtaining a premises closure order on Kirkfield Close as a result of resident reports of active drug dealing.  Similarly, as a result of building and providing evidence against the Broadway International shop, we have achieved the revocation of their 24 hour off-licence.  This should make a significant difference to the occurrence of ASB in the Walpole and Elthorne areas.

 

 

Please remember:  you can always contact the Police on 101 for Non-Emergency calls.  In an Emergency always dial 999.

A New Plan for Ealing Broadway

Both West Ealing and Ealing Broadway have neighbourhood forum plans nearing completion. These plans, if accepted by the Council, residents and businesses, will influence the development of these two town centres for 10 and more years to come. So they matter. The closing date for comments on the West Ealing plan  is 5th October. Information about the Ealing Broadway plan is below:

A ground breaking new plan for Ealing Broadway has been sent to the Council by the Central Ealing Neighbourhood Forum.

The plan will influence development in the centre over the next ten years. It shows how Central Ealing can respond to the opportunities and threats of Crossrail.

CENF is the first business neighbourhood in London to submit a Plan under the Localism Act. It has been created by a partnership of local residents, businesses and community organisations.

It believes Ealing should be a distinctive and welcoming place for people to shop, work, study or just visit. It should be the natural focus for the wider area, based on the special character of its buildings and green spaces, and be a regional centre of excellence for culture and education.

The Forum wants everyone to get engaged . The plan details can also be seen here.

Ealing Council now has to arrange for a formal consultation on the Plan and for an independent Examiner to assess it. It will then be put to separate referendums of local residents and businesses, and if both groups vote in favour it will become part of Ealing’s official local plan.

The first Ealing Art Trail is running this coming weekend. There are over 130 artists in their own houses, studios and workshops to see. Full details of all the venues are on the BEAT website

The weather forecast looks good for the return of the West Ealing SoundBite Festival to Dean Gardens on Saturday.  SoundBite is a free food and music festival for all the family celebrating the rich diversity of the area.

Music

We have a full music programme from 1pm-9pm including local choirs, talented local band Du Bellows, the Brunk Band’s  brass punk ‘n’ ska sound and the urgency of Smiley & The Underclass. Also this year a special guest appearances by renowned UK-based Somali musician Hudeydi and Somali funk musicians Dur-Dur Band International. See the full programme on www.soundbitefestival.org

Children’s Activities

Donkey rides, face-painting, funfair rides, games, Giant Lego and children’s cookery are just some of the activities on offer for younger children whilst a climbing wall, shoot-out football, along with the free wi-fi bus are part of our whole new activity area for teenagers.

Food

On the food front, West Ealing’s Hilltop Roti bring their delicious Caribbean wraps, The Forester pub bring their popular BBQ food and, for the first time, visitors can get a taste of some Somali favourite dishes. Tom’s back with his ice cream van and top quality coffee will be available throughout the day. To tempt visitors to our craft tent we have local honey, apple juice and some hand-made local gifts.

Lastly, remember to visit our community stalls and have your say about how you would like to see Dean Gardens be developed for the community.

Full details can be found at www.soundbitefestival.org

I was shocked to hear yesterday that David Eales has died. He was an early member of West Ealing Neighbours and a great supporter of our efforts. He was passionate about cycling and worked tirelessly to help and encourage others to get cycling. I remember being very pleased one year when he had time to help out with our Abundance project by cycling round collecting surplus fruit from houses across Ealing.  It seemed to perfectly capture the spirit of the project. He was always generous with his time and  helped us with the cycling proposals we put in our report about improving pedestrian safety at the Lido Junction.

My abiding memory of him is of seeing him cycling past our house on his way to his allotment on Northfields Avenue with his spade and tools stashed in the bike’s trailer.

Our condolences to his family at this sad time. West Ealing will miss him.

David Highton

 

 

 

 

I missed exactly when this happened but the Morrisons store below The Gym on the Uxbridge Road has been taken over by the Co-op.  So that means both Morrisons in West Ealing have gone now.  The small one in the centre (which used to be Blockbusters) has been replaced by Bensons for Beds and now this second one has gone.  Seems like they made an ill thought out expansion and have paid the price for it.

 

It was due to have closed this spring for redevelopment but had a stay of execution as the developer put their plans on hold. Now, however, the failed sale of BHS to Dominic Chappell has caught up with the store and the closing down sale signs are up. It’s a shame for shoppers and staff and, in some way, the end of an era when West Ealing had many of the large multiples – M&S, WH Smith, Mothercare and more. BHS is the last to go. Let’s hope ths ite isn’t left undeveloped for too long as BHS going leaves a big gap on the high street.

If you live in West Ealing you’ll very probably know that the supermarket Broadway International used to have a 24-hour alcohol licence. Earlier in the year the licence was reviewed by the Council following detailed work by the police highlighting a range of problems associated with this store. West Ealing Neighbours and other residents’ groups gave evidence outlining the many alcohol-fuelled problems caused to residents, shops and traders by anti-soical behaviour in and around Dean Gardens and Melbourne Ave. As a result of the review the Council revoked Broadway International’s licence. However, the store appealed and was continuing to sell alcohol until the appeal was due to be heard in August.  Now though the store has a new name, Istanbul Gate, has dropped its appeal and no longer sells alcohol. From what I hear this has already made a difference and the level of late night disturbances and anti-social behaviour appears to have dropped. I sincerely hope this is true and local residents get undisturbed nights from now on. I also wish Istanbul Gate good luck with their alcohol-free iniative and really hope it’s a success for them.

Ealing Soup Kitchen supports vulnerable people

This article by Smriti Gopal is from our latest newsletter:

Street drinking, homelessness and vulnerable people in and around Dean Gardens and the rest of West Ealing are a cause for concern to the local community.  Meanwhile, nearby, the Ealing Soup Kitchen and St. John’s Church, both, on Mattock Lane have been and still currently provide support to the vulnerable people in hope that at least some of these people will be encouraged to have a better lifestyle.

On Wednesday 8^th June 2016, West Ealing Neighbours (WEN) met up and talked to Ealing Soup Kitchen’s, Homeless Support Worker, Andrew Mcleay, to find out more about how the Ealing Soup Kitchen and St. John’s Church help the vulnerable people in West Ealing.  Mcleay said: “Initially Ealing Soup Kitchen started to give out food from The Church Room in St. John’s Gardens.  In the beginning, St. John’s primarily served soup for about 30 years.  10 years ago, Ealing Soup Kitchen decided to set up a Drop In Centre, in St. John’s Church, where we provide sleeping bags, council support, housing and benefit support and free haircuts and free clothes.”

Mcleay elaborated on street drinking, homeless and vulnerable people and the support offered by the Ealing Soup Kitchen for this community.  He told us that approximately 80% of their clients do drink.  Sometimes the reason for street drinking is homelessness and their adverse circumstances.  If the homeless don’t have a social network and are mixing with others with similar circumstances, they are likely to get into a habit of consuming alcohol excessively.  A significant number of these people hang out in Dean Gardens.  So Ealing Soup Kitchen has also set up an Ealing Evening Hub from 7-9pm on Mondays to encourage street drinkers to give up drinking and get involved in more positive activities here, where they are not allowed to drink alcohol.

In addition to helping vulnerable people getting off the streets, Ealing Soup Kitchen also works with some of the associations and organisations to support these people.  Mcleay said: “We work with an association called, Recovery & Intervention Service Ealing (RISE).  RISE provide a lot of intervention and recovery to people who are suffering from being addicted to alcohol.  RISE comes to the Ealing Soup Kitchen and helps these people with all that they are going through.  We also want to help to sort out people’s situations and try to improve their lifestyle both holistically and physically.”

Some of these vulnerable people feel very open to talk about their situations while others may not like to reveal.  These people might feel afraid to disclose their circumstances.  Mcleay revealed what impact, the Ealing Soup Kitchen has had on vulnerable people who have been supported.  He said: “There are a significant number of success stories that we have had.  One of these vulnerable people is, Alan Simpson who is our trustee.  Simpson was our client for four years.  He was living on the streets.  We managed to get him housed in a property in South Ealing.  As a result of his thankfulness Simpson came on board and he networked with us.  He’s one of the rarest homeless people I’ve met, in the sense that he drinks in moderation.  Simpson feels he doesn’t need to have an alcoholic drink or get involved in drugs.  He smokes.  It’s rare to be on the streets for so long and not have a mental health problem, drinking problem or drug problem.  These are the three things one can be prone to while living on the streets.  Living on the streets can be a toxic lifestyle, sometimes.”  One of the reasons why some of these new initiatives have been set up is to try to improve the lifestyle of vulnerable people, the local residential area and surrounding areas in West Ealing.

News just in – the Secretary of State is calling in for review the Ealing Council approved plans for redeveloping the centre of Ealing Broadway at 9-42 The Broadway. The plans for this were controversially passed by the Council despite considerable opposition from residents’ and heritage groups.  This is now the second time plans for this site have been called in by the Secretary of State.  The previous plan from Glenkerrin was passed by Ealing Council, called in by the Secretary of State who then rejected the plan.

The full story is on Save Ealing’s Centre’s website