Local resident asks for help in lobbying Lambeth against noisy use of land

[editor]

This was sent to me. By request I've take out the identifying details, but person is looking for help and advice. I suggested urban could be a good place to start.

Here's what I was sent:


Could we ask your advice/support on how best to annoy Lambeth (if indeed that can be successful)?

I live in Brixton near the corner of Winterwell Road and Bonham Road, SW2, a patch of land that used to be part of Bonham estate..... A patch of land that was part of our building and local estate has become a (sub)contractors yard/depot/semi-tip.

Until c2003 kiddies played footie there, folk walked dogs etc then Lambeth partitioned it off, reasonably enough perhaps, when new roofing and double-glazing was put in, but never returned it. It's since been a kind of twilight zone, with some public use, some Father Nature, foxes, some travellers (who were never a problem), then a Mullaley yard for about 18 months against residents' weak protests... then Mears came in and have upped the use, noise & fumes. Workers in and out themselves are mostly fine and of course have jobs to do, but traffic is way up, and noise and fumes - esp. when container lorries and skip removals go on - is a nightmare. Someone local (I'd tell you in person) with contacts told us that Lambeth has now given/sold Mears the use of the land for the coming 10 years.

It's a blimmin residential area and was/is our land and no one in Lambeth has ever notified let alone consulted with us!

Oh so naively me and the good lady and a few neighbours have been trying to get dialogue with Lambeth (Brixton Hill councillors, planning, complaints, scrutiny committee) but with scant success and almost always silence. Nothing yet from the Greens either, though we're trying again. Know anyone in the council who we can talk to about this?

We are hardly the Arches or Cressingham but we want to raise some noise. Many council residents are prepared to get involved but we don't know where to take it. Petition, letters, non-violent action, y/our Brixton Buzz & urban75, Bugle... all of the above no doubt of worth but all tips welcome!

We'd really appreciate any pointers.

 

[shakespearegirl]

We recently had a small block warehouse near us being turned into a major hardware wholesaler. lambeth had given permission for the planning change (from memory allowing trade custom on site and caging in the whole yard in front of the warehouse block) without any local consultation.
Lambeth pushed back on all residents complaints, saying they had consulted neighbours and people must have not opened the letters.
The traffic increase was going to be huge and Lambeth had obviously ignored this and felt it was acceptable (78 trucks a day going along a small one way street).
Eventually the new tenants withdrew, many local residents had contacted them to voice their objections.
The council/councillors did nothing when contacted apart from insist they had followed process even when we could show they hadn't.
Apply pressure via noise department, highways department and take evidence of high traffic volumes of lorries.
Make sure you keep email records of all comms with the council and if you don't get a response forward to the heads of department complaining.

 

[shakespearegirl]

Also, its worth checking on the Lambeth planning portal to see when a change of use was granted and if consultation process was followed.

 

[Twattor]

Also, its worth checking on the Lambeth planning portal to see when a change of use was granted and if consultation process was followed.

A 2007 planning application by Wandle Housing association to build 3 houses on the site - withdrawn. Nothing since. Must have been a patch of land Lambeth were looking to dispose of.

 

[shakespearegirl]

I'm far from a planning expert, but wouldn't they have needed some kind of permission to set up a commercial operation on the land?

 

[Dulwich Thelma]

Hey, this affects me & is really helpful. Thanks all. Shakespearegirl, great tips & delighted you all succeeded after hard work. Astonishing that such clear environmental/pollution/disturbance issues aren't discussed with us and you. More comms to the Council will happen. I couldn't find Highways Dept, think this is the same as Contact the Parking, Transport and Streets teams | Lambeth Council ? also thanks you and dear Twattor for the planning points. Indeed we residents made noise about that 2007 application & it was withdrawn. This time, & when Mullaly used it before, unclear if it was a planning issue or not. From the next to nothing obtained from Lambeth they indicate it is 'their' land so can do what they want with it, and as perhaps "temporary" containers, vehicles, tips etc, perhaps they can shake it off as a non-planning issue? Am sure they will unless we resist. I'll liaise with others and report back. Cheers all.

 

[Pickman's model]

Hey, this affects me & is really helpful. Thanks all. Shakespearegirl, great tips & delighted you all succeeded after hard work. Astonishing that such clear environmental/pollution/disturbance issues aren't discussed with us and you. More comms to the Council will happen. I couldn't find Highways Dept, think this is the same as Contact the Parking, Transport and Streets teams | Lambeth Council ? also thanks you and dear Twattor for the planning points. Indeed we residents made noise about that 2007 application & it was withdrawn. This time, & when Mullaly used it before, unclear if it was a planning issue or not. From the next to nothing obtained from Lambeth they indicate it is 'their' land so can do what they want with it, and as perhaps "temporary" containers, vehicles, tips etc, perhaps they can shake it off as a non-planning issue? Am sure they will unless we resist. I'll liaise with others and report back. Cheers all.

why not take a trip to the lambeth archives and see what you can find out there? have a look at auld council newspapers and council minutes, but ask the staff what sources they think might be useful too.

 

[salem]

Worth putting in a freedom of information request?

 

[Twattor]

Hey, this affects me & is really helpful. Thanks all. Shakespearegirl, great tips & delighted you all succeeded after hard work. Astonishing that such clear environmental/pollution/disturbance issues aren't discussed with us and you. More comms to the Council will happen. I couldn't find Highways Dept, think this is the same as Contact the Parking, Transport and Streets teams | Lambeth Council ? also thanks you and dear Twattor for the planning points. Indeed we residents made noise about that 2007 application & it was withdrawn. This time, & when Mullaly used it before, unclear if it was a planning issue or not. From the next to nothing obtained from Lambeth they indicate it is 'their' land so can do what they want with it, and as perhaps "temporary" containers, vehicles, tips etc, perhaps they can shake it off as a non-planning issue? Am sure they will unless we resist. I'll liaise with others and report back. Cheers all.

To be honest i think you're on a hiding to nothing.

If lambeth own or control the land then they can pretty much do as they want. Mears (or Mullaley) are the council's contractors undertaking works under contract- mulalley have been doing lots of refurbishments of the council's street properties in the area for a while. To function they need a local depot for storage of materials and for staff welfare facilities, and it is likely that it is a condition of their contract with Lambeth that they are provided with a suitable site. They aren't running a business, so aren't likely to need a licence or planning - just consent from the owner. It will be "temporary use" although depending on what mears are contracted to do it may go on for years.

If they are making noise at unsociable hours then you might have grounds for complaint to Lambeth's noise team, but I doubt Mears work at unsociable hours and Lambeth's noise team are a joke. If there are safety concerns (security/chemicals) then environmental health may get involved but i doubt it will change anything.

I'm afraid I don't think you'll have much luck in getting it moved, and even if you do it will just be moved into someone else's garden. I'd definitely keep moaning at them though. Go to councilors, make a noise, keep on badgering them and hopefully you can guilt them in to doing something nice with the space when they do finally go.

 

[Gramsci]

Hey, this affects me & is really helpful. Thanks all. Shakespearegirl, great tips & delighted you all succeeded after hard work. Astonishing that such clear environmental/pollution/disturbance issues aren't discussed with us and you. More comms to the Council will happen. I couldn't find Highways Dept, think this is the same as Contact the Parking, Transport and Streets teams | Lambeth Council ? also thanks you and dear Twattor for the planning points. Indeed we residents made noise about that 2007 application & it was withdrawn. This time, & when Mullaly used it before, unclear if it was a planning issue or not. From the next to nothing obtained from Lambeth they indicate it is 'their' land so can do what they want with it, and as perhaps "temporary" containers, vehicles, tips etc, perhaps they can shake it off as a non-planning issue? Am sure they will unless we resist. I'll liaise with others and report back. Cheers all.

What I do not understand is lack of response from Ward Cllrs. Its there job ( they are now paid relatively good allowances) to bring constituents issues to officers. Unlike average Joe public Council officers are obligated to answer Cllr queries.

To be frank my first advice would be to raise issue with Cllrs. It is how the system is supposed to work.

 

[Gramsci]

Hey, this affects me & is really helpful. Thanks all. Shakespearegirl, great tips & delighted you all succeeded after hard work. Astonishing that such clear environmental/pollution/disturbance issues aren't discussed with us and you. More comms to the Council will happen. I couldn't find Highways Dept, think this is the same as Contact the Parking, Transport and Streets teams | Lambeth Council ? also thanks you and dear Twattor for the planning points. Indeed we residents made noise about that 2007 application & it was withdrawn. This time, & when Mullaly used it before, unclear if it was a planning issue or not. From the next to nothing obtained from Lambeth they indicate it is 'their' land so can do what they want with it, and as perhaps "temporary" containers, vehicles, tips etc, perhaps they can shake it off as a non-planning issue? Am sure they will unless we resist. I'll liaise with others and report back. Cheers all.

There are now several Green Cllrs. Was talking to one recently at meeting. If the problem is that Labour Cllrs won't raise an issue. A Green could. Even if it's not there ward. But needs a specific question.

 

[Southlondon]

What I do not understand is lack of response from Ward Cllrs. Its there job ( they are now paid relatively good allowances) to bring constituents issues to officers. Unlike average Joe public Council officers are obligated to answer Cllr queries.

To be frank my first advice would be to raise issue with Cllrs. It is how the system is supposed to work.

Unless I’ve misssed something the issue isn’t yet that the councillors are not supporting the residents on this issue, but that they haven’t as yet responded. I suggest a visit to the ward councillors surgery to clarify their stance. They can’t not give you some sort of response if you appear in person as opposed to email correspondence. Newly elected councillors will still be in their induction period. Like any new job they are being issued with IT equipment, id passes, familiaring themselves with the key personnel, setting up email accounts and adjusting to a new work-life balance etc. Ward councillors receive a high volume of emails, as well as invites to ward activities, friends groups, residents associations, local buisnessss and of course their own party responsibilities. This is on top of their day job. Obviously around election time things are extra hectic, and ward councillor teams will be busy setting up systems to manage the workload, but with competing priorities issues can get overlooked so before slating the councillors for not responding, I strongly suggest the surgery is a good starting point. Once you know their stance on the issue you will be better placed to decide how you proceed. Speaking as a former local govt manager, I would urge you to keep FOIs to a last resort, as thanks to austerity and reduced staffing levels, an FOI can tie up officers for many hours that they can I’ll afford to lose from core duties I once had to spend nearly a whole day sorting through archived wardens note books to answer a journalists FOI on the number of dog shits on pavements reported over a 5 year period. Once you get to talk to the councillors you may well findvthey will back you anyway without the need for an FOI

 

[waywardvagabond]

Hi all -

Re: this same plot of land, I've noticed today they've just installed kerb cuts in front of the lot. I've seen no planning permission applications or the like. Anyone know what's going on?