A Busy Year for Harringay Residents

by Ian Sygrave

Since the last issue of this magazine, life has gradually been returning to its more familiar rhythm and patterns, although the post-Covid world is, in many ways, a more difficult and challenging environment for all of us.

The work and focus of the Ladder Community Safety Partnership (LCSP) inevitably reflects those oncerns which have the biggest impact on local residents as they go about their daily lives. Top of the list over the past twelve months have been issues around drug dealing and taking in the residential Ladder roads (and front gardens), often associated with known and identifiable addresses as the sources of the problem. The LCSP and its members have worked closely with our local police officers in the Harringay SNT (Safer Neighbourhood Team), and with the council ASB (anti-social behaviour) Team in order to deal with this issue.

The LCSP always encourages residents to report any incident, no matter how apparently insignificant. This is for two reasons. Firstly it can be a key piece of information which makes sense of an ongoing investigation by the police, or the council. Secondly, there is a link between reported incidents and the allocation of police resources. In the case of Harringay Ward, the very good news is that the number of dedicated officers is increasing. As from December 2023 we will have 1 Sgt, 4 PCs and 1 PCSO, with more PCSOs in the pipeline, following recruitment and training.

There have already been some notable successes within the Ward, with a number of arrests of key individuals and Closure Orders on specific addresses. However, some locations (and the individuals who have been placed there by councils and housing associations) remain a serious problem in terms of criminal activity and ASB. It is also evident that closer partnership working between the police and the council, and between different council departments, has a significant and positive impact on many difficulties which need a joined up solution. For example, there has been very helpful co-operation between the SNT and the ASB Team, but this needs to be replicated across the board by other council department and external agencies.

Following on from these concerns; a very well attended LCSP meeting had a single focus on the issue of Enforcement, in all its many and varied forms, including planning, licensing and anti-social behaviour. This was arranged at the request of many of our members. We all know, to take just a couple of examples, how noisy neighbours or a rogue landlord, have the ability to destroy everyday quality of life. It is therefore really important for residents to understand what the law says and what services are available to help. Guest speakers from the council, along with police and ward councillors, all ensured that residents left our meeting much better informed than when they arrived. Now that Haringey no longer has Neighbourhood Forums or Area Assemblies, the role of the LCSP in bringing key partners together face to face, is more important than ever.

As noted in the last edition of the Green Lanes magazine, the LCSP is always very active in the significant areas of planning and licensing, keeping an eye on late night applications with a potential for undue noise nuisance or anti-social behaviour and on new gambling outlets, especially Adult Gaming Centres (AGCs) with their banks of slot machines. In addition to ensuring that their opening hours are limited to 9am – 11pm (rather than 24/7), we have also managed to get the council to amend its Gambling Policy Statement 2022-25, so that Harringay Green Lanes is now added to the list of Areas of Vulnerability, making it more difficult for new gambling outlets to open. This is an important achievement, which would not have happened without the efforts of the LCSP.

Another major area of concern for residents this year has been environmental issues. The LCSP has successfully secured Tree Preservation Orders (TPOs) for a group of trees on Wightman Road, and we are hoping to obtain similar protection for many other trees elsewhere in the ward, and nearby. However, for many of our members, pollution levels caused by vehicle movements are the most pressing environmental concern. There is no doubt that very heavy traffic in Green Lanes, rat-running in Wightman Road and the Ladder, are major contributory factors to a wide range of respiratory conditions and long-term ill health. In the case of Green Lanes, it is widely accepted that the tall buildings on both sides create a canyon effect, restricting air movement which in turn increases the concentration of airborne pollutants, which we all breathe in.

In this context, the Deputy Leader of the council (Mike Hakata), has been guest speaker at two of our meetings, and the attendance of a large number of residents on both occasions was eloquent testimony to the importance that is attached to traffic related issues. We are still awaiting news about the council’s proposals for our area, which are being presented as The Ladder Project, rather than as a Low Traffic Neighbourhood (LTN); however, like the newly installed LTNs elsewhere in the borough, this will probably prove to be equally controversial. Either way, residents can be assured that the LCSP will facilitate informed discussion and debate via its monthly meetings in the future.

Eileen O’Dwyer

This update would be sorely lacking without a tribute to Eileen O’Dwyer, who sadly passed away in December 2022. Eileen was a founder member of the LCSP and our Deputy Chair for some 20 years. She was a stalwart supporter not only of the LCSP but also of the entire local community on the Ladder. A larger than life character with an infectious laugh and a commitment to the good and positive things in life, Eileen made all of us feel the better for it and will be sorely missed by everyone who knew her.

In conclusion, if any, or all of these topics have aroused your interest, and you would like to join the LCSP, simply send an email to LCSP@blueyonder.co.uk and we will be in touch to welcome you as a member in 2024, which is our special 25th anniversary year.