Chairs Report
First Anual Meeting of Clapton Pond Neighbourhood Action Group.
Chairs Report
June 3rd 2003
1.0 CPNAG was created at a public meeting held in May 2002, facilitated by the Civic Trust. Those who attended identified problems of the area around the Pond and agreed what the objects of the group should be. A form of words was subsequently adopted as our mission statement. The group’s objective is to make Clapton Pond a better place to live and work.
2.0 We have formally constituted ourselves, with officers, a management committee and a bank account (see Treasurer’s Report). CPNAG is not a legal entity, but exists as an unincorporated association. A copy of our constitution is attached to this report.
3.0 There have been monthly meetings since then, with local councillors attending several. .We also ran a highly successful meeting attended by our community police officer Ray Anderson. Full minutes have been prepared for all meetings and are shortly to be posted on our new website along with past newsletters (http://claptonpond.ground-level.org). This site is only just up – and we hope to develop it over the next few months.
4.0 We have an active membership of some 150 people – the number who have come to meetings or attended events. This group receives copies of the minutes either digitally or through the post.
5.0 We have published three newsletters, distributing 1,000 copies in the streets and estates around the Pond.
6.0 We have also run four successful, well-attended community clean-ups of the Pond and surrounding streets. On the weekend of 28/29 June we are planning a more ambitious event, involving an archaeological investigation of the Pond, repairs and painting of the shed and a small party.
7.0 In the past twelve months we have brought pressure to bear on the local authority to take better care of the Pond itself. The parks department have installed a pump system – still needs fine tuning! – and has given an undertaking to repair the bridge and install more litter bins around the Pond. We understand the park department is looking at the possibility of restoring the fountain in the centre of the Pond.
8.0 The group ran a highly effective campaign against Transport for London proposals to form a bus stand on the green space beside the Mosque on the roundabout, working closely with members of the Mosque. As a direct result of this TfL have agreed to reconsider the scheme – which we believed would harm the quality of pedestrian movement in the area – in favour of a scheme that puts the bus stand on the roundabout itself. Outline proposals have recently been sent out for consultation to local people and we are in discussion with TfL on points of detail.
9.0 We have formally affiliated with the several tenants and residents associations in the area (Gooch House, Prout Estate and Nightingale Estate), and we look forward to these links developing over the coming year. We also enjoy close relationships with a number of local businesses, in particular New Era Dry Cleaners and the Palm II Supermarket. Abdul Solak, the latter’s proprietor, has helped out in our clean-ups and generously donated refreshments to keep us going.
10.0 We have also campaigned strenuously against the Sauna and Massage Parlour opposite the Pond, in the parade of shops. Proposals were fought through the planning system and then at licensing; unfortunately we were unsuccessful in opposing the opening of this premises. In issuing permission for the development, however, the planning inspectorate limited the consent to a period of three years so that the effects of the proposal could be judged. In this campaign our MP, Diane Abbott, has been particularly helpful, writing the planning inspectorate on our behalf, and we are grateful to her for this support.
11.0 Through our campaigning we have also formed strong ties with local councillors Jessica Crowe, Abdul Mullah and Ian Rathbone. Cllr Rathbone has worked particularly hard for us on several fronts. We look forward to developing our contact with the GLA representative for our area, Meg Hillier. Matthew Carrington at Groundwork Hackney has provided invaluable support and acted as our sponsor for our successful Neighbourhood Renewal Fund application (see 11.0 below).
12.0 The most significant development for us has been to achieve core funding from the Clapton Neighbourhood Renewal Fund in the sum of £45,000. This money is being spent on a project which we have called ‘Pond Works’ – a detailed description is attached to this report. Pond Works is a community development project, with two broad aims: to build community awareness and to carry out physical improvements to the Pond itself in phases. We have already instructed professional consultants, Time and Place, to implement the first phases of Pond Works. We shall shortly be appointing specialist landscape consultants to prepare a costed landscape restoration and management plan for the Pond which can be implemented in phases, the first phase to be funded out of the current NRF award and budget. A priority for this phase is achieve a green solution to the build up of pond weed in the Pond, which is very unsightly and blocks the recycling pump recently installed by the Council. We have just, at the time of writing, received our first instalment from the local authority.
13.0 We will be seeking funding for later phases of this capital project, which we envisage will involve new lighting, better surface and increased maintenance of the pond itself. We anticipate applying for further NRF money and for a grant from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
14.0 We have been awarded a £3,000.00 grant from Hackney Community Voluntary Services towards Pond Works, and there is an application pending for a grant from Shell Better Britain.
15.0 English Heritage have very kindly offered us £5,000.00 to carry out a community heritage project. The Management Committee believes this is a very exciting opportunity to do something really innovative. It will not be a dry as dust historical study about times past, but will instead paint a picture of our diverse community now, in 2003, and try to define all the different cultural heritages that are thriving all around us, in an area that is itself historic (Clapton Pond is a Conservation Area, and there are several listed historic buildings on the east side of it).
16.0 Finally I should note a very welcome personal contribution made by Harold Pinter, the eminent playwrite, who grew up in Thistlewaite Road. The group has decided to use this gift to purchase two pairs of waders for use during our regular clean up (sizes 8 and 10).
17.0 Everyone who has devoted time to CPNAG should feel proud of what we have achieved. Our good work has attracted the attention of Tom McNulty, the Regeneration Minister in John Prescott’s Office of the Deputy Prime Minister. Mr McNulty met with myself and Rachel Short, our Vice-Chair, in late March 2003 to understand for himself the difficulties facing community groups trying to regenerate run-down, deprived areas. It was very positive and encouraging discussion.
18.0 As Chair I will take this opportunity to thank everyone who has lent a helping hand over the past year, by attending an event, helping to distribute newsletters, writing on behalf of the group or even just attending an ordinary meeting. Special thanks are due to my fellow officers, Rachel Short (Vice-Chair), Tony Gillett (Secretary) and Nick Holder (Treasurer), and to members of the Management Committee: Allen Abramson, Robin Gray, Eve Harrison and Melanie Prior. I must say, however, that our record of success in the first year is no reason to be complacent, and we all need to work to keep the momentum of what we have achieved going.
19.0 In my view the most significant challenge facing us, as a community group, is to build a broader base of support amongst the Asian, Turkish and Afro-Caribbean people in the area. We also have to work hard to prevent the monthly meetings from being dull gatherings where a core of insiders simply grind through group business. Achieving this means turning some of our monthly meetings into events, with guest speakers, dealing with the tedious, but important, business of writing letters and reviewing accounts to smaller management committee meetings. Links with local businesses need developing too.
Chris Miele
Chair, CPNAG
chris@cmiele.freeserve.co.uk
1 June 2003
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