Richard Wilson

Tomorrow is the Area Assembly for the Stroud Green, Crouch End and Hornsey area, which is being held in Priory Park from 12 noon.   The focus will be on health and sport. There will be lots of opportunities to hear and ask questions about health provision in Haringey, how to register at a GP; penalty shoot outs with the Tottenham Hotspur Foundation and the opportunity to find out about volunteering to help at the Olympics.

Between 12 and 2pm there will be a ‘health fair’ with stalls to find out more about local services and participate in health awareness activities.  This will include information on cancer screening information, diabetes prevention, and stopping smoking.  From 2pm-4pm will be the actual Assembly, which will include a presentation on the area’s new Neighbourhood Health Centre on Park Road, and also the usual opportunities for residents to raise issues from the ’soap box’.

This is the second Assembly we’ve had in the Park, and I hope that this one will be as successful as the ‘intergenerational’ one 2 years ago in getting a wider group of people involved.  Crouch End Councillor Lyn Weber has been the driving force behind these Assemblies and will be chairing as usual.

Tonight is the local Area Assembly 7.30pm to 9.30pm in Stroud Green School (entrance on Perth Road).  The theme this time is green issues, and there will a number of presentations from local community groups working on green projects. These include a talk from ‘Urbivore’ on urban growing, healthy eating and sustainable living, and ‘Foodcycle’ on food recycling and a community cafe for Haringey.

The Assembly will also give people the chance to have their say on the bids that have been submitted by local residents to the ‘Making the Difference’ grants programme. There has been a wide range of applications, such as new benches for bus users and new kits for a youth football team.

As usual there will be the opportunity for residents to have their say in the ’soap box’ segment and to quiz a Haringey Council cabinet member, and Cllr Lyn Weber will be keeping order as Chair.  Please do come along and join in!

As well as being the deadline for views on the W3 Bus (see previous post), this Friday is also the deadline for submitting ideas to our local neighbourhood improvement fund for 2010/11.  The way it usually works is that all the feasible ideas go to an Area Assembly meeting for residents to comment on and then local councillors make the final decision based on these views.

In previous years we’ve managed to get a few good little projects approved, such as the children’ s mural on Quernmore Road by Harringay Station and improvements opposite Tesco on Stroud Green Road (see picture of me planting a tree outside Charter Court a few years ago with local residents and representatives of the Council).

But despite the Council’s whopping £3 million ‘communications’ budget there is not enough promotion of the fund, and we don’t get enough bids in from Stroud Green residents.  So I’m trying to drum up interest by contacting individuals and by posting here.  The leaflet and application form for the “making the difference” programme 2010/11 is here.  And if you’re interested in finding out more then please attend the next local Area Assembly meeting which is tonight at 7.30pm in St Mary’s Junior School in Rectoiry Gardens – details here.

And this really could be the last chance for Making the Difference, because if the Liberal Democrats take control of Haringey in May we’re determined to replace it with a bigger and better system of devolving spending down to local neighbourhoods.  We want to give people real power over their local area and to encourage greater participation in local decisions.

On 30th April I posted a photo of the cleared-up grot spot on the corner of Upper Tollington Park and Oakfield Road.  Well Laura and I checked out the progress a few days ago, and its looking even better now its finished.

The money for this clean-up came from left-over money in the local neighbourhood fund for 2008/09.  Bids are now in from residents for projects from the 2009/10 fund, and on Tuesday I attended a meeting to look at the proposals.  There are some great ideas to plant trees, install bike racks, hold community events and improve local parks.

Residents can have their say on which projects should get funded at the next Area Assembly, which is at 7.30pm on Thursday 21st May at Rokesly Junior School, Rokesley Avenue N8 8NH.  Come along if you want to find out more.