3 October 2012 - Brent Council

1. Welcome and introductions
Action Notes
Wednesday, 3 October 2012 at 7.00pm
Patidar Centre, London Road, Wembley
Total attendance = 69
� Cllr Wilhelmina Mitchell-Murray (chair) introduced herself and the Lead Manager for
Brent Connects Wembley, Chris Whyte. The chair welcomed everyone present and
invited all elected members present to the front of the hall to introduce themselves.
� The following elected members were present: Cllrs Jean Hossain, Joyce Bacchus,
Emad Al-Ebadi, Harshadbhai Patel, Chandubhai J Patel, Bhagwanji Chohan, Mary
Daly, Margaret McLennan and Leslie Jones.
� Apologies: Cllrs Mohammed Butt, Ketan Sheth and Krupa Sheth, Patricia Harrison.
Matters arising from the Previous Meeting
None
2. Soapbox
See below for soapbox updates
3. Waste site stench in parts of Neasden & Wembley – Managing Director of Seneca
John Carey and one of Seneca’s engineers, discussed issues surrounding the cause of
this environmental issue and went on to talk about plans the company is putting in
place to stop future occurrence.
4. Government Welfare Reform – Phil Martin Integrated District Operations Manager at
the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) delivered a short update on the
government’s proposal for:
� on Benefit cap
� Personal Independence Payments
� Universal Credit
He stressed that Jobcentres are very keen to work with local residents to find work.
Therefore it is vital to ‘come and talk to us’!
Laurence Coaker, the council’s Head of Housing Needs, added a short synopsis on
how Brent is responding to this Central Government directive.
This includes:

� Progress on Local Housing Allowance (LHA) Caps
� Update on Overall Benefit Cap (OBC)
� Update on Council Tax Support Scheme
� Residents and service users can find out more information at LetsHelpYou
website
5. Civic Centre Consultation – Rosanna Kwok talked about the council’s development
of a public programme of arts and culture that will take place in the Civic Centre
building throughout the year. The aim is that there will be something for people of all
ages and interests. She invited residents to take part in the consultation to help
establish:
� What types of activities you would like to see in the Civic Centre
� Which organisations you would like to see in the programme – e.g. local dance
school, carnival arts organisation etc.
� Which events you are most likely to attend
� When are you most likely to attend events
For more information about this consultation or to help shape the programme visit
http://brent-consult.objective.co.uk/portal
6. Brent Connects (formerly Area Consultative Forum) – Owen Thomson explained
what the new branding means, and how it is proposed to move Brent’s public
engagement initiatives into the 21 st century.
The new portal will feature:
� Updates from the council leader
� More interactive activity with the public
� Presence of more decision makers e.g. elected members and senior managers
at forums
� BBC Question Time style debates
� More varied topics and greater emphasis on information from service areas and
partners.
In addition, Eoin Quiery, (Senior Practitioner-Diversity) gave a brief update on the new
equalities duties and explained why the council requires regular monitoring information
from residents and service users. He invited members of the audience to complete the
monitoring form provided to gather information on the protected characteristics of
attendees.
The information was collected anonymously and will only be used for the purpose of
improving Brent’s consultation service.
Questions were taken from the floor
The meeting ended at 9.10pm
All documentation is available at http://brent-consult.objective.co.uk/portal
Find out what’s going on in Wembley and Brent; go to www.visitwembleyvisitbrent.com

Wembley ACF – Feedback on Soapbox
You said We said
Provision for libraries and museums in Wembley
and Kingsbury. Promise made some years ago
to look for sites now forgotten. What about using
the Brent Town Hall? Or locate one in Wembley
Stadium or even use the WW2 air raid shelter at
Preston Park Primary School as a museum.
From Mr Dilwyn Chambers
Wembley in general
From Mr Phillip Jefferies
Clean air in Brent – pollution in Brent, traffic
filters all wrong too many people, too many
cars, too much congestion
From Mr Michael Maurice
We have a library in Brent Town Hall and this will be relocated to the Civic Centre when it
opens in 2013. The new library will be larger than the current, providing more books,
more computers and more study space.
We also provide a collection of books for parents and children at Preston Primary. As part
of the new Civic Centre there will be some museum exhibits, and the main museum will
remain in Willesden Green.
Response from: Jenny Isaac, Assistant Director, Environment & Neighbourhoods
Tel: 020 8937 5001 Email: jenny.isaac@brent.gov.uk
Comment noted
Brent and London’s population is rising but this does not directly result in increased traffic.
Indeed, traffic volume have generally been stable or declined somewhat in recent years.
Brent’s approach to accommodating population growth has been to promote
developments which encourage the use of public transport and which restrict the use of
private cars. Consequently, new developments in the Borough’s growth areas – where
the majority of new homes will be provided – have relatively low private car provision. Car
ownership may be increasing in parts of the Borough but, where the Council have controls
on this, we are seeking to limit the number of private parking spaces available. There
may be an increasing demand to park on public roads and this has prompted the
introduction of Controlled Parking Zones to control this.
Brent, and Transport for London, do review and invest in schemes to improve bus and
cycle movement as well as pedestrian crossing facilities across the Borough and in
response to new developments. However, these do not generally increase capacity on
the roads.

Charges at recycling centre
From Mrs M Keates
Unisys building
From Mrs M Keates
Buses stopping on red route - North Circular
From Mrs M Keates
Response from Stephen Weeks, Head of Area Planning, Regeneration & Major Projects
Tel: 020 8937 5238 Email: stephen.weeks@brent.gov.uk
We continue to monitor air quality to identify areas for targeted action and evaluate the
effectiveness of measures taken to reduce pollution. Air quality is improving in Brent and
this is partly due to the measures mentioned previously to limit car use and encourage
others to use less polluting modes of transport. Our Air Quality Action Plan outlines our
strategy for improving air quality in the Borough from all sources of pollution.
Response from Jennifer Barrett, Regulatory Service Manager, Environment &
Neighbourhoods
Tel: 020 8937 5284 Email: jennifer.barrett@brent.gov.uk
Response given on the night by Chris Whyte (forum lead manager)
The Unisys site has a current planning permission for conversion to a hotel but the
owners have not implemented this consent. The council’s Regeneration team are in
discussion with the owners to bring forward a mixed hotel and residential development of
the site which also includes partial redevelopment of the bridge park site. The
redevelopment of the Bridge Park site would allow the provision of sports and community
facilities but at no cost to the council tax payer and would be paid by the development
itself. Council officers will report back towards the end of the year as to whether this is
possible and, if so, will outline the nature of those proposals.
Regards
Response from Dave Carroll, Head of New Initiatives, Regeneration & Major Projects
Tel: 020 8937 5202 Email: dave.carroll@brent.gov.uk
The North Circular road and bus operations all come under the remit of Transport for
London. Brent Council does not maintain or control the operation of this road, or the bus
network. We do, of course, work closely with TfL to set out Brent residents’ and business
owner’s concerns over issues relating to strategic roads and the operation of the bus
network.
We’ll therefore pass on comments regarding the potential danger of buses stopping on

Now that restrictions have changed for building,
what is Brent intending to relax?
Celia Stern
Parks resource taken away at Monks Park.
Can we bring park wardens back?
Tony Sturgess
At Tokynton Library, Monks Park, there are
untaxed vehicles and front of the library is
usually messy
Tony Sturgess
the North Circular to TfL.
Response from Paul Chandler, Head of Transportation, Environment & Neighbourhoods
Tel: 020 8937 5151 Email: paul.chandler@brent.gov.uk
The recent announcement by the government that they are considering relaxing planning
controls over home extensions to stimulate construction have yet to be introduced. The
government have indicated that they will shortly be consulting on theses proposals prior to
reaching a final decision. It is likely that concerns will be raised by many authorities and
the Local Government Association has already warned that that the proposals will give
rise to unsightly development and cause friction between neighbours. Brent intends to
respond to the consultation.
Response from Chris Walker, AD Planning and Development, Regeneration & Major
Projects
Tel: 020 8937 5246 Email: chris.walker@brent.gov.uk
Static Warden Service was disbanded in April 2011 and the mobile Warden Service
increased to 6 members of staff throughout the borough, and work on a shift basis seven
days a week. We also have a Grounds Maintenance Team that work out of Monks Park
area now assisting with site security. There are no plans to re-provide the static park
wardens in the current economic climate. The ten posts were deleted as part of the
council’s savings package from April 2011.
Response from Amanda Haines, Resources Manager, Sports and Parks Service
Tel: 020 8937 5630 Email: amanda.haines@brent.gov.uk
During a recent visit to said location, one untaxed vehicle was identified. Vehicle owner
has been written to a seven day notice for vehicle removal attached. The tax ran out at
the end of September 2012, relevant council officers are looking to contact Brent
contractors to remove the vehicle after the 30 November as legally, the council is unable
to remove vehicles less than 2 months out of tax.
Response from Brent Recycling and Waste Team
Tel: 020 8937 5063 Email: john.rymer@brent.gov.uk
The area at the front of the library is cleaned once a week. It is likely that the area may
become untidy between sweeps as visitors may not be making use of the litter bins

HS2 construction will mean Hanger Lane will be
affected by traffic chaos – what is the council
doing to mitigate this likely problem?
Tony Sturgess
provided at this location.
Response from Chris Whyte, Head of Environment Management
Tel: 020 8937 5342 Email: chris.whyte@brent.gov.uk
HS2 Project Teams are currently undertaking design and environmental work for Phase
One in order to present a hybrid bill to Parliament by the end of 2013, with a view to
receiving Royal Assent in 2015.
Currently there has been very little engagement with Brent concerning the HS2 project. A
company named Mott McDonald has been contracted by the HS2 team to undertake a
number of surveys e.g. Parking Survey, Bus Survey etc. in those areas affected by HS2
across London. From correspondence received it would appear that the surveys will
encompass the A40 corridor and Hanger Lane Gyratory System (HLGS). The data from
the survey has not yet been released.
The HLGS and the A40 are within the London Borough of Ealing but as the roads form
part of the Transport for London Road Network (TLRN) they come under the control of
Transport for London.
The Brent borough boundary is on the A406 North Circular Road half a mile north of the
gyratory system. Although it is foreseeable that any proposed works on the gyratory
system will cause delays to traffic, Brent Council will attempt to mitigate the effects within
the borough by alerting motorists to possible interruptions in an attempt to influence
commuters/motorists to use alternative routes to avoid the area.
Once all the data have been processed, HS2 project managers will start to engage with
and alert both Ealing and Brent Councils to any possible disruption to the road network
during the undertaking of construction work - should the project go ahead.
Response from Paul Richards, Traffic Manager, Brent
Tel: 020 8937 5145 Email: paul.richards@brent.gov.uk