Fortune Green and West Hampstead Neighbourhood Forum officially recognised by Camden Council
Committee members of newly recognised West Hampstead Neighbourhood Forum. Left to Right - Sue Measures,Nick Jackson,chairman James Earl, Stephen Nathan, Mark Stonebank and Cllr Keith Moffitt - Credit: Nigel Sutton
Residents in Fortune Green and West Hampstead will have the chance to shape their surroundings as the area’s first neighbourhood forum was official recognised by Camden Council last week.
Neighbourhood Forums are set up under the government’s Localism Bill and are designed to put plans for development in the hands of the community.
Organisers have been drumming up support for the Fortune Green and West Hampstead Neighbourhood Forum for a year and the formal recognition means it will now have more power and sway over planning decisions.
James Earl, chairman of the forum said: “We are most interested in the area around the three stations because that has been indentified as an area of growth in London and Camden - with 800 new homes and 100 new jobs being created.
“We can’t alter that, but people are concerned about how that is going to affect the area, how we’ll accommodate that, and how we deal with the infrastructure that is needed.”
Mr Earl, who lives in Fordwych Street, said there is concern that the stations will not be able to accommodate the extra people moving to the area.
“Now they’ve approved all these homes, they will need to redevelop the stations, and they will need new primary and secondary schools,” he said.
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“There may even need to be a new doctor’s surgery. It hasn’t been fully thought through, and we want to protect the best of what we have in West Hampstead.”
The group, which already has 100 members, wants to recruit more people to attend meetings, which will be held regularly.
To find out more visit the forum’s website at www.ndpwesthampstead.org.uk
