Councillors demand action at accident black spot

Posted on 13th Apr 2012 by Lynne Featherstone

Liberal Democrats have called for urgent action to be taken by the Council to make a road in Stroud Green safer after a spate of accidents. Many local residents are increasingly concerned about the safety of Upper Tollington Park following many reports of near misses and a recent crash near Oakfield Road.

Two years ago local councillors launched a campaign to improve the safety of the road which resulted in the Council saying they would consider funding road safety improvements. Now, Liberal Democrats have said that the Council needs to act to ensure that there are not any serious accidents.

Latest figures from Transport for London show that there have been five accidents involving pedestrians in 36 months.

Cllr Richard Wilson (Stroud Green) comments:

“Since we launched our campaign to improve safety there have been a further five accidents on Upper Tollington Park. This spate of accidents should be a wake-up call to the Council who need to start listening to residents’ concerns about safety.

“Local families are really anxious about the risk to pedestrians – particularly as the crossing is used by children walking to the nearby Stroud Green Primary School.”

Lynne Featherstone MP, adds:

“Following our two-year battle with the Council to make this road safer it has now identified something needs to be done – now is the time for action, not words.”

Local MP meets trainer behind free exercise class initiative

Posted on 23rd Jan 2012 by Lynne Featherstone

To hear how free exercise classes in Finsbury Park are helping residents get back in shape after the festive season, Lynne Featherstone MP on Friday met the fitness trainer behind the initiative.

Shamir Sidhu, from MoreFit personal training studio, started the weekly FreeFit training sessions in Finsbury Park in June to help local residents get in shape for free. The trainer and his team run the classes, aimed at all levels of fitness, every Saturday at 2:30pm.

All local residents are welcome to join; they just need to show up at the Stroud Green Road entrance to Finsbury Park.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“It’s so important to exercise regularly, but for many, joining a gym is just too expensive when the budget is tight.

“It’s fantastic to meet someone like Shamir, who is really driven to help get people in shape, has a lot of expertise, and who now wants to offer that to more local residents.

“If you want to swap an hour in front of the TV for a free training session in the park, why not join FreeFit, and see if it works for you?”

Liberal Democrats join FoodCycle 1st birthday celebrations

Posted on 19th Oct 2011 by Lynne Featherstone

Liberal Democrats join FoodCycle 1st birthday celebrations

To mark one year of serving good healthy food to the people of Stroud Green, Lynne Featherstone MP and Councillor Richard Wilson joined in the festivities and visited FoodCycle Cafe to celebrate their 1st birthday on Friday.

The Cafe, in the MIND Centre in Station House on Stapleton Hall Road, which opened its doors to the people of Haringey one year ago, serves affordable vegetarian food to local residents using unwanted produced from local supermarkets.

The Stroud Green Cafe, one of only two in London, aims to recycle unwanted produce from large and small supermarkets, providing good value healthy food where it’s needed most.

Lynne Featherstone MP was recently instrumental in persuading Tesco to join the other major supermarket chains in donating unwanted food to FoodCycle.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments

“We live in a society of waste. FoodCycle is working hard to turn waste into nutrition for people who need it most. That is admirable and well worth celebrating in itself.

“Here today we are celebrating a whole year of doing this and going from strength to strength, with more people volunteering and more residents taking advantage of the yummy food on offer.

“I’m delighted to be here today and celebrate such an important occasion. I am hoping for many more good years to come!”

Cllr Richard Wilson adds:

“The Station House Cafe has proved hugely popular with local Stroud Green residents, both as customers and volunteers. Local people have really bought into the FoodCycle concept of reducing waste, protecting the environment and providing nutritious food.

“It is also fantastic to see Stroud Green’s historic Station House being used by the community for such an important cause. The Cafe has become a really busy and vibrant place for local people.”

Lynne Featherstone and local Liberal Democrats launch campaign on better access to GPs

Posted on 7th Feb 2011 by Lynne Featherstone

Haringey Liberal Democrats have just launched a campaign to make sure residents living near the Borough boundary can access GPs in neighbouring boroughs.

The action comes after residents in Stroud Green have complained of not being allowed to register with GPs surgeries just over the border in Islington.

Last Friday, Lynne Featherstone MP, Stroud Green Cllr Katherine Reece and Health Spokesperson Cllr David Winskill launched a GP survey to hear from residents in Stroud Green about their access to GPs. The health campaign is also looking at access to NHS dentists and gathering residents’ opinions on the standard of local health services.

Local councillors Katherine Reece and Richard Wilson have already met with NHS Haringey who acknowledge that registering with a GP can be a serious problem for residents in Stroud Green.

Nationally the Liberal Democrats in government are pushing to give patients the right to choose to register with the GP they want, without being restricted by where they live.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“It’s ridiculous that residents on the north side of Stroud Green Road cannot always use GPs on the south side of the road due to bureaucratic wrangling.

“We are surveying residents in Stroud Green to find out just how bad the situation is, and will be bringing the results to health bosses.”

Stroud Green Councillor Katherine Reece adds:

“It’s great that Liberal Democrats in Government are working on changing the rules about where you can register for your GP. We want to do our bit here in Stroud Green.

“However Islington PCT is refusing to recognise there is a problem with cross-border GP access. We hope this survey of local residents will change their minds and force them to work with GPs to widen access.”

Liberal Democrats launch campaign to stop cuts to older people's services

Posted on 25th Jan 2011 by Lynne Featherstone

To help fight for older people’s services, threatened with closure by Haringey Council, local Liberal Democrats have today (Monday 24th) launched a campaign against the cuts.

The campaign follows visits last week to luncheon clubs and care homes in Haringey by leading Liberal Democrats. Lynne Featherstone MP and Stroud Green Councillor Katherine Reece on Friday 21st January listened to concerned luncheon club users at Abyssinia Court, one of the services threatened with closure. The Weston Park club-users are fighting to save their treasured service, which puts on activities like exercise classes, bingo and outings in the local area.

Cllr David Schmitz (Harringay ward) also visited users of Willoughby Road day centre in January 2011.

The Labour Council announced in December 2010 that the Haven and Grange Day Centres, Abyssinia Court, Willoughby Road, Woodside House and Irish Centre Drop-in centres as well as Jackson’s Lane Luncheon club would be cut to save £425,000, representing just 0.2% of the £182 million in central government funding the Council will receive next year.

To help to put pressure on the Labour Council to halt the closures, Liberal Democrats have today launched a petition. Local residents can back the campaign by going to the following site:

http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/saveolderpeoplesservices

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“I understand that the Council need to make tough decisions following reductions in government funding, which takes Haringey’s share back to the 2007 grant level.

“But that does not mean it needs to make such drastic cuts to frontline services like luncheon clubs. Having spoken to many older people this weekend, I know how precious and treasured these services are.

“The Council needs to take a good hard look at its own backroom spending before cutting life lines like the Abyssinia luncheon club.”

Stroud Green Councillor Katherine Reece adds:

“For many elderly Stroud Green residents, the Abyssinia court luncheon club is a true lifesaver. It’s a place where they can meet other local residents, keep fit and have fun. For many of the club-users I spoke to on my visit, it’s the one time of the day when they get out of the house.

“Surely taking away this life-line, which gives amazing value for money, is madness, and risks having big knock-on effects to the local NHS. This is just not joined-up thinking.

“Please sign our petition and help support our campaign to halt these plans now!”

Local Liberal Democrats visit Haringey’s first food recycling cafe

Posted on 20th Dec 2010 by Lynne Featherstone

To get a first taste of Stroud Green’s most recent green community initiative, local Liberal Democrats on Friday visited the newly opened FoodCycle cafe on Ferme Park Road.

The cafe has set up shop in the empty ‘Mind building’ in the heart of Stroud Green, and aims to reduce local food poverty, by cooking healthy cheap lunches, using surplus food from local supermarkets.

Liberal Democrat councillors in Stroud Green and Crouch End have helped get the scheme off the ground by supporting their grant application and spreading the word to local residents.

The cafe, located by the junction Ferme Park Road/Stapleton Hall Road, serves lunch each Friday 12.30-2.30pm. Following a short Christmas break, they will again open their doors to the public on the 7th January.

Lynne Featherstone MP comments:

“FoodCycle is such a fantastic community initiative, with local volunteers helping to cook healthy, cheap lunch, using vegetables and produce which would otherwise have ended up on the landfill.

“It’s an amazing scheme, with seriously yummy food. I would encourage anyone up for a healthy green meal to come along.”

Crouch End Cllr David Winskill adds:

“By using this free kitchen space, and getting free food from local shops, this amazing team of local foodies can really help work towards reducing food poverty and enabling people to get involved and develop skills.

“And they are setting a fantastic example for other people who want to be green and serve their community. I’m really proud to have been able to help them get off the ground, and I look forward to seeing many similar projects in Haringey in the future.”

Outrage after residents are sidelined on consultation

Posted on 2nd Aug 2010 by Lynne Featherstone

Liberal Democrats have demanded an extension to a consultation after local residents were left out by Haringey Council on plans for a controversial development in Stroud Green.

The Council failed to send thirteen residents in Quernmore, Elyne and Stapleton Hall Road key consultation documents on plans to turn a garden into a five-bedroom house that borders their properties.

Local councillor, Richard Wilson, has made a formal complaint to the Council and asked that the consultation, which is due to end on 4 August, is extended for local residents to have their say on the proposals.

Cllr Richard Wilson (Stroud Green) comments:

“It is vital that all residents have a say on developments affecting their neighbourhood. It is unacceptable that the Council have failed to consult adequately and the consultation should be extended immediately.

“And I can understand why people are so keen to object to this proposal. I don’t think the site is really suitable for development – and certainly not for a house of this size.”

Lynne Featherstone MP adds:

“The Council needs to own up to this mistake and do all in their power to make sure residents get the chance to respond. This is frankly quite a large development and neighbours should get the chance to have their say.”

Local Liberal Democrats demand action on dangerous crossing

Posted on 16th Jun 2010 by Lynne Featherstone

Campaigners have vowed to put an end to local schoolchildren’s “terrifying” route to school, by starting a campaign to make a dangerous crossing in Stroud Green safer.

Local Liberal Democrats have launched a petition to get Haringey Council and Transport for London (TfL) to take action, to make the zebra crossing safer on Upper Tollington Park by installing a pedestrian crossing and, in the short-term, having crossing patrols for local schoolchildren.

Despite many requests from local Stroud Green councillors, Haringey Council has failed to keep to promises to make the crossing clearer to drivers and to slow down the traffic.

Local residents can sign the petition by visiting http://campaigns.libdems.org.uk/page1633

Cllr Richard Wilson (Stroud Green) comments:

“It is clear that local residents want action to make this crossing safer for local pedestrians, especially schoolchildren, who use it every day.
“I am very disappointed that, despite promises, Haringey Council has failed to take any action.”

Lynne Featherstone MP, adds;

“We think that the council should employ a crossing patrol now. We cannot wait until a serious accident happens.
“A longer term aim, will be to ask the council and TfL to work to install a permanent crossing or other measures, to make this crossing safer.”

Watch the video interview with our Stroud Green team

Posted on 22nd Apr 2010 by Lynne Featherstone

My LibDem colleagues standing for Stroud Green ward – Cllr Ed Butcher, Cllr Richard Wilson and Katherine Reece who is the candidate replacing Cllr Laura Edge – were interviewed by stroudgreen.org. The discussion in the video ranges over their reasons for standings, their priorities for Haringey, their favourite things about Stroud Green, final thoughts and how to get in touch. Congratulations to stroudgreen.org for this – bringing politics to the people!

Local Liberal Democrats visit resident let down over housing repairs

Posted on 17th Apr 2010 by Lynne Featherstone

The reality of Labour’s broken promise to install new kitchens, bathrooms and windows in all council homes by 2010 became clear this week when local Liberal Democrats met with a resident who will have to wait another two years until any work starts on her home.

Lynne Featherstone and Cllr Robert Gorrie visited Mrs Jethwa from Hutton Court in Stroud Green to see first-hand how her family had been let down by Labour-run Haringey Council. Mrs Jethwa was told by Labour in 2006 that her 25 year old bathroom and kitchen would be replaced by 2010 but in reality work will not start until 2012.

Despite promises that all council properties in the London Borough of Haringey would receive new kitchens, bathrooms and windows by 2010, recent figures suggest that Haringey Council has failed to even meet a quarter of the homes needing urgent work. Work on homes in Harringay, Bounds Green, Seven Sisters, Fortis Green, Crouch End and Alexandra wards haven’t started at all.

At the most recent Full Council meeting on 22nd March, Labour councillor John Bevan failed to apologise to tenants that had not had Decent Homes work completed on their homes.

Lynne Featherstone, Liberal Democrat candidate for Hornsey and Wood Green, comments:

“Mrs Jethwa is only one of thousands of local residents who have been let down by Labour. They promised new kitchens, bathrooms and windows for all council houses, yet Mrs Jethwa’s home is a clear testament to that broken promise.”

Cllr Robert Gorrie, Leader of Haringey Liberal Democrats, adds:

“How can residents believe Labour in this election when most of the promises from last time have been broken?

“Labour has failed to start work on three quarters of council homes and that does not include homes in Harringay, Bounds Green, Seven Sisters, Fortis Green, Crouch End and Alexandra wards where they haven’t started at all.”