News November 2013
The Grovelands Residents' Association met on 26th November at The Bourne Methodist Church Hall, immediately after the Neighbourhood Watch meeting. The Chair, Chris Binns, outlined the basis on which the Association was intended to work. A membershp fee of £5 per household was being suggested for full membership. However the Association wished to keep in e-mail contact with anybody who preferred not to become a full member.
The Association wishes to cover a wide range of local issues. However in the present circumstances it was not surprising that the proposal to build a primary school on Metropolitan Open Lane adjacent to Grovelands Park dominated the discussions. It was reported that Ashmole School was investigating the possibility of building a primary free school on part of its site. At this stage, neither Barnet nor Enfield councils was supporting Ashmole. This, and the proposed expansion of Osidge School to three form entry, would have implications for the number of additional school places required within Enfield itself.
It was accepted that there was a shortage of primary school places in South West Enfield as a whole. However, figures obtained from the council suggested that the bulk of the shortfall in SW Enfield fell in the Boundary planning area (south of the North Circular Road) and to a lesser extent Bowes/Southgate Green area, which includes Walker. There was a small shortfall in the Winchmore Hill area, in which the proposed Grovelands school would (just) fall, but a small surplus in the adjacent Highlands area. This suggested that the top priority that needed to be addressed was further south, though this was not to decry the real problems being experienced by parents living on the Lakes Estate.
Even if a primary school was to be located somewhere near Southgate Station, it was suggested that other sites should be considered before irreversibly losing a greenfield site. The former Minchenden site had been underused by Barnet Southgate College for years. It was suggested that the College was refusing to allow the site to be used for a temporary primary school, and fears were expressed that the College might be considering the sale of the site to developers, possibly for a supermarket. Could the site not be compulsorily purchased? The decision to permit housing on the Southgate Town Hall site was also criticised.
Fears were also expressed that there might be plans for other parts of the Grovelands site, such as the Thames Water land and possibly the strip of land adjacent to Queen Elizabeth's Drive. The precedent for development created by a school might encourage some to think in terms of housing developments (which would further increase the demand for school places).
The blanket licence issued by the council to itself for events in Grovelands Park (and many others across the borough) was discussed. Two Association members had spoken at the licensing hearing, without a successful outcome. The Association would press for consultation from the council with both the Friends of Grovelands and residents' associations before substantial events took place. We should also take note of any problems that arise as a result of future events.
The effect of parking restrictions - or, more precisely, enthusiastic enforcement by the camera car - upon local trade was discussed. One member had been ticketed for getting out of his car in the station to remove a suitcase! The case for speed restrictions in Greenway and Queen Elizabeth's Drive was also raised.
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