LBWF hands out £8m. of government support grants for pandemic hit businesses,...
During the pandemic, LBWF has been awarded large amounts of central government money both for its own use, and to support the borough’s economy. One of the biggest of the latter disbursements occurred...
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LBWF tells a disabled tenant on a redeveloped estate: we are offering you a...
Sometimes, LBWF’s behaviour really is beyond the pale. An example is the letter below. It was sent to a longstanding tenant, who is disabled, lives on an estate that is being re-developed, and has...
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Can the ordinary resident get justice in Waltham Forest?
Some may judge the question posed in the title of this post as superfluous, with the answer so obviously ‘yes’ that it’s not worthy of further consideration. But consider these two case studies. Case...
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LBWF housing scandal: just 5 per cent of the new homes built in Waltham...
As this blog consistently has argued, for some years now LBWF has overlooked its responsibilities to those with least means. Further evidence of this regrettable trend is revealed by examining how...
View ArticleCllr. Anna Mbachu seeks permission to appeal her recent libel trouncing, but...
As previously reported here, Cllr. Anna Mbachu recently lost a libel action she had brought at the High Court, and in spectacular fashion, too, so leaving her with a £34,000 bill. Subsequently, she...
View ArticleCllr. Anna Mbachu’s LBWF register of interests provokes controversy…yet again
It might be thought that, having twice previously run into trouble over her LBWF register of interests (RoI) (see links, below), Cllr. Anna Mbachu would be extra careful to avoid a repeat. But...
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New LBWF fire safety scandal: Northwood and St Georges Court towers have had...
LBWF is currently embarked on a £40m. programme of ‘building safety works’. Much of this sum will be spent on its 14 tower blocks, all of which require substantial modifications, to the extent that...
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After a complaint, LBWF’s legal eagle, Mark Hynes, rules that Cllr. Anna...
Some weeks ago, on 6 April 2022, I complained to LBWF Director of Governance and Law, Mark Hynes, that Cllr. Anna Mbachu’s register of interests (RoI) did not make reference to the fact that she was a...
View ArticleDespite being berated by the Information Commissioner’s Office in 2020, LBWF...
Over recent years, there has been growing unease about the way that LBWF responds to Freedom of Information Act requests from the public. Indeed, in July 2020, the Information Commissioner’s Office...
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Property giant Long Harbour buys up the c.500 ‘build to rent flats’ in the...
In late 2017, LBWF granted developers Capital & Regional (hereafter C&R) and Mount Anvil planning permission to redevelop the Mall site in Walthamstow, that is, extend the existing retail...
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Asbestos in Waltham Forest Town Hall: a new LBWF disgrace?
I have sent the letter pasted below to LBWF Chief Executive, Martin Esom, and will post his response when received. 10 June 2022 Dear Mr. Esom, Asbestos in the Town Hall Prompted by recent media...
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Asbestos in Waltham Forest Town Hall: a new LBWF disgrace? Part Two
I have sent the letter pasted below to LBWF Chief Executive, Martin Esom, and will post his response when received. 24 June 2022 Dear Mr. Esom, I note that in a submission about an ex-employee’s...
View ArticleAsbestos in Waltham Forest Town Hall: LBWF CEO Martin Esom answers the...
On 1 July just passed, LBWF CEO Martin Esom e-mailed his response to the various points that I recently raised with him about asbestos in the Town Hall and the Assembly Hall (see his e-mail pasted...
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LBWF’s flagship Blackhorse Yard ‘affordable’ housing scheme teeters, as...
The future of LBWF’s flagship ‘affordable’ housing scheme at Blackhorse Yard has been thrown into disarray, following the withdrawal of one of its two developers, Swan Housing. Swan Housing and its...
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Our Olympics: ‘Chariots of Ire’
Purely for amusement, and to compliment all the remeniscing prompted by the 2012 anniversary, here’s a post that first appeared on this blog in 2015, one of a series on ‘Our Olympics’ (see links for...
View ArticleWhy is LBWF so poor at delivering ‘affordable housing’, particularly...
A previous post (see links below) examined LBWF’s recent performance over ‘affordable housing’ (AH). It noted that though the word ‘affordable’ is vague and often used confusingly, what’s referred to...
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LBWF councillors’ Register of Interests sparks controversy… yet again
Over recent years, whenever anyone from outside the Town Hall examines councillors’ publicly declared interests – their jobs, landholding, membership of clubs and societies, etc. – it’s almost...
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Is LBWF involved in covering up the danger that Town Hall asbestos has posed...
This blog is highly sceptical about conspiracy theories and allegations of cover ups. But sometimes the facts of a case are so striking that it is easy to see why even the most sober observers will...
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