Roy Edwin Shaw (21 July 1925 – 4 January 2008) was a #LabourParty politician in London, England. He was the Leader of #CamdenLondonBoroughCouncil from 1975 to 1982, serving on #CamdenCouncil and its predecessor councils continuously for 51 years until just before his death, making him the longest-serving councillor in the UK. Shaw was known nationally as an expert on local government.
The original electric arc lamp columns on Tottenham Court Road. Photo: Fitzrovia News.

“It is worth recording here the fate of the Tottenham Court Road arc lamp columns,” writes Peter Scott in the July 2024 edition of the Camden History Society newsletter.

Scott is the author of Vestry Arc: The Historic Public Lighting Columns of Saint Pancras, a booklet published in 1979 which describes how Tottenham Court Road became the first London street to be lit with electric lamps by a public authority. The electricity generating station was at 47 Stanhope Street, in the Regent’s Park estate just north of Fitzrovia.

The lamp columns were originally installed down the centre of the road in 1892. Scott managed to get the 11 remaining lamps listed as heritage assets in 1981 in anticipation that they would be removed by Camden Council.

Historic England’s listing entry states: “Eleven lamp posts in centre of road between Goodge Street and Warren Street, Tottenham Court Road.”

Despite the listing, in 2016 Camden Council came along with a traffic scheme which “destroyed” this historic alignment.

“Not only do the columns look silly bunched closely together, but there are now only eight columns remaining,” writes Scott.

“Camden has managed to ‘lose’ three columns. I saw one knocked down at Warren Street a few years ago and a similar fate obviously befell the other two, with no attempt made to repair or recast the damaged columns.

“With the benefit of hindsight, it would have been advantageous to have also listed the substantial square cross-section cast iron ‘St PPM’ guard posts which formerly protected the central islands. These heavy posts were replaced by plastic illuminated guard posts (usually incorrectly called ‘bollards’) which are designed to keel over at the slightest nudge.”

“The moral of this story is that although historic buildings and street furniture can be listed, they are still at the mercy of the whims of ‘Traffic Management Scheme’ consultants who need to justify their own existence,” writes Scott.

Membership for Camden History Society is £15 a year which includes free entry to talks, six newsletters per year, and a copy of the annual Camden History Review.

https://fitzrovianews.com/2024/06/17/history-notes-the-fate-of-the-tottenham-court-road-arc-lamp-columns/

#CamdenCouncil #electricLighting #TottenhamCourtRoad

Camden History Society

Camden History Society

Camden Council has announced plans for a new £24 million contract for a school meals provider — in what it hopes is the final one before adopting its “long-term ambition” to bring the service in-house by 2030.

The Town Hall’s target with the new contract is to “ensure the service is better tailored to the needs of our schools, children and young people, and diverse communities”, members were told at a meeting of the council’s Cabinet on Wednesday 5 June.

The current school meals contract with Cater Link Ltd is due to end in April 2025, having been in place since 2017.

The new contract is said to be on a short- to medium-term basis, with a minimum span of two years and a maximum of five.

This structure would enable the council to launch an insourced service as early as April 2027, or in 2030 at the latest.

A Town Hall report says the agreement “would give the council sufficient time to fully explore insourcing and, subject to a future cabinet decision, to insource the service [and] prepare for an orderly transition to the insourced arrangements.”

It continues: “That exploration would include considering whether and how the insourced service might benefit from establishing a strategic partnership arrangement with another local authority which has an existing in-house school meals service.”

The council “expects an in-house service to… pursue opportunities that further increase nutrition, sustainability, local employment opportunities”.

It would also allow for more inclusive school and pupil participation in the meals served.

The Town Hall also argues that insourcing school meals will have a “wider social value, including through supporting initiatives to increase the number of eligible pupils at secondary level who currently take up national free school meals from its current level of 63 per cent”.

The ambition forms part of the council’s “Camden Food Mission”, which aims for everyone in the borough to be eating “a healthy, nutritious, and sustainable meal every day, with good quality, affordable food that is good for them and the planet” by 2030.

Camden Council: Cabinet – Wednesday, 5 June 2024.

https://fitzrovianews.com/2024/06/09/camden-approves-final-school-catering-contract-before-bringing-meals-service-in-house/

#CamdenCouncil #health #schoolMeals #schools

Self-defence classes are to be trialled in Camden’s schools in an attempt to deter violence against women and girls, and to increase the participation of girls in physical activity.

The pilot forms part of the council’s wider aim to improve the health of children and young people, as well as address violence against women and girls in both the “public and private realm”.

The Town Hall said the goal is to “boost general confidence that will enable young people to navigate spaces confidently”.

It hopes the project will “help deter perpetrators from attempting any form of violence or abuse”.

Self-defence classes will be taught to girls and boys in both single sex and mixed schools.

All schools are required to follow the national curriculum for physical education, but this does not currently include self-defence lessons.

Providing self-defence classes is at the discretion of individual schools.

The council said it is “keen to fill the gap where central government has decided self-defence should not be part of the national curriculum”.

At a cabinet meeting this week, councillors agreed to explore the feasibility of the initiative, as well as funding options.

The proposal was introduced by Cllr Nasrine Djemai, who was appointed as cabinet adviser on reducing violence and abuse for women and girls in the 2023/24 municipal year.

Her other suggestions, included in her report “Reducing violence and abuse for women and girls”, have included public education campaigns on the different forms of harassment and creating a council switchboard number for domestic abuse.

Councillors also agreed to explore these options further.

Camden Council: Cabinet – Wednesday, 5 June 2024.

https://fitzrovianews.com/2024/06/09/self-defence-classes-pilot-in-camden-schools-to-deter-violence-against-women-and-girls/

#CamdenCouncil #education #localDemocracyReporting #physicalEducation #schools #violenceAgainstWomenAndGirls

Camden Council has registered a number of planning applications in Bloomsbury ward, which includes Fitzrovia East, so far during June 2024. (This page will be updated until the monthly list is complete.)

Among the monthly list are:

  • Roof extension, plant enclosure, roof terrace, three-storey infill extension of rear lightwell, internal alterations and replacement of windows at 22 Warren Street and 52-56 Fitzroy Street;
  • extract fan and air-con unit at rear first floor roof at 10 Charlotte Street;
  • external cellar cooling fan and enclosure on roof at The Hope, 15 Tottenham Street;
  • tables and chairs outside 64 Goodge Street, and 34 Charlotte Street.

To view the applications and make a comment, use the monthly list below and the links to the full application on the council website. There is a limited time to submit comments. If you have trouble with the link not working, use the application reference number and search Camden’s planning website. The monthly list we publish is pulled from the council’s website and is correct at the time of publication.

Residents in Camden may also contact the Charlotte Street Association for help and advice in responding to planning and licensing applications.

Application NumberSite AddressDevelopment DescriptionStatusDate RegisteredDecision2024/2407/P22 Warren Street & 52-56 Fitzroy Street London W1T 5LSRoof extension with integral plant enclosure, roof terrace on no. 22 Warren Street, replacement fire escape stair, 3 storey infill extension of rear lightwell, internal reconfiguration, new office entrance on Fitzroy Street and replacement of windows.REGISTERED13-06-20242024/2358/P44 Cleveland Street London W1T 4JTDetails of M4(2) and M4(3)(2a) compliance and sample panel of plant screen required by conditions 2, 3 and 23f of planning permission 2021/3087/P allowed at appeal (APP/X5210/W/22/3300894) dated 01/12/2022 (which varied 2018/1584/P dated 30/09/2019 which varied 2017/0414/P dated 15/01/2018) for “Refurbishment of the existing Workhouse and North and South Houses, part demolition of the South House and redevelopment of the remainder of the site.” (abbrev.)REGISTERED12-06-20242024/2192/LVernon House 23 Sicilian Avenue London WC1A 2QSDetails of brickwork required to partially discharge condition 4(g) of listed building consent 2022/3985/L dated 18/10/2023 for external alterations including installation of new condenser plant area to the rear of the building at lower ground floor level, installation of new plant and solar panels on the roofs of all buildings, erection of new stair core extension on the roof, extension to mansard roof on the north west part of the building, replacement shopfronts, installation of new curved entrance sliding doors with canopy and timber panelling at first floor level on Southampton Row, new external doors to office entrances fronting onto Sicilian Avenue, installation of new external metal stair, replacement of windows at lower ground floor level on the rear elevation of no. 21, amalgamation of 3 retail units to 2 enlarged single units in Vernon and Sicilian House, creation of cycle spaces and changing facilities in basement of no. 21 and associated internal works including removal of masonry walls and new structural openings and removal of timber stairs between basement and ground floor levels of no. 21, removal of ground floor stairs in Vernon and Sicilian House, replacement external metal stairs, new lifts and doors.REGISTERED12-06-20242024/2374/L12 Mabledon Place London WC1H 9AZErection of mansard roof extension.REGISTERED11-06-20242024/2262/L12 Mabledon Place London WC1H 9AZErection of a mansard roof extension.REGISTERED11-06-20242024/1649/P12 Mabledon Place London WC1H 9AZErection of mansard roof extension to create one additional HMO room.REGISTERED11-06-20242024/1584/P10 Charlotte Street London W1T 2LTReplacement of existing extract fan and installation of a new AC unit to the rear first floor roof.REGISTERED11-06-20242024/1361/PThe Hope Fitzrovia 15 Tottenham Street London W1T 2AJReplacement of external cellar cooling fan and acoustic enclosure on roof. (Retrospective).REGISTERED11-06-20242024/2347/TEckerd College 35 Gower Street London WC1E 6HGREAR GARDEN: 1 x London Plane (T8) – Crown lift to 2.5m above the roofline of 10 – 40 Ridgmount Street, by cutting secondary laterals only.REGISTERED10-06-20242024/2344/T37 Gower Street London WC1E 6HH(TPO REF: C5-T6) REAR GARDEN: 1 x London Plane (T7) – Crown lift to 2.5m above the roofline of 10 – 40 Ridgmount Street, by cutting secondary laterals only.REGISTERED10-06-20242024/2343/T47 Gower Street London WC1E 6HH(TPO REF: C5-T7) REAR GARDEN: 1 x London Plane (T5) – Crown lift to 2.5m above the roofline of 10 – 40 Ridgmount Street, by cutting secondary laterals only.REGISTERED10-06-20242024/2333/PVLFriend At Hand 4 Herbrand Street London WC1N 1HX4 Tables, 8 Chairs and 1 Barrier (6 Barrels) Monday to Sunday 08:00-21:00REGISTERED10-06-20242024/2330/T43 Gower Street London WC1E 6HHREAR GARDEN: 1 x London Plane (T4) – Remove primary lateral (160mm diameter) that is extending northwest over the roofline, back to branch collar. Crown lift to 2.5m above the roofline of 10 – 40 Ridgmount Street, by cutting secondary laterals only.REGISTERED10-06-20242024/2329/T21 – 23 Bedford Place London WC1B 5JJON STREET OUTSIDE FRONT: 1 x Field Maple (Acer campestre) (T1) – Reduce crown by 30%, (2m) to suitable growth points. Reduce lateral branch length to match ensuring good separation from building. 1 x Field Maple (Acer campestre) (T2) – Reduce crown by 30%, (2m) to suitable growth points. Reduce lateral branch length to match ensuring good separation from building.REGISTERED10-06-20242024/2323/A2 Charlotte Street London Camden W1T 2LW2 x New fascia signs / new projecting signs / 2 x new awningsREGISTERED10-06-20242024/2299/POffices And Premises At 1st-3rd Floor 39 and 42-43 Store Street London Camden WC1E 7DBChange of use of first to third floors from office (Class E) to residential (Class C3) and reconfiguration of existing residential floorspace to provide 5 residential units (uplift of 4); associated installation of roof top plant.REGISTERED10-06-20242024/2223/L10 Thornhaugh St, London WC1H 0XGInternal works to the ground floor of the Junior Common Room (JCR) comprising: the removal of non-original partition walls and erection of replacement partition walls on ground floor.REGISTERED10-06-20242024/2183/PCounty Hotel Upper Woburn Place London WC1H 0JWVariation of condition 2 (approved drawings) of planning permission 2023/3680/P dated 13/03/2024 for the Erection of a single storey extension, erection of an electrical substation, following the demolition of the existing substation & enclosure installation of new front entrance, removal of a goods lift and enclosure from the front of the building, all on Woburn Walk at ground floor level, replacement of the existing goods platform lift to the front elevation and amendments to the rear terrace (south) at basement level and erection of an open-sided canopy.; namely, changes external changes to the replacement gates, changes to doors and windows, revised staircase design, revised canopy design and inclusion of a security gate) and a revised platform lift.REGISTERED10-06-20242024/2321/PVLPizza Express 93-99 Euston Road London NW1 2RA6 Tables and 12 Chairs Monday to Saturday 09:00 – 23:00 Sunday 10:00 – 22:00 New ApplicationREGISTERED07-06-20242024/2218/POffices And Premises At Unit 5 Ground Floor 36-37 Great Russell Street London WC1B 3PPConversion of rear part of Ground floor from Class E to Residential C3REGISTERED07-06-20242024/2298/LUniversity Of London Institute Of Education 20 Bedford Way London WC1H 0ALInstallation of 3no. external catering structures on the forecourt for a temporary period of four years.REGISTERED06-06-20242024/2289/PVLPied à Terre 34 Charlotte Street London W1T 2NH3 Tables, 10 Chairs and Oyster Bar Tuesday to Saturday 12:00-23:00 New ApplicationREGISTERED06-06-20242024/2240/PUniversity Of London Institute Of Education 20 Bedford Way London WC1H 0ALInstallation of 3no. external catering structures on the forecourt for a temporary period of four years.REGISTERED06-06-20242024/2205/L11 Woburn Square London Camden WC1H 0NSRefurbishment works to Rm 305 and Rm 308 on Level 3 of 11 Woburn Square, including overboarding walls with plasterboard; installation of fire standard doorsets; installation of new data cabling; and other associated works.FINAL DECISION06-06-2024Granted2024/2268/PVL64 Goodge Street London W1T 4NF2 tables 4 chairs Monday to Saturday 10:00 – 23:00 Sunday 10:00 – 22:00REGISTERED05-06-20242024/2234/LOffices And Premises At Lower Ground To Ground Floors 57-58 Russell Square London WC1B 4HSInstallation of x1 platform lift in the front external lightwell.REGISTERED04-06-20242024/2220/A47 Goodge Street London Camden W1T 1TDAdvertisement consent for new fascia signage, hanging signage and proposed awning.REGISTERED04-06-20242024/2177/POffices And Premises At Lower Ground To Ground Floors 57-58 Russell Square London WC1B 4HSInstallation of x1 platform lift in the front external lightwell.REGISTERED04-06-2024

https://fitzrovianews.com/2024/06/07/planning-applications-in-bloomsbury-and-fitzrovia-east-june-2024/

#CamdenCouncil #planning #planningApplications #publicConsultations

Kairos, 84 Tottenham Court Road. Photo: Fitzrovia News.

Kairos Counter-Club CIC has a applied to Camden Council for a new premises licence for the ground floor and basement at 84 Tottenham Court Road, Fitzrovia.

The application seeks permission to sell alcohol to drink on the premises from 5pm to 11pm every day of the week.

The business is described as an “office plus ancillary events and club socials” run by a not-for-profit community interest company, “currently holding ticketed talks and social events a few times a week”.

“Alcohol sales will be as part of our evening events. Kairos mainly deals with pre booked ticket sales and operates a membership scheme with discounted tickets,” states the application.

To view the details of the application and make a comment, search Camden’s public licensing register for the following reference:

APP\PREMISES-NEW\121520, 84 Tottenham Court Road, London

The last date for making a comment on the application is 2 July 2024.

Residents in Camden may also contact the Charlotte Street Association for help and advice in responding to planning and licensing applications.

https://fitzrovianews.com/2024/06/06/licensing-application-kairos-84-tottenham-court-road/

#CamdenCouncil #licensing #licensingApplications #publicConsultations #TottenhamCourtRoad

Public Licensing Register - Camden Council

Camden Council
Whitfield Street Children’s Playground and Nursery, 54a Whitfield Street. Photo: Fitzrovia News.

A local campaign to protect a children’s nursery and playground on Whitfield Street in Fitzrovia has been successful.

Camden Council has registered the site at 54a Whitfield Street at the junction with Chitty Street as an Asset of Community Value (ACV), after a successful application and campaign by The Fitzrovia Trust.

The land has been leased to the Fitzrovia Trust until 2027 but Camden Council is the freeholder and could decide in future to sell the land to developers as property prices in Fitzrovia are so high.

Registering the site as an ACV gives it some protection and is a material consideration in any future planning application to change the use of the site.

After reviewing the application and supporting evidence the council agreed to make the designation.

“It is considered that the nomination provides sufficient evidence to demonstrate that Whitfield Street Children’s Playground and Nursery is a well-used community asset, which furthers the social wellbeing of the local community,” states the decision.

The Fitzrovia Trust said: “The playground and nursery are both very important community facilities. The Trust will make every effort to ensure these facilities continue to be open and available to those living and working in Fitzrovia and the wider area.”

The playground and nursery will be added to the list of assets of community value and it will stay on the list for up to five years starting from 20 May 2024. After the five years the ACV status can be renewed.

In February Camden Council designated the Launderette at 86a-88 Cleveland Street as an ACV, after an application was made by the Charlotte Street Association residents’ group.

In making the decision Camden Council said: “It is considered that the nomination provides sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the Launderette was a well-used community asset, which furthered the social wellbeing of the local community.”

However, the application was made while a planning application was pending to change the site to a coffee shop. That planning application was approved but the council stated “it is realistic to consider the premises could be used as a launderette in the future”.

The launderette site will remain on the ACV list for up to five years starting from 1 February 2024.

In 2015 the Fitzrovia Neighbourhood Centre at 39 Tottenham Street was listed as an ACV after an application submitted by The Fitzrovia Trust. Its designation was successfully renewed in September 2023.

ACV letter: Whitfield Street Children’s Playground and Nursery, 54a Whitfield Street, London W1T 4ER (pdf).

ACV letter: Launderette, 86a-88 Cleveland Street, London W1T 6NJ (pdf).

https://fitzrovianews.com/2024/06/04/campaign-to-protect-childrens-nursery-and-playground-succeeds/

#assetOfCommunityValue #CamdenCouncil #WhitfieldStreet

Local charity seeks help to protect children’s nursery and playground - The Fitzrovia News

A local charity is asking for help in protecting a children's nursery and playground on Whitfield Street in Fitzrovia to preserve it for generations to come.

The Fitzrovia News
Georgia Gould has been selected for the Queen’s Park and Maida Vale Parliamentary constituency. Photo: The Labour Party.

The Labour Party has selected Camden Council leader Georgia Gould as its candidate for the Queen’s Park and Maida Vale Parliamentary constituency at the 4 July General Election.

“I am delighted to be standing for Labour in Queen’s Park & Maida Vale,” said Gould in a statement issued by the Labour Party.

“With Keir Starmer at the helm, Labour is back in the service of working people. We will put an end to 14 years of Tory chaos and decline with a plan for national renewal, built on a bedrock of economic stability.

“Only a Labour government can deliver the change we need to take back our streets, get the NHS back on its feet, break down barriers to opportunity and get Britain building again,” she said.

As well as the leader of Camden Council, Gould also chair’s the cross-party body London Councils.

“She campaigns on devolution, community power, housing and investment in young people. She has deep links to the community, having been born in St Mary’s hospital and spending her childhood living on Westbourne Park Road,” said The Labour Party in a press statement.

Adam Hug, leader of Westminster Council, applauded Gould on her successful candidacy, saying: “Big congratulations to Georgia Gould — a major star in the Labour firmament and the newest member of the Queen’s Park and Maida Vale and Westminster Labour families.”

Gould has been leader of Camden for seven years and “faced the unprecedented challenges of the Chalcots PFI fire safety scandal, Covid and the cost-of-living crisis,” wrote Richard Osley in the Camden New Journal.

Former Labour party member Andrew Feinstein, who is a candidate in Holborn and St Pancras, described Gould’s selection as a gain for Camden.

“At least Camden Council will be rid of Starmerite Georgia Gould — who was OK with tents being seized from homeless people in midwinter, saw a decline in social housing conditions and refused to even discuss calling for a ceasefire. Now let’s get Starmer out of Camden too!” he said on X.

Gould apologised last year after council staff and contractors were involved in an eviction of homeless people living in tents outside University College Hospital in Huntley Street, Fitzrovia. Camden originally denied they were involved but the operation was filmed and widely condemned.

Queen’s Park and Maida Vale is a new constituency and is roughly equivalent to and replaces the Westminster North constituency currently held by Labour MP Karen Buck who is retiring at the forthcoming election.

https://fitzrovianews.com/2024/05/30/labour-selects-camden-council-leader-georgia-gould-for-queens-park-and-maida-vale-seat/

#CamdenCouncil #generalElection2024 #GeorgiaGould #politics #QueenSParkAndMaidaVale #WestminsterCityCouncil

Councillor details - Councillor Georgia Gould - Camden Council

Warren Street will be closed to all traffic from Tottenham Court Road to Fitzroy Street from Wednesday 5 to Friday 7 June 2024. Photo: Fitzrovia News.

Part of Warren Street in Fitzrovia will be closed to all vehicles, and parking suspended, for part of the first week of June 2024 due to events taking place in the street.

Warren Street will be closed to all motor vehicles between Tottenham Court Road and Fitzroy Street from Wednesday 5 to Friday 7 June 2024 for events organised by The Fitzrovia Partnership, according to a temporary traffic order issued by Camden Council.

London Borough of Camden Temporary Traffic OrderWARREN STREET; GRAFTON MEWS; WHITFIELD STREET; TOTTENHAM COURT ROAD Temporary Traffic Restriction S16: 43020 Reason: To facilitate the London Festival of Architecture for Fitzrovia Bid. Operational Dates: 05-06-24 to 07-06-24 Details of Order: Close Warren Street between Tottenham Court Road and Fitzroy Street. Close Grafton Mews at the junction of Warren Street. Close Whitfield Street at the junction of Warren Street.

Parking bays between Tottenham Court Road and Fitzroy Street will be suspended for 24-hours-a-day from Tuesday 4 to Friday 7 June due to “events”, according to notices placed by Camden Council.

There will also be no access to Warren Street from Whitfield Street or Grafton Mews.

All parking bays along Warren Street from Tottenham Court Road to Conway Street will be suspended from Tuesday 4 to Friday 7 June 2024. Photo: Fitzrovia News.

From Fitzroy Street to Cleveland Street the road will remain open and diversions will be in place.

However, parking bays will also be suspended between Fitzroy Street and Conway Street, according to notices on the street.

Residents and business owners are advised to check the street notices for up-to-date information. The latest Camden road closure information can be found here.

Residents in Warren Street were sent a letter about the road closure in early May. Fitzrovia News is asking for more details of the events and will be reporting on these when we have them.

tfp-letter-ws-resi-p1Download tfp-letter-ws-resi-p2Download

https://fitzrovianews.com/2024/05/27/warren-street-road-closure-and-parking-suspensions-june-2024/

#CamdenCouncil #TheFitzroviaPartnership #traffic #WarrenStreet

Camden Council: Find nearest?

Camden Council: Where's my nearest?