Report from Acting Chair, Norwood Action Group

Report from Acting Chair, Norwood Action Group

Norwood Action Group (NAG)

Overview – August 2014

Formed in 1996, NAG is dedicated to “the economic, environmental and social regeneration of the area”. It is officially recorded as a community organisation presenting a collective view. NAG has achieved, or helped to achieve, many worthwhile successes including:

  • The redesign of Norwood Road / Robson Road junction - better for pedestrians and hopefully road users (work currently nearing completion – concern for cyclists remain) – we are campaigning for improvements to continue to Tulse Hill including street market at Station Rise
  • Campaigning and supporting The Open Works in the planting of the Bus Garage flower beds
  • The restoration of St Luke’s Garden and re-installation of railings to the original 1822 pattern
  • Successfully campaigning to change the draft Lambeth Local Plan to remove the encouragement of high-rise developments and to keep Norwood High Street as part of the district centre
  • Objecting to various unhelpful planning proposals resulting in either abandonment of plan or useful modification, including: waste transfer station planned for Ernest Avenue, major developments at Chapel Road, at the Tennis Club on Knight’s Hill, the new Fire Station, and a major development at Avenue Park Road
  • Campaigning over the Thameslink rail reduction programme which has now been at least postponed
  • Restoration of town centre Christmas lights
  • Installation of town centre hanging baskets (since regrettably discontinued)
  • NorwoodGardens Competition 2000-2005 with Lambeth Horticultural Society
  • Creation of free short-stay parking on Norwood Road to help shops and shoppers alike
  • Appointment of Town Manager to ‘cultivate’ W.Norwood (since discontinued but needs reinstating)
  • The restoration of the Old Library
  • Pedestrian lights at Norwood Road / York Hill junction
  • Improvements to Tulse Hill Station

NAG has contributed materially to the protection of many of Tulse Hill, West Norwood and Upper Norwood’s positive features as well as being forward looking. These aims remain at the heart of NAG’s constitution. Visit our website receive our frequent e-newsletters. We have many live ongoing projects. Come to a meeting, participate and learn more. Join NAG for full voting rights – just £3 per year.

NAG has always been informal with an open membership comprising local people of all political persuasions who are able to react quickly to urgent issues. NAG’s abiding strength is that it is entirely independent and sets its own agenda, but also wishes to work cooperatively with other groups, such as Norwood Forum and Norwood Feast.

Some Future Campaigns:

In addition to ongoing local issues, an urgent concern is the proposed 5-storey major housing development at Tulse Hill, which has implications for the entire area. This is a typical issue for NAG, and there are grave concerns with this development as a precedent.

Other current campaigns include: King’s College Hospital business plan concerns; improvements to Norwood Road to Tulse Hill; Station Rise street market; school provision; regeneration of the industrial area to the south; town centre regeneration; parking and traffic; overview on TfL’s planned revision of the Tulse Hill gyratory ;

By way of future direction NAG has a major policy for West Norwood and Tulse Hill to develop a ‘Neighbourhood Planning Forum’ under the 2011 Localism Act which would unite local groups, enabling local people to shape policy. This forum would, within the legal framework, devise the West Norwood, Tulse Hill and Upper Norwood part of the Lambeth Local Plan.
NAG has made major submissions to Lambeth and to the Government Inspector at the draft and review stage of the Lambeth Local Plan. The key concerns are that ourlocal sections lack vision and ambition; also what is contained is very weak on implementation.

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