Vickim57: "Great People Everywhere, Or: How I learned to stop worrying and love Grahame Park Estate"

Link to vickim57 web site

"Today is the final day of an exhibition at the RAF Museum put together by young people from Grahame Park estate. The exhibition is called the Grahame Park Estate Story. It's housed in the Aeronauts Interactive hall. The space rather dwarfs the exhibition, which is a shame, but the organisers are looking for new venues to host it, now that its run at the RAF Museum has come to an end. 

"... Grahame Park estate was built on an old aerodrome. The history of development in this area is very much tied up with the history and development of aviation, both civilian and military. (I live in old RAF married quarters, of all places.)"

Barnet Times: "Colindale pupils unveil new school building"

Link to the Barnet Times

"PUPILS at Colindale Primary unveiled their new £13 million school to visitors this week.

"After waving goodbye to the school’s former 78-year-old building in July, parents and guests were welcomed to view the school’s new building in Poolsford Road."

Daily Telegraph: "Planning reforms: Greg Clark admits changes 'could have been clearer' "

Link to Daily Telegraph

"In the first sign of a climb-down over the reforms, the planning minister Greg Clark admitted that some of the most controversial proposals on brownfield land, housing targets and 'sustainable development' could have been clearer. 

"Mr Clark told a seminar organised by the British Property Federation that it was difficult to express the Government's intentions at the same time as reducing bureaucracy. 

"Mr Clark is pushing through plans to replace 1,300 pages of planning regulations in England with just 52 pages in the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF)."

Young people work for 18 months on exhibition showing the story of the Grahame Park Estate

"There is an exhibition, open until the end of September, by young people working with charity Catch22, to show the history of the Grahame Park Estate. Built on RAF land in the 1970’s, it explores the area from the residents’ perspective. 

"The young people want to show the positive side of the estate, and challenge the negative image that it often has with the wider community. For almost 18 months, they have worked on the project, supported by a £25,000 Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF) grant, awarded under the Young Roots scheme, learning skills such as archiving, interviewing, and curating.

"The exhibition is at the RAF Museum, Grahame Park Way, NW9 5LL until Friday 30th September, in the Aeronauts Interactive Centre in the Museum. Entrance to the exhibition and the Museum is free, and is open from 10am to 5.30pm every day.

"Michelle Allen, Project Worker for Catch22’s Barnet Action 4 Youth, says:

"30 young people have been involved in putting this exhibition together, they have received training from the RAF Museum and Oral History Society, and worked with local residents to gather information and stories. The skills they have learnt will help them in all areas of their life. Far too often the estate is depicted in a negative way, and we wanted to show the positive side and the sense of community. This project has shown that young people do take pride in their community and they have worked hard to make this happen."

"In addition to the exhibition, the young people have put together an information and resource pack for local schools, youth groups and anyone interested in finding out more about the estate. For example, did you know that what is now the Concourse (shopping area), was once a runway? The pack includes a 10 minute DVD of interviews with residents.

"Anyone interested in obtaining one of the resource packs or wanting further information about the exhibition should contact the Catch22 Barnet Action 4 Youth office, on 020 8205 8341, or email ba4y@catch-22.org.uk"

There are many more planning articles at the

'Brent Cross Coalition'

Daily Telegraph: "A licence to build isn’t in the national interest"

Link to Daily Telegraph

"The problem is caused by the proposed new 'presumption in favour of sustainable development', which many see as too broad a concept and,effectively, a licence to build. The fear is that this will tip the scales too much in favour of developers – it is no coincidence that they are its most enthusiastic champions. 

"So far, the Government has taken the view that bureaucracy in the planning system is preventing young people getting on to the housing ladder. One good aspect of these reforms is the simplification of the regulations from 1,000 pages to 52. But in their article in the Financial Times yesterday, Messrs Osborne and Pickles focused more on the importance of these reforms to economic growth. They targeted those who were 'most vociferous in calls for government to bring forward a growth plan' as being 'among the most vociferous opponents to one of its central planks'.”
 

Plus: 

Daily Telegraph:

"Planning reforms are 'fundamentally wrong"

The Guardian: "This wrecking ball is Osborne's version of sustainable development"

Link to The Guardian

"Like the National Health Service and the welfare state, our planning laws arose from the great political settlement that followed the second world war, in which people of all classes gave their lives for their country. The intention was that Britain, saved by collective sacrifice, would never again be run for the exclusive benefit of the rich and powerful. That promise is being gnawed away by political parties controlled by the elite.

"In the Daily Telegraph last week, Geoffrey Lean claimed that the assault on sound planning has been caused by young metropolitan wonks in the coalition replacing 'the old grouse-shooting knights of the shires'. In fact, it is the grouse-shooting knights of the shires, through their Country Land and Business Association, who have led this attack on the planning system. When faced with a choice between its ill-defined 'rural values' and making buckets of unearned cash, there's no doubt about where the shot falls. This is the reassertion of old power against democracy."

Barnet Council regeneration plan: no great excitement

Click above to enlarge,
or link to Barnet committee report, 5/9/2011