Cllr Stephen Cowan, Leader of Hammersmith and Fulham Council, responded to demands for better communication around improvements to Uxbridge Road
A West London council has made two promises to residents about a “neglected” road they say has become plagued by crime, safety issues and general deterioration.
Hammersmith and Fulham Council Leader, Stephen Cowan, promised a “full and clear response” to concerns raised by residents about Uxbridge Road in Shepherd’s Bush. He also said there will be a specific council member coordinating efforts to improve the street, with further details to be laid out in a forthcoming letter to residents.
At Wednesday night’s (October 22) Full Council meeting he said “we hope we can continue working with [residents] in good faith” to deliver upgrades to the area.
The condition of Uxbridge Road, which starts in Shepherd’s Bush though runs west out of Hammersmith and Fulham, has shot up the political agenda in recent months following calls made in a petition.
The petition, entitled ‘Fix Uxbridge Road, No More Neglect, No More Crime’, was published in April and urged the council to take more action cleaning up part of the highway in Shepherd’s Bush.
The Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) visited the road alongside concerned residents in May. Nigel Singh, one of those in attendance, described the area as “fantastic”, but added: “This is a bigger issue that we need tackling so that we can live in a decent, peaceful area and feel safe. We don’t feel safe in this area now. It’s gone downhill over the years, and it’s been neglected by the council.”
The petition requested Hammersmith and Fulham develop a three, six and 12-month plan for improvements to the road, and to implement actions including launching a “visual uplift scheme” for shops and flats and ban the use of temporary signage.
Due to it getting more than 2,900 signatures, which was one of, if not the highest, number ever received in Hammersmith and Fulham, the petition was considered by the council’s Cabinet in September.
The Cabinet meeting was packed out with concerned locals and ran to more than two hours long.
Noor, who lives locally and introduced the petition, told members residents “demand radical visual improvements, enforcement, accessibility, and safety”.
Cllr Cowan committed to working with residents to deliver improvements to Uxbridge Road, though warned there are legal impediments to what the local authority can do and how quickly.
At Wednesday night’s Full Council, local resident Victoria Eccles said that since the petition was presented to Cabinet there had been “very little engagement”.
“The petition group has had no further contact from the Cabinet since the meeting on September 15, when commitments were made to work together, despite emails having been sent,” she said. “How and when does the council intend to work with petitioners on an overall plan, who will lead this and how will we be kept informed of progress?”
Cllr Cowan told Ms Eccles the council is “genuinely grateful that residents have raised their concerns” and noted the ranging queries Noor put to the local authority in the Cabinet meeting.
He said that, following the meeting, a complete review of all of Noor’s points was carried out, in particular to determine whether legal powers she claimed the council had to clean up the road were viable.
Cllr Cowan said that since the Cabinet meeting, “we’ve also looked at all the different issues that were raised,” adding: “Some of those were already in play, so parts of Uxbridge Road will be raised, parts of it we’re looking to see if we can extend it.”
He said, however, that some of the works could result in costs of up to £30 million, sums which are not easy to come up with.
In terms of next steps, Cllr Cowan said a draft letter has been put together to be sent to residents answering the questions raised at Cabinet. Following that, he said the council will continue to work with residents to determine what actions can be taken.
Cllr Cowan, however, added: “There has been hundreds of millions of pounds of investment into Uxbridge Road in the last 10 years. Hundreds of millions of pounds. You might say ‘where did we get that money from’, because we’re a cash-strapped austerity council. We put some money into Bush Theatre, into public realm improvements, into crime fighting measures, Law Enforcement Teams, gangs units etc. But our job is also to win private sector investment.”
Ms Eccles thanked the Leader for his response before asking when residents can expect to receive the letter. Cllr Cowan confirmed he hopes to get it to them “at least by the start of next week”.
“If you can bear with me I can promise you we’re on it,” he said.
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