We asked, you said, we did

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We asked

We asked for your views on the Brent Cross Cricklewood Experimental Controlled Parking Zone (ECPZ) at Brent Terrace, Clitterhouse Crescent, Clitterhouse Road and a section of Claremont Road put in place in March 2023.

Following feedback from the initial Brent Cross Cricklewood Experimental Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) consultation, which started 20 March 2023, we proposed changes to the operation times which required the ECPZ to be extended for a further 6 months.

Initially, the ECPZ operated every day of the week from 8am to 10pm. Resident feedback indicated that reduced operation timings were preferred. We proposed that the ECPZ would be in operation every day of the week from 9am to 6pm from Thursday 26 October.

You said

We received five responses to the consultation:

• Three respondents requested further reduced hours; and
• Two respondents objected as they feel the scheme would cause parking stress.

We did

In line with the experimental process, we have reviewed all correspondence received.

After reviewing all feedback and observations from the experimental period and both consultations, the council has decided to make the CPZ permanent starting from Thursday 20 June 2024. The CPZ will operate on every day of the week from 9am to 6pm.

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We asked

We asked for your views on the proposed schedule of fees and charges for Building Control Service, to be implemented from April 2024.

You said

We did not receive any responses to the online questionnaire.

We did

The fees and charges were authorised under the delegated authority of the Leader of the Council, Cabinet Member for Resources and Effective Council. You can read more in the report authorising the new fees and charges.

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We asked

We asked for your views on the proposal to reduce the Published Admission Number (PAN) for the three community primary schools named below, on the grounds that these schools have experienced a significant fall in pupil numbers in recent years and are expected to see a continued decline in the demand for school places for the foreseeable future.

• Deansbrook Infant School, from 90 to 60 places
• Moss Hall Infant School, from 120 to 90 places
• Wessex Gardens School, from 60 to 30 places

You said

We received a total of 17 responses. Of those who expressed an opinion, mostly were in favour of the proposed reduction to the schools’ PANs. Only one respondent felt inclined to disagree with the proposed reduction to Deansbrook Infant School’s PAN and two respondents were inclined to disagree with the proposed reduction to Moss Hall Infant School’s PAN. No respondents disagreed with the proposed reduction to Wessex Garden School’s PAN.

Respondents in favour of the proposed PAN reductions acknowledged the issue with falling pupil rolls and the financial implications associated with a growing number of surplus school places. Those who disagreed expressed a preference for smaller classes.

We did

The PAN for all three schools has been reduced as proposed, with effect from 1 September 2025.

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We asked

We asked residents, community groups and wider partners to help us develop and co-produce our new Equalities, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) Policy for Barnet. To build on the Phase 1 engagement in 2023, Phase 2 involved more focussed work to develop and test the emerging EDI priorities and objectives.

You said

Between September – December 2023, we delivered a series of workshops in collaboration with local groups. Over 80 people shared their views on the emerging EDI themes and priorities. Through this phase, we learned that residents wanted us to:

• emphasise the understanding of residents’ individuality which includes their lived experiences
• recognise differences not only between communities, but within communities
• acknowledge that services are going to need to work harder to become more accessible
• think about our community development offer
• promote respect for all and foster togetherness in addition to celebrating diversity.

We did

We analysed the insights gathered and produced an EDI policy engagement (phase 2) report which included the following recommendations:

Refine the emerging EDI themes and priorities

• embrace the emerging themes and priorities, incorporating resident feedback to enhance comprehension e.g. outlining actions that will be taken
• explicitly demonstrate how the themes and priorities are integrated into the overarching Corporate Plan priorities.

Create a unifying EDI vision

• develop a concise and easy to understand EDI vision
• ensure the vision is adaptable, allowing for varied articulations while maintaining a strong unifying message.

Follow inclusive language principles

• demonstrate that consideration of diverse perspectives and outline guiding principles in the use of collective terms to foster transparency and understanding.

We have developed ‘Towards A Fair Barnet – Our roadmap to create a more equal Barnet’. Work is underway to working identify and agree a set of actions across the Council to ensure the commitments laid out in the roadmap lead to a positive impact.

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We asked

We asked for your views on the initial proposals for Watling Avenue Car Park.

You said

Thank you to everyone who has participated in the community engagement activities to date for the proposals for Watling Avenue Car Park in Burnt Oak. During October and November 2023, there were 847 website visits, along with around 150 responses through feedback forms, emails, and calls. The public drop-in events engaged over 60 local residents, while a session with 25 young people provided insights into their needs.

In addition to this, Linkcity spoke to businesses and completed a leaflet drop to 650 homes, supplemented with an in-person leaflet distribution along the high street, at local venues and outside Burnt Oak tube station in the evening.

Linkcity have thoroughly analysed all the feedback on the proposals for Watling Avenue Car Park and the top three comments were:

• concerns about the loss of car parking, specifically regarding the implications for commuters and residents. Respondents anticipate challenges in finding parking spaces and express broader concerns about the impact on Watling Avenue and its surrounding roads.
• building height and density were noted, with some respondents referencing the scale of development as excessive.
• another key theme focused on the capacity of existing services, particularly the ability to access GP surgeries and schools to accommodate the increased number of residents in light of the other schemes coming forward in the area.

In addition to these three main themes, the community asked about enhancing the safety of the area and ensuring the sustainability of the scheme. Suggestions were provided for the new park, including advocating for improved safety features such as CCTV and lighting. Some respondents favoured a play area and there was also the endorsement of a variety of wildlife and plants.

You can read the feedback received so far in full on the consultation website.

We did

To engage with residents further, Linkcity will be hosting another in-person event at Burnt Oak Library late spring. At the event, they will present more detailed designs and gather feedback.

The consultation website will be updated with the date and time of this event and we will add the information to this page. If you have any questions or comments in the meantime please get in touch with the Linkcity team.

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We asked

We asked for your views on a proposal to end council funding towards waking night support for all tenants at Deborah Lodge, Gadsbury Close and Speedwell House, but to make sure that any individuals with eligible care and support needs will continue to have their needs met. 

You said  

29 people responded to the consultation.

Eight respondents strongly opposed (37.9%), four respondents tended to oppose (13.8%), four strongly supported (13.8%), two tended to support (6.89%), eight neither supported nor opposed (27.6%) and three were not sure or did not know (10.3%)

Of those who opposed, the primary reason given by most respondents was that they found having a waking night service reassuring.

We did

We took all the feedback into consideration, and we decided to end the waking night support service at all three sheltered schemes, to align the council offer with the other sheltered housing schemes in the borough. We have written to all tenants to advise them that if they feel they need additional support can have a Care Needs Assessment by our Adult Social Care Teams, who can tailor support to them individually. They can do this by telephoning Social Care Direct on 020 8359 5000.

Upon the review of all comments, we have provided information to tenants of the three schemes about community services which support residents with:

• Befriending
• Digital inclusion
• Finance
• Community activities
• General wellbeing.
• Digital Care Technology they can source directly themselves.

We have also reminded sheltered housing providers of their obligation to support their tenants, to report any concerns to the council and tell us if they feel individuals need additional support.

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We asked

We asked for your views on the introduction of a number of new road safety measures that will reduce the speed of vehicles on Mays Lane and its surrounding roads. This also included the proposed removal of the existing width restriction at Manor Road junction following concerns raised by residents.

You said

We received 194 responses from approximately 3441 properties, which equates to an overall response rate of 5.63%.

The most common objections were for the proposed:

• Bus-gate at the junction of Quinta Drive
• No entry into Connaught Road from Mays Lane
• Removal of the width restriction at Manor Road junction
• No-entry from May’s Lane onto Vale Drive (Vale Drive to be converted to one-way)
• Double-yellow lines on Chesterfield Road
• No right turn from Elton Avenue
• Introduction of the 20mph zone.

We did

Our decision on the proposals we progress will be based on our road safety report as well as feedback and objections received from residents.

We will make our recommendations to the Director of Highways who, as decision maker for this Local Implementation Plans (LIP) scheme, will have ultimate authority as to what proposals we proceed with.

We will write to residents again and update this page with the aspects of the scheme that will be delivered.

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We asked

To address road safety concerns, we asked for your views on the implementation of the Queenswell School & Surrounding Areas– 20 mph Zone.

The introduction of a 20-mph zone in the area surrounding Queenswell Infant and Nursery Schools aims to improve road safety and tackle significant safety concerns that will affect the following roads: Friern Barnet Lane, Myddelton Park, Queens Avenue, Oakleigh Road North, Oakleigh Park North, Oakleigh Avenue and Oakleigh Park South.

You said

We received forty-nine (49) responses from approximately one thousand seventy-seven (1077) letters dropped to the residents, which equates to an overall response rate of 4.55%.

Furthermore, 30.61%, fifteen (15) respondents, were unsatisfied with the current proposal for different reasons; in comparison, 48.98%, twenty-four (24) respondents, were in favour of introducing the proposed changes. 12.24%, around six (6) respondents, expressed their willingness to support the proposal if further actions accompany the proposed measures.

We did

After having reviewed the objections received and having evaluated the potential impact (road safety, community support and project goals) of the valid objections raised through this engagement exercise, the following are the suggested next steps that the design team recommends implementing:

• Engage with MP: Reach out to MP Theresa Villiers to discuss her concerns in more detail, explore alternative solutions, seek common grounds, and reach compromises.
• Review Proposal: In light of the significant objections received and having into consideration the low participation, it is recommended to exhaustively review the proposal presented to incorporate the comments we have received so far and to prepare the ground to conceive a better proposal that can be presented again to the public.
• Consider an extension on the consultation: Assess the possibility of allowing further discussions and obtaining a more representative response from the community that supports the proposal presented.

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We asked

We asked for your views on the experimental Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) named Burnt Oak North (BON). The experimental zone ran for 18 months, with the initial 6 months constituting the statutory consultation. Initially the zone would run from Monday to Sunday between 8am and 6.30pm.

You said

198 residents responded to the statutory consultation, with 97 objecting.

The primary cause for concern was that the operational days and times were excessive across the zone due to the inconvenience this is causing for those visiting on weekends. 62 responses were received on this matter.

The requests received and approved were:

• Not enough general permit bays near amenities
• More parking bays needed for those visiting amenities
• Additional drop off facility for a local school
• Restrictions to be reviewed in the North Road Estate area
• Double yellow lines to be reviewed to increase parking capacity
• Loading bay to be implemented in Deansbrook Road to assist the businesses.

The key comments and objections can be found on our resident letter dated Friday 22 March 2024.

We did

Upon the review of all comments, the experimental CPZ will be made permanent with the following changes:

• The operational days will be reduced from Monday- Sunday to Monday - Friday.
• The shared use bays in Orange Hill Road, Deansbrook Road and Watling Avenue will be changed from ‘Resident permit holders and Pay by Phone’ to ‘Permit holders and Pay by Phone’ to enable all permit holders, including those with business permits to be able to utilise these bays to visit local amenities.
• The ‘residents permit only’ bay outside no.35 Abbots Road will be converted to a shared use bay to further assist visitors to the area and increase parking capacity.
• A single yellow line will be added within a parking bay in Orange Hill Road, which will operate between 8am to 9.30am and 3pm to 4.30pm to further assist with drop off and pick up in this area.
• Double yellow lines will also be added in Market Lane to enhance road safety due to its narrow width (loading will still be permitted).
• A loading bay will be added in Deansbrook Road to assist businesses within the parade of shops
• Various amendments to parking restrictions in the North Road Estate and Brearley Close are to be made

Following on from concerns raised in relation to non-residential parking it has also been agreed to introduce a new CPZ called Burnt Oak Central (BOC), which is located to the south of BON. You can view details of the BOC CPZ here.

The operational times of BON will remain the same to reduce the likelihood of the new zone (BOC) causing displacement of non-residential parking into BON.

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We asked

We asked for your views on the emerging designs for Burnt Oak Town Centre public realm which has been developed according to four community design principles:

1. Promote safety & security through targeted improvements
2. Create a pleasant and clean town centre which attracts and welcomes visitors
3. Enhance the experience of moving through & dwelling in the town centre
4. Connect into and enhance green and blue network (Silk Stream & neighbouring parks)

We presented design ideas aimed at delivering each of these themes and asked for your feedback and suggestions to improve the proposals further.

You said

We received a total of 247 responses including hardcopy and online to the questionnaire including 36% local residents, 33% local businesses and 23% often visited Burnt Oak or lived and worked in Barnet. Most respondents strongly supported or tended to support the proposals.

Through the consultation period, we engaged with:

• 45 people via a high street public pop-up event on 10 June 2023
• 66 businesses via 1:1 drop ins and interviews
• 32 people at In person workshops targeting protected groups with UNITAS Youth Group, Harrow Elder’s Group, Romanian Culture and Charity Together.

Key themes people would like to see addressed further includes:

• Safety is a key objective for most respondents and many people expressed the need to support any physical interventions with a strategy for ongoing management and enforcement to protect safety.
• The shopfronts along Watling Avenue have a big impact on the character of the town centre and the experience of shoppers and high street users. Many respondents wished to see the relationship between the shopfronts and the pedestrian space addressed to improve accessibility for all.
• Parking within the town centre was raised by a number of respondents, some were concerned about the impact of losing parking and others wanted to see greater enforcement against illegal parking and vehicle dominance along Watling Avenue to be addressed.
• Adding trees and planting to the town centre was welcomed by many respondents but with the note that safety, cleanliness and accessibility are the transformation priorities, and these aims should not be compromised by the addition of new greenery.

We did

The design team are developing the lighting and CCTV proposals for the town centre to respond to the feedback regarding safety. Working closely with Barnet Community Safety and Metropolitan Police Safer Neighbourhoods teams, we are refining the designs to target hotspots identified by respondents including Back Lane and Market Lane, Burnt Oak Underground Station entrance and the southern entrance to Watling Park.

To address the feedback raised regarding parking within the town centre we commissioned a travel survey to better understand how people travel to and from Burnt Oak.

This survey asked 480 people how they travelled to Burnt Oak and found that on that day 50% walked, 25% took a bus, 14% travelled by Tube, 9% used a car, 1% took a train and 1% cycled. A majority of 91% used public transport or active travel to go to Burnt Oak.

Using this data, we will develop a ‘Kerbside Strategy’ for Burnt Oak Town Centre which balances provision for different modes of movement (walking, cycling, public transport, loading, car travel, etc). This will help to make sure the interventions best reflect current and future needs for users.

We will use your feedback to develop the Public Realm Design Framework and more detailed design stages. There will be further co-design activities taking place, if you would like to be involved or join the Burnt Oak Partnership Board to help monitor the project, please email towncentres@barnet.gov.uk.