Dartmouth Park Healthy Neighbourhood Public Meeting
Highgate Society Hosts Public Meeting on Dartmouth Park Healthy Neighbourhood traffic proposals
A recording of the meeting is available here. A list of speakers is shown at the end of this update.
The Highgate Society hosted a well-attended public meeting on 3 September at La Sainte Union School to discuss the Dartmouth Park Healthy Neighbourhood traffic proposals. These proposals, issued as a “co-design” engagement by Camden and Islington Councils in July, aim to address traffic, pollution, and environmental issues across Dartmouth Park and surrounding areas. Over 225 people came to the meeting, with another 70 participating via Zoom. The meeting provided an opportunity for the community to express their views, with contributions from residents, local organizations, and four local councillors: Anna Wright, Camron Aref-Adib (both Labour, Camden), Lorna Jane Russell (Green, Camden), and Scott Emery (Liberal Democrat, Haringey).
The proposals, part of Camden Council’s broader climate action plan following its 2019 declaration of a climate and ecological emergency, aim to reduce through-traffic in the Dartmouth Park area, improve air quality, and support healthier modes of transport like walking and cycling. The proposals have raised strong opinions within the community, as highlighted during the meeting.
Key Concerns Raised: While some speakers supported the proposals to support healthier travel and better air quality, many residents expressed apprehension about potential negative impacts, particularly the diversion of traffic from one area to another. Concerns were raised about increased congestion on roads like Highgate Road, Highgate West Hill, and Fortess Road, with fears that this would worsen pollution and create safety risks, particularly for children and vulnerable groups.
Access to Whittington Hospital was another prominent issue, with some speakers concerned that road closures or restrictions could delay emergency response times. Concerns were voiced about the possible negative impacts on local businesses. Several speakers said that the Dartmouth Park streets supposed to benefit from the scheme were already quiet, and that this was not the way the Councils should be spending public money.
Call for Improved Consultation: While most residents acknowledged the need for change to improve air quality and reduce traffic, all but a few were critical of the consultation process, describing it as inadequate and insufficiently transparent. There were calls for clearer communication and more detailed traffic modelling to show how the scheme would affect not only the central Dartmouth Park area but also the surrounding areas and boundary roads. The Councillors recognised that there have been issues with the engagement approach so far, and promised there would be fuller consultation if the proposals are pursued. In his closing statement Councillor Camron Aref-Adib thanked Highgate Society “for arranging this event… this has been a lesson in terms of how we do our engagement on such schemes, and it’s been a really positive event.”
Looking Forward: As the organiser, the Highgate Society values the broad range of views expressed and is committed to ensuring that all contributions are heard. We will be sharing the recording with Camden and Islington Councils which have agreed it will be treated as part of their engagement responses. The Highgate Society with other supporters of the DPHN Joint Action initiative will continue to facilitate community engagement on this important issue, and we encourage residents and businesses to stay informed and participate in future consultations which could potentially be at short notice and last only four weeks. We thank all attendees for their thoughtful contributions and look forward to working collaboratively to achieve the best possible outcomes for our neighbourhood.
We appreciate not everybody got a chance to speak. The Council has confirmed that contributions may still be submitted by e mail to:
Please do copy contact@dphnjointaction.com
The Councillors who attended may be contacted here:
Camron.Aref-Adib@camden.gov.uk
List of Speakers
|
Time in Zoom recording |
Speaker |
Organisation/Road |
|
0.00 |
Charlotte Alderson |
Introduction to Meeting Introduction to Meeting |
|
3.06 |
Andrew Sulston |
|
|
5.31 |
Councillor Anna Wright |
Camden (Highgate Ward) |
|
11.14 |
Councillor Lorna Jane Russell |
Camden (Highgate Ward) |
|
14.35 |
Councillor Scott Emery |
Haringey (Highgate Ward) |
|
17.36 |
Christopher Kelly |
25-56 Brookfield Mansions, Highgate West Hill |
|
20.52 |
Graeme Blyth |
Brookfield Primary School Parents Committee |
|
23.26 |
Nick Bradfield |
Dartmouth Park Road Residents Association |
|
26.34 |
Andrew Haslam-Jones |
Heath and Hampstead Society |
|
28.30 |
Susan Rose |
Highgate Conservation Area Advisory Committee |
|
32.06 |
Siri Zanelli |
Highgate Neighbourhood Forum |
|
35.06 |
William Britain |
Highgate Society |
|
38.07 |
Nick Hughes |
Holly Lodge Residents |
|
40.59 |
Brian Elsley |
LEBOC Residents Group |
|
43.19 |
Revd Damian Mason |
Parish Church of St Mary, Brookfield |
|
45.45 |
Edward Stanners |
Pond Square Residents Association |
|
48.40 |
John Slater |
Swains Lane Residents Association |
|
51.38 |
Kristina Armonaite-Ashton |
Highgate West Hill Residents Assocation |
|
From the floor |
||
|
56.19 |
Amy Silverstone |
Laurier Road |
|
57.51 |
(no name) |
Highgate Hill (Haringey) |
|
59.04 |
Dominic (no surname) |
Lissendon Gardens |
|
1.0.09 |
Mali Ciara |
York Rise |
|
1.1.22 |
Sarah Wells |
Lady Somerset Road |
|
1.2.46 |
Mr Bright |
Chetwynd Road |
|
1.4.14 |
Peter Buckley-Hill |
Fortess Road |
|
1.5.04 |
David Hatter |
off Tufnell Park Road |
|
1.5.49 |
Ceridwen Roberts |
North Road |
|
1.6.54 |
Douglas Paskin |
North Road |
|
1.7.43 |
(no name) |
Chetwynd Road |
|
1.08.56 |
Mrs MacDonald |
Highgate Hill (Islington) |
|
1.09.41 |
Don Ronstein |
Dartmouth Park Hill |
|
1.10.41 |
Andrea Bohme |
Bovington Close |
|
1.11.39 |
Jeff Salmon |
Pond Square |
|
Closing Remarks |
||
|
1.13.12 |
Councillor Camron Aref-Adib |
Camden (Highgate) |
|
1.15.54 |
Councillor Anna Wright |
Camden (Highgate) |
|
1.17.14 |
Councillor Lorna Jane Russell |
Camden (Highgate) |
|
1.18.10 |
Councillor Scott Emery |
Haringey (Highgate) |
7 September 2024
