The Clapton Neighbourhood Panel
Why are there two panels in the North East?
What do we discuss in the meetings?
Keeping you informed
Dates of forthcoming meetings
What is the Clapton Neighbourhood Panel?
The Clapton Panel is a neighbourhood panel whose members are made up solely of residents.Every estate with a TRA can elect and sent two representatives to become members of the panel. We hold monthly meetings with representatives from several local TRAs and keep in regular touch with some 30 more.
The panel, as residents, have a say in all major aspects of our housing here in the North East and in all departmental areas, including the Decent Homes programme.
The 2011/12 chair is Mavis McGee, the vice-chair George McGee, the treasurer Susan Borghys and the secretary David White, all re-elected to their respective positions after serving for the previous three years.
Estates In North East Neighbourhood Committee
Every estate needs either a TRA or estate representative to speak for residents and to attend the panel to get full benefit out of the resident involvement system.Sadly there are many estates without a TRA or rep.We need responsible civic-minded people to step forward and fill the breach.
Could you spare a couple of hours a month to help make your estate and Clapton a better place to live?
With help from your Resident Participation Officer you could form a TRA or possibly become a "key representative" for your estate and attend the panel as a member. Why not contact us to talk it over or come along to a meeting?
You'll be warmly welcomed and get all the help and support you need (see further below for contact details).
Why are there two panels in the North East?
The Clapton Panel is one of two panels, both of which are sub-committees of the "N.E. Executive Panel" which is, in turn a sub-committee of the "Residents Liaison Group".
The second panel is the Stamford Hill panel, which, along with the Clapton Panel represents residents for the whole of the NE of Hackney, each representing very close to half the total number of residents.
As members of the Clapton panel we do our best to speak on behalf of residents in approx' 3,570 homes in & around E5. If you are a Hackney Homes resident or leaseholder living in Clapton, this means you.
We have senior Hackney Homes & Pinnacle staff as well as local councillors attend our meetings in order to ask them questions and hold them to account.
What do we discuss in the meetings?
We discuss all the current housing and local environmental issues that affect us and try to resolve as many as possible. We tend to concentrate on issues that affect the whole NE, like the Estate Improvement Budget and 184 as well as CCTV and Anti Social Behaviour but we do discuss single estate issues and offer assistance if the TRA or rep. has been unable to help or there is no TRA.
Keeping you informed
The panel has a new website at: www.claptonpanel.wordpress.com with lots to keep you informed and entertained on 9 pages:
- Home
- NEWS
- Minutes
- 184
- EIB
- Contacts
- Leaseholders
- Under 25
- Odds & Ends
- The Daily Comic
The contacts page has well over 60 organizations, services and people listed with full contact details and links to web pages where available.
On our website you'll find a everything you need to know to get involved or have your say, including who your Resident Participation Officer is and how to get in touch with them. You can also find out who your estate manager is, their contact details and their responsibilities. There are links to sites such as the Youth Parliament, Freecycle and the police Safer Neighbourhoods.
There are contact details for the main borough wide Black and Ethnic minority groups as well. There is a page of local housing environs issues as well as news of local events, constantly updated and there is a page with the minutes of our meetings.
You will also find that a page each has been devoted to the EIB (Environmental Improvement budget) and the 184 Budgets (see below) - the two resident allocated budgets because they are the budgets in which resident involvement has a real impact and a real outcome.
The panel has been instrumental in asking for local craftsmen and suppliers to be validated so that they can work on estate projects funded by the EIB. Hackney Homes procurement have helped make this widening of choice a great success.
Included is the 184-walkabout timetable for each estate. The 184 budget is decided in large part on these walkabouts.
You can attend your own estate's 184 walkabout and ask for the work to be done you feel is most needed or would make the most impact to your quality of life. You can have a say how your EIB is spent by proposing a project even if your estate doesn't have a TRA.
We can help by putting you in touch with the right people as well as help in accessing external grants.You can have a direct say in how these budgets are spent on your estate and you don't have to belong to a TRA. Both residents & leaseholders are entitled a voice in spending on communal facilities and projects as well as repairs and grounds.
Why leave it to us alone when you can have your say and quite possibly your own way? Tell us what you want on your estate or what issues there are either by phone, email or in person at a panel meeting.
To attend you must reserve a seat either with the panel secretary by emailing claptonpanel@googlemail.com or phone the secretary on 07794 195 444.
You can find out whom we've invited to the next meeting at the same time. You'll then be able to get answers directly from the senior Hackney Homes or Pinnacle staff at the meeting.
Dates of forthcoming meetings
We meet on the second Tuesday of every month (except August) in Gooch House, Kenninghall Road, Clapton E5, starting at 7pm. The AGM is in March each year.
Written by David White (Secretary of the Clapton Panel 2009/10/11/12
