by FitzWest admin | Jun 17, 2021 | Consultations, Licensing
Letter from Westminster Council:
Westminster is at the heart of London’s night-time and visitor economy. Whilst licensed premises contribute a huge amount to the economy and vibrancy of the City, they can also create problems for residents and local services. During the Covid-19 pandemic, and especially as restrictions ease, there has been an increase in the number of premises in Westminster offering delivery services. There has been an increase in ancillary deliveries from existing premises and a growing number of applications for delivery centres where food and drink is delivered by either their own delivery personnel or via a third party delivery service.
Whilst we support businesses in Westminster to innovate and diversify, residents have told us that they have some concerns about these developments. In order to support safe, responsible and positive growth the Licensing Authority is proposing amendments to its Statement of Licensing Policy (SLP).
Introduction of new premise uses policies
The Licensing Authority proposes to introduce three new policies, these are:
* Ancillary Delivery of Alcohol and/or Late-Night Refreshment Policy (DEL1)
* Shops Policy (SHP1)
* Delivery Centre Policy (DC1)
Policy DEL1 will apply to venues such as restaurants and bars that want to offer deliveries in addition to their main activities. The presumption is to grant these applications subject to other policies.
Policy SHP1 will replace the existing Off sales of alcohol policy (OS1). The policy will apply to any premises whose primary function is the sale of goods or the offer of services. The policy is more comprehensive than OS1 as it covers all licensable activities that these premises may carry out.
Policy DC1 will apply to venues where the primary function is the sale of alcohol and food via a delivery service. Applications will generally be granted if they are not in predominantly residential areas and subject to other policies.
Other changes
The introduction of these policies will require a number of amendments across the SLP, including:
• Amendments to the Core Hours Policy (HRS1) to reflect the new premises uses
• The Off Sales of Alcohol Policy will be deleted.
• Amend other premises uses policies to refers to ancillary delivery.
We want to know what you think
Consultation will run from Monday 14 June to Sunday 25 July 2021. The consultation documents will be published on our website on the 14th June. The link to the relevant page is www.westminster.gov.uk/licensing-consultation<http://www.westminster.gov.uk/licensing-consultation> (please note that this page will not be live until the 14th June)
If you have any questions, please get in touch with a member of the team at licensingconsultation@westminster.gov.uk<mailto:licensingconsultation@westminster.gov.uk>
by FitzWest admin | Jun 16, 2021 | AGM, Consultations, The Plan
Dear Member
Please join us for the AGM which, due to the ongoing restrictions, will be held via Zoom.
Your attendance at the AGM is particularly important this year as we will be discussing the forthcoming referendum on the Neighbourhood Plan. There will be information available about the Plan and the referendum.
If you wish to attend, please email us at info@fitzwest.org by 4pm on Wednesday 7th July and we will send you the necessary link, password and documents.
by FitzWest admin | Feb 1, 2021 | Consultations, Environment, Greening, Our Neighbourhood
We want your ideas
The problem of on-street rubbish dumping and the need for more greenery are frequently mentioned by our members as important issues for all of us living and working in Fitzrovia.
The FitzWest Forum has supported various schemes to improve waste collection and deal with fly tipping. There is still a lot of progress to be made in this area and discussions are on going with Westminster Council on ways to deal with this.
One way to combat dumping is by improving the street scape – and a relatively quick way to do this is by planting and greening. The hope is that this will both deter dumping and also bring some much needed greenery into the area. We are planning to apply for funding from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) which is a levy that local authorities can choose to charge on new developments in their area. The money is used to support development by funding infrastructure that the council, local community and neighbourhoods want.
We are very keen to for our members to suggest where potential planting could take place. With the help of the wider membership last year, we had previously identified various ‘dumping hot spots’ which you can see on the map. We have two questions for you.
- Which of these do you think would be best suited for adding planters and greening?
- Are there any other places you would suggest? Several sites have been identified in the central area of FitzWest – but what about the North and South?
Please comment on this page or email your ideas to us at info@fitzwest.org. We will collect all the suggestions together and select the most popular locations for our application.
by Julia Haythorn | Jun 12, 2020 | Consultations
The Forum has submitted revised documentation on the FitzWest Plan and Westminster City Council has arranged a 10-week consultation period from 26 May to 4th August 2020.
We encourage all residents and businesses based in the area to read the Plan and submit their comments to the Council by the closing date.
The Plan’s main objectives are to integrate new development into the heritage of the area, create more affordable housing, support small shops and businesses, improve the environment and particularly air quality, promote greening through tree planting, green roofs and creating healthy streets by encouraging walking and cycling.
For full information on the consultation process click here:
After this consultation stage, an Examiner appointed by the Council will review all the evidence and recommend any further changes to the Plan. A referendum will follow for both residents on the electoral roll and business rate payers.
All Invited……….
We are planning a public meeting and AGM in July to discuss issues of greatest concern in the area. Full details to follow.
by Julia Haythorn | May 28, 2020 | Consultations
The Forum has submitted revised documentation on the FitzWest Plan and Westminster City Council has arranged a 10-week consultation period from 26 May to 4th August 2020.
We encourage all residents and businesses based in the area to read the Plan and submit their comments to the Council by the closing date.
The Plan’s main objectives are to integrate new development into the heritage of the area, create more affordable housing, support small shops and businesses, improve the environment and particularly air quality, promote greening through tree planting, green roofs and creating healthy streets by encouraging walking and cycling.
For full information on the consultation process click here:
After this consultation stage, an Examiner appointed by the Council will review all the evidence and recommend any further changes to the Plan. A referendum will follow for both residents on the electoral roll and business rate payers.
All Invited……….
We are planning a public meeting in July to discuss issues of greatest concern in the area. Full details to follow.
by Julia Haythorn | Mar 8, 2020 | Consultations
Neighbourhood Plan submitted
We have now submitted the revised Neighbourhood Plan and other documentation to Westminster City Council.
We would welcome any further comments or feedback at info@fitzwest.org
The relevant documents can be accessed here:
Supporting evidence:
Riding House Street -Public Realm Improvements – Consultation
Have your say on the consultation on public realm improvements on Riding House Street between its junctions with Nassau Street and Cleveland Street. FM Conway, service provider to Westminster City Council, has been commissioned to undertake this consultation on behalf of the City Council.
The scheme proposals are set out here in a letter from Westminster Council with a map of the area and summarised below:
- Formalised permanent road closure at east end of Riding House Street.
- Creation of a pedestrian zone with a flush surface throughout paved with two tone concrete paving.
- Benches and planting to improve public amenity and change the nature of Riding House Street from a road to a functional pedestrian space.
- Removal of the existing zebra crossing as it is no longer required. An informal pedestrian route between All Souls School sites is highlighted in the proposed paving pattern.
- Cycle parking facilities.
- Two-way operation to the east of Nassau Street to maintain access to motorcycle parking and for servicing vehicles.
Westminster Council welcome your views on the proposals. Any comments on the proposals should be returned no later than the closing date of 10/03/20 to rhs@fmconway.co.uk.
Redesignation of FitzWest as a Neighbourhood Forum
We are delighted to report that FitzWest was successfully redesignated on 20 February 2020 as a Neighbourhood Forum. Thanks to everyone for for contacting Westminster Council to support us.
