As this long, hot summer draws to an end we wanted to update you on the progress of various CIL  (Community Infrastructure Levy) applications and awards.

We also wanted to tell you a bit more about CIL and how important it is for as many people as possible to have a say in how it is spent.

What is CIL?

The Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) is a charge paid by developers (not householders) when beginning a new development. FitzWest has access to 25% of CIL generated in our area and this means the Forum can submit projects it wishes to see implemented as well as endorsing projects submitted by other charitable organisations based in the area. Projects should meet the following criteria:

• They should provide infrastructure which benefits those living and working in the area;
• They should provide additional infrastructure for defined sections of the population where facilities and services are insufficient or lacking;
• They should be non-discriminatory and meet all other legal requirements in the way they are delivered and operate;
• They should meet policy objectives as set out in the Council’s City Plan 2019 – 40 and the Neighbourhood Plan 2020;
• They should conform to guidance provided by the Council as set out on the website above.

A few projects have already been successfully applied for and accepted by Westminster Council for CIL funding. However, there is a constant supply of cash form new developments and it is really important that as many people as possible – residents, businesses and organisations – have a say in how this money is allocated.

This is your chance to be involved in making these decisions!

We are looking for volunteers to be on our CIL Committee.  This committee meets every couple of months and members also receive emails and applications to look at and comment on. It is up to you how much you would like to be involved and this is an important way to really influence and contribute how projects are funded.

If you would just like a simple admin role then we also need a secretary for the committee This would involve organising meetings and creating the agendas and minutes.

If you, or anyone you know would like to help make sure this funding goes to the right places, then please get in touch on info@fitzwest.org

Thanks to everyone who attended the public meeting on 15th February 2022 at the Fitzrovia Community Centre.

The purpose of the meeting was to hear ideas and to inform residents and local organisations about the Community Infrastructure Levy and how it works.

We were delighted to see lots of people there and to hear many ideas of how to improve the infrastructure of Fitzrovia West using the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL).

Amit Mistry, Principal Policy Officer from Westminster Council addressed the meeting and took questions about CIL, the kind of projects it funds and how it works.

There were lots of suggestions for projects from people at the meeting and via email beforehand. A summary of the subjects is here:

Thank you to all the residents and businesses who responded to our consultation about planters in Fitzrovia.
The response was overwhelmingly supportive and included lots of great ideas for other places and greening initiatives. And also many offers to help look after the planters with watering and weeding.

100% of respondents were in favour of greening generally in the area and 94% were in favour of all the suggested sites.   Click here to see the full report.
We really hope that if we are able to successfully achieve this small amount of greening, then we can begin on other projects.
We have made some adjustments to the proposal, taking into account feedback and concerns (for example the corner planters at locations 2 and 5 will be a smaller rectangle shape not the larger square shape in the photographs – which means there will still be space there for people to wait at these spots when the pavement on New Cavendish Street is crowded.)

Funding Application from CIL

We had anticipated having enough money to complete this project using the Tesco funding, but costs have increased because the planters are on the public highway so we now need safety checks, traffic impact assessments etc. As a result we are now applying for further funding from the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) and will know by February 7th 2022 if we have been successful and are able to complete this project.

Thanks to everyone who has made suggestions and comments on the location of planting and greening as a means to improve the streetscape and to deter rubbish dumping. There are plenty of locations – we had 15 on the long list – so now we have a great resource to refer to and also to share with other organisations as we work on greening the area. Where we are at the moment:

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 have many suitable suggestions for locations, all over the FitzWest area.
It is suggested the greening will have more impact – both visually and practically as a dumping deterrent if the greening areas are clustered together.
We will keep all suggestions for a long term greening plan, but in the short term, for this initial CIL project we suggest the following which has the benefit of being relatively close together and therefore visible:

1. Langham Street/Gosfield St – 2 locations/ 4 or 5 planters A real and visible hot spot with lots of commercial and residential dumping.

2 & 3 Hanson Street /Foley Street – 2 locations /2 planters Two planters on Hanson Street/Foley Street corners. One of the corners by the bin is very prone to dumping, and there is plenty of space.

4 & 5 Candover Street – 4 locations/ 4 planters Four planters, one on each corner with Riding House Street and Foley Street. Prone to persistent dumping, would link to and echo existing planting outside local businesses on Foley Street.
These locations would create a real impact and are close enough together to be a noticeable improvement to the greening in the area and will be easy to monitor for rubbish dumping. Let us know your thoughts – by email info@fitzwest.org or by commenting on this post

Local business involvement We also plan to approach local businesses to see if they would like to be part of the application – we can apply for additional planters for businesses to display and care for on their forecourts (as some do already). If you are a local business with a forecourt or pavement space that is yours and would like to register an interest in acquiring planters then please get in touch at info@fitzwest.org