Havering Consultations

Havering’s Local Heritage List helps our communities and the local planning authority to identify heritage assets (for example, buildings, monuments, sites and landscapes) that are much loved and a distinctive part of our local historic environment. It provides a comprehensive list of the location of assets and what is significant about them.  

During June - August 2023, we asked for your comments on the criteria.  Robust criteria ensure the local list is properly evidenced, which in turn allows each nomination to be given full consideration during planning decisions.  

We received 21 responses.

• You mentioned group value to be considered
• You suggested views and townscapes to be included in the criteria
• You suggested to put greater emphasis on pre-war buildings
• You mentioned a number of buildings for consideration

The Local Heritage List criteria have now been updated, taking on board comments we received during the consultation.  Changes include: 

• Updating the text in the ‘Age’ criterion to reflect Havering’s development over time
• We have assessed the proposition to include views in the local heritage list. Views can be identified and protected through planning policies or any specific framework- i.e. Conservation Area, Local Plan, Within designated park and gardens. However, views cannot be designated as heritage assets in the local list.  
• We will consider Townscapes for future Conservation Area assessment in terms of how a character of a townscape contributes to the special interest the conservation area.
• All buildings mentioned for consideration will be assessed for inclusion in the updated local list.

As part of Havering’s refresh of our Local Plan 2021, Havering Council carried out a consultation between March and May 2023 to ask people around the borough about their views on the characters of the areas where they live, work or study.

Led by Havering Planning team, with input from departments across the Council and an urbanisation practice, we delivered four pop-up events, a community workshop and an online survey to ensure we heard from a wide group of people.

What we learned from 91 responses that were received to the online survey:

Positive feedback from the survey told us that:

• There were 98 (108%) positive responses about the green spaces and parks in Havering.
• 74 (81%) were based on transport which included trains, buses and the underground services.
• 22 (24%) of respondents said that the community is the strength of Havering.
• 14 (15%) said they valued the heritage and historic buildings of the borough
• 7 (8%) praised Havering’s amenities and facilities
• 5 (5%) commended Havering’s sense of safety
• 3 (3%) said they valued the peace and tranquillity the borough gives

Negative feedback from the survey told us:

• There were 22 (24%) negative responses about anti-social and safety issues in Havering.
• 17 (19%) of respondents expressed dissatisfaction with the over-development of the borough, including building heights.
• There were 17 (19%) negative responses about the litter in Havering and a lack of care and maintenance in the borough.
• 14 (15%) of negative responses were based on issues with transport.
• 10 (11%) said that the sense of community spirit that was once there is now lost.
• 7 (8%) addressed issues with inadequate road surfaces in the borough.

What we learned from face-to-face engagement we did with local people:

The survey results are being reviewed and will help us to:

• Understand the key issues and concerns about each place to help us shape the ideas and opportunities in the Character Study.
• Understand how local people define the edges and reach of their local area to help us shape the neighbourhood character area plan in the Character Study.
• Understand what local people value about the identity of their local area to help us shape the characteristics and qualities for future development defined in the Character Study.

Havering Council carried out a consultation activity from March to May 2023 seeking views on our proposed Draft Children and Young People Education Place Planning Plan.

We asked parents, carers, local residents, education providers and other people interested in education provision in Havering for their contribution towards the proposals that have been set out in order to meet demand and ensure that there is sufficient capacity for the future need for education provision in Havering.

424 responses were received to the consultation.

Early Years

• Just under a third (30%) of parents and stakeholders agreed that there are sufficient childcare places.  Over a third (38%) disagreed.
• The majority of stakeholders (71%) agreed that an onsite nursery provision should be included when opening a new school
• Half of parents (50%) and more than three-quarters of stakeholders (77%) stated that there are not enough places for SEND pupils.

Primary and Secondary

• The majority of parents and stakeholders (71%) agree that that a new secondary school is needed in Havering from 2027/28
• More than half of stakeholders (56%) agree that the Local Authority should formulate an action plan and accommodation strategy for those schools where we have permanently reduced the published admission number (PAN), in order to address surplus places.

Post 16

• The majority of parents and stakeholders responded either no (45%) or don’t know (43%) when asked whether there are sufficient sixth form places available at Havering school sixth forms to meet the projected demand.  Only 10% of respondents replied yes to this question.
• Nearly half of stakeholders (48%) said they didn’t know if there is sufficient capacity available at the Havering Colleges - just under a third (29%) said that there isn’t.

Special Education Needs and Disability (SEND)

• The majority of parents and stakeholders (64%) agree that we need a new special school in Havering.
• The majority of stakeholders (93%) agree that a lot of children with Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs) in mainstream school settings need to be placed in a SEND unit instead.  This was also frequently commented on by parents in the SEND comment section.
• The majority of stakeholders (81%) agree that we need to revisit the capacity in our current local special schools to increase place numbers where possible.
• The majority of stakeholders (86%) agree that we need to develop a community base in conjunction with a specialist provider and establish a coordinated ‘Education Other Than At School’ (EOTAS) provision for children with EHCPs to support children and families who are either out of school or who are struggling to attend mainstream school until more special school places are available.

Alternative Provision (AP)

• More than half of parents and stakeholders (51%) agree that Havering would benefit from a new AP school.
• Two-thirds of stakeholders (65%) think we should develop the ‘AP Out Reach Offer’ - to be utilised as an early intervention to address needs and avoid fixed term and permanent exclusions.
• Just under half of stakeholders (47%) said no when asked if our mainstream schools are inclusive enough in supporting vulnerable children and young people.

The survey results are being reviewed and will be included in a report to inform our new Children and Young People Education Place Planning Plan.