Better Plan making – an engineered view
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Under the banner ‘Taking a View’,  from time to time, we’re pleased to publish articles by members on a subject of their choice, which they believe will be interesting to the wider membership.

With both the London Plan and Hammersmith’s Local Plan due to be rewritten shortly, and with all the noise being made about ‘The Planning System’ in recent months, here, our Chairman takes an engineered view. How can we write better planning documents to improve the ‘planning system’ ?

With the help of established methods, perhaps a dash of modern AI, this piece shows how plans can be substantially shorter and more precise, illustrated with a couple examples from the London Plan, and in a specific case, how loose wording is being taken advantage of at Earls Court.

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Articles are unedited personal viewpoints, and may not always represent the views of the Society

Wheelie Bins roll into Brackenbury
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Under the banner ‘Taking a View’,  from time to time, we’re pleased to publish articles by members on a subject of their choice, which they believe will be interesting to the wider membership.

Late last summer we wrote about Wheelie Bins, which seemed to touch a nerve amongst members and affiliates. It continues to be one of the most popular articles on our website nearly a year later, and now that the bins have arrived, its predictions appear more accurate than many an election claim, as More or Less may confirm.

In this follow-up, two longstanding members detail what’s happened in Brackenbury, with photos.  The council might reasonably improve the situation for the large number of smaller properties in the borough by rightsizing the default offer, as described here.

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Articles are unedited personal viewpoints, and may not always represent the views of the Society

The curse of graffiti covered security shutters
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Under the banner ‘Taking a View’,  from time to time, we’re pleased to publish articles by members on a subject of their choice, which they believe will be interesting to the wider membership.

Earlier in the year, we wrote about the parlous state of some shopfronts in the borough, giving some examples of better practice. The story was part-inspired by affiliate BRA’s activities and those of our members, in appealing to the council for enforcement of existing planning regulations. We note that this issue is not specific to LBHF – there’s been a rising tide of graffiti across London, even recently reported in Barnes.

In this follow-up, two members detail particular issues and the enforcement actions they’ve been working on with the council and with our encouragement and support.

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Articles are unedited personal viewpoints, and may not always represent the views of the Society

Being careful what you wish for by Richard Farthing 
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Under the banner ‘Taking a View’,  from time to time, we’re pleased to publish articles by members on a subject of their choice, which they believe will be interesting to the wider membership.

In the ‘dog days of summer’, our chairman took a look through his inheritance of exhibition materials and development proposals, and wondered just how much development proposals improve during second and possibly later iterations after being rejected or otherwise failing at the first hurdle.

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Articles are unedited personal viewpoints, and may not always represent the views of the Society

Creating Hammersmith Avenue by Alex Reid
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Under the banner ‘Taking a View’,  from time to time, we’re pleased to publish articles by members on a subject of their choice, which they believe will be interesting to the wider membership.

In this article, our member Dr. Alex Reid revisits the work done on the original Flyunder proposal, and in recognition of the times we live in, looks at how the essence of it could be reworked into a vision for the 2020’s, recognising a much-prolonged lifespan for the flyover, and the longterm declining pollution levels on the A4.  

As cheerleaders for the original Flyunder proposal, we support the essence of these proposals, especially in respect of possible improvements to the environment, and the prospect of measurably safer cycling facilities along the A4, as long as A4 capacity can be substantially maintained, which earlier research suggests is possible. The creation of the Society was of course as a result the A4 ‘cutting a great divide through the townscape’ in the early 1960’s.

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Articles are unedited personal viewpoints, and may not always represent the views of the Society

The Origin and Possible Future of Hammersmith & West London College by Hans Haenlein
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Under the banner ‘Taking a View’,  from time to time, we’re pleased to publish articles by members on a subject of their choice, which they believe will be interesting to the wider membership.

In this article, our president, Professor Hans Haenlein, updates us on an issue close to his heart: Hammersmith & West London College, both from an architectural but as importantly, a topical Further Education point of view, tracing its origins back to the Arts & Crafts movement and William Morris.

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Articles are unedited personal viewpoints, and may not always represent the views of the Society

The implications for North Hammersmith of adoption of the OPDC Local Plan by Henry Petersen
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Under the banner ‘Taking a View’,  from time to time, we’re pleased to publish articles by members on a subject of their choice, which they believe will be interesting to the wider membership.

Our member Henry Peterson has a a lifetime’s experience in the world of planning, and been a long-term adviser to affiliate St. Helens Residents Association and the Old Oak Neighbourhood Forum.  He’s written on OPDC matters extensively, including for us, and his comments were mentioned several times in the recent Local Plan adoption meeting.

Here he takes the long view of what’s happened at OPDC, specifically in its long Local Plan development and eventual adoption on 22nd June, with reference to the falling-out with CarGiant that unravelled its original aims, and suggests what the plan now means for North Hammersmith.

The alarming vision presented is a land-grab to replace the lost CarGiant area, coupled with yet more ultra high-rises on the horizon in North Acton, and indeed 15-20+ storeys all along the boundary of Wormwood Scrubs with poor local public transport, sufficient for LBHF’s leader to withhold his support for another likely overbuilt Mayoral project.

In Henry’s words: “One of London’s last large brownfield areas deserved better.” 

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Articles are unedited personal viewpoints, and may not always represent the views of the Society

William Morris by Chris Tranchell
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Under the banner ‘Taking a View’,  from time to time, we’re pleased to publish articles by members on a subject of their choice, which they believe will be interesting to the wider membership.

In our second article, committee member Chris Tranchell writes a personal appreciation of the life of William Morris, describing what it means to him, and to Hammersmith.

We’re fond of our local Kelmscott House celebrity, not because of his often overplayed politics, but because he embodied a well-rounded life as an original polymath, a founder of the Arts and Crafts movement, who matches our interests in both architectural conservation and design quality, or as our president Hans Haenlein neatly puts it, Head-Heart-Hand.

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Articles are unedited personal viewpoints, and may not always represent the views of the Society

Do we need to think differently when when solving problems?
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Under the banner ‘Taking a View’,  from time to time, we’re pleased to publish articles by members on a subject of their choice, which they believe will be interesting to the wider membership.

By way of introduction to this new set of member-contributed articles, here we present a thought-provoking article from longstanding member Emeritus Professor Derek Clements-Croome, discussing the tension between specialists and generalists, so-called hedgehogs and foxes, leadership, and how we think, with reference to sustainability and the tension between cost and value, with examples such as the Grenfell Tower.

If you have an article you would like to be considered, please contact .
Articles are unedited personal viewpoints, and may not always represent the views of the Society