From: Russell Gray Date: 1 April 2015 18:12:11 GMT+01:00 To: "Williams, Mark" Ce: admin Subject: Re: OBV NF Application Engagement is relative of course, Mark. You can only judge a community group against standards achieved by the Council itself. It seems to me obvious that you cannot set some abstract and absolute criteria. If you think otherwise you had better explain exactly what they are. Meanwhile, we will be looking to the Council to demonstrate what you maintain is its exemplary ‘buy-in’ to Council planning processes from local interests by ensuring they attend the meeting to endorse your claim. Please ensure you use your ‘details of local tenants groups etc.’ to extend them an invitation direct from the Council to the meeting. | believe we are already aware of them as they are of us. We will be publicising the meeting by the usual methods. In any case, this is exactly the kind of dialogue that you have been invited to the meeting to pursue and we are open to all constructive and realistic suggestions for increasing engagement - as opposed to Council manoeuvring in an attempt to impose on us standards and obligations that the Council cannot itself meet. Regards Russell On 1 Apr 2015, at 17:26, Williams, Mark wrote: Dear Russell, I can confirm that Simon Bevan will be attending as well. On your point about advertising the meeting, it is more for the Old Bermondsey Village Forum to lead on engaging with the local community, residents groups, residents, businesses etc. As we discussed at the meeting chaired by Cllr Seaton it is vital that any neighbourhood forum builds local support and has wide ‘buy-in’ from local stakeholders at as early a stage as possible. If you require the details of local tenants groups etc then I can arrange for the council’s community engagement team to share these with you. |.google.com/mail/W0/?ui=28ik=99026 1e707&view=pt&search= inbox8th= 14c76004b20 taBebssiml= 14c760d4020128e>Best wishes, Mark Councillor Mark Williams Labour Member for Brunswick Park Ward Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Planning & Transport London Borough of Southwark 160 Tooley Street London, SE1 21Z 0207 5257730 / 07985 629095 / @markwilliams84 From: Russell Gray [mailto:russell@lordshiva.net] Sent: Saturday, March 28, 2015 8:16 PM To: Williams, Mark Cc: admin Subject: Re: OBV NF Application Pleased you are able to make it Mark. It would have been better if you could have made one of the earlier dates. Nevertheless, I look forward to welcoming you at Globe House at 18.30 on 22 April. Please confirm whether you will be accompanied by Simon Bevan, as I suggested. Also as I suggested, the meeting will be a good opportunity for the Council to invite those who, by implication from the criticisms you have floated of our NF application, you believe are unsupportive of our proposal or approach - being presumably very satisfied with the Council's own existing local planning policies and procedures. We are very open to all shades of opinion and fully encourage you to reach for the pockets of support that you suggest we fail to reach and encourage as inclusive a discussion as possible. I hope you will therefore take all possible steps to invite such local individuals, organisations and groups as you suggest we somehow disenfranchise. Regards Russell On 26 Mar 2015, at 14:26, Williams, Mark wrote: Dear Mr Gray, Thank you for your email and | accept your invitation to attend an Old Bermondsey Village meeting to discuss the questions set out in our letter to you. The zand April is free and Jenny from our office will be in touch to confirm the details.Best wishes, Mark Councillor Mark Williams Labour Member for Brunswick Park Ward Cabinet Member for Regeneration, Planning & Transport London Borough of Southwark 160 Tooley Street London, SE1 2TZ 0207 5257730 / 07985 629095 / @markwilliams84 From: Russell Gray [mailto:russell@lordshiva.net Sent: Wednesday, March 18, 2015 6:33 PM To: Williams, Mark Ce: Bevan, Simon Subject: OBV NF Application Mr Williams I confirm receipt of your letter below, dated 10 March and signed by Juliet Seymour. As you are fully aware, we know fiom email instructions to Juliet accidentally copied to us by Simon Bevan in the past that she only writes what she is told to by her bosses. To use her in this way is cowardly and exploitative. No doubt it is you or Simon Bevan who wrote the letter and hence it is to you I reply You can read some general comments on the points made in the letter in our current mailout. It is quite clear that you remain committed to obstructing our application if you can find any legally tenable grounds. The points you raise are in most cases factually incorrect or without merit. This is not to say we are not entirely open to valid comments supported by reason or evidence and we believe such matters are best addressed in person and in the open. You are therefore invited to put your reservations on the table in front ofa general meeting of our Group on any of the following Wednesdays: 25 March, lApril, 8 April, 15 April, 22 April, As you know our meetings are held at 18:30pm at a location only two minutes walk from your office. It is of course desirable that Simon Bevan attends also. By attending in person you will be able to gauge directly the merit in your point that it is the Council, more than us, that enjoys ‘inclusive’ support in the Neighbourhood Area that you have chosen to designate for its planning policy locally. T would also urge you to use your much greater resources to publicise the meeting and encourage the attendance of the diverse and plentifill local stakeholders who you continually assert we lack your power to attract. Please let me know as soon as possible your choice of date so that we also can do everything that our more modest resources permit to raise interest and awareness of the meeting, Regards