Alton residents can shape future estate services

Residents living on the Alton estate in Roehampton are being given the chance to voice their opinions about the needs of their neighbourhoods and the future provision of council services in the area.

Senior councillors will next week begin a series of walkabouts on the estate to give residents the opportunity to meet them and say what priorities the council should pursue when it comes to providing local services.

The walkabouts will then be followed by a series of neighbourhood meetings where people can register their views in a more organised setting. The initiative follows the council's takeover of management services on the estate following the demise of the Alton Park Residents' Management Organisation, which went into voluntary liquidation earlier this year.

The first walkabout will be in the Tunworth Crescent area at 10.30am on Wednesday, May 7, and is aimed specifically at residents living in that area. Wandsworth's cabinet member for housing Cllr Martin D Johnson will be available to meet residents along with Cllr Jim Maddan, chairman of the Putney area housing panel.

There will also be a follow-up meeting for Tunworth area residents at the Kairos Centre in Mount Angelus Road, off Danebury Avenue at 7.30pm on Tuesday, May 20.

Further walkabouts and meetings are planned for other areas and blocks on the Alton estate in the coming months. Each resident will receive written notification giving details of their local neighbourhood walkabout and meeting nearer the time.

Cllr Johnson said: "Until quite recently, all of the day to day services on the Alton like cleaning, repairs and graffiti removal were the responsibility of the RMO.

"Following that organisation's demise, housing management services on the estate have reverted to the council, which is operating a local office in Holybourne Avenue providing a full range of services for residents.

"We now want to hear what local people think the council's priorities should be when it comes to delivering these services."

Residents who want further information should call Marc Howell, acting area manager, on (020) 8780 9048.