News from The Barnet Society

Barnet Society members have voted decisively to support and contribute to any campaign to mount a legal challenge against the Deputy Mayor of London’s decision to overrule Barnet Council and authorise the go ahead for blocks of flats on the car park at High Barnet tube station.

Construction of a massive complex of nearly 500 new flats at New Barnet is reaching the half-way stage – just as the go-ahead for the start of a proposed high-rise development at High Barnet tube station might be only weeks away.

In a final push to rally opposition to an experimental controlled parking zone in 16 roads north of Mays Lane residents are being urged to have their say before a consultation by Barnet Council ends on June 14.

Residents around Mays Lane are anxious to attract support for a community bid to take over the derelict former Quinta Youth Club which has been put up for sale by Barnet Council for £300,000. Local groups have until October to submit offers and proposals to the council. Several eligible community interest organisations have already expressed interest.

Approval has finally been given by the office of the Mayor of London for the redevelopment of land around High Barnet tube station with five blocks of flats despite warnings this would cause irreparable damage to an historic skyline.

After the loss of several pubs around High Barnet in recent weeks, work has finally started on major repairs to the Black Horse in Wood Street, and it is due to re-open in mid-June after being closed since last September.

Labour has kept control of Barnet Council following a post-election pact with the Conservatives to ensure administration of the authority and services to residents continue without interruption.

Barnet’s newly-elected Green Party councillor, Charli Thompson – who lives in High Barnet – says her priority will be to tackle issues surrounding adult social care and disabilities rather than get involved in party political infighting.

David Bone broke off from selling fruit and vegetables to accept a Civic Award for Lifetime Achievement in recognition of 65 years of service at the twice weekly Barnet Market.

An historic whalebones arch beside Wood Street, High Barnet, has had to be encased in scaffolding after the owners of Whalebones House feared it might collapse and cause an injury to passersby.

After a split election result, future political control of Barnet Council will hang in the balance until the newly elected councillors meet for the first time at Hendon Town Hall on Tuesday 19 May.

A dramatic backdrop at the RAF Museum at Hendon provided the setting for a marathon election count which upended local politics as the Labour Party haemorrhaged seats and Barnet Council slipped to no overall control. Labour and the Conservatives finished with 31 seats each.

Painting and caring for the Battle of Barnet banners which are displayed along the High Street each summer is an historic legacy for the town which volunteers at Barnet Museum hope might gain international recognition.

Barnet Market stalwart David Bone, who has been selling fruit and vegetables since he started as a boy at the age of seven helping on his father’s stall, has been awarded a 2026 Borough of Barnet Civic Award for Lifetime Achievement.

Barnet Council’s attempt to halt the go ahead for a travellers’ caravan site on a field in Green Belt land off Mays Lane has failed in the High Court to the disappointment of a local residents’ group.

A renewed attempt is being made to get up to date information on the future ownership of The Spires Shopping Centre in High Barnet following a second intervention by the High Court appointing administrators for companies involved with its leases.

A road closure most parents might welcome would be when the street outside their homes is transformed into a safe play space for small children free of traffic.

Steel piling has been used to strengthen the retaining wall along the side of Jack’s Lake in Monken Hadley Common after the bank sprang a leak which was posing a danger to the long-term future of one of Barnet’s most popular beauty spots.

A planning dispute over an unsuccessful bid to build a large new house within the Monken Hadley conservation area has resulted in Barnet Council declaring a woodland tree preservation order on the whole site.

A blue plaque has been installed outside a house in Calvert Road to draw attention to an ongoing dispute between residents and Barnet Council over the painting of double yellow line parking restrictions at the junction with Sebright Road.