Working together to make Wimbledon Park a better place

Annual Report to Wimbledon Park residents  from our MP

Wimbledon Park is one of the loveliest areas of Wimbledon. The delicate balance between different needs in the community, whether residential, commercial or green has not been lost here, as seems to be happening at times  in other parts of Wimbledon. There is a strong sense of community in Wimbledon Park and many take great pride in the atmosphere of the area and the appearance of individual streets.

While other parts of Wimbledon are now starting to be dominated by the recreational needs of people coming into the Borough, Wimbledon Park remains centred on the life of the local community. The village-like feel to the area is increasingly difficult to find in other parts of London. But to thrive, the special needs of such an "urban  village" must be recognised and cared for.  Amenities, the business environment and the streetscape all need constant attention, if our community is to be sustained.

The workshop we held in Wimbledon Park last July with the help of the Urban Design Taskforce of Wimbledon Civic Forum gave us a full agenda to work on throughout the year. We have conducted similar workshops in other parts of Wimbledon such as the town centre and Raynes Park. The meetings have been well attended and organised in such a way as to give everyone the chance to speak.

Wimbledon Park was no exception and ideas flowed freely about what needed to be done to improve the area.

The issues raised and those we have been working on include the need to maintain local shop-fronts, the need to reverse the decline in local amenities, investment in transport links, the future of the Plough Lane site and the need to improve council services such as rubbish collection and street sweeping. Much discussion focussed on how best to harness and develop the sense of Wimbledon Park as a village. A strategy was needed to recover from the loss of amenities such as the library and the local bank and to regenerate the local business sector to maintain the attractiveness of the arcades.