Newsletter Christmas 2025
- wpramembers
- 22 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Chairman’s Report
The Resident’s Association AGM was held on 29 October 2025 at Wimbledon Park Hall. There was an excellent turnout from residents and the meeting included committee members, local councillors, guest speakers from Merton Council, Christopher Coombe and MP Paul Kohler.
Key updates included the transition in October 2024 of WPRA to a company limited by guarantee, to ensure limited liability; a short report on membership, which has grown steadily over the last year; and the presentation of the accounts.
Council and community reports were provided by the Wimbledon Park Councillors who highlighted traffic management, tree maintenance, waste control and park improvements as issues they had dealt with. Merton Council staff outlined cultural projects funded by a £1.2m borough grant and gave updates on green space management, park services, tree planting and pollarding backlogs.
Events in Wimbledon Park are a continuing cause for concern amongst residents, in particular large events impacting park use, noise and clean up. Merton Council assured better oversight and that environmental charges would be reinvested into parks.
Christopher Coombe reported ongoing legal challenges against AELTC’s expansion plans, including seeking permission to Appeal the recent Judicial Review decision, and lobbying members of the House of Lords to block efforts by some members of the House of Lords who proposed an amendment to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill that could remove public trust protections.
The Right Honourable Paul Kohler MP also expressed concern over the House of Lords amendment issue, and discussed transport issues, parliamentary processes and engagement with AELTC.
Good news!
The Amendment to the Planning and Infrastructure Bill (mentioned above) was rejected by the House of Lords. This attempt to deny public trust rights was criticised by peers of all political parties who were engaged in the debate. The amendment sought retrospectively to remove 45 years’ worth of public rights over open spaces, effectively favouring private landowners in general and AELTC in particular. Baroness Young of Old Scone (Labour) commented: “This amendment has caused substantial concern that it erodes the protection of green space and removes long-standing public rights to green spaces, where the land is sold by a local authority, with or without public consultation.”
Following this success, the Save Wimbledon Park Campaign has been granted permission to take its Judicial Review case to the Court of Appeal. The Appeal Court has decided that the High Court’s decision in July 2025 does require legal scrutiny. The Rt Hon Lord Justice Holgate’s reasons for giving permission included these words: “The grounds of appeal are arguable with a real prospect of success. The case law on scheme benefits, deliverability, relevance, material considerations and irrationality merits review by the Court of Appeal.”
This is a most welcome decision.
Happy Christmas to you all!
Iain Simpson, WPRA Chairman
This is an edited version of the Chairman’s Report published in the Christmas 2025 issue of the WPRA Newsletter – read the full Newsletter here. Printed copies of the Newsletter are available from Wimbledon Park Hall on Arthur Road.
