Islington Lib Dems have launched a survey to get residents’ views about what the priorities for Islington should be.

With local elections this May it is time for residents to decide who they want to run the council - the Lib Dems who have a record of success in making Islington better or Labour, whose shameful record includes:

• plans to cut the Whittington Hospital
• voting against Lib Dem plans to put more police on our streets
• and the Iraq war

The Lib Dem have launched 4 pledges. We want you to tell us which of our pledges are most important to you or add your own. You can do this on-line here.
1. We will cut crime

Everyone has the right to live in a safe, clean environment. That’s why local Lib Dems are pledging to cut crime. We will provide more late-night policing on top of regular police patrols provided by the Mayor of London. We will crack down on late licences for bars and clubs. Tougher action will be taken against those who do not clear up after their dogs. Vote now.

2. A better start for our young people
Local Lib Dems on the Council have worked hard to help deliver the best ever school exam results in Islington.
We pledge to build on this success and get better exam results this year too. We also pledge to give local young people more housing points. We will deliver more apprenticeships for our young people to ensure they get the best start in life. Vote now.

3. A greener Islington
Combating climate change and global warming is the single biggest challenge we face. Local Lib Dems are pledging to make Islington greener. One of the ways we will do this is through more local energy generation. This will lower people’s energy bills and create new green, local jobs. Vote now.

4. We will lower taxes
Gordon Brown’s recession means that everyone’s had to tighten their belts. Local Lib Dems believe that money is better off in your pocket rather than in council coffers. Labour councillors voted to raise council tax this year. We’re pledging to keep your council tax among the lowest 10 councils in all of London. Vote now.

5. Or add your own - we want your views too. You can do that by clicking here.

Click here to tell us your priorities for Islington

Highbury East Lib Dem councillors Terry Stacy and John Gilbert were delighted to join Islington North MP Jeremy Corbyn as guests at the first screening of Views from a Pear Tree at Birchmore Hall on Saturday evening.   About 150 people crowded into Birchmore Hall for the event filling all the seats and leaving several rows of onlookers standing at the back of the hall and along the sides.

The film celebrates over 50 years of community life on Highbury Quadrant Estate through still images,  film clips and interviews (including the unveiling of the Neighbours statue in 1959 pictured opposite).  A very clear message comes through the film that Highbury Quadrant is a very special place, not only because of its green spaces and progressive design and architecture but also because of the people who live there and the neighbourliness that exists on the estate.

The film was made by the Highbury Quadrant Living History Project and funded by a grant from Terry, John and Laura’s Area Committee budget as well as by the National Lottery.  It will shortly be playing in the recently refurbished Islington Museum on St John’s Street.

As your local councillors its important we know what you think, so as well as telling you what’s going on in Highbury, we would like you to tell us what you want changed or what could be done better. So here you will find our Highbury East Residents Survey.

This survey is just one way of communicating with your ward councillors. By filling it in you will help us make Highbury East a better place and help set us some priorities to improve things for you.

To fill it in just CLICK HERE

Local councillors, Terry Stacy, John Gilbert and Laura Willoughby together with local LibDem activist Julie Horton were delighted to have joined in sponsoring and participating in the successful Neighbours Day celebrations on Highbury Quadrant Estate on 6 September.  The sun shone as hundreds of residents and people from neighbouring roads came out to enjoy a delicious barbecue and stalls from local organisations including the Quadrant TRA, which organised the event, the local history project and North London Wildlife Watch.

Undoubtedly the highlight of the day was the unveiling of the newly restored Neighbours statue.  The statue, the work of the Austrian sculptor, Siegfried Charoux, had deteriorated badly since it was first insalled 50 years ago but was restored this year at the instigation of the TRA and paid for, among other contributors, by the local budget controlled by Laura, Terry and John.  To celebrate its re-inauguration the sculpture had been wrapped in brown paper, which was ripped off by children from the estate with the help and encouragement of Terry (pictured here) and local TRA chair Rebecca Hodgson

You voted for more trees - now tell us where to put them

You voted overwhelmingly in our on-line poll for more trees in Highbury East. Now you decide where you would like to see new trees in your patch. Tell us your locations by email: Laura, Terry and John by clicking here or in the form below. You can also tell us where you want to see new bins!

You can complete the locations you want to see by clicking here and completing the locations here

As you know, every year each councillor in Islington is allocated £6,666 to spend on projects in their ward. Here in Highbury East we pool ours, making a £20,000 fund to maximise the benefit to our neighbourhood and the local community.

So far we have supported a wide range of projects across the area, which have included:

New bike stands installed across the neighbourhood and secure bike parking at Taverner Sq & Peckett Sq

We have provided equipment for youth and OAP clubs in Highbury, including a new bingo machine for the Highbury Roundhouse OAP club and new sports equipment for the Roundhouse Youth Club. The Sotheby Mews Day Centre also benefited from new equipment.

But we need to to help us decide what to spend it on this year. Suggestions are listed below, but we are up for any idea you may have - so vote by using the poll to the left of this story or emailing by clicking here :

Local councillors have joined residents in a bid to save a historic statute on the Highbury Quadrant Estate. The statue called ‘neighbours’ was erected 50 years ago when the Estate was built. The statue is in a poor condition and is in desperate need of repair. Laura Willoughby has supported a petition collected and signed by local residents calling for the statue to be repaired.

Cllr Laura Willoughby, said: “This statue is a much loved local landmark and residents want to see it protected. The statue has been there since the estate was built 50 years ago and it’s starting to show its age. The statue needs to be repaired urgently and the local Lib Dem councillors are committed to making sure that happens.”

Rebecca Hodgson, Chair of the TRA said: ‘Restoring The neighbours statue is an end in itself - it really does need some attention - but it also symbolizes the TRA’s aspirations to reinvigorate a sense of neighbourliness on Highbury Quadrant. We have a rich history of community activity on the estate, and real potential for a future that lives out the community spirit of those first residents - but translated into a 21st century context.’

Picture shows Laura, Rebecca and John presenting the petition at full council.

Police have closed down a crack house in Highbury after neighbours complained of anti-social behaviour by drug users. Local Lib Dem Councillors Terry Stacy, John Gilbert.  A survey of residents in Highbury East ward revealed that drug-related antisocial behaviour was their biggest concern.

Sergeant Colin Francis, of the Highbury East Safer Neighbourhood Team, said: “We are aware some residents are concerned about drug use. I would like to reassure them we are taking strong, decisive action by shutting down addresses connected to drugs and antisocial behaviour.”

Town Hall Lib Dem housing and crime chief Councillor Terry Stacy and Laura Willoughby took up the issue. The address, in Catherall Road, is just one of several homes on the Highbury Quadrant estate being monitored by police.

Officers requested permission to close the property after finding seven crack pipes and other evidence of drug use during a raid in August. After hearing anonymous evidence from residents, Highbury magistrates issued a closure order recently. The house will now remain shut for three months while Homes for Islington pursues court action to evict the tenant permanently.

The Highbury East Safer Neighbourhoods police team, that investigates drug use and anti-social behaviour, is targeting other addresses on Highbury Quadrant and in Highbury New Park in the hope of securing further closure orders. This move is fully supported by your local Liberal Democrat Councillors.

Cllr Terry Stacy said: “Our estate residents deserve to live their lives without having to put up with drugs. There is no place for this behaviour in Highbury, let alone Islington, so people be warned.”

He was joined by fellow Highbury East Councillor Laura Willoughby who said “Action speaks louder than words and we are delighted that the police took the action they did. The Council will do all it can to make sure places like this are closed and our estates are drugs free”