The local campaign to protect the Dovers Farm green has been stepped up this week as Matt Stanton and Trevor McKeever from the Beam Park Labour team handed in a petition at Havering Town Hall to Labour Leader, Cllr Keith Darvill.

The petition signed by over a third of households on the New Zealand estate in what will be the new Beam Park ward calls on Havering Council to designate the green at the heart of the area a “village green”. This is significant and is needed to protect the green from developers coming forward with plans to build on the land in the future.

Matt said “Havering Conservatives spent the last 6 years in various ways trying to build on Dovers Farm Green and consistently disregard the wishes of residents. They simultaneously want to cram houses and flats into working class areas while claiming to value our green spaces. Village Green status is the only way to guarantee the future of this open space for new and existing residents.”

Trevor added “Securing village green status for the land will protect it for the benefit of local people and future generations. Without this protection the door is left open for the council to change its mind down the line and allow fat cat developers in.”

Councillor Keith Darvill will be submitting the petition at the full Council meeting that has been rescheduled to 23 March.