Dovers Green - the fight for Village Green status

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Dovers Green - the fight for Village Green status

On Thursday 11th January2017 at Havering Town Hall there was a public hearing to determine whether Dovers Green in South Hornchurch will be granted ?Village Green' status, protecting it from future development. The only objector to the application is Havering Council itself.

Havering Council's objection to the application to turn Dovers Green into an official Village Green has been nothing short of contemptible. Jon Cruddas has been fighting alongside the residents for over two years now, and sent a supporting statement to the hearing.

Read Jon's statement HERE

Jon's team; Margaret Mullane, Trevor McKeever, Fay Hough, and Andrew Achilleos attended the hearing, and Trevor delivered Jon's statement to the independent inquirer.

Jon said: "Having read through Havering's legal submission, I am shocked that anyone in the council signed off on such an insulting document.

At the heart of the matter is the residents claim that they have been using the green for more than twenty years for recreational and sporting activities. To back this up, they have attached old photographs.

Yet the council has effectively accused the good people of the Dovers Farm Estate of lying in their application, with fake photographs and fake people.

How else can they explain references to "alleged" inhabitants of the area; and claims that photographs - simply because they are not digitally dated - do not prove historic use of the green.

I have been meeting regularly with the residents behind the proposal, assisting them with legal support, and they have my total backing.

If the result goes against the residents, I promise the fight will not stop there. We'll be seeking out funds to launch a judicial review. Our communities need green space."