Category: General News

Lidl’s are seeking resident feedback before finalising their latest draft  design.

The necessary information is on their website at https://ruislip.newsite.lidl.co.uk/

The Ruislip Residents’ Association also has more details on their website particularly regarding the 7 reasons for which Lidl’s previous application was refused.

We strongly encourage residents to use this opportunity to provide constructive feedback. This is the stage where public views can genuinely influence the design before it is finalised.

It is important to emphasise:

• Finalised plans are not imminent.
• It will be some time before Lidl is ready to submit a formal planning application to Hillingdon Council.

The seven refusal reasons from 2025 remain the hurdles Lidl must overcome, including design, heritage, highways, biodiversity, air quality and the protection of public houses

The Hillingdon Alliance of Residents’ Associations has launched a petition regarding proposed changes to the Council’s Residents’ Petition Scheme, which will be voted on by all Councillors at the full Council meeting on Thursday 9th July.

The proposals would increase local and planning petition thresholds from 20 signatures to 50, and borough‑wide petitions from 100 to 500. Automatic petition hearings would also be removed and replaced with either a written response or a site visit.

At last month’s Cabinet meeting, the Council spoke about increasing transparency, improving visibility and reinforcing accountability so that residents can have greater confidence in decision‑making. HARA believe it is reasonable to ask whether raising petition thresholds and removing public hearings aligns with that commitment.

Petitions are one of the few formal mechanisms through which residents can collectively raise concerns and secure direct engagement with elected Members in a public forum.

HARA invites residents to review the petition and sign it – see https://www.change.org/hillingdon-petition-changes

London Air Ambulance operates a 24/7 advanced trauma service.
During the summer months, the helicopter has extended hours of operation. Local residents may notice it departing earlier than previously. The additional 30 minutes during the lighter summer months is expected to improve their response times, which is vital for saving lives and essential to their operations.

Thanks to the Community Liaison officer at RAF Northolt for getting in touch.

Eastcote Residents Association held its 95th AGM on the evening of 27th May. Representatives from the Police Safer Neighbourhood Team (SNT) talked to residents about the MetEngage online platform. This can be used for residents to share information about any antisocial behaviour, drug and alcohol abuse or other matters of concern so that the police can take follow up action. Working together helps shape how our local area is policed. Any resident can sign up to MetEngage at metengage.co.uk.

During the interval residents present were able to talk to the SNT and Cllr. Nick Denys, one of our ward Councillors, before the formal business of the evening began. During the past year ERA continued to monitor matters important to residents of Eastcote including planning applications, disabled access and our green spaces. A new committee was elected and the meeting closed at 21.15.

New members are always welcome – details of how to join are on our website eastcoteresidents.org.uk

Dear Eastcote Residents

A change has been made to the direct debit system used by many to pay their ERA membership subscription. This will require the setup of a new direct debit mandate and should only take a few minutes to complete. All current direct debit payers will shortly receive an emailed invite to subscribe.

If you would like to pay your subscription by direct debit you can easily do this by clicking here 

All subscriptions will be called on the same date. The next call will be on or around March 25th 2027. This will call the subscription for the Association year April 2026 thru March 2027. Subsequent years will be called on the same date each year.

Annual subscription for the 2026/2027 year will be £3.

You can cancel the mandate with your bank at any time. If you wish to continue paying your subscriptions via your Road Steward that is absolutely fine.

Thank you for your continued support.

As a committee, Eastcote Residents Association has started initiating some work around community resilience, and as a first step, we are inviting residents to complete the following survey on flooding and hot & cold weather:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSdQFvtN80fwrWuO5CV2ik0s-9cugm_DT4H661bOtbFJC50k3g/viewform?usp=dialog

This survey will be open until the 28^th February 2026, is anonymous and should take no longer than 5 minutes to complete. We welcome your responses.

We would also like to invite organisations to register their details to the cool spaces map produced by the Office of the Mayor of London, and for individuals to start circulating it for awareness and utility.’

https://apps.london.gov.uk/cool-spaces/

For your Christmas and New Year holiday collection dates please check the Council website here:
https://pre.hillingdon.gov.uk/rubbish-recycling/bank-holiday-collections

Please note: for those of us in Eastcote expceting a collection on Monday December 22nd, this will now be on Saturday 20th !

Please see the attached message from Field End Farm

The Hillingdon Cleaner Greener Festival
Save money – save the planet

• Can I save with home renewables?
• Which bird falls asleep as it flies?*
• What’s the range of a small electric car?

All these questions were answered at the Hillingdon Cleaner Greener Festival on
Saturday 20th September. The event was officially opened by The Worshipful the Mayor of Hillingdon, Cllr Philip Corthorne, of Ruislip.

‘The stalls are amazing’, said one visitor, ‘Do it more
frequently,’ said another. ‘A fantastic event,’ said MP Danny Beales. Eastcote residents Hardip and Jess, who are members of Hillingdon Friends of the Earth, were amongst the people who rolled up their sleeves to make this happen.

In a first for Hillingdon, traders in home renewables sat alongside conservation and
climate campaigners. There was a series of expert talks and plenty of fun and
games for all ages. Mayor Cllr Philip Corthorne opened the festival, which took place at
St Margaret’s Church in the heart of Uxbridge. Its goal? A healthier sustainable future for
everyone in the borough.

Energy-saving and renewables experts covered everything from affordable DIY projects
to installation of solar panels, heat pumps and insulation. Residents could join
Hillingdon nature groups and sign up to Friends of the Earth actions, while children took
up the challenge of a treasure hunt around the stalls.

Flight Free UK had great tips on holidaying by train in Europe. Hillingdon London Wildlife
Trust celebrated our natural hotspots and recruited volunteers. Recycle-A-Bike showed
affordable reconditioned bikes for sale. Ruislip Woods Management Trust made insect
hotels from old logs to boost bio-diversity. Recycling is high up the order list for
Hillingdon Council, who were promoting their kitchen waste service.
Planet Over Profit, which campaigns for businesses to budget for ethical supply chains,
was promoted by Hillingdon Friends of the Earth. HFOE also ran a Restart stall with
examples of how fettlers fix broken household appliances for free. The kids even got the
chance to assemble and take home a toy solar car!
Other children’s activities included an art workshop for little ones and wooden table-top
games for older children.

* It’s the swift that falls asleep as it flies – Hillingdon London Wildlife Trust

EXHIBITORS AND TALKS
**Clean Energy Traders
Octopus Energy – Energy supplier and installer of low carbon solutions,
Infinity Energy and Daikin Heat Pumps – renewable energy surveyors and fitters
Solarbility – solar panels and battery storage
NRG Consultants – renewable energy surveyors and coordinators
EcoTiffin – expert eco builders and retrofitters
Rebel Design Studio – crafting energy efficient buildings
Unity Lime – natural insulation for homeowners and builders
Leap – free advice to stay warm and save on bills at home
Wallrock – cheap insulation to save heat and £££
Recycle-a-bike – Affordable reconditioned bikes and fixes (Fassnidge Park, Uxbridge)
Flight Free UK – take a year flight-free year and discover great new ways to travel
Hillingdon London Wildlife Trust – conserving one of London’s greenest boroughs
Hillingdon Friends of the Earth – Campaigning for Planet over Profit, Clean water in the
Colne, Restart repairs, No Third Runway, Drink tap water

The Talks
Heat Pumps – a £7500 free lunch?
Hack You Bills – quick money savers
Electric Cars – time to switch?
Waste and Recycling – in Hillingdon
Nature Gardening – for bio-diversity across London
Flight Free Holidays – looking at Europe
Solar – what to know

The Battle of Britain bunker will be hosting a series of events to commemorate the 85th anniversary of the Battle of Britain, please click the poster for more information