MyWestminster Forums

Area Forums

How would you like this extra funding to be spent?

From April 2008, the Council will be introducing Ward Budgets as part of the Neighbourhoods Programme and will provide £100,000 to each ward in the City to support local projects and priorities. This programme draws on a fund of £2 million per year set aside for local projects and guaranteed for a period of two years.

Strong communities supported by excellent services

Westminster City Council has committed to strengthening neighbourhoods and promoting active communities by introducing dedicated funding to address local priorities in all areas of the city as a key part of the Council's One City Programme.

Get Involved in your Area Forum

The Area Forums are open to anyone who lives, works and learns in the City of Westminster. Come along and take part in discussions about local issues affecting your area. Local councillors will also be updating residents on progress to date with their £100,000 ward budgets.

South Area Forum
Wednesday 15th October 2008, at The Royal Horticultural Halls, Greycoat Street, SW1P 2QD.

Marylebone Area Forum
Monday 20th October 2008, at Westminster Council House, 97-113 Marylebone Road, NW1 5PT.

West End Area Forum
Thursday 23rd October 2008, at The Haymarket Hotel, 1 Suffolk Place, SW1Y 4BP.

Bayswater Area Forum
Monday 3rd November 2008, at the Mayfair Conference Centre, 17 Connaught Place, W2 2EL.

Maida Vale Area Forum
Tuesday 4th November 2008, at the Paddington Academy, Marylands Road, W9 2DR.

St John's Wood Area Forum
Tuesday 18th November 2008, at the Danubius Hotel, 18 Lodge Road, St John's Wood, NW8 7JT.

Have your say

Email your ideas for spending the £100,000 to the Area Forums team

Telephone: 24 hour hotline 020 7641 3916

To find out more information about your ward please click here and then select the ward. If you do not know which ward you are in please click here.

Presentation on the new Neighbourhoods Programme and Ward Budgets
If you were unable to attend the forums earlier this year please click on your individual forum above for a link to the presentation given about the Neighbourhoods Programme and Ward Budgets.

What are Area Forums?

The City Council is committed to involving local residents and businesses in local policy decisions and to finding out what they think about the Council and the services we provide. Area Forums provide their members with:

information on Council services and Council policies affecting the local area
the opportunity to give your input on issues that affect your neighbourhood
a mechanism to have your say on any issue related to Council business
actions raised and monitored from feedback

Feedback from past Area Forums has enabled us to gain a better understanding of the issues and priorities which matter to you in your neighbourhood. This helps us to meet your needs locally and improve your local services.

How do the meetings work and who runs them?

The Chairman of each Area Forum is a local Councillor nominated by the Leader of the Council.

A Chief Officer attends each meeting and ensures that the recommendations made are properly fed back into the Council's decision-making processes. Any outcomes are reported to Area Forum members either on an individual basis or via the Area Forum newsletter, which we send out to members after each meeting.

A surgery is held from 6.30pm to 7.00pm at the same venue as the main meeting. This gives you the opportunity to speak to a Council Officer about any Council service issues that require attention.

If we cannot answer you in full on the evening then we will commit to providing you with an answer after the meeting.

You do not have to be a member of the Area Forums to attend but we would encourage you to join so that we can keep you updated about meetings and, importantly, what happens as a direct result of your input.

Join your local Area Forum and make a difference to your neighbourhood.

What geographical area does each of the Area Forums cover?

Each Forum covers between 2 and 5 electoral wards, as indicated on the list below. To find out which ward you live in please click here. Click on each Forum name to see the individual Forum page.

Bayswater - Bayswater, Hyde Park, Lancaster Gate and Westbourne wards.
Maida Vale - Harrow Road, Little Venice, Maida Vale and Queen's Park wards.
Marylebone - Bryanston & Dorset Square, Church Street and Marylebone High Street wards.
South - Churchill, Knightsbridge & Belgravia, Tachbrook, Vincent Square and Warwick wards.
St John's Wood - Abbey Road and Regent's Park wards.
West End - St James's and West End wards.

N.B. The wards reflected here are those which came into effect at the time of the City Council elections in May 2002.

What are the benefits of joining an Area Forum?

It is your chance to play an important role in your local area and make a difference to your neighbourhood by:

ensuring the needs of your area and key issues affecting local people are identified
ensuring that these needs and issues are clearly expressed to, and considered by, the Council
maximising the influence of local people over the way in which the Council delivers services in your area

Members are sent agendas in advance of each meeting as well as a newsletter with feedback and action from all the workshops, following each Forum. Your contact details are held on a separate database which is only used to keep you informed about Area Forum developments. We will post you details or send them via email, whatever you prefer.

Who can join the Area Forums?

Area Forums are made up of a cross-section of the local community. We are keen to involve:

Local residents
Local businesses
Local amenity society and residents' association representatives
Members of other local groups, including tenant management organisations, special interest groups, voluntary organisations
Local representatives of the police and health authorities are also invited to attend

We would like our Area Forums to be more inclusive and diverse and would particularly welcome young people and residents from black and minority ethnic communities.