Please click here to read our election leaflet to find out why you should vote for Edward Foley and Stephen Mercer on 7 May.

There is currently a trial being conducted in using drones for deliveries between St George’s Hospital and the Nelson Health Centre.   We had a very interesting presentation on the drone trial and were able to see an actual drone at our Residents’ Association meeting on 3 March, 2026.

If you missed the meeting, click here to see the slides used for the presentation.

Merton Council Walking and Cycling Strategy Consultation

Merton Council is undertaking consultation on the council’s draft Walking and Cycling Strategy, which forms a core part of the borough’s ambition to make active travel accessible, easy, welcoming, enjoyable and safe.

They  invite you to participate and they welcome your views to help them develop the proposals and enable improved conditions for walking and cycling in Merton.
The consultation is open until 7 December 2025. It would be helpful if you could share with your networks.

Full details can be found via the following link:

Have Your Say Today – Merton Walking And Cycling – Commonplace

Merton’s Planning Applications Committee (PAC) granted planning permission, subject to conditions, for a new hotel with  seven storeys on Crown Lane at the junction with Windermere Avenue.  Despite strong representations from MPWRA and many local residents, in writing beforehand, and verbally at the meeting by your councillors and MPWRA committee members, the application was approved with 9 PAC members in favour and only one against.

We had two main reasons for objection.  First was the obvious effect of the height and mass towering over the two storey houses on Windermere and Grasmere Avenues. The closest house goes from 6 hours of direct sunlight in the garden per day to 2 hours – OK because 2 hours meets regulations !

The officers’ report recommended approval citing the benefits of regeneration,  and  national and  local  policies, set out in Merton’s new Local Plan,  requiring optimum use of sites,

The other main concern was  the  impact on the existing wind tunnel. Notwithstanding lived experience otherwise, the specialist engineer, commissioned by the applicant, advised that computer modelling showed no increased risks. Their analysis is based on industry-wide standards using climate data from Heathrow and London City Airports. “Modelling” can’t take actual gusts into account it seems!

PAC members from the Political parties all voted for approval and there are technical reasons why we can’t appeal against a PAC decision, but the approval is subject to conditions which will require further planning approvals and we will be monitoring them.

Please see poster above for details of our meeting on 7^th May where there will be discussion of the implications of this decision.

Hubert Child, Chair MPWRA

13th April 2024 – Important information about the scale of future development in Morden town centre and a forthcoming planning application for a 7 storey hotel at the junction of Crown Lane and Windermere Avenue can be found at the following two links. Please click on these to find out more as responses are encouraged urgently.

Please note that an incorrect email address for representations is given in the letter. The correct email address is planning.representations@merton.gov.uk 

Development in Morden

Letter to Residents about Crown Lane  Hotel Development.