Area Forum to Be Briefed on Chiswick Back Common Concerns

Jackie Elton, chair of residents' and friends' groups, to address meeting

Chiswick Back Common

September 12, 2026

Residents across Chiswick are being encouraged to attend the first Chiswick Area Forum of the new municipal year on Wednesday 16 September at Chiswick Town Hall.

One of the headline items will be a detailed briefing from Jackie Elton on Hounslow Council’s handling of Chiswick Back Common.

This is the first Area Forum since May’s local elections and brings together a new-look group of councillors representing Chiswick’s wards. With a new administration at Hounslow Council and a much narrower political majority, the forum is expected to be an important moment for residents to raise concerns directly with decision-makers. Among the new members attending are Cllr Vikram Grewal (Chiswick Gunnersbury), Cllr Rick Rowe (Chiswick Riverside), and Cllrs Linden Grigg and Mike Denniss (Chiswick Homefields), joining returning councillors under the chairmanship of Cllr Ron Mushiso.

The evening begins with an open marketplace at 6.30pm at which there is a chance to talk directly to councillors, council officers and local community organisations, followed by the formal meeting at 7.30pm.

The agenda covers a wide range of issues including pavements and trees, waste and recycling, fly-tipping, cleansing and weed control, and a community spotlight on Dukes Meadows. Kathleen Healy will speak about her long-running work with young people at the Meadows, and the forum will present its first Young Champion Award to Tibor Babic for his contribution to the site’s design and layout.

But the most closely watched item of the evening is expected to be the ten-minute presentation from Jackie Elton, Chair of the MidChiswick Society and Friends of Chiswick Common. She will set out what she describes as Hounslow Council’s failure to fulfil its statutory responsibilities as custodian of Chiswick Back Common, a legally protected area of Common Land stretching from Turnham Green station to Fishers Lane.

Her briefing will argue that the Council has permitted extensive and ongoing construction by private operator Rocks Lane/TFC Leisure, which holds a 25-year operating contract until 2029. She says the company has erected substantial buildings and transformed the site into a high-end padel club while paying only a minimal fee to the Council, which has declined to disclose the amount. Under Common Land law, she will say, any building or enclosure — “not even a fence” — requires explicit consent from the Secretary of State. Yet planning permissions have been granted without public planning meetings, and several applications dating back to mid-2025 remain under consideration.

She will call for unlawful construction to be removed, for staff to be trained in the legal protections afforded to Common Land, and for all future proposals to be automatically referred to the Secretary of State. She will also raise concerns about the Council’s approach to events on the Common, arguing that officers have proposed large-scale commercial activities without a clear policy framework, including a recently withdrawn 35-stall vegan market. Other councils, she says, operate defined policies that protect Common Land as a public amenity, ensuring income is reinvested directly into the space.

She stresses that neither she nor the Friends group opposes sport or productive use of the Common, but insists that all activity must comply with the law and respect the principles of Common Land and the needs of the community.

Following her statement, residents will have the opportunity to raise their own concerns during the Open Forum, expected to begin around 9pm. The session allows members of the public to speak directly to councillors and officers under established participation guidelines.

Cllr Ron Mushiso said the meeting offers a vital opportunity for residents to shape local priorities. “Area Forums are an important way for residents to make their voices heard and to hold the council to account on the issues that affect everyday life in our neighbourhood. This is the first forum since the election and there is a good range of issues on the agenda, but the Open Forum is particularly important because residents can raise the issues that matter most to them. I would encourage anyone who has a concern, question or idea about Chiswick to come along, speak to the council and make their voice heard.”

The meeting is open to the public. Further details are available from Committee Administrator Chaspal Sandhu on 020 8583 2065 or CAF@hounslow.gov.uk.