School play and open areas are being given up for residential building, depriving children and citizens of green spaces.

If this goes ahead in London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, it will pave the way to spread nationally.

Stop this NOW before Councils give themselves permission to go ahead.

The Hammersmith Society, supported by the Avonmore Residents Association, The Avonmore Action Group, Ravenscourt Action, Friends of Marcus Garvey Park, Argyll and Glyn Mansions, Friends of Ravenscourt Park, and the Brackenbury Residents Association started this petition to the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.

Hammersmith and Fulham Council’s Community Schools Programme is unacceptable - it would sacrifice school land forever to build massive blocks of residential flats.

We object because:

• Playgrounds are important. Their disposal as “superfluous public land” would deprive children and citizens of educational, green and community space
• The council has provided no evidence to support its position that disposal of school land is the only way to fund school redevelopments
• The council has not proven that its model of funding redevelopment using the proceeds from the sale of luxury private housing is financially viable
• The proposed residential developments do not meet the real needs of local people – at least 50% of the homes will be private and unaffordable to most people
• The council has not shown it has considered other approaches to construction that can be delivered faster, at lower cost and with less environmental impact than the current proposals

As both policy-maker and developer, Hammersmith and Fulham Council has shut local people out of the decision-making process:

• The Community Schools Programme arose from internal consultation with a select few interested parties
• The Council has not involved the whole community in a meaningful way. Its public “consultation” is a tick-box exercise
• The Council has ignored or refused to engage with any and all formal representations by those who reject the premise, as well as the process and the substance of the developments proposed

We demand:

1. A halt to the Community Schools Programme and the current schemes
2. New briefs for the sites, co-produced with all local stakeholders, not just the schools
3. Full and active involvement of the whole community from the outset in the co-design of alternatives that work better: for school children, for residents and for future generations

As concerned citizens - not just of Hammersmith, please sign this PETITION today and Stop the Sacrifice of School Land.