Aelfeva House (190 The Briars) could be ready for use again next spring as a community centre, thanks to funding from Moat and Warden housing associations.

Harlow Council, Moat and Warden are working together to bring the building up to the required standard for community use. As well as meeting the requirements of the Fire Safety Officer, it is hoped to carry out some internal alterations which should improve access and layout, and maximise the space available for use by community groups.

When the funds are made available, the plan is that three internal walls will be removed, ramped access to the front door added, and access to the disabled toilet re-positioned.

Improvements to the playground at Lower Meadow opposite Maunds Hatch are almost complete. Local children were so keen to use the new equipment that they even tore down some of the contractors' fencing to get to it!

The works are part of a town-wide initiative to upgrade Harlow's playgrounds, which have declined for decades due to lack of investment. Some play areas (such as The Briars and Longbanks) will be removed, and left as green space unless residents want something different to be done with the area where they were. But most playgrounds -including Lower Meadow, Latton Bush, Joyners Field and the GPCA playground on Abercrombie Way - are getting significant new money to bring them up to scratch.

Two new planning applications have been submitted for the Pink Cottage restaurant on Commonside Road.

HW/PL/05/00328 and HW/PL/05/00329 are both applications for a new single storey extension.

Residents can view these applications at the Civic Centre from Monday to Friday, from 9:00am to 5:00pm. The planning officer dealing with these applications is Peter Mountsteven.

The planning application (HW/PL/05/00121) to demolish Parnall House and build a 46-bedroomed residential care home has been withdrawn by the applicant.

I've been contacted by a resident in Longbanks about the dangerous condition of the paving near his home. I've taken up the matter with Essex County Council, who tell me they'll be carrying out repairs.

It's the engineers' view that the problem could be caused - as elsewhere on the estate - by cars being driven onto the footpath and breaking up the surface. So they're also looking at preventative measures, by which I assume they mean more bollards.

I've asked that if this is their plan, nearby residents, and I as ward councillor, should be consulted on their siting and design.

Following Saturday's 'out and about' in Latton Green, I've contacted Essex County Council's highways section about the concerns raised by residents about speeding along Commonside Road between The Chequers and The Rundells, where there are no humps to slow the traffic, and where the road dips and turns.

Essex County Council's response is that there are set criteria for installing road humps. One of these is the minimum distance they can be installed near to bends and junctions. It is not possible to put humps near to a bend, as this affects drivers' reaction time - a driver could exit a bend to suddenly find a car in the opposite direction driving in the middle of the road as it comes over the hump at the point where the road narrows. Putting road humps here, say the engineers, would make the area more hazardous than it is at present.

I've replied asking whether there any other measures that could be implemented to keep drivers at an appropriate and safe speed.

The Staple Tye ward advisory group met this evening.

Following the closure of the council's Staple Tye contact point this coming Friday (7 October) meetings of the group will in future alternate between afternoons and evenings, on the first Tuesday of the month at the Great Parndon office. Dates for the next few months are:

• Tuesday 1 November, 2:00pm


• Tuesday 6 December, no meeting


• Tuesday 3 January, 7:00pm


• Tuesday 7 February, 2:00pm

Staple Tye's Liberal Democrat FOCUS Team is out and about this morning, meeting residents in Latton Green, Sakins Croft and The Readings. One issue that crops up repeatedly is road safety along the stretch of Commonside Road between The Chequers and The Rundells, where there's a long gap between road humps and cars tend to speed.