The Telephone House Neighbours Association, Tunbridge Wells - Church Road, York Road, London Road, Mount Pleasant

The Telephone House Neighbours Association, Royal Tunbridge Wells

WELCOME TO THE TELEPHONE HOUSE NEIGHBOURS

"People have a right to determine their future and be involved in deciding how their town or city develops. A clear message from the regeneration initiatives of the last 30 years is that real sustainable change will not be achieved unless local people are in the driving seat. It is not enough to consult people about decisions that will impact on their lives: they must be fully engaged in the process from the start; and everybody must be included."

Urban White Paper - 16.11.2000

The Telephone House Neighbours Association
was founded in 2000

— to influence the re-development of the Telephone House site

— to promote the enhancement and betterment of the area:
York Road, London Road, Church Road, Mount Pleasant Road,
in the Town Centre of Royal Tunbridge Wells

In a world that is too timid to express a point of view, where ‘dumbing down’ affects our beloved 'local rag', and where discussion is neutered by political correctness, Telephone House Neighbours stand apart; they bring you entertaining, informative and infuriating news on every subject of their community.
— July 2005, THNA joined

Royal Tunbridge Wells Town Forum
a partnership (founded in July 2005) between residents' representatives and ward councillors in the town of Royal Tunbridge Wells, the unparished area of the Borough of Tunbridge Wells, Kent

Membership — Any resident who lives in York Road, Church Road, Inner London Road, Royal Tunbridge Wells, can become a member of the Association. It is not intended to include persons who do not reside within the neighbourhood of the Telephone House site.

Location map — A map displaying our visions, concerns, appraisals.

WHERE we live

The Telephone House Development ended in January 2007.

Were residents and their Councillors right to oppose, respectively refuse it?

Density - Cala Homes' Norfolk Grange and its Social Housing in Tunbridge Wells

Rights of Light / Loss of Light - Cala Homes and York Road, Tunbridge Wells

Impact: social flats bathe in the sun — houses in York Road lost this amenity

Commission for Architecture and Built Environment (CABE) in February 2007 reveals: "Consumers in England are getting a raw deal with 82 per cent of new housing built over the last five years failing to measure up on design quality."

CABE Housing Audits in England during 5 years until 2007

Quota for 106 agreements re: affordable housing

In July 2008 Tunbridge Wells Borough Council Legal Services says:
"There is no restriction on the location of the affordable housing and a developer could offer a different site if the land where permission is granted proves to be unsuitable to include affordable housing.
- However saying that, Tunbridge Wells Council always favours a mix of private and social housing on the same site."