Over more than two decades, WDCO has been the residents’ voice in
the Woodberry Down regeneration. The following is a record of what
that voice has delivered.
Recognised at the highest level
WDCO recently held a high-level meeting with Suzanne Johnson,
Hackney’s Director of Regeneration, Economy and Housing Development,
and Councillor Guy Nicholson, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for
Housing Management and Regeneration, to discuss WDCO’s future
development and explore the support it might need to take on a more
complex role. That a meeting at this level was convened specifically
to consider WDCO’s future is itself a mark of the organisation’s
standing.
Advocacy with direct financial consequences for residents
- Resolved a sewage issue that had persisted for over ten years and
generated significant historic costs — arguably the most striking
example of what sustained WDCO pressure can achieve. - Identified errors in NHG rent calculations, saving residents
thousands of pounds. - Secured service charge refunds for residents of Maplewood and
Birchwood. - Secured a 30% reduction in service charges for Phase 3 residents,
alongside rent reductions. - Supported Hackney in establishing a £100,000 fund to support
residents in temporary accommodation.
Advocacy with direct physical or practical consequences
- Lobbied successfully for new lift replacements, confirmed for 2027,
with interim upgrades taking place this year. - Secured 27 new parking spaces for residents of Maplewood and
Birchwood. - Ensured additional time and enhanced support for Phase 3 residents
through the process of moving into new homes. - Held NHG and Hackney to account for previous decant handling
failures, with improved processes now in place. - Secured CCTV installation across the estate (testing and
confirmation of full functionality still in progress). - Agreed plans to refresh the entrance areas at Maplewood and
Birchwood.
Brokering services and activities for residents
- Secured ten funded places on multi-sport courses at West Reservoir
for estate children aged 8 to 17, each place worth approximately
£206. - Brokered a new senior fitness class at the Redmond Community Centre
through a partnership with Active Within and NHG, launching May 2026. - Engaged Hackney’s Economic Development team to visit businesses
affected by construction disruption, and helped those businesses
access business rates relief. - Developed a structured framework for Citizens Advice Bureau data
sharing with NHG, to build a clearer picture of hardship on the
estate.
Community and cultural life
- Ran a pilot series of cultural events in a local café — including
a quiz night, a jewellery-making evening, and a session on effective
speaking — showing that WDCO’s idea of community life extends well
beyond housing and governance. - Organises an annual Community Forum and regular community events,
bringing residents from all phases and tenures together. - Runs regular coffee mornings as a point of contact between WDCO and
the wider community.
Sustained institutional achievements
- Successfully reset the working relationship between WDCO and NHG at
the most senior level, following direct engagement with NHG’s chief
executive — establishing a sounder basis for the advocacy work that
followed. - Maintained resident representation across the full hierarchy of
governance meetings — from the monthly WDCO Board through the Estate
Management Board, NHG Operations, Hackney Operations, and Liaison
meetings to the Partnership Board — for over two decades. - Attracted sufficient reputation in service charge scrutiny to be
approached by a residents’ association on a comparable estate seeking
to share benchmarking data.
What WDCO Has Achieved
Over more than two decades, WDCO has been the residents’ voice in
the Woodberry Down regeneration. The following is a record of what
that voice has delivered.
Recognised at the highest level
WDCO recently held a high-level meeting with Suzanne Johnson,
Hackney’s Director of Regeneration, Economy and Housing Development,
and Councillor Guy Nicholson, Deputy Mayor and Cabinet Member for
Housing Management and Regeneration, to discuss WDCO’s future
development and explore the support it might need to take on a more
complex role. That a meeting at this level was convened specifically
to consider WDCO’s future is itself a mark of the organisation’s
standing.
Advocacy with direct financial consequences for residents
- Resolved a sewage issue that had persisted for over ten years and
generated significant historic costs — arguably the most striking
example of what sustained WDCO pressure can achieve. - Identified errors in NHG rent calculations, saving residents
thousands of pounds. - Secured service charge refunds for residents of Maplewood and
Birchwood. - Secured a 30% reduction in service charges for Phase 3 residents,
alongside rent reductions. - Supported Hackney in establishing a £100,000 fund to support
residents in temporary accommodation.
Advocacy with direct physical or practical consequences
- Lobbied successfully for new lift replacements, confirmed for 2027,
with interim upgrades taking place this year. - Secured 27 new parking spaces for residents of Maplewood and
Birchwood. - Ensured additional time and enhanced support for Phase 3 residents
through the process of moving into new homes. - Held NHG and Hackney to account for previous decant handling
failures, with improved processes now in place. - Secured CCTV installation across the estate (testing and
confirmation of full functionality still in progress). - Agreed plans to refresh the entrance areas at Maplewood and
Birchwood.
Brokering services and activities for residents
- Secured ten funded places on multi-sport courses at West Reservoir
for estate children aged 8 to 17, each place worth approximately
£206. - Brokered a new senior fitness class at the Redmond Community Centre
through a partnership with Active Within and NHG, launching May 2026. - Engaged Hackney’s Economic Development team to visit businesses
affected by construction disruption, and helped those businesses
access business rates relief. - Developed a structured framework for Citizens Advice Bureau data
sharing with NHG, to build a clearer picture of hardship on the
estate.
Community and cultural life
- Ran a pilot series of cultural events in a local café — including
a quiz night, a jewellery-making evening, and a session on effective
speaking — showing that WDCO’s idea of community life extends well
beyond housing and governance. - Organises an annual Community Forum and regular community events,
bringing residents from all phases and tenures together. - Runs regular coffee mornings as a point of contact between WDCO and
the wider community.
Sustained institutional achievements
- Successfully reset the working relationship between WDCO and NHG at
the most senior level, following direct engagement with NHG’s chief
executive — establishing a sounder basis for the advocacy work that
followed. - Maintained resident representation across the full hierarchy of
governance meetings — from the monthly WDCO Board through the Estate
Management Board, NHG Operations, Hackney Operations, and Liaison
meetings to the Partnership Board — for over two decades. - Attracted sufficient reputation in service charge scrutiny to be
approached by a residents’ association on a comparable estate seeking
to share benchmarking data.
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