Judicial Review Into Southall Town Hall

Hearing taking place into council plans to 'sell off' historic building

A legal challenge instigated by a local pensioner, to save Southall Town Hall will be heard at the High Court next week.

Ealing Council will need to outline the reasons it's selling the building and will be challenged by campaign lawyers as to whether they carried out a thorough Equality Impact Assessment to assess and address the impact of such a loss on users and local communities.

Campaigners claim the Council has refused to meet local delegations to discuss concerns regarding the sale, and have also so far refused to disclose important documents linked to the bid either to the claimant or to the court.

The claimant who is taking the matter to court, Mr Mohinder Pal, is a local pensioner backed by a huge campaign team who argue Southall Town Hall is a public asset and a very important historical building for Southall’s diverse community.

In 1979, it was the scene of a major anti-racist demonstration at which schoolteacher, Blair Peach, lost his life. In 1994 a proposal to sell Southall Town Hall led to a local charity worker going on hunger strike.

It currently houses many charities and businesses providing advice and support to over 10,000 vulnerable individuals and families and is the only community led secular space used by different communities regardless of their gender, disability, race, or religion.

A public meeting will be taking place on Monday 2 July, prior to next week's hearing, it will take place at Southall Town Hall, starting at 6.00 pm.

June 28 2018