Campaigns
Lift-Off! Ealing Elections Special
Massive vote loss for Mason’s Labour as Greens and ECI make historic breakthroughs.
Recording what happens to Southall — and who is responsible.
Local people. Local questions.
Digging the dirt, unearthing the truth.
As read by Ealing Council’s Press Office
Browse the reporting
Community
28 stories
Local Democracy
The Meeting that Ended Local Democracy in Southall
How the panic of July 2019 prompted the cancellation of ward forums, councillor surgeries, and election hustings.
Investigations
The Drugs Don't Work
Not when the answer to inequality is simply to move it somewhere safer politically.
Local Democracy
Cactuses Never Die
Yousef Qandeel holds the keys to his home in a village that no longer exists. He is standing for election in Greenford Broadway on 7 May. This is his story …
Community
Back to the Future
Welcome to Ealing in 2010. 16 years of Labour management later, what’s changed? Complete the interactive audit tool to find out!
Campaigns
"This Place Has Turned Into a Bloody Slum": Southall Wards Meeting with ECI candidates
Ealing Community Independents’ Southall Wards Engagement Evening highlighted local grievances and called for community empowerment in response to …
Campaigns
When "deport six million" becomes mainstream: what Ealing Labour won't tell you
Ealing Labour condemns local Tory fascism, but Labour enabled the National Front in the town where Blair Peach was murdered for joining community …
Local Democracy
Canvassing with Minni Dogra: A Councillor in All But Name
Southall Stories joins Ealing Community Independents candidate Minni Dogra on the campaign trail in Southall Green — and passes the house where a sitting …
Investigations
What Happened to Southall?
A new report by Community Powered Reporting critically examines Ealing Council’s shortcomings in addressing issues in Southall, highlighting various …
Investigations
Boomerang! Ten Years Sorting Out Fly-tipping
Fly-tipping in Ealing has doubled since the council changed waste collection to biweekly in 2016, leading to increased cleanup costs and ongoing community …
Environment
Bangarang! Pirate Pete and the Lost Bin Collections of Southall
The Lost Boys were right all along. They saw what Peter Pan couldn’t: that refusing to grow up and admit you were wrong costs everyone except those who …
Investigations
The EA Files: What Regulators Knew About Fire Risks at Southall Recycling Site
An incendiary paper trail of inspections, warnings and half-measures that makes the “unfortunate accident” claim about Southall’s recycling fire …
Local Democracy
How to Report Nuisance and Pollution in Ealing
How the convoluted, exclusionary and ineffective reporting system seems designed to fail residents who need it most.
Investigations
The Council Investigation That Found Nothing
A year-long investigation by the council into complaints about harmful practices at the Johnson Street recycling site that burned last week ultimately …
Investigations
A Fire We Were Warned About
Within hours of publishing an update on Southall’s Toxic Town scandal, the recycling site behind our home burned - an event long predicted by residents and …
Investigations
Toxic Town - Have You Been Affected?
After years unable to analyse the contamination data, AI has finally revealed what authorities denied - now I’m reaching out to reconnect with those who …
Local Democracy
Southall Odours
A resident’s morning walk through Southall reveals the multiple sources of air pollution - from gasworks remediation to illegal burning to traffic fumes - …
Local Democracy
The Cuckoo's Nest
Despite twenty years of resident surveys and failed plans, Ealing Council’s latest Southall ‘consultation’ delivers the same problems, the same …
Environment
Developers, if you Really Want to Help
A resident’s response to developers proposing a massive data centre in Southall challenges them to address the community’s real needs: thousands of trees, …
Local Democracy
I am the Leader of Ealing Council
When asked how to handle toxic air pollution complaints while accepting £30,000 from the polluting developer, Google’s AI gave better ethical advice than …
Local Democracy
From the Southall Big Plan AGM in 2017
Elected representatives continue to neglect longstanding issues in Southall, exacerbating problems like housing and traffic while failing to address …
Environment
High Traffic Neighbourhood
An hour-long school run through Southall’s traffic gridlock reveals how ‘improving access for HGVs’ creates chaos for residents, while a father’s choice of …
Environment
The Gaslighting Zone
Residents express frustration over toxic air quality and question the appropriateness of partnerships related to mental health in Southall.
Environment
The Health and Other Impacts of Southall Waterside on Southall & Hayes Residents
Residents express significant health concerns and property damage due to the Southall Waterside redevelopment, feeling ignored by authorities and …
Environment
Pull the Other One, Julian
Julian Bell, the leader of Ealing Council, controversially downplayed air quality concerns at a former gasworks site while allegations of bribery and …
Environment
Countering the Southall Waterside Narrative
Berkeley’s Southall Waterside narrative is systematically dismantled through exposure of their corporate gaslighting tactics, broken promises about …
Investigations
Berkeley's School Governors Board Member
Concerns have been raised about air pollution from the Berkeley Group’s construction affecting students’ health at Blair Peach Primary School.