Protesters aiming to block Sainsbury's in Belsize Park told they're making the area 'too posh'

Campaign: Dame Janet Suzman, on right in the foreground with Jessica Learmond-Criqui, is among those opposing a plan for a Sainsbury’s Local in Belsize Park
Nigel Howard

A campaign group aiming to prevent a Sainsbury’s Local from opening in Belsize Park are making the area look too posh for “average family shops”, a senior councillor has warned.

Theo Blackwell said that having a “normal” shop such as Sainsbury’s in the area would benefit residents on lower incomes and provide more choice — and he urged the campaigners to “check their privilege”.

Mr Blackwell, cabinet member for finance on Labour-run Camden council, added: “They are making it seem like the area is too posh for average family shops used by normal people.

“I am not a particular fan of Sainsbury’s, but it would be beneficial to the area to have an alternative to [independent shop] Budgens.”

The Standard reported earlier this month on the group’s objections to proposals to convert a disused toy shop in Haverstock Hill into a number of apartments plus a Sainsbury’s Local on the ground floor.

Leafy neighbourhood: Belsize Park 
Google Street View

One of the protesters was actress Dame Janet Suzman, who said the battle over the plans was: “Part of an endlessly repeated saga of local people trying to stop the tsunami of corporate intrusions.”

The group, which successful campaigned to stop a Tesco from opening at the site last year, argued that the Sainsbury’s would threaten other high street shops and lead to a rise in deliveries which would be dangerous for people using a narrow access path.

Mr Blackwell said: “Some of their arguments are trivial — like the increased traffic due to deliveries. But they are not objecting to Ocado or Deliveroo deliveries.

“They are not representative of every person in the area. They need to check their privilege.”

Campaign leader Jessica Learmond-Criqui said: “I am surprised to hear the comments from councillor Blackwell who is one of the senior management team who basically run Camden.

“He has clearly forgotten Camden’s own policies to protect independent traders which include that the ‘council will not grant planning permission for development that it considers would cause harm to the character, amenity, function, vitality and viability of a centre or local area’.”@LizzieEdmo

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in

MORE ABOUT