where even the local pub is in ruins
Some readers might recall a post from 2016 in which I described the sad (but all too common) fate that has befallen my local boozer [1]. The Pompadours had once been a Harold Hill landmark, but is now just another derelict pub boarded up and still - nine years later - awaiting demolition (see fig. 1 above).
In that period, things have, if anything - and despite Havering Council's promises of regeneration [2] - gone from bad to worse and my local shopping precinct, Hilldene, is fast becoming an area where even the ghosts are scared to venture after dark [3].
The air smells of car fumes, cooking oil, and cannabis and even Bargain Town - a large discount store mostly selling things priced at just £1 - has gone out of business; as has the pet shop and F. Cooke's, one of London's oldest established pie & mash shops.
Natwest shut their Harold Hill branch two years ago; Lloyds and the Halifax having previously abandoned the area. The local estate agency has also relocated and even one of the (multiple) charity shops has closed.
Thank goodness the local flower shop and hairdressers remain, as well as small-scale versions of Sainsbury's, the Co-Op, and Iceland. Other than that - and a couple of newsagents - it's basically betting shops, dodgy-looking fast food outlets, and a games arcade (though even Funland may have just pulled its shutters down for good).
And over all this, English flags and Union Jacks still pathetically fly (see fig. 2 below) ...
Fig. 2 Welcome to Harold Hill ...
where even Bargain Town went out of business
Notes
[1] See the post 'Ghost Town' (7 November 2016): click here.
[2] According to Havering Council's website - click here - consultations with residents have been ongoing since 2016 to try and decide the future of Harold Hill and, in particular, the Farnham and Hilldene shopping area.
In 2021, the Council committed to significant investment to ensure that the latter 'continues to be a beacon for the neighbourhood and the whole community to enjoy' and residents should rest assured a single masterplan vision is being put into place.
[3] Evidence of gang activity and associated issues, such as drug dealing and violent crime, in certain areas of Harold Hill, is well-documented. Police and local authorities, whilst aware of the issues, seem powerless to do anything (other than hold community meetings in order to warn people that the streets aren't safe). In the last ten years there has been a 167% increase in incidents of knife crime in Havering and Harold Hill East is recognised as the most deprived area in the borough.
