1940 – RUISLIP CAB OPENED
Ruislip Citizens Advice Bureau was founded on 18 January 1940 by a group of nine local people, with the first site in Station Approach. 200 CABs had already opened across the country from September 1939 to meet the needs of the civilian population during World War II, and branches in Ickenham and Hayes were among these. By the end of 1940, CABs at Northwood, Northwood Hills and South Ruislip had followed, with West Drayton close behind in 1941. The local CABs were already 25 years old when the Borough of Hillingdon was created in 1965, and the Mayor celebrated the CAB’s 70th anniversary in 2009.
Over the years, the CABs have amalgamated and moved – the “North Hillingdon” CAB moved to the site at 9, Eastcote Road sometime after 1971, after the fire and ambulance services vacated and a “new” building was erected. There was a “drop-in” service for initial advice at Ruislip on two mornings a week during the 2010s, together with previously booked appointments for more detailed help.
2015 – PROBLEMS ON THE HORIZON
First intimations of a closure came to the CAB in late 2015, and the Director of Hillingdon Citizens Advice discussed the issue with the Trustees in February 2016. They were told that the LBH Strategic Property Governance Group (SPGG – Leader Ray Puddifoot, Finance Cabinet Member Jonathan Mills and Head of Property Mike Paterson) had identified the site for development and had agreed to put the site out to market, and to review Expressions of Interest.
The site was advertised on the LBH website in Spring 2016 and several interested parties came to the CAB for a look, a couple while I was in the building. I asked one what they would do with the site and building, but only got a smile in return. We don’t have a copy of the advert, but I remember words about
“appropriate and sensitive use, consideration of its position” etc.
The site is in the Ruislip Conservation Area, next to the medieval Manor Farm Heritage Site, next to the War Memorial and opposite the Almshouses and St.Martins Church.
2016 – NOT A SALE – SUPPORTING THE DECISION-MAKING PROCESS
There are no published minutes of the decision to “sell” the land; the SPGG was (is?) an informal committee that is not shown on the LBH website with public minutes, so we don’t know the rationale of the decision. Through 2016, the declared position was that obtaining Expressions of Interest was “to support the decision-making process” on whether to sell – so there was no need for it to be debated by Members (Councillors) until there was actually a decision to be made.
However, at the time it certainly felt like the decision had been made, and there was an ultimately unsuccessful search for alternative properties for the CAB in the north of the Borough. At no time was there a discussion by Councillors whether LBH should be pursuing this approach – even if only to obtain “Interest”. We would have expected our elected Councillors to weigh the loss of the CAB in north Hillingdon against the potential monetary gain to the Council overall, but as far as I know, this never happened. The CAB in Hillingdon was dependent upon the Council for operating space, but it was a reciprocal arrangement whereby the CAB helps to resolve Borough residents’ problems.
There was a Cabinet meeting in July 2016 at which a bid for the site was discussed under “Part II” (not in public, or public minutes) and referred back to the SPGG.
2017 – BUT FIRST AN ARCHAEOLGICAL PRE-SURVEY
The CAB Director was told by the Head of Property in April 2017 that the site could be sold (subject to Members*’ direction) by the end of that year. In December 2017 the CAB Director was told that archaeological consultants had been appointed – and the consultants had highlighted (to Members* at a recent Property meeting) that the area is an important early medieval settlement. Therefore, before there could be any development on the site, we needed to have a full archaeological survey, approved by LBH Planning. But before you could have the survey, the CAB building would have to be demolished – you could then market-test whether it would be sellable! As far as I know, the Members* here were the SPGG meeting informally, not Councillors debating an issue and being publicly responsible for the decision.
There was a Planning Application in March 2018 on behalf of LBH Capital Programmes and Planned Works, for demolition of the building, approved in May 2018, but saying there should be no demolition without a Written Scheme of Archaeological Investigation approved by LBH Planning.
2018 RUISLIP CAB CLOSURE
By then, after some discussion with the LBH Capital Programmes team, drop-ins and physical appointments cease in the north of the Borough, and the CAB vacated the site on 23 May 2018. Some publicity was given in Hillingdon People to encourage residents to go online or to go to local libraries to email in their problems for the CAB to make a telephone call-back. Residents who couldn’t manage the internet or explaining their problem on the telephone had to travel to Uxbridge CAB. Essentially, after the noble start of 1940 and 78 years of valiant service, the CAB in Ruislip went out with a whimper.
2019-20 – DEMOLITION AND ARCHEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION
After the Ruislip CAB closed, the site was enclosed, the building demolished and the site re-enclosed with a natty design on the boards. The Town Crier early in 2020 carried an article from an RRA member:
“information from the Council says the draft archaeological report concludes no significant archaeological features were observed… Options for the future of the site will be prepared for the consideration of Council Members. I cannot say when, but I hope this will be in the next couple of months.”
At this time there seemed to have been no action on the Planning front to allow the Archaeological Investigation, so
- In March 2020, I wrote to the three Councillors for (the then) East Ruislip and Eastcote ward (Cllrs Edwards, Denys and Haggar), who did not reply.
- So I wrote to LBH Planning and they put me in touch with the Head of Property
- then my West Ruislip Cllr Philip Corthorne (who has been helpful and supportive on this issue from the beginning) contacted the East Ruislip Cllrs and they then raised a Members’ Enquiry
and I got a joint reply from Cllr Ian Edwards in June 2020. This told me that a scheme of archaeological investigation had been prepared prior to the demolition and
“outstanding administrative matters were being dealt with by Capital Programmes and Planning” .
I think this is a euphemism for not actually getting approval from LBH Planning before going ahead with the Archaeological Investigation
In practice the “Written Scheme of Investigation” was dated August 2019 but presumably not presented to LBH Planning until after my enquiry about it, as it appeared on the LBH Planning website in June 2020. The actual Archaeological Survey was carried out in October 2019, the Report issued in December 2019. and it appeared on the LBH Planning website in July 2020. A revised Report was issued in December 2020, and put on the website in that month.
2020 – BUT STILL NO DECISION (OR OPTIONS)
This reply from Cllr Edwards in June 2020 also emphasised that
“Members have not made a decision to sell the site. Possible options include the option of selling, but the future of the site is still to be considered by Members, and this will determine the timetable… There is no timetable for the determination of future use….”
2021 – HAYES CAB DISAPPEARS
The third CAB in Hillingdon was in Hayes, but this never reopened after the pandemic, although no-one seems to know why. Drop-ins and physical appointments stop in the south of the Borough, with just Uxbridge left.
2022 – STILL NO DECISION OR OPTIONS
I contacted Cllr Edwards (now the Leader of the Council, but still the local Ward Cllr) in February 2022 and asked
“…We are now in 2022, and the CAB site remains boarded up. I presume the Strategic Property Governance Group (does this still exist?), which made the original decision, and the Capital Programmes Works Service, which commissioned the demolition, know the reasoning and had a plan for this saga which has now lasted 6+ years. Could we now know what is going to happen?”
I didn’t get a reply so I asked again and the reply in April 2022 said
“There is no change in position since June 2020. The site is very prominent and adjacent to sensitive sites and historic buildings. Any development must therefore be carefully considered and I will be taking a keen interest in what is proposed.”
2023 – MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS
At the Ruislip Residents Association meeting in April 2023, the question was raised again, and the local Ruislip (new ward boundaries from elections in May 2022) Ward Councillors were asked to find out:
“What’s happening to the CAB site”
and the answer was, apparently without any commitments on timing:
“Options would be considered by the Members”,
At the RRA meeting in September 2023 – Cllr Edwards spoke and responded to questions, saying
“he was sorry this had dragged on, but a proposal was imminent – involving some housing”
In November 2023 the last CAB in Hillingdon had to move out of its Civic Centre office and started drop-in services in the Civic Centre Reception. Appointments continue by telephone after phone or email contact by residents.
2024 – FOLLOW-UP BUT………
Local Councillors follow up repeatedly, but proposals are always
“imminent”
In November 2024 – Uxbridge Citizens Advice had to leave the Civic Centre Reception, and drop-in services cease in Hillingdon after 85 years.
2025 – AND A CONCLUSION?
In January and March 2025 I wrote to Cllr Edwards, and Cllr Bianco replied:
“…our intention is to submit a planning application in the near future, once detailed plans have been drawn up, for a row of town houses to be built on the land adjacent to the existing houses in St. Martin’s Approach. This will result in a rearrangement of the car parking which will incorporate the land previously occupied by the CAB office.”
At the RRA meeting In March 2025, Cllr Edwards mentioned the potential plan but was unable to give a more precise timescale for its presentation.
At the beginning of June 2025, Hillingdon Citizens Advice lost its long-term contract with LB Hillingdon to provide general advice for residents. (Contract for general advice passed to Hillingdon Advice Partnership.) Citizens Advice now advises on specific projects with Hillingdon Foodbank, Macmillan Cancer Support and on Employment issues.
At the RRA meeting in September 2025, Cllr Smallwood (one of the Ruislip Ward Councillors) told the residents present that the Council was working on the plan and hope to submit to LBH Planning by the end of October 2025.
AND FINALLY
After ten years, we’re still waiting.
Couldn’t someone work out ten years ago that no one would buy a plot next to a Heritage Site without planning permission, Why didn’t anyone think about the archaeological position.
“Options will be considered”, proposals have been “imminent” or “in the near future”, but maybe we’ll see something by the end of the month.
If one of the original aims (which have never been revealed) was to gain money from the sale to supplement the Council’s finances – we still haven’t got that after ten years.
Trevor Browne
Ruislip resident and CA volunteer 2012-2025
October 2025
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