A guest post by Richard Owen

Some birch saplings have just been planted on Goldhawk Road as part of the ongoing and sorely needed improvement works – see above right.

Unfortunately H&F are still determined to use enormous patches of black tarmac to cap off the tree bases, instead of a traditional hoggin.

Even bonded resin would be wrong – it soon gets dirty and looks cheap and synthetic. All other other serious inner London boroughs, including the Democratic Republic of Camden, use traditional hoggin around street trees, even in busy areas.

Camden High Street’s recent re-model for example, in a busy and quite boisterous part of town. See below right – there is the inevitable chewing gum and spilled drink, but the hoggin can be brushed up very easily and really adds to the pallette.

How do we get council officers to raise the standard to a level appropriate for this great city?