Tower Hamlets, 13 June 2025 — Bow East councillors Amina Ali, Marc Francis, and Abdi Mohamed have expressed serious concerns regarding Tower Hamlets Council’s recent decision to relocate a proposed Culturally Sensitive Substance Misuse Recovery Centre to Bow, without any consultation with local residents, businesses, or ward councillors through council democratic structures.
This is an essential service, and we recognise its importance in supporting individuals on their recovery journey. We strongly believe families and those affected by substance misuse deserve comprehensive support, and a culturally sensitive centre is particularly vital in a diverse borough like Tower Hamlets.
Unfortunately, we only became aware of this decision after the deadline to challenge it had already passed. Despite multiple attempts to engage with officers and seek clarification, our questions were ignored and key documents were withheld. The centre is now scheduled to open in a matter of months at John Onslow House on Roman Road, yet there has been no engagement with the local community.
Cllr Amina Ali said: “I am deeply saddened by the way this decision has been made, without the transparency that such a sensitive matter demands. The lack of respect shown to both the residents in Bow East and service users is clear. That’s why an urgent review is needed to understand how this decision was reached. With such an important and sensitive service opening in the middle of a local market, I want to know why there was no consultation with the local community or key stakeholders, including market traders, before this behind-closed-doors decision was made.”
While we wholeheartedly support accessible and culturally appropriate services for those affected by substance misuse, we believe decisions of this magnitude must be made transparently and involve meaningful consultation with the community.
Cllr Marc Francis said: “Roman Road market and high street has been struggling for many years now. We urgently need Tower Hamlets Council to do something positive to support local businesses. Instead, Mayor Rahman’s team are now secretly putting a drug and alcohol recovery centre right in the middle of it without any consideration of its potential impact on those shops and market stalls. This is exactly the kind of arrogant behaviour that the independent ‘Best Value’ inspection revealed last year and which has led the Government to intervene. The Mayor must now urgently instruct officers to inform and fully consult with local residents and businesses.”
There has been no clear explanation of how this location was chosen, no impact assessment provided for the already struggling Roman Road high street, and no mention of the relocation in Cabinet papers. It is hard to avoid the conclusion that relevant information was intentionally withheld to prevent public and political scrutiny.
Scrutiny is vital — not only for the local community where the centre will be situated, but also for the service users who rely on these facilities.
Cllr Abdi Mohamed said: “Last year’s Best Value Inspection made clear that Tower Hamlets needed to rebuild trust through transparency and better governance. Yet here we are again, with key decisions made behind closed doors and local people left out of the conversation. It shows a real lack of respect for our residents, who deserve to be informed and involved — not sidelined. If lessons were truly learned, we wouldn’t be in this position.”
We are calling for an urgent review of how this decision was made, including whether it was appropriate to bypass necessary scrutiny. At a time when the Council claims to be rebuilding trust and improving governance following last year’s Best Value Inspection, this situation suggests those lessons have yet to be learned.
Decisions that affect our communities must be made transparently and with genuine community involvement. It does a disservice to our residents when such critical decisions are made behind closed doors.
Tower Hamlets Council must do better.
ENDS
