Merry Christmas.

With 2019 now coming to a close, the Barnet Times takes a look back at what has happened in the borough throughout the year.

So of course we will start back in January, where in Hendon a ‘garbage mountain’ was left at the Grahame Park Estate.

Local resident Zara Winstone snapped the rubbish piled high after several weeks of missed collections by Barnet Council.

After Barnet Council removed the rubbish in Long Mead, Cllr Richard Cornelius thanked street scene staff for “working around the clock for our residents”.

Also in the month councillors threw out plans to build extra floors on top of existing flats amid claims it would leave people living in darkness.

Plans for 19 extra flats on the Chandos Way Estate in Garden Suburb had been recommended for approval by Barnet Council’s planning officers–despite the fact that nearly 250 people had objected to the scheme.

Meanwhile, a golfer completed a year of fundraising for diabetes.

David Dickinson, 68, a former maths teacher, has Type 1 diabetes and also has family members with the condition.

He raised £3,941.52 for Diabetes UK at Bush Hill Park Golf Club, Winchmore Hill.