The council has hit back following accusations of secrecy over the regeneration of Hackbridge.

Sutton Council has confirmed the results of a safety audit into the new layout in the town, which formed part of a £1.4m regeneration project, will be made available to the public as soon as it is complete, at the end of the month.

The work, carried out in partnership with BioRegional, the Mayor of London, the Hackbridge and Beddington Corner Neighbourhood Planning Group, local businesses and land-owners in Hackbridge, has come under close scrutiny, but the council is keen to point out a number of positive results since work began at the start of summer.

These include two new shops in the high street, shop fronts and interiors being improved, £40,000 of business grants being made available, a new farmers’ market and a reduction in carbon emissions from shops.

Welcome signs are also now in place and parking enforcement officers were set to start issuing fixed penalty notices (PCNs) from this week as parking restrictions are now in force.

Sutton Council leader Councillor Ruth Dombey, said: “The designers of the scheme and our highways engineers are assessing the project so far. Recreating the heart of Hackbridge is a big job and we want to get it right.

“We are well on the way, but the job isn’t finished yet. It’s a pioneering project and when it’s done it will be the best of its kind in London.

“We’re working hard on the final safety measures and we have extended the placement of a road crossing officer for schoolchildren until at least Christmas 2014.

“The initial assessment is that the scheme is working well. If there were critical safety issues, we would have acted immediately. We will never compromise on the safety of residents.”

A source of contention has been the safety of the new road layout, particularly to children traveling to school.

The council has agreed to provide a school crossing officer until at least Christmas while transport engineers assess the road changes implemented as part of the project.