Andrew Murray with Westminster Lord Mayor Paul Dimoldenberg

BACK in April 1986 I came to live in Soho for one year. Next week I’ll be leaving after nearly 40 years.

Soho is special and gets a hold of you, which means that parting isn’t easy.

This is the place where my children have grown up, where memories abound.

Yes, it can be grubby and full of people who show little awareness of or respect for the presence of a local community.

West End residents are familiar with the problems: noise, queues, bikes, booze, ASB, Airbnb… the list goes on. But wander the streets and squares of Soho early on a sunny bank holiday morning and you get a sense of the history of the place.

There’s peace and quiet to enjoy the many Soho buildings which are part of the story.

Blue plaques often point to the details: Canaletto, John Snow, Karl Marx, John Logie Baird… Then, as Soho livens up during the day, cafés and restaurants have a relaxed feel and you see how it can be enjoyable for residents and visitors alike.

With all sorts of cultural opportunities in easy walking distance, what’s not to like?

But it’s not all likeable, by any means.

“Soho” means different things to different people and “my Soho” is certainly different from most.

That’s all rooted in my reason for being here in the first place.

I came to work with a church project.

We wanted to tell local people about Jesus Christ, a superhero who was, and is, fact not fiction. So we had an otherworldly message, about faith that brings real hope beyond death, but that faith comes with a commitment to living now in a particular way, summed up by Jesus as “Love your neighbour”.

What I found in my early days here were neighbours in need. There were a good number of older people left behind by society, some living in pretty basic accommodation with no one much to help them.

It was an education for someone not long out of university, to find flats with no bathrooms, no central heating, shared toilets on stairways.

Berwick Street

Most lived in social housing, but there were those further up the socio-economic ladder too.

As I helped folk with very practical tasks, cleaning windows, collecting pensions, doing shopping, visiting Middlesex Hospital, and just listening, I began to understand the continuing community that lies at the heart of Soho. In particular, I heard stories from people like Ettie and Norman, long-standing residents who recalled memories of the thriving, very mixed, community they grew up in during the 1920s and 1930s.

Others at The Soho Society – Bryan Burrough, Leslie Hardcastle and Matthew Bennett – recalled the success of the campaign of the early 1970s in defeating terrible plans for redevelopment, but opened my eyes to continuing challenges to the character of the area.

So I found myself standing with others in speaking up for individuals and a community which had been neglected for a very long time.

What changes Soho has seen since 1986!

Dogs, for one thing. There are many more dogs being walked around Soho now, including my personal favourites, Berwick Street celebrities Jeffrey and Bella.

More seriously, after decades of neglect, property interests took over, cheered on by a council not too bothered about the local community.

Shirley Porter – famous for gerrymandering and selling cemeteries off cheap – ruled the roost when I arrived.

A subsequent leader told businesses, “We’re going to get out of your way,” and did just that.

I’ve had a grandstand view from Berwick Street of the effect of overintensive development, how it blights the lives of ordinary residents, damages small businesses, and erodes character from a place.

There is a real danger that the focus on mass tourism will take away what makes Soho truly special.

Labour taking control of Westminster City Council was a significant change but how far that will benefit Soho in the long term is unclear. More honest and constructive debate could encourage wider local participation from the community.

Businesses and visitors definitely need to become more aware of the presence of a residential community.

Maybe the community needs to become more realistic about limitations the politicians face.

Positive change is certainly possible, but that will need a new level of trust to be built up.

As someone once said, though, “Soho isn’t what it used to be. It never was.” For all its faults, I’ll miss the place and the people I’ve grown to love.

One thing is for sure: Soho will always need saving!