Large 'Black Boy Lane' poster erected behind new La Rosa sign

A large 'Black Boy Lane' sign has been erected behind its changed street name in north London.

Black Boy Lane in Tottenham was renamed La Rose Lane on 23 January over concerns about its racial connotations in the fallout from the Black Lives Matter protests.

But one of the six new road signs was vandalised just 24 hours later, and the large sign with the previous street name was put up this week, according to author Nels Abbey.

It is unclear whether the acts were connected to a protest by some neighbours who are opposed to the name change.

On La Rose Lane, about 10 imitation Black Boy Lane signs have been stuck to the outside of houses in a co-ordinated show of protest, residents previously explained.

Haringey Council said the name change was suggested during a consultation held after Black man George Floyd was killed by a white police officer in the US in May 2020.

It said it has since conducted a “thorough process of consultation” which found “many residents shared the concerns about the racial connotations of the name”.

Haringey Council leader Peray Ahmet previously tweeted a photo showing that one of the six new road signs had been vandalised.

She said the “act of mindless vandalism will simply not be tolerated in Haringey” and the sign had been scrubbed clean by the afternoon.

It now appears the 'Black Boy Lane' sign has also been removed, according to Abbey.

The BBC reported the council had taken it away and no one had yet claimed responsibility for it.

The council says organisations including the Royal Mail will continue to recognise the old street name for a transitional period of one year and street signs will continue to include the former street name during that period.

The town hall said the street appears to have been named Black Boy Lane in reference to the nearby Black Boy pub.

The new street name honours the late Black publisher, poet and essayist John La Rose.