Perry’s cut-price carers support provider is failing to deliver

Posted on May 13, 2026 by insidecroydon

This is what “success” looks like under Jason Perry, Croydon’s failed Mayor.

It is now little more than a year since the Tory Mayor decided to end years of successful collaboration and hard work by dedicated local charities and volunteers at the Carers Support Centre and bring in outside contractors. In the past 12 months, under the new service supplier, official figures show the record of delivery looks to have fallen off a cliff.

Kent-based Carers First, a business with charity status, took over the council’s carers support service in March last year after what can only be described as a lip-service, self-fulfilling council public consultation. Continue reading →

Posted in Adult Social Care, Business, Carers First, Charity, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

‘Wake up’ call from Croydon MP as she backs PM ‘Uncle Keir’

Posted on May 13, 2026 by insidecroydon

Defending the indefensible: having manoeuvred Keir Starmer into the Labour leadership and No10 through his shadowy organisation Labour Together, Croydon MP Steve Reed has been all over broadcast media trying to keep his placeman in place

As health secretary Wes Streeting considers resigning from government, possibly triggering a leadership challenge, Steve Reed, Sarah Jones and Natasha Irons are backing Starmer

‘Island of strangers’: Sir Keir Starmer may be choking on the thought of his many missteps as Prime Minister

“Uncle” Keir Starmer is clinging on to the job of Prime Minister, probably grateful for the hiatus caused by today’s State Opening of Parliament ceremonials, after three days of dissent and calls for his resignation, even from members of his own cabinet following last week’s disastrous local elections.

The latest resignation threat has come this morning from Wes Streeting, the erstwhile health secretary.

But as he stages what he has described, as a “battle for the soul of our nation”, Starmer at least has the consolation that he has the support of Croydon’s three Labour MPs. For the time being, anyway. Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, Croydon East, Croydon West, Natasha Irons, Sarah Jones MP, Steve Reed MP, Streatham and Croydon North | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Latest fridge fly-tip breaks barriers in Norwood Junction Station

Posted on May 13, 2026 by insidecroydon

Even by Croydon’s standards as the “fly-tip capital of London”, this latest example excels all previous dumps.

Fridge magnet: the dump spotted in the Norwood Junction underpass has not, yet, attracted other rubbish

A discarded fridge had been left in the foot tunnel beneath the platforms of Norwood Junction railway station, just by the stairs up to Platform 4.

But just how did it get there?

The achievement of getting it there was greeted with disbelief by South Norwood locals on social media, with one even asking if it was another art installation by Banksy.

There was an average of more than 1,000 fly-tips reported every week around Croydon last year, according to official figures published in February – at a time when the Croydon Council had no enforcement staff. The data published by DEFRA, the environment department, made Croydon officially the worst place in the country for fly-tipping.

The Norwood Junction fridge just adds to those sorry statistics. Continue reading →

Posted in Fly tipping, Norwood Junction, South Norwood, Veolia | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Jimmy Regal and The Royals, The Oval Tavern, Sun May 17

Posted on May 13, 2026 by insidecroydon

C O M M U N I T Y
A D V E R T I S E M E N T

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Posted in Addiscombe West, Advertisement, Advertisement features, Art, Business, Music, The Oval Tavern | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Riddlesdown up for a cup double – and all in ‘bizarre’ 14 hours

Posted on May 12, 2026 by insidecroydon

Up for the cup, and then up for the cup again: Riddlesdown look to be penalised for their success by having to play back-to-back finals

Riddlesdown Collegiate’s under-15s might be the best football team of their age in the country – but English schools football bosses have presented them with the daunting task of playing two end-of-season finals within 14 hours later this month.

The English Schools’ Football Association’s scheduling of the finals of two competitions, both to be played at Stoke City’s home ground, has raised serious welfare safeguarding issues for the physical well-being of the young Riddlesdown squad.

The Croydon secondary’s footballers have won the right to play in the ESFA EA Sports FC Futures Boys’ Under-15 Schools’ Cup, which attracted entries from 663 schools nationwide, as well as the ESFA EA Sports FC Futures Boys’ Under-15 Elite Schools’ Cup. Continue reading →

Posted in Crystal Palace FC, Football, Riddlesdown, Schools | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Election podcast: How did 33% tax hike Perry manage to win?

Posted on May 12, 2026 by insidecroydon

It could yet go down as the biggest mugging ever seen in Croydon – the day that nearly 36,000 people were conned into voting for Conservative Mayor Jason Perry.

So just how did Perry, the incompetent Mayor who hiked your Council Tax by 33% and still managed to increase council debt to £1.7billion, manage to scramble together enough votes to get re-elected last week?

That’s the underlying question that our panel of readers, joined by former BBC London politics editor Tim Donovan, try to answer in our local elections special edition of the Croydon Insider. Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Croydon Insider, Inside Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Rowenna Davis, Under The Flyover | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Artist Emin makes big announcement for Priority Seating Week

Posted on May 12, 2026 by insidecroydon

Transport staff will be at Norwood Junction Station on Thursday, handing out free “Please Offer Me a Seat”, “Baby on Board” and “Babies on Board” badges, as part of activities around TfL’s Priority Seating Week.

It’s the eighth year that Transport for London has staged such an awareness week, and this year it has Turner Prize-winning artist Tracey Emin providing specially recorded announcements for Tube and bus stations.

The announcements encourage people to be mindful of non-visible conditions and to give up their seat if they can to those with greater need.

Priority Seating Week (which runs until May 17) recognises that 13% of Londoners identify as disabled. “It is vital that the capital’s transport network is as fair, accessible and inclusive as possible,” TfL says. Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Commuting, Health, Norwood Junction, South Norwood, TfL, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Touch rugby taster day at Warlingham RFC, Sat Jun 6

Posted on May 12, 2026 by insidecroydon

C O M M U N I T Y
A D V E R T I S E M E N T

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Earthquake election but Croydon only felt some small tremors

Posted on May 11, 2026 by insidecroydon

TV and radio politics pundit ANDREW FISHER, right, looks at Croydon’s local election results in the context of the seismic elections that took place across Britain

Across England, Wales and Scotland, the 2026 elections delivered a political earthquake that rocked the two main parties, Labour and Conservative, which both suffered substantial losses.

The Labour Party lost control of Wales for the first time in nearly 100 years, lost seats in the Scottish Parliament, and saw a wipeout of 1,500 councillors across England.

It was just as bad for the Conservatives, who slumped to fifth place in Scotland, fourth place in Wales and lost 563 councillors in England, leaving them in fourth place in England, too.

But in Croydon, Tory Mayor Jason Perry was re-elected as Executive Mayor, and Labour remains the largest party, although government-appointed Commissioners remain in charge of the serially inept council. Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Andrew Fisher, Croydon Greens, Mayor Jason Perry, Peter Underwood, Richard Howard, Rowenna Davis | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

King faces possible leadership challenge after election defeats

Posted on May 11, 2026 by insidecroydon

All change: Cllr Stuart King’s shadow cabinet was stripped almost bare by his own party’s ineptitude and Croydon voters’ rejection of some of the less well-liked, even despied, members of his inner team

Our Town Hall reporter KEN LEE on the immediate fall-out from Labour’s Rowenna Davis failing to become Mayor of Croydon

Leadership material?: Cllr Rowenna Davis

There will be a Labour Party leadership contest this week – but in Katharine Street, rather than Downing Street.

While Bensham Manor councillor Ellie Sandover’s Uncle Keir clings on at No10, last week’s seismic mayoral and local election results in Croydon have left the Labour group at the Town Hall in a state of disarray as well as obvious dismay.

Only three of Labour’s nine-strong shadow cabinet survived their party’s own cull and the voters’ judgement on their time in office as councillors, with the widely disliked “Thirsty” Chris Clark, pompous Chris Herman and underwhelming Jess Hammersley-Rich (who?) the shadow cabinet members getting dispatched at the ballot box on Thursday.

Labour was declared as the winners of 30 council seats at Saturday’s ward count at the Fairfield Halls, losing four from their 2022 tally. But with several senior figures retiring or being blocked from seeking re-election by their own party, it has created huge gaps in Labour’s leadership team at the Town Hall. Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Amy Foster, Callton Young, Chris Clark, Chrishni Reshekaron, Christopher Herman, Janet Campbell, John Wentworth, Manju Shahul Hameed, Rowenna Davis, Stuart King | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Mayor Khan offers ‘weekend whopper’ fare on trams and buses

Posted on May 11, 2026 by insidecroydon

Going places: fares on Croydon’s tram network and London buses are frozen until July

With fares on Croydon’s trams and London buses frozen until July, today Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan announced that the TfL Hopper fare is being extended over the summer to include unlimited journeys at weekends.

The promotion will operate throughout the school summer holidays, between July 25 and August 31, and will allow passengers to take as many trips by tram and bus as they want on weekends, all for the flat fare of £1.75. The existing Hopper fare’s one-hour limit will be dropped, and passengers will be able to travel by tram or bus all day for the single fare.

Transport for London says that more than 1billion Hopper journeys have been made since its launch.

The Hopper initiative, which usually allows unlimited journeys within an hour for a single fare on London’s buses and trams, was introduced in 2016, based on a policy proposed by journalist and transport expert Christian Wolmar during the Labour mayoral selection process. Continue reading →

Posted in London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, TfL, Tramlink, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Kenley locals in campaign to save their local for the future

Posted on May 10, 2026 by insidecroydon

‘An example of beutiful Victorian architecture’: The Kenley Hotel, closed for almost a year, has left locals fearing for its fate and missing the heart of their community

Grand Victorian pub that served RAF heroes during the Battle of Britain and which has  a bar reputedly made for the doomed Titanic, is under threat of being sold off, possibly for redevelopment. But not if the residents’ association get their way

When Jason Perry waddles into Fisher’s Folly tomorrow morning for his first day at work in his second term of office, he ought to ensure that one matter in his in-tray gets attended to straight away: saving the Kenley Hotel.

The 19th Century building on Godstone Road is “a beautiful example of Victorian architecture”, according to locals. The pub closed, “temporarily”, in July last year, another signal of the decline of the borough under Mayor Perry, with businesses closing, and not just in the town centre.

The Croydon branch of CAMRA suggests, with a touch of scepticism, that the pub’s bar was made for the Titanic, but never installed. They report that the Kenley Hotel is “closed until a new licensee can be found”, but also that the freehold was put up for sale last October. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Community associations, KENDRA, Kenley, Pubs | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Free SWLLC benefits and housing advice sessions, Selhurst

Posted on May 10, 2026 by insidecroydon

C O M M U N I T Y
A D V E R T I S E M E N T

NOTE the revised timings and venue details

Continue reading →

Posted in Advertisement, Advertisement features, Age UK Croydon, Charity, Croydon CAB, South West London Law Centres | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

The Happy Bee Festival, Frylands Wood Scout Centre, Jun 28

Posted on May 10, 2026 by insidecroydon

A D V E R T I S E M E N T

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Posted in Activities, Advertisement, Advertisement features, Environment, Scouts and Guides, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

#LocalElections2026: Greens make bigger inroads than Reform

Posted on May 9, 2026 by insidecroydon

Final result (after 28 wards declared):
Lab 30 (-4), Cons 28 (-5), Grn 7 (+5), LibDem 2 (+1), Oth* 1, Ref 2 (+2)

  • Ellie Sandover, niece of Labour PM Keir Starmer, elected to council for Bensham Manor ward
  • Mark Adderley, suspended by the Green Party after Labour minister Steve Reed’s complaints, is nevertheless elected to council in Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood
  • Labour shadow cabinet member Chris Clark loses his town centre seat to Greens
  • LibDems take control of new East Surrey Council
  • Reform wins first Croydon Council seats in New Addington South
  • First results in just after 11am – Labour gain from Conservatives and Croydon’s laziest councillor
  • In Lambeth, Greens look set to take control of MP Steve Reed’s old council
  • Croydon is now run by its directly elected Mayor, with Conservative Jason Perry returned yesterday for a second four-year term. Today, the count at the Fairfield Halls will determine who the 70 councillors will be that join him at the Town Hall until 2030

Welcome to Inside Croydon’s unmatched coverage of the 2026 local election count in Croydon, and across south London.

We have reporters at the count at the Fairfield Halls today, the second day of election counts, this time to determine 70 councillors in 28 wards.

Bookmark this page and keep returning and refreshing the page for our live coverage, with updates on events throughout.

Each new post will be timestamped, with the most recent postings being right here at the top of the page.

We welcome your election-day pictures and news, your comments and your observations, which you can send to us (confidentially if you prefer) by email at inside.croydon@btinternet.com Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Addiscombe East, Addiscombe West, Adele Benson, Barry Lewis, Ben Flook, Bensham Manor, Broad Green, Chris Clark, Chris Philp MP, Claire Bonham, Coulsdon East, Coulsdon Town, Croydon Council, Croydon East, Croydon South, Croydon West, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Dave Tchil, Elaine Jackson, Ellie Sandover, Fairfield, Graham Mitchell, Housing, Inside Croydon, Ken Towl, Kenley, Kola Agboola, Leila Ben-Hassel, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Michael Pusey, Natasha Irons, New Addington North, Nick Mattey, Norbury, Norbury Park, Old Coulsdon, Park Hill and Whitgift, Paul Ainscough, Purley, Purley Oaks and Riddlesdown, Ria Patel, Rowenna Davis, Sadiq Khan, Sanderstead, Sarah Jones MP, Selhurst, Selsdon and Addington Village, Selsdon Vale and Forestdale, Shirley North, Shirley South, South Croydon, South Norwood, Steve Reed MP, Streatham and Croydon North, Sutton Council, Thornton Heath, Tim Foster, Tom Drummond, Tony Pearson, Waddon, West Thornton, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 32 Comments

‘The vote on the left split more than the vote on the right’

Posted on May 9, 2026 by insidecroydon

Gang show at the Fairfield Halls: Jason Perry shortly after yesterday’s result. His Tory mates helped get him re-elected with lies and decpetion, and even broke the law

ELECTION COMMENTARY: Jason Perry, Croydon’s failed Mayor, may have been handed another four years in office, but the voting numbers declared yesterday spell trouble for the borough’s other Conservatives.
By STEVEN DOWNES, Editor, Inside Croydon

Jason Perry, Croydon’s failed Mayor, backed by his Conservative gang members, did not win the borough’s second mayoral election this week. Keir Starmer lost it.

By any reasonable assessment, Jason Perry’s four-year term from 2022 has been an unmitigated failure. Residents’ Council Tax is up by 33%, yet the cash-strapped council’s debt is up by £300million, to £1.7billion.

Perry’s latest budget, forced through with legal threats against opposition councillors, proved to be so unbalanced that the government-appointed Commissioners have ordered  Conrad Hall, the finance director called in to try to untangle the mess created by four years of bungling, to come up with a fresh financial plan for 2026-2027 by July. The next few weeks will be more than interesting.

Perry has failed in so many ways. Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Ben Flook, Chris Philp MP, Conrad Hall, Croydon Council, Croydon East, Croydon South, Croydon West, Elaine Jackson, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Michael Pusey, Natasha Irons, Rowenna Davis, Sarah Jones MP, Steve Reed MP, Streatham and Croydon North | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 28 Comments

Blues at The Oval Tavern, May and June, free entry, 6pm start

Posted on May 9, 2026 by insidecroydon

C O M M U N I T Y
A D V E R T I S E M E N T

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Posted in Addiscombe West, Advertisement, Advertisement features, Art, Business, Music, The Oval Tavern | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Orangewash: Reform Ltd hands Sutton council to the LibDems

Posted on May 8, 2026 by insidecroydon

Number crunching: the Sutton Council election count at the Westcroft Leisure Centre provided some unhappy figures for the Conservatives

INSIDE SUTTON: Labour now have more council seats in Sutton than the Conservatives, after a  local election wipeout 

It was carnage for the Conservatives in Sutton overnight, as Barry “Basher” Lewis and his Liberal Democrats hardly had to lift a finger to end up with  51 of the 55 council seats in Sutton.

The LibDems took an iron grip on Sutton Council in the early hours of this morning, thanks to the still-waning popularity of the Conservatives and the corrosive influence of the 55 Reform Ltd candidates seeking election.

The Tories were totally wiped out, losing all 20 councillors. Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, Barry Lewis, Dave Tchil, Nick Mattey, Outside Croydon, Ruth Dombey, Sheldon Vestey, Sutton Council, Tim Foster | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

#LocalElections2026: Live coverage from the Croydon count

Posted on May 8, 2026 by insidecroydon
  • Tory Jason Perry clings on to power as Croydon Mayor, dealing crushing blow to Labour’s hopes as he wins second term by 1,113 votes from Rowenna Davis
  • It’s Conservative carnage in Sutton
  • Labour losses in Wandsworth and Westminster
  • Reform charmer standing in New Addington fails to get elected in Essex 
  • The Tories cling on against Reform in Bexley

Welcome to Inside Croydon’s unmatched coverage of the 2026 local election count in Croydon, and across south London.

We have reporters at the count at the Fairfield Halls today, for Croydon’s second mayoral election, which will determine our cash-strapped borough’s direction for the next four years, at least.

Have Croydon residents opted to stick with Conservative Jason Perry? Has the social media campaign run by Rowenna Davis been enough for Labour to take back control of the Town Hall? Has Reform Ltd’s Ben Flook made in-roads into the traditional duopoly?

All will become clear with the mayoral election declaration expected sometime later this afternoon, with the votes for Croydon’s 70 councillors across 28 wards delayed until tomorrow, Saturday, May 9, when we’ll be back and do this all over again….

Bookmark this page and keep returning and refreshing the page for our live coverage, with updates on events nationally throughout.

Each new post will be timestamped, with the most recent postings being right here at the top of the page.

We welcome your election-day pictures and news, your comments and your observations, which you can send to us (confidentially if you prefer) by email at inside.croydon@btinternet.com Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Addiscombe East, Addiscombe West, Adele Benson, Barry Lewis, Ben Flook, Bensham Manor, Broad Green, Chris Clark, Chris Philp MP, Claire Bonham, Coulsdon East, Coulsdon Town, Croydon Council, Croydon East, Croydon South, Croydon West, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Dave Tchil, Elaine Jackson, Ellie Sandover, Fairfield, Graham Mitchell, Housing, Inside Croydon, Ken Towl, Kenley, Kola Agboola, Leila Ben-Hassel, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Michael Pusey, Natasha Irons, New Addington North, Nick Mattey, Norbury, Norbury Park, Old Coulsdon, Park Hill and Whitgift, Paul Ainscough, Purley, Purley Oaks and Riddlesdown, Ria Patel, Rowenna Davis, Sadiq Khan, Sanderstead, Sarah Jones MP, Selhurst, Selsdon and Addington Village, Selsdon Vale and Forestdale, Shirley North, Shirley South, South Croydon, South Norwood, Steve Reed MP, Streatham and Croydon North, Sutton Council, Thornton Heath, Tim Foster, Tom Drummond, Tony Pearson, Waddon, West Thornton, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 47 Comments

Why south London Is popular for extended business stays

Posted on May 8, 2026 by insidecroydon

SPONSORED CONTENT

Extended business travel has changed quite a bit in recent years. More professionals are spending weeks or even months in one city, and where they choose to stay has started to change.

Central London is still the obvious choice for many, but it’s no longer the only one, and for longer trips, it’s often not the most practical one either.

South London has quietly built a strong case for itself, particularly for professionals who need easy access to the capital without paying premium central prices. Don’t just take that at face value, there’s a lot to unpack here, and the reasons are worth considering before you book your next extended stay. Continue reading →

Posted in Advertisement, Advertisement features, Inside Croydon | Tagged , | Leave a comment

Here’s Croydon’s election results – from Coronation year 1953

Posted on May 7, 2026 by insidecroydon

In a special edition of the Croydon Chronicles as the borough goes to the polls, DAVID MORGAN has trawled through the Minster archive to take a look at how local elections were run more than 70 years ago

Allegations of parachuting candidates into safe seats, accusations of one party masquerading under the banner of another, massive cuts to council services and worries about getting the vote out were the main themes from the Croydon local elections.

But these were the Croydon local elections of 1953, when Winston Churchill was Prime Minister, post-war rationing still existed, and much of the British public was looking forward to the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II.

Election winner: Winston Churchill was back in government for the Conservatives after a General Election win in 1953

The first public meeting of the newly formed South Ward Independent Electors’ Association held in April 1953 produced verbal spats between the public speakers and the audience. People objected to Councillor Bell, a member of the Ratepayers’ Association, being transferred from the marginal Waddon to stand in South ward, which for years had been a safe seat for the RA.

The chair of the meeting Mr Duff, together with several others, felt indignant that a councillor from another ward had been foisted upon them without a general meeting of the Ratepayers’ Association being called or without any consultation of the electorate. Duff said the two candidates who they had chosen for the election came from the ward and understood its problems. Continue reading →

Posted in David Morgan, History | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Looking for a new home? Kirsty and Phil could help you

Posted on May 7, 2026 by insidecroydon

If you’re looking to make a home move very soon, then Channel 4 can provide you with the wisdom and advice of two of the best house-hunters in the business.

House-hunters: Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer are keen to help south Londoners find their perfect homexxxx

Location, Location, Location with Phil Spencer and Kirsty Allsopp is back – the first episode of its latest series aired last night – but the producers are already working on the next series, and they are keen to find south Londoners, from across Sutton, Bromley or Croydon, who are in the market for a new home.

Location, Location, Location has been a fixture in Channel 4’s prime time schedule for more than 20 years and remains the biggest property buying programme on British television. Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Property | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Vote count delays raise ‘real concerns’ over ballot security

Posted on May 7, 2026 by insidecroydon

EXCLUSIVE: A three-day election count, and a pause between the polls closing tonight and ballot verification tomorrow morning, has raised serious questions over arrangements for the count, which is taking place at the Fairfield Halls.
By WALTER CRONXITE, Political Editor 

All the votes cast in today’s local elections across Croydon will be left unverified somewhere in the Fairfield Halls for at least 10 hours after the polls close.

Sources from different political parties have raised serious concerns over a lack of security in a public building for such a prolonged period.

Elaine Jackson, the council’s interim chief executive and the Returning Officer for the elections of Croydon’s Mayor and 70 councillors across the borough’s 28 wards, refused to comment when Inside Croydon asked her to explain how she intended to ensure that the votes will be tamper-proof. Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 14 Comments

King Size Slim at The Oval Tavern, Sun May 10, 6pm, free entry

Posted on May 7, 2026 by insidecroydon

C O M M U N I T Y
A D V E R T I S E M E N T

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Posted in Addiscombe West, Advertisement, Advertisement features, Art, Business, Music, The Oval Tavern | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Mayor Perry’s secret plan to privatise Croydon’s public parks

Posted on May 6, 2026 by insidecroydon

Buried deep in their uninspiring election manifesto, Croydon Tories have let slip that they want to hand over at least one of the borough’s public open spaces to a private company. SANDRA STEAD reports

In the swing: Tory Jason Perry wants to pay to play at being Tarzan in Croydon’s public parks

Jason Perry, the Croydon Mayor who tried to sell off a chunk of the Shirley Hills to a posh private golf club during his first term in office will, if re-elected tomorrow, hand over at least one of the borough’s parks to a private company.

Perry’s election manifesto was kept under wraps until just 10 days ago – probably because, after four years in power, the £86,000 per year Mayor has so little to show for his time in office.

Because as well as costing the council £10million over his unlawful LTN schemes and his failure to reopen the Purley Pool, Perry’s poor management of the council’s waste contracts and neglect of our public open spaces has been keenly felt by residents. Continue reading →

Posted in 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Business, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Mayor Jason Perry, Peter Underwood | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments