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Category Archives: Crystal Palace Park Trust
Choir demands compensation over BHLive’s Fairfield shambles
CROYDON IN CRISIS: BHLive, the under-fire operators of the council-owned arts complex, have been accused of costing one of the borough’s top arts groups thousands of pounds because of their poor management of the prestige venue. By our arts correspondent, … Continue reading
Posted in Andrew Pelling, Art, Ashcroft Theatre, BH Live, Croydon Philharmonic Choir, Fairfield Halls, Music, Oliver Lewis, Theatre, Val Shawcross
Tagged Andrew Pelling, BHLive, Brick by Brick, Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon Philharmonic Choir, Fairfield Halls, Labour, Oliver Lewis, Peter Underwood
6 Comments
Mayor candidate Shawcross’s ‘new’ direction not so new at all
Any ‘clean break’ with the incompetence and graft of the past at Croydon Town Hall that is being offered by Labour Mayoral candidate Val Shawcross appears doomed by her own campaign’s deep-rooted connections with discredited Tony Newman and some of … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Addiscombe East, Addiscombe West, Alisa Flemming, Brick by Brick, Broad Green, Business, Callton Young, Children's Services, Chris Clark, Clive Fraser, Croydon Council, David Evans, Fairfield Halls, Fly tipping, Hamida Ali, Humayun Kabir, Karen Jewitt, Maddie Henson, Manju Shahul Hameed, Meals on Wheels, Planning, Refuse collection, Sarah Jones MP, Schools, Sean Fitzsimons, SEND, Sherwan Chowdhury, Steve Reed MP, Stuart Collins, Stuart King, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross, Veolia
Tagged Addiscombe East, Addiscombe West, Alisa Flemming, Brick by Brick, Broad Green, Callton Young, Clive Fraser, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Karen Jewitt, Labour, Maddie Henson, Manju Shahul Hameed, Sean Fitzsimons, South Norwood, Steve Reed OBE, Stuart Collins, STUART KING, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross
2 Comments
Mayor will have little say over borough’s rubbish contractors
CROYDON COMMENTARY: It is one of the biggest and most important services provided by any local council. But the manner in which the borough has outsourced the management of bin collections, street cleaning and waste disposal and recycling has become … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Business, Croydon Council, Fly tipping, idVerde, Kingston, London-wide issues, Merton, Peter Underwood, Refuse collection, Stuart Collins, Sutton Council, Val Shawcross, Veolia, Waste incinerator
Tagged #Binmageddon, #MuckyMerton, #SuttonBinShame, 'Royal' Borough of Kingston upon Thames, Beddington Lane incinerator, Croydon Council, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, Merton Council, SLWP, South London Waste Partnership, Stuart Collins, Sutton Council, Veolia, Viridor
4 Comments
Labour staffer caught trying to cheat online election poll
CROYDON LABOUR IN CRISIS: Professional organiser resorts to devious methods to try to make Shawcross campaign look stronger. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES A paid Labour Party official – and a member of the campaign team for Val Shawcross, the party’s … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Addiscombe East, Andrew Pelling, Maddie Henson, South Croydon, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross, Waddon
Tagged 2022 Mayoral election, Addiscombe East, Andrew Pelling, Anthony Ellis, Croydon Council, Croydon Mayor, Croydon Mayoral election 2022, Democratically Elected Mayor of Croydon, Jack Buck, Labour, Maddie Henson, Steve Reed OBE, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross
2 Comments
Labour axed Meals on Wheels service to save just £24,000
EXCLUSIVE By STEVEN DOWNES Croydon’s Labour-run council will save the grand total of £24,000 per year by cutting its Meals on Wheels service to hundreds of vulnerable and elderly residents, Inside Croydon has discovered. As reported exclusively by this website … Continue reading
Council’s planning chief attempts to gag Mayor candidate
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Heather Cheesbrough has lied about her qualifications and covered up for planning staff with too-close connections with private developers. Now she’s trying to block an election candidate calling for her to be sacked. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Andrew Pelling, Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Planning, Val Shawcross, Waddon
Tagged Andrew Hunkin, Andrew Pelling, Croydon, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Planning
23 Comments
Pat Ryan’s excess: veteran’s generous grants left unquestioned
The culture of secrecy and cover-ups in Croydon Labour meant that one councillor never did face any scrutiny over his misuse of thousands of pounds of public money to resurface a private road and to pay for equipment in a … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Nina Degrads, Pat Ryan, Stephen Mann, Steve Reed MP, Val Shawcross
Tagged Christine Spooner, Croydon, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Labour, Nina Degrads, Pat Ryan, Steve Reed OBE, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross
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Labour’s purge continues prompting more activists to leave
Even as the packed hall at hustings in Park Hill on Thursday night was being told by one of the Mayoral candidates in next month’s elections that Labour’s “main activity is expelling each other”, Inside Croydon was receiving news of … Continue reading
Posted in Croydon Central, David White, Paul Scott, Sarah Jones MP, Steve Reed MP, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross
Tagged Carole Bonner, Croydon, Croydon Central, Croydon Momentum, Jeff Conibear, Jeremy Corbyn, Keir Starmer, Labour, Marc Wadsworth, Momentum, Sarah Jones MP, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross
2 Comments
‘Any would be better for Croydon than the old strong leader’
With a month until election day, hustings for the borough’s first-ever Mayoral contest are coming thick and fast. KEN TOWL went along to last night’s event held in Park Hill, so that you didn’t have to… Val Shawcross really ought … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Andrew Pelling, Jason Perry, Ken Towl, Peter Underwood, Richard Howard, Val Shawcross
Tagged 2022 Mayoral election, Andrew Pelling, Boris Johnson, Conservative, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon Mayor, Croydon Mayoral election 2022, DEMOC, Democratically Elected Mayor of Croydon, Green Party, Jason Perry, Ken Towl, Labour, Liberal Democrats, London, Peter Underwood, Richard Howard, Tony Newman, Tory, Val Shawcross
16 Comments
Are you local? Tories seek distance from party-goer Boris
Conservatives in Croydon, hungry for power, are beginning to see the Prime Minister as an electoral liability. By political editor WALTER CRONXITE With election day in one month’s time, Croydon Conservatives, having been first to pick their Mayoral candidate and … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Bromley Council, Chris Philp MP, Croydon South, Ellie Reeves MP, Jason Perry, Lambeth Council, South Croydon, Sutton Council, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross
Tagged Akshata Murthy, Boris Johnson, Chris Philp MP, Conservative, Croydon, Jason Perry, Labour, Rishi Sunak, Tory, Val Shawcross
14 Comments
Croydon’s less-than-magnificent 8: Winston’s back for more
There’s quirkiness and eccentricity among some of the candidates to become the borough’s first executive Mayor, as well as some who perhaps are not quite what they claim to be. Editor STEVEN DOWNES on the confirmed candidates list for May … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Andrew Pelling, Jason Perry, Peter Underwood, Val Shawcross
Tagged 2022 Mayoral election, Andrew Pelling, Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon Mayor, Croydon Mayoral election 2022, Democratically Elected Mayor of Croydon, Farah London, Gavin Palmer, Jason Perry, Peter Underwood, Richard Howard, Val Shawcross, Winston McKenzie
5 Comments
Trust’s 12-month countdown to people’s takeover of park
Bromley Council wants to hand over control of the historic Crystal Palace Park to a people’s trust by April 2023. The park has been seen as a “problem” for Bromley ever since they were “gifted” the responsibility for it when … Continue reading
Tories accused of ‘pandering to prejudice’ over cycle lanes
The Conservatives’ Mayoral candidate is contradicting his own party leader over a roads improvement scheme in South Croydon Jason Perry, the Conservative candidate to become the first executive Mayor of Croydon, has launched a petition which warns against “traffic chaos” … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Boris Johnson, Cycling, Environment, Jason Perry, London-wide issues, Maria Gatland, Michael Neal, Parking, South Croydon, TfL, Transport, Val Shawcross
Tagged 2022 Mayoral election, Boris Johnson, Brighton Road, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Mayor, Croydon Mayoral election 2022, Democratically Elected Mayor for Croydon, Jason Perry, Maria Gatland, South Croydon, Tory
6 Comments
Organisers reach out as Wireless returns to Crystal Palace
A large section of Crystal Palace Park will be fenced off from the public for around three weeks this summer, as the Wireless Festival returns at the start of July. Wireless was staged in south London for the first time … Continue reading
Butler and Scott broke Code of Conduct over Fairfield meeting
CROYDON LABOUR IN CRISIS: Shawcross joins condemnation of senior Labour councillors after they are let off lightly for breaking ethics rules. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Right to the bitter end, Paul Scott and Alison Butler, the couple who were at … Continue reading
Posted in Alison Butler, Andrew Pelling, Bensham Manor, Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, John Jones, Paul Scott, Planning, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross, Woodside
Tagged 2022 Mayoral election, Alison Butler, Andrew Pelling, Brick by Brick, Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon Mayor, Democratically Elected Mayor of Croydon, Fairfield Halls, John Jones, Labour, Paul Scott, Tony Newman
6 Comments
Battle to win the narrative sees a fight for 17% ‘don’t knows’
With a little more than a month before the Town Hall elections, ANDREW FISHER, pictured left, sifts through the shifting opinion polls, nationally and across London, to see what we can learn about how people might vote in Croydon Croydon … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Andrew Fisher, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Jason Perry, London-wide issues, Sarah Jones MP, South Croydon, Val Shawcross
Tagged Andrew Fisher, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Jason Perry, Labour, Mike Fisher, Sarah Jones MP, Tory, Val Shawcross
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Pelling set to run as independent for Mayor, and in Waddon
EXCLUSIVE: After 40 years in Croydon politics, councillor decides to run as the ‘non-party’ candidate, offering to axe council rent increases, sack a distrusted council planning director and start a forensic investigation to recover the millions lost on the Fairfield … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Andrew Pelling, Community associations, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Hamida Ali, Heather Cheesbrough, Planning, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross, Waddon
Tagged Andrew Pelling, Conservative, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Labour, Liberal Democrats, London, London Assembly, London Borough of Croydon, Tony Newman, Tory, Val Shawcross
8 Comments
No apology from candidate for abusive and homophobic tweets
CROYDON LABOUR IN CRISIS: Slack diligence by the Local Campaign Forum missed vile racial slurs, sexist language and homophobic abuse on a wannabe councillor’s social media account. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES The committee that is supposed to be running Labour’s … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Elliott-Jay Munroop, Ramaraj Rajagopal, South Norwood, Steve Reed MP, Val Shawcross
Tagged Carole Bonner, Croydon, Elliott-Jay Munroop, Joel Bodmer, Labour, LCF, Local Campaign Forum, Nuala O'Neill, Ramaraj Rajagopal, South Norwood, Steve Reed OBE, Val Shawcross
2 Comments
Cash-strapped council bankrupt of ideas for borough’s parks
Our environment correspondent, PAUL LUSHION, on the council’s latest blatant attempt to off-load its public responsibilities The council has what it calls its “Parks and Green Spaces Renewal Strategy 2022-2025”, which they say outlines “plans to support the borough’s cherished … Continue reading
Posted in Community associations, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Duppas Hill Park, Environment, Friends of Addiscombe Railway Park, Friends of Ashburton Park, Friends of Crystal Palace Park, Friends of Farthing Downs, Friends of Grange Park, Friends of Grangewood Park, Friends of Haling Grove, Friends of Heavers Meadow, Friends of Lloyd Park, Muhammad Ali, Planning, Val Shawcross, Veolia, Waddon
Tagged Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, Parks Service, Val Shawcross, Waddon
6 Comments
Council leader Ali announces she won’t seek re-election in May
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Tony Newman’s protégé has changed her mind about standing as a councillor in the forthcoming Town Hall elections. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Hamida Ali, the leader of Croydon’s cash-strapped, Labour-controlled council since October 2020, is to stand … Continue reading
Posted in 2022 council elections, 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, Improvement Board, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Report in the Public Interest, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Section 114 notice, Steve Reed MP, Tony Newman, Val Shawcross, Woodside
Tagged Croydon, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Croydon North, Hamida Ali, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, Regina Road, South Norwood, Steve Reed OBE, Tony Newman
3 Comments
Tory budget amendment looks to reopen Purley Pool for £3m
CROYDON IN CRISIS: The disparity in provision of leisure facilities between the north and south of the borough has sent mayoral candidates trying to make a budget splash. By WALTER CRONXITE, Political Editor The Tory opposition group at the Town … Continue reading
Campaign disarray as Broad Green candidate is de-selected
CROYDON LABOUR IN CRISIS: Poor organisation, few proper checks and now a shortage of volunteers even to be paper candidates, with election day just weeks away. EXCLUSIVE By STEVEN DOWNES Croydon Labour’s local election campaign is in yet more disarray, … Continue reading
MP Reed’s letter to save park lodge ignored by Labour council
The campaign by the Friends of Grangewood Park to save a Victorian park keeper’s lodge from being sold by the cash-strapped council has attracted the support of the local MP. But even Steve Reed OBE doesn’t get replies to his … Continue reading
Posted in Callton Young, Community associations, Croydon Council, Croydon North, Croydon parks, Friends of Grangewood Park, Karen Jewitt, Pat Clouder, Property, Steve Reed MP, Thornton Heath, Val Shawcross
Tagged Callton Young, Croydon Council, Croydon North, Friends of Grangewood Park, Grangewood Park, Karen Jewitt, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, Steve Reed OBE, Thornton Heath, Upper Norwood
6 Comments
