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Category Archives: Timothy Godfrey
Fairfield’s Vennell: The phasing argument is ‘no longer useful’
Kate Vennell, the chair of the charity board which runs the Fairfield Halls, has today dismissed any further calls for a phased redevelopment of Croydon’s arts venue, which is due to close in July to allow a £30 million council-funded … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Fairfield Halls, Kate Vennell, Timothy Godfrey
Tagged Conservative, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Kate Vennell, Labour, Timothy Godfrey, Tory
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Lambeth confirms Upper Norwood Library closure in April
Bookish gyms correspondent GENE BRODIE reports on an announcement which has been described as “a betrayal” of Labour voters Whoever is in the Brains Trust running the Labour Party in south London really needs to authorise some modest expenditure on … Continue reading
Posted in 2016 London elections, 2018 council elections, Croydon Council, Lambeth Council, Libraries, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman, Upper Norwood Library Trust
Tagged Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Labour, Steve Reed OBE, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman, Upper Norwood Joint Library, Upper Norwood Library, Upper Norwood Library Trust
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Croydon looks for volunteer-run libraries and ‘bookish gyms’
GENE BRODIE on the announcement of a council consultation which puts the future of the borough’s libraries in doubt yet again A fortnight ago, Inside Croydon reported the startling news that some of Croydon’s Labour councillors are prepared to abandon … Continue reading
Posted in 2016 London elections, Carillion, Croydon Council, Education, Greenwich Leisure, Libraries, Norbury, Sanderstead, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman, Upper Norwood Library Trust
Tagged Conservative, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Labour, Libraries, Purley, Sanderstead, Selsdon, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman, Tory
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Job losses and volunteer libraries leaves us feeling let down
CROYDON COMMENTARY: Public library provision is a statutory requirement for local authorities such as Croydon. But they also represent a soft target when councils want to make cuts. ROBERT GIBSON says that the funding announcement for Crystal Palace’s library is … Continue reading
Posted in Alisa Flemming, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Greenwich Leisure, John Wentworth, Lambeth Council, Libraries, Pat Ryan, Steve Reed MP, Timothy Godfrey, Upper Norwood Library Trust
Tagged Conservative, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Labour, Robert Gibson, Save Upper Norwood Library Campaign, Steve Reed OBE, Timothy Godfrey, Tory, Upper Norwood Library Trust
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Council accused of ‘shoddy’ deal on Crystal Palace library
Our libraries and bookish gyms correspondent, GENE BRODIE, reports that there’s a sense of “glass half-empty” over Croydon’s grant for Upper Norwood Library A row has broken out between trustees and library campaigners over Croydon Council’s £85,000 per year, two-year … Continue reading
Done deal: Fairfield Halls £30m redevelopment starts in July
The Fairfield Halls will close this summer to undergo a £30 million redevelopment, after the venue’s managment board finally agreed to the investment scheme proposed by the Halls’ owners, Croydon Council. The council’s plans – based on a secret consultants’ … Continue reading
Newman and Labour cabinet contemplate library closures
GENE BRODIE, our education, libraries and bookish gyms correspondent, reports on private meetings held by the council leadership to consider breaking an election pledge to Croydon’s voters Croydon’s ruling Labour group is split over whether to break its manifesto commitment … Continue reading
Posted in Carillion, Croydon Council, Education, Greenwich Leisure, Hamida Ali, Libraries, Norbury, Paul Scott, Sanderstead, Sean Fitzsimons, Thornton Heath, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman, Woodside
Tagged Hamida Ali, Labour, Libraries, Norbury, Paul Scott, Sanderstead, Thornton Heath, Tony Newman
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Council freewheels into new row over Norbury BMX track
The council is staging what it calls a “community day” in Norbury Park this Saturday, where many hope that Tony Newman, the council leader, will get to demonstrate his relatively new-found enthusiasm for bicycling. Or, more accurately, what they call … Continue reading
Posted in Cycling, Cycling, Norbury, Sport, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman, Transport
Tagged Croydon Council, Labour, Norbury, Norbury Park, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman
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Local libraries under threat of closure as cuts bite deep
GENE BRODIE has seen confidential council documents which show that the borough’s most expensive-to-run libraries, in Sanderstead and Norbury, are vulnerable to cost-cutting closure Croydon Council has just cottoned on that this Saturday is National Libraries Day. The council’s press … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Carillion, Coulsdon, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Education, Libraries, Norbury, Sanderstead, Selsdon & Ballards, South Norwood, Thornton Heath, Timothy Godfrey
Tagged Bradmore Green, Conservative, Coulsdon, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Labour, Norbury, Old Coulsdon, Sanderstead, Sara Bashford, Selhurst, Selsdon, South Norwood, Thornton Heath, Timothy Godfrey, Tory
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Fairfield Halls staff still left waiting for talks with management
Plans to redevelop the Fairfield Halls are expected to be submitted formally for approval later this week, Inside Croydon understands. But with the borough’s biggest arts venue set to close this summer for a two-year, £30-million refit, the Fairfield Halls … Continue reading
Runners and ‘cyclers’ get set for Sport Relief charity miles
Croydon Council, which has a fairly feeble record when it has come to embracing national sporting and cultural events, is doing the right thing by Sport Relief in March. A press release issued last week calls on local “runners, joggers, … Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Athletics, Charity, Croydon Harriers, South Norwood, Sport, Timothy Godfrey
Tagged Croydon Arena, Croydon Harriers, South Norwood, Sport Relief
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Having a ‘mare: Newman could use chance for a reshuffle
Punch and Judy’s back on at the Town Hall tomorrow night, with the latest full meeting of the council. Nothing of note is likely to be decided. Little of real interest will be announced. That’s transparent and accountable democracy in … Continue reading
Posted in Alisa Flemming, Alison Butler, Bernadette Khan, Croydon Council, Hamida Ali, John Wentworth, Louisa Woodley, Manju Shahul Hameed, Mike Selva, New Addington South, Patricia Hay-Justice, Simon Hall, Stuart Collins, Tim Pollard, Timothy Godfrey, Toni Letts, Tony Newman, Wayne Lawlor, West Thornton
Tagged Conservative, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Louisa Woodley, Mayor, New Addington, Tony Newman, Tory, West Thornton
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Fairfield management ‘reckless’ over sale of O’Donnell tickets
The breakdown in the relationship between Croydon Council and the management of the Fairfield Halls appears almost complete, after the scheduling of a sell-out concert by Irish singer Daniel O’Donnell for a date almost three months after the concert hall … Continue reading
Posted in Art, Fairfield Halls, Music, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman
Tagged Croydon, Daniel O'Donnell, Fairfield Halls, Labour, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman
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Fairfield Halls’ vested interests fail to offer extra £4.8m
A website and petition set up to “Save Our Fairfield” are being run by people with vested commercial interests in seeing millions of pounds of public money used to keep the arts centre open during its refurbishment. The petition and … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Art, Ashcroft Theatre, Boxpark, Fairfield Halls, Property, Theatre, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman
Tagged Fairfield Halls, Labour, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman
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Lambeth approves ‘omni-shambles’ libraries closure plan
How democracy works in south London, Part 94… STEP 1: Lambeth’s “co-operative” council issues a consultation, cleverly entitled Vision 2020 (geddit?), outlining how the Labour-run Town Halls wants to implement the government’s austerity agenda by making deep cuts to its … Continue reading
Get your hard hat on: central Croydon is about to be closed
Central Croydon looks like it is going to be a ghost town for a couple of years, as its two flagship attractions, the Whitgift Centre and Fairfield Halls, are both closed for redevelopment at the same time. The temporary closure … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Art, Ashcroft Theatre, Business, Croydon Central, Croydon College, Croydon Council, Environment, Fairfield, Fairfield Halls, Jo Negrini, Planning, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Croydon Central, Croydon Council, East Croydon station, Fairfield Halls, Hammersfield, Hammerson, Jo Negrini, Labour, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
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Volunteers get together to help maintain Croydon’s park life
Our environmental affairs correspondent, CHRIS PECKHAM, reports on a new group established to safeguard our green spaces Last week saw the latest meeting of the fledgling Croydon Parks, Woodlands and Greenspaces Forum: a group that brings together all of the … Continue reading
Posted in Charity, Community associations, Coulsdon, Croydon Council, Croydon Federation of Allotment and Garden Societies, Environment, Friends of Addiscombe Railway Park, Friends of Ashburton Park, Friends of Croham Hurst Woods, Friends of Farthing Downs, Friends of Grange Park, Friends of Haling Grove, Friends of Marlpit Lane Bowling Green, Friends of Millers Ponds, Friends of Selsdon Woods, Friends of Wandle Park, Friends of West Norwood Cemetery, Gardening, Health, Kenley Airfield Friends Group, Lakes Playground Action Group, Lloyd Park, London-wide issues, Timothy Godfrey, Wandle Park, Wildlife
Tagged Coulsdon, Croydon, Croydon Council, Environment, Parks
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MP Reed’s endorsement of ‘lunatic’ column causes anger
Steve Reed OBE, MP for Lambeth South (the parliamentary seat formerly known as Croydon North) has caused outrage among Labour supporters in the borough after his overly enthusiastic support of Liz Kendall in his party’s leadership contest has seen him … Continue reading
Posted in Croydon North, Steve Reed MP, Timothy Godfrey, Tony Newman
Tagged Conservative, Croydon North, Jeremy Corbyn, Labour, Steve Reed OBE, Timothy Godfrey, Tory
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Town Hall withdraws all councillors from Fairfield Halls board
Wonders will never cease. For the first time in its 50-plus-year history, the Fairfield Halls management board has no members imposed upon it by Croydon Council. The decision was announced by the Labour-run council last week, in among its various … Continue reading
UKIP call for Selhurst by-election may cost tax-payer £20,000
The disrespectful and impatient move by three UKIP members to demand a Town Hall by-election in Selhurst ward could cost the Council Tax-payers of Croydon up to £20,000. As exclusively revealed earlier this week by Inside Croydon, UKIP members Emmanuel … Continue reading
UKIP condemned for election call ahead of councillor’s funeral
UKIP’s out-of-control members in Croydon, who are usually fronted by the notoriously incompetent Winston McKenzie, have struck again, causing widespread disgust by impatiently demanding a by-election in Selhurst ward following the death of widely admired Labour Councillor Gerry Ryan. Ryan’s … Continue reading
Council set to bring pools, parks and library service in-house
Croydon school pupils denied desks to study in the borough’s public libraries, free swimming sessions going under-publicised, and our parks being locked up because of a lack of contractor staff could all be things of the past if outsourced services … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Carillion, Community associations, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Environment, Fusion, John Laing Integrated Services, Leisure services, Libraries, Refuse collection, Timothy Godfrey, Wandle Park, Waste incinerator
Tagged Carillion, Conservative, Croydon, Fusion, incinerator, Labour, Libraries, Quadron, Sara Bashford, Tim Pollard, Timoth Godfrey, Tory, Viridor
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