Long dry summer has transformed the downs to straw-yellow

Posted on July 11, 2022 by insidecroydon

Hay fields: Roundshaw Downs, looking eastwards towards the Purley Way, one morning last week. With some grasses up to five feet high, the lush greenness of early summer has now all but gone

NATURE NOTES/JULY 2022: We seem to be racing through summer at speed, with Roundshaw Downs feeling the heat. By STEVEN DOWNES

We’d been walking for almost two hours. Dave Warburton, the Sutton biodiversity officer, had been enthusiastically regaling us with his account of the work his team and volunteers continue to do to enhance and encourage the ecosystems around Roundshaw Downs.

Most of our walk had been under the thick canopy of trees to the west of the downland, but now “Ranger Dave” led us around one last corner.

This was the “big reveal”. Continue reading →

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Socco Cheta community hub Open Day, South Norwood, Jul 16

Posted on July 11, 2022 by insidecroydon

Continue reading →

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All change for Elizabeth Line trains on faster track to Heathrow

Posted on July 10, 2022 by insidecroydon

New possibilities: the new Elizabeth Line offers possibilities for south Londoners, too

‘Going anywhere nice for your holidays?’ Gatwick has long been the obvious airport of choice for people from Croydon looking to jet away, but the completion of the £17.6bn CrossRail could finally provide a viable public transport route from south London to flights from Heathrow.
KEN TOWL put it to the test

A message arrives from Inside Croydon Towers: try out the new Elizabeth Line, see if it makes getting to Heathrow any easier, cheaper or more pleasant.

It proves to be two of these and, as the great Meatloaf was wont to claim, “Two out of three ain’t bad.”

It is certainly easy. Continue reading →

Posted in East Croydon, Ken Towl, TfL, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , | 18 Comments

Coulsdon ‘dismayed’ at Barclays plan to close last bank in town

Posted on July 9, 2022 by insidecroydon

Coulsdon residents are “dismayed” and “disappointed”, after Barclays announced its intention to close its branch on Brighton Road, the last remaining bank in the town.

With NatWest and Lloyds already long gone, it would leave business owners and residents in Coulsdon facing hour-long round trips to Croydon or Wallington to conduct any “physical” banking. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Community associations, Coulsdon, Coulsdon East, East Coulsdon Residents' Association | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

Tram crash driver could face Old Bailey trial early next year

Posted on July 9, 2022 by insidecroydon

Facing trial: Alfred Dorris

Alfred Dorris, the driver of the tram that crashed at Sandilands in November 2016, is to stand trial, possibly at the Old Bailey, early in 2023.

Dorris appeared at a preliminary hearing at Croydon Crown Court yesterday morning, where he pleaded not guilty to charges of breaking health and safety laws that led to the derailment.

Seven people died and 61 passengers were injured, 19 of those seriously, on the tram travelling from New Addington into Croydon early on the morning of November 9, 2016. Continue reading →

Posted in Commuting, Sandilands derailment, TfL, Tramlink, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Two days of tram strikes coming down the tracks next week

Posted on July 8, 2022 by insidecroydon

Drivers on the Croydon Tramlink network will be striking again next Wednesday and Thursday.

The strike on July 13-14 follows a previous two-day stoppage last month in a dispute over pay.

“There has still been no new offer from management to resolve the dispute,” said a statement issued this afternoon by the drivers’ union, ASLEF.

Last month, ASLEF claimed that management at Tram Operations Ltd, the subsidiary company of FirstGroup which operates the network on behalf of Transport for London, had attempted to intimidate drivers from not taking part in the industrial action.

ASLEF says that the strike action got the backing of 99per cent of their members who took part in a ballot earlier this summer. Continue reading →

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Finally, Coulsdon’s Tory councillor Creatura cuts before he runs

Posted on July 8, 2022 by insidecroydon

Boris Johnson fanboy and former Downing Street aide to Theresa May is trying to clean up his act ahead of parliamentary selections

Tory councillor Mario Creatura, for many years the “gobby factotum” to Gavin Barwell when he was a Conservative MP and later when they worked in Downing Street, looks like he’s preparing to quit Croydon altogether.

Erased: Mario Creatura was a big fan of adulterer, liar and crook Boris Johnson, Until yesterday

After more than two-and-a-half years, Boris Johnson fanboy  Creatura has finally removed from his Twitter account his “pinned” tweet that commemorated how, in December 2019 when the Tories were sweeping all before them as their party leader conned huge swathes of the country over Brexit, he was an abject failure as a parliamentary candidate, unable to win back Croydon Central for the Tories.

Creatura’s pinned tweet included an image of him smarming up to Johnson – something which even in the Conservative Party no longer carries the positive connotations that the Coulsdon Town councillor might have once imagined.

Continue reading →

Posted in Coulsdon, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Gavin Barwell, Mario Creatura, Sarah Jones MP | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Appeal to audit committee chair to demand missing reports

Posted on July 8, 2022 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: ‘Is this acceptable?’ Labour leader lists the 9 pieces of detailed financial reporting that were absent from this week’s cabinet papers. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES

Early alarm: Labour’s Stuart King

The Labour group at Croydon Town Hall has lodged a formal complaint about the reduced level of financial accountability and transparency since Tory Jason Perry took on the job as the borough’s Mayor.

Labour leader Stuart King has written to Dr Olu Olasode, the accountancy consultant who was last year appointed as the independent chair of Croydon Council’s GPAC – the General Purposes and Audit Committee.

Referring to this week’s council cabinet meeting, where part-time Perry failed to bring forward any of the monthly budget reports that have been presented at Town Hall public meetings for the past 18 months, King wrote, “I am concerned that this weakening of financial reporting is a step back, not forward, and will be detrimental to the council’s ability to continue to make improvements in the way it takes, reports and monitors financial decisions.”

Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Dr Ola Olasode, General Purposes and Audit Committee, Improvement Board, Jason Cummings, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stuart King | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

College’s new BTEC partnership aimed at esports fanatics

Posted on July 8, 2022 by insidecroydon

Global esports brand Fnatic has launched a college partner programme – with Croydon College being one of the first in the country to take up the opportunity.

Take your marks. Get set. Study!: Croydon College gets a BTEC in esports underway this autumn

The course is going live in September, where Fnatic will be providing real-world industry insight and expertise for students studying the Pearson Esports BTEC course.

Esports is the term used for organised, competitive video gaming. Esports often takes the form of multiplayer competitions, now often involving professional players, individually or as teams. Esports has quickly become a significant factor in the video game industry, with many game developers actively designing and providing funding for tournaments and other events. There’s even talk of including esports in the Olympics, possibly as soon as 2028, when the Games are being held in Los Angeles. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Croydon College, Education | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

MP Philp finally emerges to be skewered by Benny Hill theme

Posted on July 7, 2022 by insidecroydon

More on the final throes of Boris Johnson’s government from our political correspondent, WALTER CRONXITE

Like Michael Fabricant’s syrup, once seen, this can never be unseen.

Once heard, it certainly can never be unheard.

In fact, this has been playing on a loop in the office at Inside Croydon Towers since this lunchtime, when Croydon South’s MP, Chris Philp, after an unusually low-profile week, returned to our telly screens following nearly two days of internal agonising over whether he should cravenly hold out for a cabinet job, or should finally try to appear to do the decent thing. Continue reading →

Posted in Boris Johnson, Chris Philp MP, Croydon South | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Community Kitchen’s cooking up a storm in South Norwood

Posted on July 7, 2022 by insidecroydon

Something quite awe-inspiring is happening in South Norwood.

Open for business: South Norwood Community Kitchen has a vibrant new offer

After six years of what they describe as community activism through food, cooking up and delivering tens of thousands of meals to the elderly, the poor and anyone who wanted some decent food, the South Norwood Community Kitchen has finally moved into permanent premises, embarking on the next stage of their admirable project.

This week has represented something of a “soft launch”, using the kitchens and hall space of the refurbished Socco Cheta centre on Portland Road.

A lot of hard work over the last three years since they were in effect given the keys to the space has taken what was a run-down and uncared-for building and turned it into a shiny new and functioning community centre, backed by the Mayor of London and with organisations including the Croydon United Dominoes Club, Croydon BME Forum, Screen25 and the Association of Jamaicans UK all working together to “ensure that it meets the needs and priorities of all of the local community”. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Charity, Community associations, Restaurants, Socco Cheta Community Hub, South Norwood, South Norwood Community Kitchen | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Beddington’s ‘blue space’ could boost NHS mental health care

Posted on July 7, 2022 by insidecroydon

A conservation activist who spent more than a decade fighting for improved recognition and investment in the Beddington Farmlands nature reserve has greeted a report from the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust that “prescribes” nature for improved mental health as “a great initiative”.

The WWT says that creating wildlife-rich wetlands like ponds, streams, wetland parks and rain gardens in urban communities could help level up inequalities in wellbeing across the country. Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon parks, Environment, Friends of Wandle Park, Health, Sutton Council, Wandle Park, Waste incinerator, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , | 3 Comments

After a 38-hour pause for thought, Philp quits government

Posted on July 7, 2022 by insidecroydon

THE LONG GOODBYE: Political editor WALTER CRONXITE on a display of craven self-interest that managed to surpass all previous efforts by the Tory MP for Croydon South

The final knockings: ‘King of the World’ Boris Johnson is coming to the end of his reign

At long last, at 8.06 this morning, it happened.

Chris Philp joined the rats leaving Boris Johnson’s sinking ship.

More than 50 ministers and parliamentary aides had resigned before the Tory MP for Croydon South got around to breaking his six-day silence on social media.

In the past couple of days, Conservative MPs had been suddenly discovering their “principles” and something they called “integrity” – well, at least some of them did.

It had all started around 6pm on Tuesday, when Sajid Javid and then Rishi Sunak both announced that they were quitting their cabinet jobs. It took Philp another 38 hours to get round to it.

Indeed, Philp left his resignation as a government minister so late, he nearly managed to delay it until after Johnson himself got round to recognising his own position was entirely untenable. Continue reading →

Posted in Boris Johnson, Chris Philp MP, Croydon South, Paul Scully MP | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 15 Comments

Tory Mayor wants to keep finances under wraps for 9 months

Posted on July 6, 2022 by insidecroydon

Political editor WALTER CRONXITE on early signs of less accountability at the Town Hall under the Conservative administration

Business as usual: Part-time Perry has already reduced the frequency of financial reporting at the Town Hall

Jason Perry, Croydon’s part-time Mayor, will tonight be accused of “closing down the books” by reducing the frequency of reports on the cash-strapped council’s finances and providing fewer updates on how the council is progressing against its latest budget.

Mayor Perry is expected at a Town Hall meeting tonight, where he will be presented with a report from a member of his emasculated cabinet entitled “Opening Up The Books”. According to the propaganda unit at Fisher’s Folly, this will be an “exercise to improve its understanding of current financial risks and continues to work towards a sustainable financial future”.

Perry calls this “a deep dive into the council’s finances”.

But opposition councillors suggest that what Perry and his cabinet member for finance, Jason Cummings, are really planning to do is to keep the day-to-day detail of the council’s finances under wraps for as long as possible, as they prepare for another swingeing round of cuts to Town Hall spending, increases in charges and axing more jobs, as they contend with the difficulties created by the nation’s failing economy.

Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Jason Cummings, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stuart King, Tony McArdle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Mayor issues pledge to save ‘brutalist’ South Norwood Library

Posted on July 6, 2022 by insidecroydon

GENE BRODIE, libraries correspondent, on a council announcing that it has closed a stable door after its occupant has cantered off into the distance

Cultured: the mosaic at South Norwood Library

Jason Perry, Croydon’s £81,000 per year part-time Mayor, has declared that the 1960s-built South Norwood Library will continue in service for the foreseeable future, and he has promised to not close any of the borough’s 13 public libraries.

Plans for the “brutalist” building, on Lawrence Road, have been in flux for at least four years, as Croydon Council’s previous Labour administration commissioned Brick by Brick to build a new library just up the road, close to Norwood Junction Station.

But that plan collapsed with the council’s finances and the failed housing company.

As Inside Croydon reported exclusively, the space in “Pimp House” intended for use as a library, never fitted out by Brick by Brick, has now been offered for commercial rent. It means that South Norwood’s library provision won’t be moving out of its current building any time soon. Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Croydon Council, Libraries, Mayor Jason Perry, Property, South Norwood | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Croydon MP Philp in stunned silence as government collapses

Posted on July 6, 2022 by insidecroydon

Political editor WALTER CRONXITE on the deeply divided Conservative Party – in Croydon

Missing in action: Croydon South MP and Johnson fan-boy Chris Philp has not tweeted since July 1

There has been what can only be assumed to be stunned silence overnight from Croydon’s sole Conservative MP, Chris Philp, as all around him other ministers in the sordid and law-breaking government of Boris Johnson have been resigning.

But one of Philp’s sometime colleagues, ex-MP Gavin Barwell, has been busy sharing his opinions, saying that “there is zero chance” of the Conservative Party uniting behind Johnson. Continue reading →

Posted in Boris Johnson, Chris Philp MP, Croydon Central, Croydon South, Gavin Barwell | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 11 Comments

Discover the wonders of the Wandle in London Rivers Week

Posted on July 6, 2022 by insidecroydon

Wandle wander: there’s a chance to help clean up the river and discover more about its ecology and history

There’s a chance to learn more about one of the Thames’s important tributaries, the river that did much to shape Croydon, Carshalton and Merton, in a series of free events being staged on Wandle Discovery Day, being held on Saturday July 16.

Activities will include viewing fish via underwater cameras, Wandle history tours and wading in the river to clear away rubbish.

The programme of events, running from 10am to 3pm, has been organised by the South East Rivers Trust, as part of its 20th anniversary celebrations on the river where its work began. Continue reading →

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Part-time Mayor Perry is only ‘listening’ four hours a day

Posted on July 5, 2022 by insidecroydon

EXCLUSIVE: Town Hall officials answer phone calls from the public for just half a working day. By WALTER CRONXITE, political editor

‘Listening’: Jason Perry’s office answers the phone only between 10am and noon and 2pm and 4pm

Croydon’s part-time Mayor, having refused to delegate responsibilities even to his closest political colleagues, has had no such problem off-loading his work to council officials – the very people that Jason Perry is supposed to be keeping a check on.

And the Conservative Mayor risks breaking one of his manifesto promises – with the phones in his Town Hall office only staffed for four hours each day.

One of Perry’s first acts, when he was handed the keys to the Town Hall after his narrow election victory in May, was to hand the keyboard of his mayoral email account to a middle-ranking council staffer, the £81,000 per year Mayor leaving them to deal with his daily correspondence. Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

Wandle Park offers ‘immersive’ theatre at the bandstand

Posted on July 5, 2022 by insidecroydon

Bandstand grandstanding: Chris Ranaldi is Mr Darcy and Megan Claridge is Elizabeth Bennet in CODA’s Pride and Prejudice. Pic: Michael Hall.

Pride and Prejudice, Jane Austen’s beloved classic of wit and romance, the tale of Lizzie Bennet and Mr Darcy, is coming to a bandstand near you this summer, as CODA – the Croydon Operatic and Dramatic Association – once again perform outdoors in Wandle Park.

The sparkling new production, adapted for the stage by Jon Jory, marks the return of CODA’s summer production after two years out due to covid, and offers the ideal treat for a summer evening – with seating provided and refreshments available, and even the chance for the audience to indulge in a bit of “immersive theatre” with some Regency-period dressing up.

CODA is also offering a “pay what you can” performance, too, recognising the financially tough times many people are having at the moment. Continue reading →

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Archbishop attends ‘uplifting’ consecration service for Croydon

Posted on July 5, 2022 by insidecroydon

Religious experience: Dr Rosemarie Mallett, the Bishop of Croydon, at her consecration service alongside the Archbishop of Canterbury. Pic: Eve Milner

The new Bishop of Croydon, the Rt Rev Dr Rosemarie Mallett, has been consecrated in what she described as a “spiritually uplifting and joy-filled” service at Southwark Cathedral. Among those officiating at the service was the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Most Rev Justin Welby.

Bishop Mallett is the Diocese of Southwark’s first woman bishop and third black bishop – the first being her fellow Barbadian, the Rt Rev Wilfred Wood, now retired, while the second, the Rt Rev Dr Woyin Karowei Dorgu, currently serving as Bishop of Woolwich. Continue reading →

Posted in Bishop of Croydon, Church and religions, Rosemarie Mallett | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

East Croydon locals call on council to reinstall safe crossing

Posted on July 5, 2022 by insidecroydon

Life-saver: residents want the safety of a pedestrian crossing reinstalled on Cherry Orchard Road

If ever our loyal reader needed a reminder of how crassly incompetent the council’s planning department can be, then take a look at the busy junction of Billinton Hill and Cherry Orchard Road, which hundreds, if not thousands, of commuters need to cross each day on their way to or from East Croydon Station.

There used to be a pedestrian crossing there, but it was removed as part of the building works on the Morello development alongside the station. Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Business, Commuting, Croydon Council, East Croydon, Menta Tower, Planning, Property, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Chari-tree: re-green your neighbourhood with planting scheme

Posted on July 4, 2022 by insidecroydon

That’s what friends are for: the Friends of Addiscombe Railway Park are among those who have embraced the tree-planting project in Croydon

A charity sponsorship scheme launched last year, and publicised here on Inside Croydon, has directly led to 10 sponsorship requests, as more than 100 new trees have been planted around the borough in the past 10 months as a result of the initiative.

Croydon’s residents have leapt at the chance help re-green their local streets. They’ve thrown their support behind a national charity street tree sponsorship scheme – Trees for Streets. And Croydon has set its sights on growing these numbers this coming year. Continue reading →

Posted in Charity, Community associations, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Environment, Friends of Addiscombe Railway Park, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Tall tales of thriving trees coming to the streets of Croydon

Posted on July 4, 2022 by insidecroydon

Tree huggers: more Croydon residents, like James and his mum, Sue, are taking care of their street environment and sponsoring trees

In the past year, dozens of Croydon residents have come forward to sponsor, or water, a street tree as part of a new charity’s project. Here’s just two of their stories

James and his mum, Sue, love trees, and they want to see more of them on Croydon’s streets.

Late last year they took their first step to help green one of the town’s streets by applying to sponsor a new tree as part the national charity initiative that Croydon Council is taking part in – Trees for Streets. Continue reading →

Posted in Charity, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Environment, Friends of Addiscombe Railway Park | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Go extra mile across London’s bridges to help Diabetes UK

Posted on July 4, 2022 by insidecroydon

Diabetes UK is asking people to go the extra mile on Sunday, September 25 and sign up for the London Bridges Challenge, a sponsored walk through the heart of the capital.

The 10-mile walk starts in Battersea Park and walkers then criss-cross 12 of London’sbridges as they notch up the miles. Passing Big Ben and the London Eye, walkers will see the sights of central London before finishing close to Tower Bridge. Continue reading →

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Bees attack! Swarm puts sting in the tail of Purley Way party

Posted on July 4, 2022 by insidecroydon

The “world’s biggest party” finished with a sting for many at MattsBBQ on Saturday night, when a swarm of bees descended on Purley Way playing fields.

‘It was like a horror movie’: although not a very good one…

The bees “attack” was video’d by some of the thousands of party-goers, showing terrified customers making a dash for the car park or the safety of the coaches which had brought them from across London for the 11-hour-long music festival.

“Attack was like a whole horror film,” tweeted Tammy Webb, for whom Michael Caine in The Swarm had just become a little bit too real.

“I actually still cannot believe it.”

Some of the party-goers suggested that the bee swarm had been arranged by local residents angry at the noise, disruption and traffic chaos caused by this “Mini Glastonbury” descending on this corner of Croydon for the day. Which, of course, was nonsense.

Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon Council, Music, Parking, Purley Way, Waddon | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments