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St Patrick’s Night folk and blues party, Ruskin House, Mar 17
Posted in Croydon Folk Club, Music, Ruskin House
Tagged Ruskin House, Ruskin House Blues and Folk Club
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Striders show the way with three routes round our parks
Colour-coded running and walking routes show the way around some of Croydon’s splendid parks
Last year, Striders of Croydon, the local running club, applied successfully for a grant from Croydon Council for a scheme which, in the council’s opinion, would improve and highlight Croydon’s parks and open spaces.
Included in this application was the plan to set out and mark three routes by the use of wayfinder posts with the following objectives:
- Increase fitness and well-being through running or walking by providing marked routes through Croydon’s parks and open spaces
- Increase awareness of Croydon’s parks and open spaces
- Show the “green” face of Croydon
- Provide permanent cross-country course for local athletics clubs
Each route would be of a different distance and marked on the posts by a different coloured directional arrow. Continue reading
Croydon uses four agencies to help on trip to South of France
Croydon will be plying beer to international property speculators in Cannes next week. Again
KEN LEE, our foreign travel on someone else’s budget correspondent, reports on the proliferation of consultants who are getting their expense accounts paid for out of Croydon Council Tax at MIPIM’s junket next week
Senior officials from Croydon Council and their wholly owned house-building company Brick by Brick will be heading off to the South of France next week for the “booze and hookerfest” that is MIPIM, where they will be accompanied not by one firm of consultants… not by two sets of sharp suits… but with executives in tow from at least three agencies.
In fact, if you include the role played at the event by Develop Croydon, the business lobby group (membership fee: a cool £1,250 per year) which exerts undue, undemocratic influence over the running of the council, then you could say that there will be four agencies working with the council at the event in Cannes.
In effect, Croydon Council is using Council Tax-payers’ cash to help fund the expense accounts of an unspecified number of PR flunkies to spend two or three days at MIPIM, the world’s largest property speculator conference.
MIPIM is what Croydon Labour’s council leader Tony Newman once described as a “junket”. But that was in his time as opposition leader, so those sort of scruples don’t appear to apply to Big Tone any longer.
Posted in Brick by Brick, Business, Colm Lacey, Croydon Council, Housing, Jo Negrini, Planning, Property, RIF, Tony Newman
Tagged 31Ten, 3Fox International, Croydon, Croydon Council, Develop Croydon, Jo Negrini, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, MIPIM, Richard Simpson, Tony Newman, White Label
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Trinity Boys’ Choir plays starring part in West End opera
The Trinity Boys’ Choir has been receiving rave reviews again, this time on stage with the English National Opera. BELLA BARTOCK, our arts correspondent, used her freedom pass to go ‘up West’
Trinity Boys’ Choir play a key part in the ENO’s Midsummer Night’s Dream. Photo: Robert Workman
It is a sign of Trinity School’s decades-long excellence in choral music that it can provide all the 20 members for what is a demanding start-to-finish chorus role in Benjamin Britten’s Midsummer Night’s Dream currently being performed in the West End’s largest auditorium, The Coliseum.
With such a large place to fill, the boys seemed peculiarly underpowered. Perhaps that was the director’s guidance for them in their role as a Chorus of Fairies. The discipline of co-ordinated moves across the stage, with an ambitious set that required the chorus’ key involvement in stage management as well as in artistic effect, was there most of the time.
Certainly when it came to timbre the boys were part of an exquisite performance with Soraya Mafi as Tytania and Christopher Ainslie as Oberon in the third act.
‘Bogus Ben’ and freesheet’s lead story prompt complaints
Sutton reporter BELLE MONT on how a LibDem election candidate has been caught out trying to take credit for a community campaign
Last week’s Sutton Grauniad lead news story, now subject of a formal complaint to IPSO
Sutton’s polluting, thieving and cage-fighting LibDem councillors and ex-councillors, despite having been caught out trying to use tax-payers’ money for campaigning on the rates ahead of May’s local elections, have now been accused of hijacking a community campaign – and all with the willing help of the local freesheet.
The reproduction, almost word-for-word, of LibDem MP Tom Brake’s press release, passed-off as a lead news story in last week’s edition, has led to a formal complaint to the independent press standards organisation over the conduct of the Sutton Guardian.
Last week’s news-lite Sutton Grauniad featured a front-page all about the bogus “Sutton’s Future Campaign”. Dressed up to look like an objective piece of journalism, this was in fact an advertisement, paid-for out of public money by Sutton Council.
Trade estimates suggest this will have cost the Council Tax-payers of Sutton at least £2,000. And it will have saved Sutton LibDems an equivalent amount in campaign funds. Continue reading
Croydon choir’s Palace performance will live in the memory
Croydon’s Singing for the Brain choir performing at Buck House last month
A Croydon-based choir made up of people affected by dementia, has performed at Buckingham Palace.
Croydon’s “Singing for the Brain” group started in 2012 and is run by the Alzheimer’s Society.
The group enjoyed a “once in a lifetime opportunity” to perform for Her Royal Highness Princess Alexandra – an Alzheimer’s Society Patron – at a Buckingham Palace event last month celebrating the power of music and its ability to enrich the lives of people affected by dementia. Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Charity, Music
Tagged Alzheimer's Society, Singing for the Brain
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Fairfield Halls scheme unravelling under untried Brick by Brick
CROYDON COMMENTARY: There’s numerous fundamental and obvious flaws in the thinking and execution of the council’s private housing company, Brick by Brick, according to MICHAEL HOPKINS
Running late: Fairfield Halls’ redevelopment is in the hands of untried and unproven Brick by Brick
You are whistling in the wind if you think Brick by Brick is going to single-handedly resolve Croydon’s housing shortage.
Of more concern is the naivety of Croydon Council, and their belief that they can pull together a mini-architects department in a couple of months, employ a bunch of junior architects, make a couple of council employees “directors” and then seek funding and play the development game. Starting with the prerequisite jolly to the South of France.
Brick by Brick has no track record, Brick by Brick has built nothing, Brick by Brick has never won a design award, Brick by Brick has never won a project competitively.
QuizFest 2018 for Citizens Advice, Sandilands, Apr 27
QuizFest 2018
Fund-raising night in aid of Croydon Citizens Advice
Sandilands Sports Club, Friday April 27
(between Park Hill and Addiscombe, at the top of Sandilands/Grimwade Avenue).
Car park on site or buses 119,194,198 or tram to Sandilands and a short walk. Continue reading
Posted in Activities, Addiscombe West, Charity
Tagged Citizens Advice Croydon, Sandilands
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Volunteers mourn John Taylor, co-founder of two charities
Volunteers across Croydon are mourning John Taylor, one of the founders of two homelessness organisations in the borough, who has died, aged 75.
John Taylor
In 1976, Taylor helped to found Croydon Nightwatch, which offers nightly food and help to the homeless. He served as its second chairman, from 1978 to 1992, and built up the organisation to own three premises where former homeless people could live before moving on to more permanent accommodation, and one for long-term living.
Nightwatch now concentrates on street-level work and is the largest volunteer organisation in the borough. Continue reading
Posted in CAYSH, Charity, Croydon Nightwatch
Tagged CAYSH, Croydon Nightwatch, Jad Adams
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17 residents groups unite against Brick by Brick schemes
No content with taking on the Tories at the local elections on May 3, Croydon Labour leader Tony Newman is now confronted by the mass anger of 17 residents’ association and groups, from all parts of the borough.
Labour’s Tony Newman: facing united opposition from 17 residents’ groups
Residents’ associations are, usually by virtue of their constitutions, supposed to be apolitical.
But what has unified the residents groups on this occasion is their opposition to housing schemes being imposed on their neighbourhoods by the council’s house-builders, Brick by Brick.
“Residents groups in Croydon have not united in action for many years,” a Town Hall source explained.
“That they have done so now, just before the local elections, over such an emotive issue is bad news for Tony Newman and the Labour council. These groups represent thousands of residents, many of them well-motivated.
“They’ll be doing the Tories’ campaigning for them.” Continue reading
New Fairfield Halls chief finds time to chair business group
Croydon BID, the town centre business group, has appointed Neil Chandler, recently hired as the venue director of the Fairfield Halls, as its new chairman.
Neil Chandler: Fairfield manager now chairing the BID
That could be bad news for the Fairfield Halls, which was supposed to re-open after a £30million refurbishment this July. Latest estimates are that the Halls will not be ready to re-open until early in 2019.
The building works are being coordinated by Brick by Brick, the council’s wholly owned housing developer.
“You’d think that now might be a super-busy period for Neil, overseeing the completion of the works and the fitting out of the Halls, while also juggling the demands of delivering a knock-out series of attractions for when the Halls re-opens,” a Town Hall source said this morning.
“Being chairman of Croydon BID isn’t a huge task, but the fact that Neil feels able to take that on at this time suggests perhaps he’s got some time on his hands. Does that mean we can expect further delays to the re-opening date?” Continue reading
Posted in Business, Croydon BID, Fairfield Halls, Neil Chandler
Tagged Croydon BID, Fairfield Halls, Neil Chandler
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Tram network in 10-day shutdown for rail works over Easter
Tram passengers are to encounter considerable disruption to their journeys for 10 days, beginning with Easter weekend, as Transport for London undertakes track replacement works.
Tough luck if you wanted to make use of the tram network during the Easter holidays
The tracks are to be replaced between George Street and Church Street from Good Friday, March 30, until Wednesday April 4, and from the junction of Cherry Orchard Road to Addiscombe Road from March 30 until Sunday April 8.
According to TfL’s official announcement, during the works no tram services will operate as follows:
- Reeves Corner to Sandilands Friday March 30 until Wednesday April 4
- East Croydon to Sandilands Friday March 30 until Sunday April 8
Posted in East Croydon, TfL, Tramlink, Transport, West Croydon
Tagged East Croydon station, TfL, Transport for London
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Primary school and Rotarians give the finger to polio
Children at Broadmead School take part in Purple Pinkie day
Members of one of Croydon’s longest established charity groups have teamed up with children at a local primary school to raise money and awareness to help eradicate polio.
Croydon Rotary Club was celebrating the founding of the movement in 1905 by staging a “Purple Pinkie for Polio Day” on February 23, and made a return visit to Broadmead Primary. Continue reading
Posted in Charity, Croydon Rotary Club, Schools
Tagged Broadmead Primary School, Croydon Rotary Club
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Take to the air this Saturday with the history of women in war
The Kenley Revival project is coming into Croydon town centre this Saturday in the latest event to celebrate the role of women at the historic airfield and during World War II.
Amy Johnson and Jason: children can learn all about her solo flight to Australia at free workshops this Saturday
“To celebrate our Women in War season we are hosting an event in Croydon where you can learn all about the significant role women in Kenley had to play in the Home Front along with the ingenuity of the ‘keep calm and carry on’ and ‘make do and mend’ mentality,” they say.
The free event, “Kenley’s Home Front – Life during the War and today”, takes place from 11am to 3pm at TURF Projects arts space on the ground floor of the Whitgift Centre. Continue reading
MP Jones renews call for action after South Norwood murder
Sarah Jones, the MP for Croydon Central, renewed her calls for more police on our streets after the latest shocking murder in the borough, when a 20-year-old man was stabbed and killed in broad daylight yesterday, outside the Albert Tavern on Albert Road, South Norwood.
Members of the victim’s family are reported to have been at the scene, but the police have not yet named him publicly, and an investigation is on-going. Detective Inspector Tom Dahri, who is heading the murder investigation, said: “A young man has been murdered and we are doing everything we can to catch those involved.
“This sustained attack happened at rush hour when a lot of people would have been walking or driving home through the area.”
The shocking event is just the latest in a tragically rising toll of knife crime in the city. The killings of four young men in separate incidents in London on New Year’s Eve brought the total number of deaths from knife crime in the capital in 2017 to 80. Continue reading
Posted in Crime, Croydon Central, Knife crime, London-wide issues, Policing, Sarah Jones MP
Tagged Member of parliament, Sarah Jones MP, South Norwood
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Barwell accused of trying to ‘kneecap’ Boris over Brexit
Political editor WALTER CRONXITE reports on claims that the Prime Minister is getting gaffe-prone Gav to do her dirty work for her
For the second time in a few months, fingers within Conservative High Command are pointing at Gavin Barwell as the likely source of a Downing Street leak intended to damage the reputation of a cabinet minister.
It wasn’t so long ago that Gavin Barwell was relying on Boris Johnson to launch his election campaign
This time, Barwell, who got the job as the Prime Minister’s chief of staff after losing his Croydon Central parliamentary seat last June, is accused of trying to “kneecap” Boris Johnson, the Foreign Secretary, over his plans for the land border between the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland after Brexit.
To be fair, no one else really needs to make Johnson look like a complete cock, when this Bullingdon Club buffoon is very capable of doing that job himself, as he did last week when he compared the Northern Ireland border to the borough boundary between Camden and Islington.
Posted in Boris Johnson, Croydon Central, Gavin Barwell
Tagged Barwell, Boris Johnson, Brexit, Croydon Central, Gavin Barwell
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Scrutiny chief wants your ideas to improve the tram network
The chair of the council’s scrutiny committee wants members of the public to come forward with ideas and suggestions about how to improve the tram network.
What improvements to the trams would you like to see?
The council streets and environment scrutiny committee will meet at the Town Hall on March 20, when it will examine Transport for London’s management of the trams. The first part of the meeting will look at the 2016 Sandilands tram crash and the lessons learned, while the second part of meeting will be about how the trams network can be improved.
Sean Fitzsimons, the councillor who chairs scrutiny, said, “Next year will be the 25th anniversary of the Croydon Tramlink Act, which basically set out the network we have today.
“No major extensions have been funded in that time, but in the rest of London, the Docklands Light Railway has been extended many times, London Overground was conceived and grown, but Tramlink remains virtually the same. Continue reading
Government reaches for the sky – and puts Philp in a corner
Our housing correspondent, BARRATT HOLMES, on an awkward situation for the Nimbys of Purley
The building of a residential tower in Purley has been delayed by objections led by the local Tory MP
Tory MP Chris Philp’s loud and frequent complaints about what he continues to call “the Purley Skyscraper” (which is not tall enough to be a skyscraper) could be about to be silenced – by his own government.
Prime Minister Theresa May delivered a speech today in which she announced a shake-up of the National Planning Policy Framework and introduce measures to encourage a faster pace of building.
This includes a relaxation of regulations governing the height of buildings.
“It will be quite surprising how easy we want to make it for people who want to build upwards,” Sajid Javid, the housing secretary, said in an interview yesterday.
Posted in Chris Philp MP, Croydon South, Housing, Planning, Property, Purley
Tagged Chris Philp MP, Conservative, Croydon South, Purley, Tory
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Injury-hit Palace will need someone to halt Alexis goal threat
Ten matches to go, and Palace are back where they were after the first seven games of the Premier League season: in the bottom three.
Off form: one goal in seven since joining United means Alexis Sanchez may have a point to prove against Palace tonight
Which all adds a little more peril to the visit tonight of Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United.
A win would propel Palace above Swansea, into the relative safety (for now) of 13th place.
Yet as Eagles fans who watched, solemnly, as the results came in over the weekend and Palace dropped back into the relegation zone, even an injection of league points now would only be a temporary reprieve in a scrap which seems certain will last into May. Three points cover seven clubs, with only West Brom cast adrift, their fate seemingly already sealed. Continue reading
Posted in Crystal Palace FC, Football, Roy Hodgson, Sport, Wilfried Zaha
Tagged Crystal Palace FC, Roy Hodgson, Ruben Loftus-Cheek, Selhurst Park, Wilfried Zaha
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