Textor exits Palace with £190m deal that saves Europa dream

Posted on June 23, 2025 by insidecroydon

Crystal Palace fans who have been holding their breath since the cup final victory last month could be heard emitting a massive sigh of relief today.

Palace’s new shareholder: Woody Johnson, owner of the New York Jets and now 45% of the Eagles

Or two sighs of relief: for director John Textor appears to have finally exited the club, and the threat of expulsion from the Europa League appears finally to have receded.

Textor has been a reluctant part of Palace’s success story for the past year or more, never quite managing to find a buyer for his 44.9% share in the club.

But it was Textor’s business interests in other clubs, specifically Lyon, who have also qualified for the Europa League by finishing sixth in Ligue 1, which put Palace’s first proper season in Europe in serious jeopardy, with UEFA even considering seeking legal advice in a test case with the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Continue reading →

Posted in Crystal Palace FC, Football, John Textor, Sport, Steve Parish, Woody Johnson | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Labour councillors do a runner over investments in Israeli arms

Posted on June 23, 2025 by insidecroydon

A ‘mystery illness’ swept through the ranks of elected representatives at the weekend, just when a campaign group was about to pay them a visit in Thornton Heath

Get well soon: all three Thornton Heath councillors came down with a mystery illness on Saturday

All three of Thornton Heath’s Labour councillors were overcome by an outbreak of a mystery illness on Saturday, making them unable to attend their regular monthly surgery to hear residents’ concerns.

Which is unfortunate, and we wish all three a speedy recovery, as we are sure that their absence from the Sally Army’s base on Thornton Heath High Street had absolutely nothing to do with a planned rally of Croydon Divest, a group of residents from across the borough who see no good reason for public money from Croydon being used to arm the Israeli war machine.

Callton Young is the senior Labour councillor who chairs the council’s pension committee. His ward colleague, Karen Jewitt, is also on the pension committee. Continue reading →

Posted in Callton Young, Croydon Council, Karen Jewitt, Tamar Barrett (was Nwafor), Thornton Heath | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

‘Scandalous’ planners condemn Coulsdon’s chippy to closure

Posted on June 23, 2025 by insidecroydon

Croydon’s planners have condemned Glade Fisheries, a long-cherished Old Coulsdon business, to its doom without a peep from the local councillors or Mayor Jason Perry.

Doomed: Croydon planners signed off permission to convert the fish and chip shop into a flat

In March, KJC Architects applied to the council on behalf of the property’s landlord to convert the chip shop at the junction of Taunton Lane and The Glade into a single dwelling.

Using permitted development planning rules, they wanted to create new access for the existing first-floor flat and turn the ground floor into a two-bed flat.

Despite objections from a local residents’ association, more than 120 locals and the area’s MP, the council’s planners failed to refer the application to the planning committee and instead signed off on the proposal.

The secretary of the local residents’ association has described the council’s planning department’s actions as “scandalous” and “a disgrace”. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Chris Philp MP, Community associations, Coulsdon, Croydon Council, Croydon South, East Coulsdon Residents' Association, Margaret Bird, Mayor Jason Perry, Old Coulsdon, Planning, Richard Howard | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Two arrested in connection with fatal shooting on Imperial Way

Posted on June 23, 2025 by insidecroydon

The police have made two arrests in connection with the shooting near Costco on Imperial Way last Thursday, when a 41-year-old man was found dead.

The Metropolitan Police said last night that they had arrested a 41-year-old man on suspicion of murder. A 37-year old woman was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender. Both remain in custody.

The police continue to appeal for any witnesses who were in the vicinity of the shooting, which happened at around 5pm on June 19. Continue reading →

Posted in Crime, Purley Way | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Crisis? What crisis? Perry ducks emergency Town Hall meeting

Posted on June 22, 2025 by insidecroydon

EXCLUSIVE:  Council bosses push back opposition calls for an urgent meeting to debate the government announcement about installing Commissioners to run the borough’s affairs. By STEVEN DOWNES

Crisis? What crisis?

Croydon’s Mayor Jason Perry won’t allow any emergency discussion at the Town Hall on the council’s plight until Thursday, July 10 – almost a full month after the government announced that it is “minded” to send in Commissioners to take over the running of his shambolic council.

Opposition councillors were only informed on Friday this week, June 19, that their urgent call for an emergency meeting of full council won’t be held until next month.

This is despite the council having a deadline of this Wednesday, June 25, to submit its response to the announcement made by local government minister Jim McMahon that the Ministry of Housing Communities and Local Government has called time on the multi-million-pound borrowing habit of the Tory Mayor and his chief executive, Katherine Kerswell. Continue reading →

Posted in Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan, Stuart King | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Southern axe bike racks over car bomb fears at East Croydon

Posted on June 22, 2025 by insidecroydon

Rail operators Southern say that they intend to remove bicycle racks from outside East Croydon Station because of security considerations, including the possibility of a car bomb attack on the London to Brighton mainline.

On the rack: Southern says that this bike rack is a security issue and must be removed

Southern posted notices this week notifying that from July 1 the cycle storage facility positioned close to Platform 6, on the Cherry Orchard Road side of the station, is to be removed.

The notices offered no reason for the sudden removal of amenity for passengers who cycle to East Croydon before enduring a daily train journey into central London or elsewhere. Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Commuting, Cycling, East Croydon, Sean Fitzsimons, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

Lost at sea: nearly 300 dead on their journey for a new life

Posted on June 22, 2025 by insidecroydon

SUNDAY SUPPLEMENT: When the Kapunda sailed from London in 1886, bound for Fremantle, it proved to be the last sailing vessel ever to embark from Britain with emigrants for Australia. DAVID MORGAN records the tragedy of a teacher from Oval Road school

Disaster: one of the earliest newspaper reports of the sinking of the Kapunda – the details came via Lloyd’s shipping insurers

The great migration from Britain during the 19th and early 20th Centuries saw many Croydon residents uproot their lives and seek pastures new.

The lure of the wide open spaces, opportunities and better prospects in Australia, America and Canada proved irresistible. But such dreams didn’t always come to fruition.

The excitement in the Field household in Croydon in 1886 would have been mounting through the year. Once the decision was made to emigrate to Australia, the family began to make plans. William Field, a member of the Croydon District Teachers’ Association, was the master of Oval Road Board School. He had to hand in his notice. He was going to start a new teaching career in Perth, Western Australia. Continue reading →

Posted in David Morgan, History, Oval Primary | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Tory councillor’s Commissioner video nasty is another wild rant

Posted on June 21, 2025 by insidecroydon

Simon Brew, a Conservative councillor in Croydon for the past 11 years, hasn’t had the best of luck with his campaigning on local issues when he has tried to use modern communication techniques – like videos.

Remember how he lobbied on behalf of profit-hungry private developers who wanted to demolish Purley town centre’s multi-storey public car park to make way for more than 200 lucrative retirement homes? In that video nasty, Brew seriously suggested that people wanting to visit Purley town centre could readily leave their cars at a railway station car park more than a mile away.

Brew, it seems, will say any old shit on behalf of his Tory mates, or shadowy businesses registered in the British Virgin Islands, notorious as a haven for money-launderers. Continue reading →

Posted in Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Purley, Section 114 notice, Simon Brew, Stabilisation Plan | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Last Gasp: Ogbourne’s exhibition is summoning us to the sea

Posted on June 21, 2025 by insidecroydon

All at sea: Derek Ogbourne’s Last Gasp Infinite Oxygen exhibition, in partnership with Martin Searle Solicitors, will be open for one week next month

KEN TOWL meets an artist whose latest exhibition is about much more than just his paintings 

When Derek Ogbourne’s friend threw a dustbin at a front door many years ago, she set in motion a chain of events which culminated in the artist’s latest exhibition, Last Gasp, Infinite Oxygen.

There had been an argument at a party inside, Ogbourne and his friend left, she made the fateful decision to express her anger and when the host came outside, he punched Derek in the eye. Very hard. Continue reading →

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Carshalton Artists Open Studios, June 28-29 and July 5-6

Posted on June 21, 2025 by insidecroydon

Continue reading →

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Litter pick at Croydon Minster: volunteers welcome, Sat July 5

Posted on June 21, 2025 by insidecroydon

Continue reading →

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Commuters protest at plan to remove East Croydon cycle racks

Posted on June 20, 2025 by insidecroydon

Croydon’s cyclists are protesting over a late-notice and unconsulted decision by Southern Rail to remove their secure bike storage at East Croydon Station, leaving them without a safe place to lock up their bicycles.

Short notice: the signs that went up outside East Croydon Station yesterday, barely 11 days before Southern say they will remove the bike racks

Southern posted notices only yesterday, notifying the removal of the cycle facility on July 1.

The rail operators have given no reason for this sudden removal of amenity for their passengers.

The removal will deny a crucial facility to commuters who cycle to East Croydon before enduring a daily train journey into central London.

“This is the only cycle parking around here with available spaces and proper CCTV,” said Chris Galpin, who regularly cycles from his home in Addiscombe to the station on his way to work.

“It’s outrageous they didn’t even bother to ask people what impact this would have. They are treating us with complete contempt.”

A member of the Croydon Cycling Campaign told Inside Croydon: “This arbitrary decision will make it much more difficult for people to choose cycling as part of their journey to work. Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Commuting, Cycling, East Croydon, Jerry Fitzpatrick, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Police launch man-hunt after fatal shooting on Imperial Way

Posted on June 20, 2025 by insidecroydon

Crime scene: a Met forensic team was at work on Imperial Way yesterday

Scotland Yard has confirmed that an investigation is underway after a man was shot dead in broad daylight outside CostCo on Imperial Way, off Purley Way, yesterday afternoon.

The victim has not yet been named, but police were called just after 5pm on June 19 after a man in his 40s was found with gunshot wounds.

Despite emergency treatment, the man died at the scene. His next of kin have been informed. Continue reading →

Posted in Crime, Purley Way | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Acting without listening is not sustainable way to create change

Posted on June 20, 2025 by insidecroydon

Has this week’s High Court non-event been just the latest example of Perry’s porkie pies – where the ‘listening’ Mayor cocks a deaf ‘un to residents? Political Editor WALTER CRONXITE looks back at what the Tory Mayor was saying four years ago

While frustrated by their lawyers’ failure to submit the right documents in the right bundles, all neatly tied up in pink ribbon and delivered to the right defendant, today the question arises whether the shadowy “residents’ group” bringing the High Court case against Croydon Council really did have as strong a case as they thought they did.

The case brought by “Open Our Roads” claimed that Croydon’s Low Traffic Neighbourhood schemes, introduced from 2020 and since made permanent under Tory Mayor Jason Perry, are an unlawful cash-cow, taxing motorists who fail to follow road signs.

Had the case been heard and Croydon Council lost, Mayor Jason Perry faced the prospect of losing more than £10million a year in income from traffic fines. Continue reading →

Posted in 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Cycling, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, South Norwood, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

High Court judge dismisses LTN case brought against council

Posted on June 20, 2025 by insidecroydon

Croydon Mayor Perry uses a legal objection to stop a residents’ group from having their day in court. By STEVEN DOWNES

Open roads: Croydon’s LTN schemes will stay in place

A case claiming that Croydon’s Low Traffic Neighbourhood schemes are an unlawful cash-cow, taxing motorists who fail to follow road signs, has been thrown out by a High Court judge.

None of the legal arguments assembled for the shadowy group Open Our Roads got to be presented in court, because their lawyers failed to follow important procedural guidelines in submitting their evidence to the council’s counsel in time.

Had the case been heard and Croydon Council lost, Mayor Jason Perry faced the prospect of losing more than £10million a year in income from traffic fines generated by the borough’s six now permanent LTNs. Continue reading →

Posted in 2022 Croydon Mayor election, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Cycling, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, South Norwood, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, Steve Iles, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Disruption and delays on Southern services from East Croydon

Posted on June 20, 2025 by insidecroydon

Signalling issues affected services overnight from Purley to Gatwick and between Redhill and East Croydon, while ‘urgent track work’ will see no trains operating at all between East Croydon and Gatwick Airport on July 13

Cancelled: Gatwick Express and services between East Croydon and Brighton won’t run on July 13

Rail services from East Croydon towards Brighton were subject to delays and disruption overnight, with the Gatwick Express cancelled altogether.

A fault with signalling at Wivelsfield meant drivers were having to be talked through the signals.

A faulty signal at Salfords caused delays between Redhill and East Croydon, while another signal fault affected trains running between Purley and Gatwick Airport. Continue reading →

Posted in Commuting, East Croydon, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

CEO Kerswell ordered block on staff accessing Inside Croydon

Posted on June 19, 2025 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: ‘Sinister’ and ‘pathetic’ are how some council figures have described the council’s internet ban on this website. A FoI request has unearthed details of how the £204,000 pa CEO has been spending her time pursuing her own personal whims. EXCLUSIVE By STEVEN DOWNES

While Croydon’s finances were “runaway” and out of control, and while the government was bailing out her council with a £136million loan, Katherine Kerswell, the council’s chief exec, was spending her valuable time ordering IT staff to block their colleagues from reading Inside Croydon on their work computers.

Since then, Croydon Council has broken the law in trying to cover-up and delay the release of documents that confirm that it was Kerswell who ordered a council-wide block on access to this website. Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Elaine Jackson, Ian Golland, Inside Croydon, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 24 Comments

‘We’re simply trying to encourage more people to shop locally’

Posted on June 19, 2025 by insidecroydon

CROYDON COMMENTARY: Our report earlier this week about the plaintive plea for customers, made by the owner of a business in Coulsdon, generated a huge response from readers, and some important insights on the challenges facing the retail sector from Cozy Glow.
Here, ASHLEY COOKE explains some of the things he and other Coulsdon traders are up against
PLUS: Traders offer to do RingGo parking bookings for Coulsdon customers
AND: Get 15% off your first order from Cozy Glow and qualify for a free gift 

We completely understand how tough things are right now — it’s something we hear a lot from our community.

We actually put our “Where is everyone, Coulsdon?” post up after speaking with other local businesses, as many of us have noticed a big drop in footfall over the last month.

It’s clear that people are feeling the pressure, so we’re working together to find ways to help. We’re simply trying to encourage more people to make the effort to shop locally — whether in person or online — rather than defaulting to Amazon or similar options.

We get the frustration around parking — it’s a common concern. However, most comparable boroughs actually have similar parking charges to Croydon. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Coulsdon, Coulsdon Town | Tagged , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Norbury chip shop fire: Brigade issues warning about fryers

Posted on June 19, 2025 by insidecroydon

Following the latest blaze at a fried food takeaway in Norbury yesterday, firefighters are sharing their advice for cooking with hot oil.

Fat fryers fires: the LFB has attended more than one fire at fried food takeaways in Norbury recently

London Road was closed for a couple of hours as the London Fire Brigade dealt with the blaze. Part of the ground floor of the building was damaged by fire. Five people left the building before the Brigade arrived. There were no reports of any injuries.

The fire is believed to have been caused by a fire in a fryer spreading into the extraction system. Continue reading →

Posted in London Fire Brigade, Norbury, Norbury Park | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

NHS and agencies urge caution as temperatures soar to 32º

Posted on June 19, 2025 by insidecroydon

With an amber warning issued over rising temperatures in the coming days, NHS London has issued urgent health advice, asking people to take care and use NHS services wisely.

Scorchio!: public bodies are urging the public to take caution in the sun

Weather forecasters are predicting temperatures in Croydon as high as 32º in the next three or four days.

Last night, councils across London, including Croydon, activated SWEP, the Severe Weather Emergency Protocol, to run until Sunday, when teams will provide support to rough sleepers during this hot weather.

Transport for London, meanwhile, is asking all passengers on its Tubes, trams, buses and trains to travel with a bottle of water, to ensure they remain well-hydrated while travelling around the capital.

Hot weather can cause some people to become unwell through overheating (becoming uncomfortably hot), dehydration, heat exhaustion and heatstroke. Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Health | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Croydon residents pick up the £1m tab for ‘improvement’ panel

Posted on June 18, 2025 by insidecroydon

It is residents who will pay the cost of government ‘intervention’ if Commissioners move in at Fisher’s Folly next month, just as they have been paying for a panel of Whitehall-appointed ‘experts’ since 2021.
EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES

Official figures show that in the four years that there has been an improvement and assurance panel in Croydon to oversee the council’s recovery from its serial bankruptcies (try not to laugh!), payments to the panel members have cost residents in this borough more than £700,000.

The only problem is that… well… Croydon Council’s figures for payments made to improvement panel chair Tony McArdle and his now five-strong panel don’t stack up.

In fact, based on numbers provided by the council in a Freedom of Information response in April 2024, the bill for the “help” of these half-dozen “experts” may in reality have topped £1million. All paid for, as usual, by the borough’s tax-payers.

Continue reading →

Posted in Commissioners, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stabilisation Plan, Tony McArdle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments

Join us for our Midsummer’s dream walk at Hutchinson’s Bank

Posted on June 18, 2025 by insidecroydon

A natural wonder: Hutchinson’s Bank is reckoned to be the home of more than 100 species of moth and 28 species of butterfly

Inside Croydon is getting out and about again next week, with a guided walk through the flora of Hutchinson’s Bank to be led by local botany enthusiast, Moira O’Donnell. And YOU could join us on our Midsummer’s dream walk

Exotic flora: be guided through the reserve by our amateur botanist

The walk will take place on Thursday, June 26, starting from 6.30pm. We won’t be going very far, or fast, but it is expected to last about an hour and a half, and will explore the rich and varied nature to be found on the slopes of Hutchinson’s Bank.

The local nature reserve is a Site of Metropolitan Importance for Nature Conservation.

The London Wildlife Trust, who manage the site, say that Hutchinson’s Bank is “a large area of secluded chalk grassland and woodland, supporting many rare plants and insects, which has benefited from the return of traditional grazing”.

They add that it is “a great place to find orchids and other rare plants… and a hugely diverse range of butterflies. Pyramidal, common spotted and man orchid are among the flora, with grasses including kidney vetch and greater yellow-rattle”. Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Charity, Croydon parks, Education, Environment, Hutchinson's Bank, Inside Croydon, Moira O'Donnell, Nature Notes, Walks | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Lanfranc air disaster author named in King’s Birthday Honours

Posted on June 18, 2025 by insidecroydon

NEIL BENNETT reports on a significant name included on this year’s King’s Honours List

No survivors: 39 lives were lost when the Vickers Viking crashed on Holtaheia Mountain in 1961

Among the 1,215 names on this year’s King’s Birthday Honours list, one has particular significance for Croydon.

Rosalind Frances Barbara Jones is awarded the British Empire Medal “for services to the victims of the Stavanger air disaster”.

Few people remember the Stavanger air disaster. Even fewer will be aware of the many heartbreaking stories behind this award.

Rosalind Jones, née Green, was 15 and living in Norbury when her brother Quentin, two years younger, was one of the teenaged pupils from Lanfranc Secondary Modern who died when the aircraft taking them on a summer trip to Norway crashed into a mountain near Stavanger on August 9, 1961. Two teachers, the two pilots and a stewardess also lost their lives.

The Stavanger disaster changed many Croydon lives forever and was full of cruel twists of fate. Rosalind’s family suffered one of the cruelest. Continue reading →

Posted in Archbishop Lanfranc, Community associations, History, Neil Bennett, Schools | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Young couple from Croydon confirmed among Air India victims

Posted on June 18, 2025 by insidecroydon

A young couple from Croydon, Vaibhav Patel, 29, and Jinal Goswami, 27, have been confirmed among the victims of last week’s Air India crash in Ahmedabad.

Tragedy: Vaibhav Patel and Jinal Goswami were flying home to Croydon

Goswami was seven months pregnant. The couple had been visiting Gujarat for a baby shower.

The funeral for the couple was held on Monday.

Patel and Goswami had recently moved to Croydon from Southampton.

There were 242 passengers and crew on board the aircraft, including 169 Indian nationals, 53 Britons, seven Portuguese and a Canadian. Continue reading →

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After four years, man is charged over Birdhurst Road shooting

Posted on June 18, 2025 by insidecroydon

Murder victim: Leroy Mitchell

Almost four years after a fatal shooting in a South Croydon car park, a man has appeared in court charged with the murder.

Cimarron Dume-Gooden, 32, of no fixed address, was charged on Monday with the murder of Leroy Mitchell and perverting the course of justice. Dume-Gooden appeared at at Uxbridge Magistrates’ Court yesterday.

Mitchell, 35, a father of three, was shot with a shotgun on Birdhurst Road in the early hours of October 2, 2021.

A police man-hunt saw one suspect arrested, but later released, and a £20,000 reward offered for information leading to an arrest from charity Crimestoppers. Continue reading →

Posted in Crime, Policing, South Croydon | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment