Ten compelling questions on the Whitgift Centre CPO

Posted on January 13, 2015 by insidecroydon

Susan Oliver Susan DavisCROYDON COMMENTARY: A once-in-a-lifetime regeneration, or a sinister land grab? SUSAN OLIVER, pictured, has some nagging doubts about the massive Compulsory Purchase Order on the Whitgift Centre taken out by Croydon Council on behalf of the Hammersfield developers

I was surprised to see that 141 objections have been lodged against the Westfield Compulsory Purchase Order, where our local authority endeavours to buy up properties to enable a development scheme to go ahead.

If 141 businesses and organisations took the time, and hired solicitors, to challenge this project, then surely many more people may think that way. And that means this side of the argument has not been properly represented by our elected councillors and in public debate.

If you read the papers on the CPO – and I encourage you to do so, including the submissions from the objectors as well as the council’s formal explanation – you will see that “a compulsory purchase order should only be made where there is a compelling case in the public interest”.

The most important word here is “compelling”. So I ask you: Is there a compelling need to change the Whitgift Centre into the Hammersfield Project? Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Centrale, CPO, Croydon Council, Jo Negrini, Planning, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 6 Comments

UKIP’s Winston McKenzie snubbed over charity debate

Posted on January 12, 2015 by insidecroydon

Winston McKenzie, the controversial UKIP parliamentary candidate for Croydon North, has been snubbed for a televised debate on foreign aid being staged in Thornton Heath later this week.

Waiting for a call: Winston McKenzie

Waiting for a call: Winston McKenzie

The debate is organised by a Sri Lankan children’s charity, and the high-profile panel includes the local Labour MP, Steve Reed OBE, Sutton MP Tom Brake from the LibDems, former Tory attorney general Dominic Grieve, and charity executive Tom Drake. The event might have been a perfect opportunity for McKenzie, UKIP’s “Commonwealth spokesman”, to be taken seriously as a political candidate. For once.

But according to sources within UKIP,  when the debate organisers heard that McKenzie had been suspended as the chairman of the Lambeth and Croydon North branch of UKIP, they opted to approach Nigel Farage’s party’s national HQ. It was decided that UKIP’s deputy leader, Suzanne Evans, might be a more reliable spokesperson for them than their gaffe-prone local man. Continue reading →

Posted in 2015 General Election, Croydon North, Steve Reed MP, Thornton Heath, Winston McKenzie | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Coulsdon resident Hickson selected as candidate by LibDems

Posted on January 12, 2015 by insidecroydon

Gill Hickson, the Coulsdon resident and community activist, has been selected as the Liberal Democrats’ candidate to stand in Croydon South at the General Election in May.

Gill Hickson: standing in Croydon South

Gill Hickson: standing in Croydon South

The selection was announced over the weekend – a few days too late for Hickson to take part in the debate between Conservative and Labour candidates that was staged in Old Coulsdon last Monday, organised by the Purley and Coulsdon Debating Society, whose committee includes… Gill Hickson.

The selection comes much later than the Tories (who chose Chris Philp in November 2013), Labour, Greens and UKIP: last week, it was reported that the LibDems had so far selected candidates in only 266 of the 631 seats up for grabs in Great Britain.

In 2010, Tricky Dicky Ottaway, the Conservative who has been the Croydon South’s constituency MP since 1992, was elected with a 16,000 vote margin – increasing his majority despite being among one of the worst examples exposed by the MPs’ expenses scandal. Simon Rix, the LibDem candidate on that occasion, finished second to Ottaway, polling 12,866, or 22 per cent of the vote.

Last May, Hickson stood for the LibDems in her home ward of Coulsdon East in the local council elections, but she finished a long way back in fifth place, behind the three elected Tory councillors and the UKIP candidate.

Hickson polled 696 votes, a significant reverse on her party’s previous polling: the leading LibDem in the same ward in the 2010 Town Hall elections had polled 2,164 votes, which would have been enough to be elected ahead of the third-best Coulsdon East Conservative in 2014.

Continue reading →

Posted in Chris Philp MP, Coulsdon, Coulsdon East, Croydon South, Gill Hickson | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Council’s “disturbing” lack of records on homeless families

Posted on January 12, 2015 by insidecroydon

Croydon Council has no proper records of households on its homeless list, according to a recent response to a Freedom of Information Act.

Croydon Town Hall: has no record of how many homeless families have been placed out of the borough in the last two years

Croydon Town Hall: has no record of how many homeless families have been placed out of the borough in the last two years

The council has refused to provide figures for the number of households with school-aged children that Croydon has placed in accommodation outside the borough, either within Greater London or further afield, in the last two financial years.

The reason given by the council for the refusal to answer the FoI is that, “To provide the information you have requested each case would need to manually checked which would exceed the appropriate limit.”

This “appropriate limit” is the cost of the public servants’ time it might take to answer a request; the limit is £450.

Croydon was able to state that there were 1,223 such households with children that the council had accepted a duty to accommodate under sections 188, 190, 193 or 200 of the Housing Act 1996. But clearly, there is no readily available record within the council housing department of what has happened to these hundreds of families. Continue reading →

Posted in Alison Butler, Croydon Council, Croydon Greens, Housing | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Purley Pool shows Tories and Labour are both in shallow end

Posted on January 11, 2015 by insidecroydon

Jon BiggerCROYDON COMMENTARY: Croydon South’s anarchist candidate, JON BIGGER, pictured left, says that the decision over Purley Pool is another example to show there’s little difference between his Conservative and Labour election rivals

The debate around the closure of Purley Pool has highlighted the narrow confines in which our politics is largely conducted. Croydon Labour has said the closure is necessary because the building is in a state of serious neglect, and they blame the previous Tory-led council. Croydon’s Tories propose using some money that Labour has put aside for a rainy day, but that would keep the pool open only for a year.

And then Croydon South’s two main parliamentary hopefuls ride into town seemingly full of support for the campaign to keep the pool open. Labour’s Emily Benn committed to the campaign at the recent debate she had with Conservative rival Chris Philp at the Coulsdon and Purley Debating Society, and Philp himself has been tweeting about it for a while.

The problem with the stance of both the candidates is that neither is behind saving the pool in any meaningful sense. Continue reading →

Posted in 2015 General Election, Chris Philp MP, Croydon Council, Croydon South, Emily Benn, Jon Bigger, Leisure services, Purley, Purley Pool, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Video: London Bridge was falling down (again) 40 years ago

Posted on January 10, 2015 by insidecroydon

commuters London BridgeCommuters who travel to work via London Bridge, who have had to endure chaos on their daily journeys over the past week or more – and all in return for higher fares – may be interested to view a public information film from 1975, the previous occasion that the railway lines into London’s oldest terminus had to be reconfigured and the station re-built.

Yes. Just 40 years ago.

We are indebted to another hyperlocal blog, 853, for unearthing this gem of its time, as they lament the ending of the direct train service from Greenwich to London Bridge, the very journey for which the original station was built in 1836. Continue reading →

Posted in Boris Johnson, Commuting, East Croydon, Environment, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Steve O'Connell, Transport, Val Shawcross, West Croydon | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Storytime for under-8s comes to The Oval Tavern

Posted on January 10, 2015 by insidecroydon

Stomping dinosaurs, exploding volcanoes, bear hunts and bees, superheroes and porridge thieves, a magical forest, a stinky swamp, a wild wild wood and a Gruffalo, a place Where the Wild Things Are… welcome to Storytime.

storytime picsThis is a fun, relaxed, busy, happy session at the award-winning Oval Tavern in Addiscombe, recently voted best family-friendly pub in Croydon in the Best Bar None awards.

Storytime runs from 1pm to 3pm every Saturday and is for children aged 8 and under*. With a different theme each week, it’s a mixture of storytelling and puppets,music, games, crafts and special events during school holidays.

Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Addiscombe West, Art, Music, Pubs | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Youth Games cricket team trials, Thornton Heath, Jan 16

Posted on January 10, 2015 by insidecroydon

Cricket poster Continue reading →

Posted in Cricket, Sport, Thornton Heath | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Back to the future to find lessons from Croydon’s past

Posted on January 9, 2015 by insidecroydon

Croydon The Future

Architecture author JOHN GRINDROD re-views an old television documentary and sees some interesting warnings for the town’s regeneration

Back in 1993, it’s fair to say that I had never given much thought to the architecture of my home town, Croydon. It was easy to dismiss, ignore and make jokes about, because that’s what everyone else did.

But then a thoroughly unexpected BBC documentary changed all that. The Late Show was BBC2’s late night arts programme in the 1980s and into the ’90s, famous for Mark Lawson’s bickering Late Review, the Stone Roses’ speakers blowing up live on air, and Sarah Dunant’s massive specs. It covered the official, serious, credible global arts scene, from opera to installation art. So I was, like many viewers, startled to see one entire episode given over to a new exhibition called “Croydon: the Future”.

Essentially a PR exercise rather than a serious attempt to rebuild the town, “Croydon: The Future” was a council-led competition encouraging architects to re-imagine the town for the late 20th century. The Late Show decided to cover the competition, but also tell the story of how Croydon had become Croydon.

Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Art, Business, Centrale, Croydon Council, David Lean Cinema Campaign, Environment, History, Housing, Planning, Property, Taberner House, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Video: Alphaville and Sir Richard Rogers’ massive erection

Posted on January 9, 2015 by insidecroydon

It is more than 20 years since BBC2’s The Late Show devoted an entire programme to an examination of the merits, or otherwise, of Croydon’s architecture.

Late Show logoThe programme drew parallels with a French film noir called Alphaville, a dystopian vision. The darkest parts of the programme were when it asked architects for their ideas for Croydon.

“Croydon: The Future” was a competition staged by The Architecture Foundation which, they say, was “one of the most successful architecture shows ever held in Britain, which showcased the work of 15 then-emerging designers that generated creative yet realistic solutions for Croydon’s problem areas”.

The competition was so “successful” that the marquee in which the exhibition was staged blew down, and none of the “creative solutions” were ever implemented. Although some may have formed the basis for a comedy sketch in the intervening quarter-century or so.

Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Art, Business, Croydon Central, Croydon Council, Environment, History, Housing, Jo Negrini, London-wide issues, Planning, Property | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Television property show is seeking willing victims in Croydon

Posted on January 9, 2015 by insidecroydon

The Location, Location, Location duo of Phil Spencer and Kirstie All-strop have been teamed together for another property show – this time one not about finding a dream home, but about making the most of what you’ve already got.

This pair want the keys to your front door

This pair want the keys to your front door

And they’re looking for willing victims. Or “participants”, to appear on the show.

Called (at least provisionally) Love It or List It, the premise is either to spruce up your current home, or make sure that you get the best deal from selling it.

The producers say, “If you’ve reached absolute crunch point and it’s time to either renovate or relocate, then maybe TV’s top property couple, Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer, can help.

“As part of their brand new series, they’re going to offer hands-on help with what they know can be a very stressful decision.”

Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Housing | Tagged , | 1 Comment

Bromley 10km charity road race, Jan 11

Posted on January 9, 2015 by insidecroydon

Bromley 10k Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Athletics, Bromley Council, Outside Croydon, Sport | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Pigs and dead dukes more important for O’Connell than TfL

Posted on January 9, 2015 by insidecroydon

Neither the local London Assembly Member nor the MP for the area have taken part in an important public consultation on the future for bus routes 312 and 130. Steve O’Connell and Gavin Barwell are both Conservatives.

312 bus East CroydonThe 312 runs between South Croydon, via East Croydon, to South Norwood. The 130 runs from New Addington to Norwood Junction.

The two bus routes are set to return to Spring Lane Bridge next month after a long battle between Transport for London, Network Rail and Croydon Council over public transport services between Addiscombe, Woodside and Norwood Junction.

Spring Lane Bridge in Woodside was closed to buses in April 2010 due to the introduction of a weight limit and to allow essential engineering work on the creaking old bridge. To access the 312, residents in Addiscombe had a long walk to reach a bus stop, while journey times were lengthened considerably. The closure caused massive inconvenience to thousands of journeys every day, closing a road that links central Croydon, Woodside and Addiscombe to Norwood. The engineering works over-ran, and it was not until last year that the bridge was re-opened.

Continue reading →

Posted in 2015 General Election, Addiscombe West, Ashburton, Boris Johnson, Commuting, Croydon Central, East Croydon, Gavin Barwell, Kenley, London Assembly, Mayor of London, South Norwood, Steve O'Connell, Transport, Woodside | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Foreign aid on agenda at Thornton Heath debate, Jan 15

Posted on January 8, 2015 by insidecroydon

The charity Child Aid Lanka is staging a Question Time event in Thornton Heath next Thursday, January 15, with an impressive panel of guests, including Dominic Grieve MP, the Tories’ former attorney general, Suzanne Evans, the deputy chairman of UKIP, the LibDem’s Tom Brake MP, Tom Drake of charity WaterAid, and the MP for Lambeth South, Steve Reed OBE.

UK AidJust like the leaders’ debates planned for national television, there’s no Green Party member on the panel.

The focus of the debate – being held at St Paul’s Church Hall, St Paul’s Road, in an area of Croydon with an active Tamil community – will be foreign aid, and how it may be affected by any changes to government policy by the General Election outcome.

“Child Aid Lanka is a small charity which has already been affected by changes to Government policy, so we are very interested in what each party has to say on their foreign aid policies,” the organisers said. Continue reading →

Posted in 2015 General Election, Charity, Croydon North, Steve Reed MP, Thornton Heath, Tom Brake MP, Winston McKenzie | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Zola’s exile in Upper Norwood and case for two blue plaques

Posted on January 8, 2015 by insidecroydon

It’s arguable, though probably not worth pressing the point, that the Queen’s Hotel on Church Road, Crystal Palace, could qualify for having two blue plaques for two individuals with the same name.

The blue plaque at the Queen's Hotel on Church Road

The blue plaque for Emile Zola at the Queen’s Hotel on Church Road

The plaque which does exist on the walls of the hotel there is for Emile Zola, the famed French man of letters who – with poignant resonance to the tragic events in Paris over the past 24 hours – stood up for justice and his rights to freedom of speech.

Emile Zola was twice nominated for the Nobel Prize for literature. It may have been more, and he may have been more successful, had he not died in suspicious circumstances in 1902.

But it was to escape his 1898 prosecution for perhaps his most famous piece of writing – the open letter J’Accuse about the Dreyfus case and a significant miscarriage of justice – that Zola fled to south London and stayed at the Queen’s.

Continue reading →

Posted in Athletics, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Crystal Palace Park, History, Museum of Croydon, Norwood Society, South Norwood, South Norwood Tourist Board | Tagged , , , , , | 2 Comments

Could Dead Mall Syndrome be coming to a high street here?

Posted on January 7, 2015 by insidecroydon
CPO map

The council’s map of the Compulsory Purchase Order area, which will be under scrutiny next month

“Did you have a good Christmas?” is a question that takes on a different meaning for shop-keepers and retail analysts. STEVEN DOWNES on a shopping trend in America of which Croydon’s Hammersfield developers must be wary

Next month will see the opening sessions of what is likely to prove to be the most significant public meetings held in Croydon for a generation.

From February 3, for four days a week, six hours a day, for at least six weeks, hearings will be staged in Fisher’s Folly to examine the merits, or otherwise, of the 141 objections raised to Croydon Council’s Compulsory Purchase Orders for the Whitgift Centre and surrounding property, including the blocking off of an entire public street.

The objectors range from HSBC to Claire’s Accessories, from Rush hairdressers to William Hill. Some explanation of the process, with links to documents, can be found on the council’s website here. The list of the objectors, with links to what they have filed so far (January 13 is the deadline for filing evidence), can be found here.

This inquiry is all being staged, at humungous public expense, so that majority freeholders the Whitgift Foundation and their chosen developers, Westfield, plus junior partners Hammerson, can carve up the centre of Croydon and develop a £1 billion shopping centre.

The CPO inquiry may not go smoothly, and there are some objectors who may prolong the agony. Experts estimate it could be July at the earliest before building work can finally commence, if approval is granted.

But if reports from the United States are anything to go by, then the landowners, property developers, shopping centre managers and their expensively retained lawyers could all be squabbling over something whose time has already passed it by.

At the weekend, The New York Times called malls, “shopping dinosaurs”. Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Centrale, Croydon Council, Jo Negrini, John Burton, Planning, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Iain Lee headlines the comedy line-up at Spread Eagle

Posted on January 7, 2015 by insidecroydon

The latest season of shows at the Spread Eagle Theatre begins next week, with more comedy nights planned for the coming months, including appearances by headline acts Iain Lee, Rosie Wilby and Patrick Monahan.

Eagle ImprovThere is still a thread of studio drama at the High Street venue, with a couple of productions, Uninvited Guests (February 11-13) and Holmes Alone (March 6).

The 2015 season kicks off next Wednesday, January 14, with the first of the now regular Eagle Improv comedy sessions.

The producers describe the show as, “This most spiffing comedy improv outfit presents a monthly mashup of off-the-cuff games, daring tomfoolery and feats of extraordinary imagination… Featuring some of the biggest and best improv talent from London, the UK and beyond.”

Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Comedy, Music, Pubs, Spread Eagle Theatre, Theatre | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Stop the Incinerator Campaign public meeting, Jan 10

Posted on January 7, 2015 by insidecroydon

IncineratorThe Stop the Incinerator Campaign – waiting for a puff of white smoke to go up from the High Court, if not from the proposed Beddington Lane incinerator – is staging a public meeting this Saturday, January 10, in central Croydon to update people on the latest news.

Paul Pickering, from the campaign, announced overnight, “We’ve booked the upstairs area of The Green Dragon, High Street, Croydon from 10.30 on Saturday morning for a general meeting of Stop The Incinerator.

“Shasha Khan will be able to update us on the current legal challenge. We will discuss our options going forward. All welcome.” Continue reading →

Posted in Community associations, Croydon Greens, Environment, Refuse collection, Shasha Khan, Waste incinerator | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Volunteers required for Wandle Park heritage walks project

Posted on January 7, 2015 by insidecroydon

Wandle Park poster Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Broad Green, Community associations, Environment, Friends of Wandle Park, Waddon, Walks, Wandle Park, Wildlife | Tagged , , , , | Leave a comment

Festival organisers seeking stall-holder supporters

Posted on January 6, 2015 by insidecroydon

The South Norwood Community Festival is now taking bookings from stall-holders who want to be part of their event on Sunday July 5.

Norwood Junction clockStaged in South Norwood Recreation Ground, SNCF is a free family event organised by volunteers to raise money for local charities, and includes a fun fair, music of all kinds, food of every description and a varied programme of events.

There is also a solar acoustic stage, DJ zone, arts and crafts stalls, a wide variety of food, classic cars and of course a beer tent.

If you have a business or organisation which could play a part in this important community event, visit the SNCF website here. Continue reading →

Posted in Activities, Charity, Community associations, Music, South Norwood | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Mayday from Mayday as A&E declares “major incident”

Posted on January 6, 2015 by insidecroydon

Mayday is in the bottom 50 performing hospitals in the country, at a time when NHS hospital accident and emergency departments are performing worse than at any time in the past decade, figures from the Department of Health released today show.

mayday-hospital-signThe statistics came on the day when the re-branded Croydon University Hospital sent out a mayday of its own, declaring an “internal major incident” because of the level of demand on its A&E department – forcing them to admit more patients than there are available beds. Croydon’s hospital is one of a number of A&Es around the country to be overwhelmed by rising demand for its services.

Mayday’s official action comes after an elderly patient reported being kept on a trolley in a corridor of the London Road hospital for 12 hours on Saturday night, waiting for treatment.

Continue reading →

Posted in Croydon North, Health, Mayday Hospital, Steve Reed MP | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Benn puts clear blue water between herself and pool closure

Posted on January 6, 2015 by insidecroydon

The Hon Emily Benn, who once distinguished herself as being “a Benn, not a Bennite”, made it clear at last night’s Croydon South Posh-Off debate that she’s not Ed, nor Ed. And she doesn’t much care for some of the decisions that Tony (that’s Newman, not her mother’s former boss, Bliar) and the Labour leadership at Croydon Town Hall have made in their first six months in charge, either.

Labour councillor Emily Benn canvassing with Viscount Stansgate. Or "Dad"

Labour councillor Emily Benn canvassing with Viscount Stansgate. Or “Dad” as she calls him

When it came to the show of hands at the end of the evening, Chris Philp, the Tory shoo-in for the Croydon South constituency, was the comfortable “winner” of the first Coulsdon and Purley Debating Society event of the election year, but not before his Labour opponent made it very clear that she intends to be very much her own person in the forthcoming campaign.

Benn, a Croydon councillor since May, used the platform she was given in front of what can politely be described as a “mature” audience in the usually Conservative-inclined Old Coulsdon to disassociate herself from some of the decisions of her party leadership on the council, talking of them making “decisions I do not always agree with”.

Benn’s slim chance of upsetting Philp’s 16,000 inherited Conservative majority in Croydon South come the General Election on May 7 was given a hospital pass before she had even been able to begin her campaign when Tony Newman, the council leader, presided over the announcement that Purley pool will have to close within weeks of the electorate going to the polling stations. Benn told her audience last night that she will “try to find alternatives” to the Purley pool closure and other recent council decisions. Continue reading →

Posted in 2015 General Election, Chris Philp MP, Coulsdon, Croydon South, Emily Benn, Purley, Purley Pool, Richard Ottaway MP, West Thornton | Tagged , , , , , | 11 Comments

Island tries to block out memories of seven-year hitch

Posted on January 6, 2015 by insidecroydon

It has been such a long time since the IYLO BUILDING last penned a column for this site, that they return now after a makeover and with a new name, though the developers probably don’t want you to regard the building as a traffic island

Okay, people, it’s time for my New Year grumble.

How the marketing agency's artists sees The Island development

How the marketing agency’s artists sees The Island development, existing in a Croydon where the roads have not come to a grinding standstill

Happy New Year? How very dare you. Another year added to the calendar just reminds me that, after seven loooong years, I’m still sitting here feelin’ like a prat.

“Seven years?” I hear you asking. “Has that eye-sore really been around for seven years?”

Just watch it. I’m not an eye-sore any more, I must give my latest owners some credit. Why, I’ve even had my portrait painted (which might well have air-brushed some of the less attractive-looking neighbours to make Croydon seem a touch more appealling). Continue reading →

Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Environment, Housing, IYLO, Planning, Property, Whitgift Centre | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Greens call for 12% fares cut and publicly run railways

Posted on January 5, 2015 by insidecroydon

Shasha Khan, the Green Party’s parliamentary candidate for Croydon North, was canvassing rail commuters this morning, as they were returned to work after the Christmas break and were hit by a double whammy of another above-inflation fares hike and badly disrupted services from East Croydon.

Green Party campaigner Shasha Khan campaigning this morning

Green Party campaigner Shasha Khan campaigning this morning

The Greens have announced that they would implement a 12 per cent cut in rail fares if they are elected to government. So that’s not going to happen then…

“We must reject the business-as-usual model that allows ticket prices to escalate,” Khan said.

“The Green Party is committed to developing solutions that will deliver a quality and affordable service to passengers all across the country.”

The Greens have also backed the gathering call for the railways to be brought back into public ownership, with demonstrations organised at King’s Cross, St Pancras, and Waterloo stations. Green Party MP Caroline Lucas also presented a Private Members Bill calling for the railways to be brought back into public ownership.

Ticket prices across the railway network have increased by an average of 2.2 per cent this New Year. The cost of rail travel is now increasing at three times the rate of average wages. In some parts of the country, an annual season ticket represents more than 25 per cent of the average salary.

Continue reading →

Posted in 2015 General Election, Commuting, Coulsdon, Croydon Central, Croydon Greens, Croydon North, Croydon South, East Croydon, Esther Sutton, London-wide issues, Peter Underwood, Sarah Jones MP, Shasha Khan, Transport, West Croydon | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Amy Wadge and Luke Jackson play Stanley Halls, Feb 28

Posted on January 5, 2015 by insidecroydon

amylukegigGrammy-nominated Amy Wadge and Luke Jackson are to play an exclusive gig at Stanley Halls on February 28.

Double Grammy Award-nominee Amy is widely regarded as one of the country’s most successful female singer-songwriters. Over the course of five solo albums, two collaborations, numerous compositions for other artists and hundreds of live performances all over the globe, she has established an outstanding body of work. Continue reading →

Posted in Music, South Norwood, Stanley Halls | Tagged , , | Leave a comment