Cash-strapped council spends £5m on 4,000 shiny new laptops

Posted on February 10, 2025 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: While the council goes cap-in-hand to the government for another bail-out, Fisher’s Folly has been taking delivery of 4,000 shiny new laptops for staff. As political editor, WALTER CRONXITE, reports, opposition councillors are fuming

The bright and breezy announcement appeared this morning on Croydon Council’s intranet: 4,000 shiny new laptops for staff have arrived! Whoop-de-bloody-whoop!

What was not included in the council’s internal comms message was that the estimated the cost of the Croydon laptop deal is close to £5million. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Rowenna Davis | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 17 Comments

Sutton Council plans £400 payment hikes for disabled and poor

Posted on February 10, 2025 by insidecroydon

INSIDE SUTTON: Poor and disabled residents will be forced to pay Council Tax to help the Liberal Democrat-run council balance its budget.
EXCLUSIVE by DAVE BURTON

Bad choices: Barry ‘Basher’ Lewis, the LibDem council leader who is pushing through increased charges for the poor and disabled

A meeting at Sutton Civic Centre tonight will make the first moves towards rubber stamping the council’s budget for 2025-2026, with proposals around a 4.78% Council Tax increase likely to be voted through to the full council’s budget meeting next month.

The LibDems want to take around £1.6million from the borough’s poorest residents, who will be forced to pay at least 5% of Council Tax, while disabled residents will face extra care charges as their special allowances are now considered as income. The impact could leave many disabled people more than £400 a month worse off.

The 4.78% increase in Council Tax in Sutton is less than that being applied by many other councils in London. It means that Council Tax for benchmark Band D properties in Sutton will increase by £103.54, to £2,269.72 a year.

Continue reading →

Posted in Barry Lewis, Council Tax, London Assembly, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Sutton Council | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Energised by scheme that makes money and saves the planet

Posted on February 10, 2025 by insidecroydon

There is a bright spot in the future for Croydon, and KEN TOWL went along at the weekend to discover more about it

And there was cake: Croydon Community Energy’s launch offered a slice of sunshine

When a breathless press release from Croydon Community Energy informs you of a scheme that will not only pay you a 5% return on your investment but also contribute to saving the planet, it sounds too good to be true.

On closer inspection, that 5% is in fact “up to 5%”, leaving any surplus profits to provide community gardens (a rather specific aim) and also to alleviate fuel poverty (a rather general aspiration).

Well, everyone likes gardens and no one likes poverty, so if there was something in this, I thought, I had better find out. Continue reading →

Posted in Archbishop Tenison's, Business, Climate Crisis Commission, Coloma, Community associations, Croydon Community Energy, Environment, Ken Towl | Tagged , , , | 5 Comments

Mozart, Mendelssohn, Mayer, Erato Orchestra, Mar 1

Posted on February 10, 2025 by insidecroydon

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Posted in Erato Orchestra, Music, Purley | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Croydon McDonald’s to get Stormzy meal deal 48 hours early

Posted on February 9, 2025 by insidecroydon

Big Mike’s: McDonald’s on North End has rebranded to mark Stormzy’s Famous Order, which is available in Croydon 48 hours ahead of the rest of the country

Stormzy has dropped Britain’s first McDonald’s Famous Order, and Croydon gets to try it first.

The Stormzy Meal will be available across nine branches of McDonald’s in Croydon from tomorrow, February 10. That’s 48 hours before anywhere else

And the McDonald’s at 86-90 North End has been specially rebranded for the occasion – as “Big Mike’s”. Continue reading →

Posted in Business | Tagged , , , , | 3 Comments

From Grimaldi to Chaplin: Bult’s mission to record clown faces

Posted on February 9, 2025 by insidecroydon

Serious business: the annual clown service, on the first Sunday in February, has become an institution thanks to the work behind the scenes of Stan Bult

SUNDAY SUPPLEMENT: Unique collection showing the history of clowning was the work of an Addiscombe man, as DAVID MORGAN explains

Egg-ceptional effort: for 30 years at his home in Croydon, Stan Bult recorded the face designs of clowns

From his home at 26 Canning Road during the 1930s, Stan Bult set about recording and reviving the art of clowning.

Bult determined to record the faces of clowns by painting their flamboyant designs onto eggshells.

A Croydon man’s hobby turned into a major project which marked Bult out as a leading figure in the world of clowning and circuses.

Bult was born in 1886. In the 1911 census he was working as an analytical chemist and was living in Addiscombe with his mother, five sisters and four brothers, all aged between 20 and 40. Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Comedy, David Morgan, History | Tagged , , , , , | 1 Comment

80th anniversary VE Day Celebrations, Old Coulsdon, May 8-11

Posted on February 9, 2025 by insidecroydon

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Posted in Activities, Community associations, Coulsdon, Old Coulsdon, Old Coulsdon Residents' Association | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Banstead Rotary’s charity Quiz Night, Beacon School, Apr 11

Posted on February 9, 2025 by insidecroydon

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Posted in Activities, Charity | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Taxi for Towl! Small gallery is achieving big things once again

Posted on February 8, 2025 by insidecroydon

Trafalgar Square night scape: Jyoti Bharwani has exhibited in one of the world’s most famous places, and her work is now on show in the bijou Croydon Art Space

Our arts correspondent, KEN TOWL, returns to one of his favourite galleries in Croydon, only to be confronted with an embarrassing episode from his past

Ceramic trio: Martin Cade’s works are among the abstract and beyond exhibition’s high spots

You have to tread slowly and carefully once you enter the Aladdin’s cave where the Croydon Art Space hides in plain sight at 41 Lower Addiscombe Road. This is partly to avoid sensory overload – the plain white walls of the three small rooms are covered in dozens of acrylics, oils, drawings, pastels and more, while surfaces support the most delicate of ceramics.

In my case, this is also to avoid damaging the art. More on that topic later.

The gallery’s latest exhibition, “Abstract and Beyond”, runs all through February, March and beyond, until Thursday April 24.

It is at the same time both a modest and an ambitious show. The former because it takes place in the most bijou of bijou converted ground-floor flats. The latter because it is entirely abstract. Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Art, Croydon Art Space, Ken Towl | Tagged , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Accountancy watchdog moves in on officials from Woking

Posted on February 8, 2025 by insidecroydon

After almost five years, not a single person in Croydon has ever been held responsible for their parts in the council’s financial collapse, the scandal of Brick by Brick or the Fairfield Halls refurbishment fiasco. But in Surrey, two former senior council officials are to face an investigation by the national accountancy watchdog.

Woebegone Woking: the small borough council in Surrey has debts of more than £2bn

Most of Croydon’s “investigations” were kicked into the long grass by the council CEO, Katherine Kerswell, with report recommendations delayed for years and a fraud investigation commissioned from contractors who conducted few interviews with the prime suspects, and who in any case never had the necessary powers to prove fraud.

But in Woking, which racked up more than £2billion in debt through speculative property developments, The Guardian has reported that former chief executive Ray Morgan and ex-finance director Leigh Clarke are both to face probes by the Financial Reporting Council, which oversees the accountancy profession.

The previously Conservative-led council issued its Section 114 notice, effectively declaring itself bankrupt, three years after Croydon, in 2023, after ploughing vast sums of borrowed money into skyscrapers, a luxury hotel and other commercial investments. Continue reading →

Posted in Brick by Brick, Business, Colm Lacey, Crime, Croydon Council, Jacqueline Harris-Baker, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Lisa Taylor, Report in the Public Interest, Richard Simpson, RIPI II: Fairfield Halls, Section 114 notice, Shifa Mustafa, Simon Hall, The Penn Report, Tony Newman | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Councillor reviews Nando’s pitch for Crystal Palace Triangle

Posted on February 8, 2025 by insidecroydon

Almost exactly a year since McDonald’s abandoned their proposals to bring Big Macs, McFlurries and a whole heap of mopeds and potential trouble to the Crystal Palace Triangle, now another fast food giant is eyeing the area for a new outlet.

A planning application for a Nando’s restaurant at 62 Westow Street – the same site McDonald’s wanted to use – has been submitted to Croydon Council. The site is currently occupied by Poundland.

The McDonald’s proposals were dropped in February 2024 after they received a sizeable public backlash, as well as some objections from the Met Police. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Claire Bonham, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Savage’s HS2 apprenticeship is proving to be just the job

Posted on February 8, 2025 by insidecroydon

After seven years teaching at a secondary school in Croydon, Joshua Savage decided it was time for change. He’d prgressed from teaching assistant to qualified PE and science teacher. But deep down, he knew it wasn’t the job he wanted for the next thirty years.

‘The best move I ever made’: at 28, Josh Savage is enjoying being an apprentice working on HS2

The idea of starting again was daunting. Savage wanted a career, not just a job, which meant he’d have to retrain.

The construction sector had always appealed to him, but Savage wasn’t one for getting his hands dirty. With a head for figures and analytics, he began matching his skills to potential new careers in the industry.

His research led him to HS2, Britain’s biggest infrastructure project. Continue reading →

Posted in Business | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

Old Coulsdon Christmas lights fund-raiser Quiz Night, Mar 29

Posted on February 8, 2025 by insidecroydon

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Posted in Activities, Community associations, Coulsdon, Old Coulsdon, Old Coulsdon Residents' Association | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Council Tax hits £2,500 per year as debts continue to mount

Posted on February 7, 2025 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Council chief exec and Mayor pass the buck to central government for borough’s continuing financial problems, while confirming that they are to axe another 360 jobs. Watch the world’s worst comedy double act – Perry and Kerswell – in a ‘sombre’ and ‘grim’ hour-long staff webinar recorded yesterday.
By KEN LEE, our Town Hall reporter

Croydon households living in Band D homes will be paying close to £250 per month in Council Tax from April, the second-highest in all London.

A 4.99% Council Tax increase in 2025 will mean that residents are paying 27% more this year than they were before Conservative Mayor Jason Perry came into office in 2022 – yet the council is still having to go to government again for “exceptional support”, this time £136million, because Perry is unable, again, to balance the bankrupt borough’s budget. Continue reading →

Posted in Adult Social Care, Children's Services, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Housing, Jane West, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, SEND | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | 22 Comments

Crystal Palace Park closes info centre as part of £18m upgrade

Posted on February 7, 2025 by insidecroydon

The information centre in Crystal Palace Park has closed to make way for a new Visitor Centre as part of the £17.75million regeneration and restoration project starting this spring.

Final closure: the Crystal Palace Park information centre has closed, making way for updated facilities

“The current building has become run down over the years and no longer fit for purpose,” according to the Crystal Palace Park Trust, which now oversees the management of the park. They say that the new building “will offer an enhanced experience allowing visitors to learn about the rich history of the park”, all thanks to funding from The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the Wolfson Foundation and other generous contributors. Continue reading →

Posted in Charity, Croydon parks, Crystal Palace and Upper Norwood, Crystal Palace Park, Crystal Palace Park Trust, Friends of Crystal Palace Park | Tagged , , , , | 6 Comments

Government’s local council settlement still not enough – LGA

Posted on February 7, 2025 by insidecroydon

A leading think tank and the largest association of local councils say that the funding from central government that has been announced this week is still not enough to deal with steepling increases in costs faced by town halls across the country.

With Croydon’s annual budget meetings less than a week away, the Labour government has confirmed its settlement for local authorities nationally, with £69billion allocated funding for England’s councils.

The funding package provides an above-inflation 6.8% increase in councils’ spending power compared to 2024-2025, although the increase in costs faced by councils has risen even more steeply.

In the House of Commons, Angela Rayner, the Deputy Prime Minister, said, “With increased demand and running costs rising, this money is a lifeline and will guarantee no council sees a decrease in their core spending power.” Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Chestnut Park rappers get the message in the recording studio

Posted on February 7, 2025 by insidecroydon

Studio time: pupils from Chestnut Park Primary get to work on recording and mixing their track

The Rap Club at Chestnut Park Primary has released its first single, looking for global success and to raise money for their school while showcasing their talents to the widest audience possible.

The pupils travelled from their Board Green school to recording studios to put in hours of work and rehearsal. The track, Chestnut Park Is In Our Hearts, was released last week. Continue reading →

Posted in Chestnut Park Primary, Music, Schools | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Government panel wants Croydon to flog off the Fairfield Halls

Posted on February 6, 2025 by insidecroydon

‘Jewel in Croydon’s crown’ for sale: the Fairfield Halls has suffered a checkered past few years, with a botched and incomplete refurbishment costing the council £72m

CROYDON IN CRISIS:  With the council’s annual overspend reaching £100m, Whitehall-appointed commissioners could force the sale of the arts centre, which the C20 Society describes as an ‘underappreciated South Bank Centre of the suburbs’. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES

Croydon could have to sell the Fairfield Halls, the latest “asset disposal” forced upon the cash-strapped council as it faces a new financial year confronted by a £100million budget overspend and without any real prospect of plugging its financial black hole.

A sale is unlikely to recoup anything close to the £72million cost of the Halls’ 2016-2019 botched refurbishment, piling yet more misery on the borough’s long-suffering residents.

The shocking news was first aired by this website’s monthly podcast, The Croydon Insider, when Ria Patel, a councillor for Fairfield ward, revealed that she had been told at a briefing by the government-imposed improvement and assurance panel that they were recommending that the Fairfield Halls should be sold.

Councillor Patel called any sale of the Fairfield Halls, “Like selling the family silver.” Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Ashcroft Theatre, BH Live, Borough of Culture 2023, Brick by Brick, Business, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Jo Negrini, Music, Report in the Public Interest, Section 114 notice, Theatre | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 33 Comments

Labour’s letting water companies take the pee with rising bills

Posted on February 6, 2025 by insidecroydon

ANDREW FISHER on the contradictions, ironies and utter inadequacy of the government’s approach to the water company polluters; plus even more Council Tax rip-offs coming our way

At the end of January, the government passed the Water (Special Measures) Bill through Parliament. Labour claims it heralds “tough penalties for law breaking water bosses”, “new powers to ban bonuses for rogue water execs”, “severe fines for water companies” and “more investment into our water system that works for you”.

Let off the hook: Thames Water is about to hit households with a inflation-busting price hike

Sounds like a long overdue rebalancing that stops the water companies getting away with murder?

Don’t believe it.

The bitter irony is that the Bill steered through the Commons by Streatham and Croydon North MP Steve Reed, the Environemtn Secretary, has been watered down. Continue reading →

Posted in Andrew Fisher, Business, Steve Reed MP, Streatham and Croydon North, Thames Water | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments

Surrey’s county elections postponed ahead of council mergers

Posted on February 6, 2025 by insidecroydon

Government steps in as it looks to create single unitary authorities, while offering a reprieve for London’s borough mayors, including in Croydon

County elections due to be held in Surrey on May 1 have been cancelled, as the government prepares for the biggest shake-up in local authorities for 50 years.

Brickhouse: there will be no elections here in May

Surrey is among nine areas where the 2025 elections have been scrapped, ahead of what would effectively be a merger between county and district councils aimed to save £3billion.

Under the plans, district councils such as Croydon’s near neighbours Reigate and Banstead, Epsom and Ewell and Tandridge could all disappear, as Surrey County Council would become the single, unitary authority for the area. Which makes holding this year’s elections a bit pointless. Continue reading →

Posted in Epsom and Ewell, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Mayor of London, Redhill, Reigate and Banstead Council, Surrey, Tandridge District Council | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Friday lunchtime music recitals, Croydon Minster, to Apr 4

Posted on February 6, 2025 by insidecroydon

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Posted in Croydon Minster, Music | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

75% object to revised scheme for Purley’s 220 retirement flats

Posted on February 5, 2025 by insidecroydon

As the British Virgin Islands comes in for renewed criticism for being ‘a magnet for… money laundering and tax evasion’, Croydon’s Tory MP appeals for public support for a development proposed by a subsidiary of a shadowy company based in the British Virgin Islands

Massive development: Polaska wants to build £70m-worth of ‘later living’ flats, with less than 10% affordable homes

Despite continued lobbying directly from the office of the local Conservative MP, the overwhelming majority of the public has rejected a proposal for a massive development of hundreds of “later living” homes on the site of the former Purley Leisure Centre and neighbouring multi-storey car park.

Last month, residents’ associations warned that revised plans from developers Polaska could be the “death knell” for businesses in the area.

With just one day of a public consultation period remaining, more than 2,000 people – an unusually high level of engagement – have submitted comments on the council website about the planning application. Of those, 1,529 – almost 75% – have been objections.

Chris Philp, the Tory MP for Croydon South, last night issued a reminder email to constituents to try to rally some late support for the scheme, which he has backed from the first.

“I hope the council will be able to approve this before the end of February,” Philp said, taking the side of multi-national developers over Purley residents.

Continue reading →

Posted in Community associations, Coulsdon West Residents' Association, Croydon Council, East Coulsdon Residents' Association, HADRA, Housing, Leisure services, Mayor Jason Perry, Old Coulsdon Residents' Association, Planning, Polaska, Property, Purley, Purley Pool, Selsdon Residents' Association | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Labour accuse Perry of ‘mismanagement’ of Town Hall finances

Posted on February 5, 2025 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Opposition councillors say residents will be ‘horrified’ by Tory Mayor’s request to government for ‘a staggering’ £136million bail-out

Found out: Jason Perry has admitted he is incapable of ‘fixing the finances’, as he promised when getting elected

Pay more. Get less.

That was the reaction from Croydon Labour this morning in response to Tory Mayor Jason Perry’s latest admission that he is incapable of running a balanced council budget.

Official council papers released overnight predict a £98million overspend in the 2025-2026 financial year.

Mayor Perry will be facing the first of two scheduled budget-setting meetings at the Town Hall next week, when 2025-2026 Council Tax will also be determined.

In 2023 and again in 2024, Croydon’s Labour councillors opted to abstain and so allow Tory Perry’s unbalanced budgets to pass. In 2023, that meant that Perry was able to push through his 15% Council Tax increase, which he had specifically requested from the then Conservative-run government.

Croydon’s Council Tax will be increasing by the maximum 4.99% allowed this April (a Council Tax increase of 2.99% and a 2% increase in the adult social care precept levy). That will make it higher than at any time before, and is the second highest in London (only Kingston charges more). Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stuart King | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 22 Comments

Croydon In Crisis: budget overspend now close to £100m

Posted on February 5, 2025 by insidecroydon

Council Tax will have risen by 27% under Mayor Jason Perry, as Croydon and six other London boroughs beg Whitehall for multi-million-pound bail-outs

Lost control: Katherine Kerswell and Mayor Jason Perry have awarded themselves pay rises as the council’s overspend for next year is predicted to be close to £100m

Cash-strapped Croydon’s predicted budget overspend for the coming year is now at least £98million.

That’s according to figures released by the council overnight, ahead of next week’s budget-setting Town Hall meeting when, realistically, Mayor Jason Perry will again fail to set a truly balanced budget for 2025-2026.

According to an internal memo circulated to council staff this morning, the £98million  is what Katherine Kerswell, the council chief exec, “thinks” the overspend might be. The suggestion is that it could be much worse.

It is becoming ever clearer that Mayor Perry, Kerswell and other council executives have completely lost control of the council’s spending. And that they also have no idea of how to deal with the matter. Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Tony McArdle | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 9 Comments

Perry’s ‘nice little earner’ – Tory Mayor’s undeclared £10,000

Posted on February 4, 2025 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Elected figures across the capital are pocketing generous ‘bonuses’ – all paid for by Council Tax-payers, just for attending a few committee meetings for the London Councils organisation.
EXCLUSIVE by WALTER CRONXITE, political editor

Oi! Oi!: Jason Perry has topped up his £84,000 Croydon salary with a nice little earner

Croydon’s Tory Mayor Jason Perry has never included in his official register of interests a payment of more than £10,000 he received last year from the local government organisation London Councils.

All councillors, and Croydon’s elected Mayor, are required under Section 30 of the Localism Act 2011 to keep their register of interests up to date.

The council’s Code of Conduct also requires openness, transparency and honesty of all Croydon staff and its elected members.

Yet while Mayor Perry’s declarations appear to be fastidious, seemingly logging every Surrey Street coconut, charity T-shirt, slap-up meal or Crystal Palace football ticket he has received since being elected in May 2022, there’s no trace to be found on the council website of this particular nice little earner – a significant top-up to the £84,000 salary Perry is paid by the council.

Continue reading →

Posted in Claire Holland, Clive Fraser, Croydon Council, London Councils, London-wide issues, Louis Carserides, Mayor Jason Perry, Scott Roche, Shirley South, South Norwood, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense, Streatham and Croydon North | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 8 Comments