Don’t look back in anger – book shows what might have been

Posted on August 30, 2024 by insidecroydon

Ghost town: in his book Croydonopolis, Will Noble, who took the picture, compares the Whitgift Centre to a scene from a zombie movie

Croydon gets a bad rap. Yeah, we know that, with much of it recent and wholly deserved. Croydon has some fascinating history. Yeah, we know that, too. But as DAVID MORGAN found out from a book to be published next week, there are parts of the town’s history and geography which deserve careful study
PLUS: Get a 10% discount on Croydonopolis with an exclusive offer for Inside Croydon readers

“A Journey to the Greatest City That Never Was” proclaims the cover of Will Noble’s Croydonopolis, a hardback that traces the history of our town and borough in a quirky and entertaining read.

If the past is a foreign country, then Croydonopolis is another Croydon.

Whether you want to devour all the text in one go or just dip in and out, the book offers a view through the lens of Noble, a Croydon enthusiast who has lived in the borough for a few years. Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Croydon Airport, David Morgan, Education, History, Inside Croydon | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Timetable changes for New Addington and Purley buses

Posted on August 30, 2024 by insidecroydon

The 289 and 314 buses will be running more frequently from this weekend, with timetable changes implemented by Transport for London from tomorrow, Saturday, August 31.

All change: TfL says that more frequent 289s and 314s are in response to passenger demand

Route 289, between Elmers End and Purley via Addiscombe, West Croydon and Mayday Hospital, will have a new timetable on all days of the week with minor changes to times. The frequency will be increased to every 15 minutes instead of every 20 minutes during the daytime on Sundays.

The early morning frequency will be increased before 10am on Sunday mornings from every 30 minutes to every 20 minutes. No change to frequency at any other time.

Route 314, between Eltham Bus Station and New Addington, via Mottingham and Bromley, will have a new timetable on all days of the week with minor changes to times. The frequency will be increased on Sundays to every 20 minutes instead of every 30 minutes from first bus to last bus. The early morning frequency will also be increased before 7.30am on Saturday mornings from every 30 minutes to every 20 minutes. Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe East, Addiscombe West, Commuting, New Addington, New Addington North, TfL, Transport, Waddon, West Croydon | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Look: no counters! McDonald’s George Street given new design

Posted on August 29, 2024 by insidecroydon

The George Street branch of McDonald’s has re-opened after a redesign which the people behind the big golden arches say “promises to deliver a better customer experience for all”. What they probably mean is that fast food is about to get even faster.

McDonald’s calls its revamp programme “Convenience of the Future”, and at the busy George Street branch that now includes a dedicated courier waiting area, reflecting the increase in online and takeaway orders.

McDonald’s say that the “new restaurant layout with the latest technology…” will “create a more seamless and enjoyable experience for customers”. Faster, faster food.

It sounds as if someone at McD’s HQ swallowed an AI-enhanced dictionary, rather than a Big Mac, when they regurgitated this word soup: “While the traditional walk-in remains core to how customers order, the redesign of McDonald’s kitchens and dining areas as part of Convenience of the Future will better integrate digital sales channels, the McDonald’s App and make smarter use of internal space to enhance the dine-in experience.” Continue reading →

Posted in Business, East Croydon, Fairfield | Tagged , , , , | 4 Comments

Dear Angela: It’s time for you to act and fund Croydon fairly

Posted on August 29, 2024 by insidecroydon

Last month, the Croydon Mayor wrote to the Deputy Prime Minister begging for an urgent meeting to resolve the council’s long-standing financial problems after 14 years of Tory austerity. Angela Rayner did not reply. So now ANDREW FISHER, pictured right, on behalf of Croydon, and of Inside Croydon, has written this open letter

Dear Angela,

Across the country, councils are in financial crisis. This is due in large part to the huge budget cuts that have been imposed on councils by successive Conservative governments. In part, too, it has been exacerbated by local failures, by increasing service demand and here, in Croydon, by long-term structural underfunding.

Time for action: Angela Rayner has inherited huge problems in local government from the Tories

In 2022-2023, government funding to Croydon Council was worth £239.25 per resident. Neighbouring Lambeth gets £481.73 for each of their residents. Ask your cabinet colleague Steve Reed – he now represents a constituency that straddles both boroughs.

This inequality in funding has been the case for years. If Croydon got the same funding as Lambeth per resident, we’d have an extra £95million to spend every year – more than enough to balance the books. Continue reading →

Posted in Adult Social Care, Andrew Fisher, Children's Services, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Libraries, Section 114 notice, Steve Reed MP, Streatham and Croydon North | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 16 Comments

Track works to cut off tram services to Wimbledon, Sep 6-8

Posted on August 29, 2024 by insidecroydon

Yet more closures to the tram network have been announced by Transport for London – this time for September 6 to 8 on the stretch of track from Mitcham Junction to Wimbledon.

Notice has only just been given by TfL. The closures are while Network Rail conducts its own maintenance work in the area of Wimbledon Station, which requires power to be turned off on the tram network.

During the closure, TfL will use the time to conduct its own maintenance work to tracks near the Dundonald Road tram stop.

It is, though, unusual for such works to be conducted once the school holidays are over.

In the terse TfL statement, posted on some trams and stations in the past day or so, no timings are offered for the return to normal service.

Tram services between Wimbledon and Mitcham Junction will stop at 11.50pm on Friday, September 6. Continue reading →

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Minister McMahon snubs Croydon Mayor over ‘urgent’ meeting

Posted on August 28, 2024 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Keir Starmer’s new government seems in no rush to deal with the deep-seated problems caused by 14 years of austerity inflicted on local councils, as Jason Perry’s plea for an urgent meeting is given a cold shoulder by a junior minister. By WALTER CRONXITE, political editor

No rush: government officials will meet the ‘improvement’ panel before they talk to Mayor Jason Perry

Labour junior minister Jim McMahon has put Croydon’s Tory Mayor, powerless Jason Perry, firmly in his place telling him that he will meet to discuss the borough’s continuing financial struggles when he is good and ready – and not until after he has had a proper briefing from the quasi-commissioners on the government-appointed “improvement” and assurance panel.

The calculated snub from McMahon, the Minister of State for Local Government and English Devolution in Keir Starmer’s new government, reinforces the reality of piss-poor Perry’s enfeebled position since March 2021, when his own Conservative party colleague, Michael Gove, gave increased powers to his improvement panel, and rendered Croydon’s first executive mayor impotent. Continue reading →

Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, Improvement Board, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

Guilty plea by anti-ULEZ vandal could put Perry in the dock

Posted on August 28, 2024 by insidecroydon

Two-tier policing: will Croydon Mayor Jason Perry and Conservative MP Chris Philp be forced to face the consequences for their part in an anti-ULEZ Facebook group that provoked vandalism and criminal damage?

A south London Crown Court yesterday heard a man admit using Facebook to encourage others to commit thousands of pounds of criminal damage to public infrastructure. By STEVEN DOWNES

Unconfirmed reports from Jason Perry’s inner sanctum on the 12th floor at Fisher’s Folly suggest that one of the Croydon Mayor’s handful of minions has been tasked to prepare an emergency overnight bag, including a change of underpants, a toothbrush and half a loaf of fish paste sarnies, plus, of course, cake, just in case the erstwhile administrator and “expert” of the Croydon anti-ULEZ Facebook page finally gets to have his collar felt.

This follows a case at Woolwich Crown Court yesterday where Joseph Nicholls entered a guilty plea for publishing Facebook posts which were capable of “encouraging or assisting others” to carry out “criminal damage to or theft” of ULEZ cameras. Continue reading →

Posted in 2024 London elections, Chris Philp MP, Crime, Croydon South, Environment, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Mayor of London, Policing, Sadiq Khan, TfL, Transport, ULEZ, ULEZ expansion | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 4 Comments

Locals demand to know why Sanderstead Rec looks wrecked

Posted on August 28, 2024 by insidecroydon

CROYDON IN CRISIS: With each passing week, the impact of living in a cash-strapped, poorly managed and neglected borough is becoming clear to residents, even in what used to be regarded as the leafy suburbs.
PEARL LEE, our south of the borough correspondent, reports

Rack and ruin: Sanderstead Rec is just one of the borough’s parks that’s been neglected

Not all complaints about our council manage to make it through to the Local Government Ombudsman.

That, though, does not render some of them in any way invalid. So when members of the Sanderstead community ask “why our village is looking so neglected”, it is not only a question deserving of an answer. It is also a question which friends groups from across the borough, associated with many of Croydon’s parks and open spaces, might feel entitled to ask. Continue reading →

Posted in Community associations, Croydon Council, Croydon parks, Environment, Heathfield House, Queens Gardens, Refuse collection, Sanderstead, Sanderstead Residents Association, Taberner House | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 3 Comments

Croydon Housing meeting for the Waddon Estate, Aug 29

Posted on August 28, 2024 by insidecroydon

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Mystery as Fuller’s exit three Croydon pubs in unseemly hurry

Posted on August 27, 2024 by insidecroydon

In the second part of his review of the hospitality trade in the borough (yes, dear reader, we sent him on a month-long pub crawl), KEN TOWL explores the reasons for one of London’s biggest and best-loved brewers’ sudden departure from its Croydon pubs

New Standard: the management of this Fuller’s pub only found out it had been sold when they received the new owners’ ‘welcome’ pack

What is the state of Croydon’s pubs these post-pandemic days?

Chiswick-based brewing giant Fuller’s seem to have little faith in the town’s tipplers. Very quietly, they have stepped back from four Croydon pubs that, until recently, were homes to London Pride and carried their distinctive, old-school signage.

Today, only the Crown & Sceptre on Junction Road in South Croydon (Hophead £4.85/pint) carries the full Fuller’s branding and range of beers, including the (now elusive, in Croydon) ESB. Business, on a Thursday night, seems to be lively enough. They claim to be still a Fuller’s house.

However, over at the Builders Arms on Leslie Park Road in Addiscombe, staff inform me that, “This is a tenancy. There are no Fuller’s houses left in Croydon now.” Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Business, Esther Sutton, Fairfield, Ken Towl, Property, Pubs, South Croydon | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 5 Comments

IT’S OFFICIAL: Croydon still among country’s worst councils

Posted on August 27, 2024 by insidecroydon

A Top 10 no council wants to be in: but the Local Government Ombudsman prefers a more statistically nuanced league table of complained about boroughs

CROYDON IN CRISIS: Four years since Katherine Kerswell was installed as Croydon’s chief executive, and figures from the Local Government Ombudsman confirm that our council is among the most complained about in England. And soon, our council might be forced to admit their mistakes to the public. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES

Among the worst: Croydon is getting hundreds of complaints under council CEO Katherine Kerswell

It’s official. According to new figures released by the Local Government Ombudsman, Croydon Council is among the worst of all local authorities in the country – by whatever measure you might choose to use.

It is now four years since Katherine Kerswell was parachuted in to the top job at Fisher’s Folly, following the abrupt but very rewarding exit of Jo “Negreedy” Negrini.

Despite surrounding herself with more director-level council bosses than even empire-building Negrini ever employed, Croydon’s £192,000 per year CEO is presiding over a local authority that is in the “Top 10” of councils for the volume of complaints, for the number of complaints upheld by the Ombudsman, and for the number of complaints upheld per head of population. Continue reading →

Posted in Adult Social Care, Children's Services, Council Tax, Croydon Council, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Busy Coulsdon volunteer is showing the way with the RVS

Posted on August 27, 2024 by insidecroydon

Irving Francis, from Coulsdon, is being celebrated for his volunteering efforts, as he has passed the milestone of completing more than 600 tasks to support people across south London.

Showing the way: Irving Francis has conducted 600 volunteer tasks in four years

Through the NHS and Care Volunteer Responders programme, since 2000, Francis has been giving back to others, helping with grocery and prescription collections for older and vulnerable people, making friendly phone calls to those in need of a friendly chat, and stewarding at nearby covid vaccination centre.

Fancis’s volunteering efforts have protected the health of some of the most vulnerable people in his community, as well as contributing to the success of the biggest vaccination programme in history.

NHS and Care Volunteer Responders is delivered by Royal Voluntary Service and GoodSAM, who have a army of 40,000 volunteers across the country. Continue reading →

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

Coulsdon Road works set to finish a week ahead of schedule

Posted on August 26, 2024 by insidecroydon

Coulsdon Road, the B2030 by Coulsdon Common and The Fox pub, will re-open from tomorrow, August 27, almost a week earlier than had been expected.

No more no through road: Coulsdon Road is set to re-open from tomorrow

The road closures became controversial because many Old Coulsdon residents felt that they would shut them off from most routes to Caterham and into Croydon, but the council made adjustments and postponed the works until August 15, with them due to be completed by September 2 – just before the schools returned after the summer holiday.

The works were to repair and upgrade drainage soakaways on a stretch of road beside the common which had become subject to regular flooding. The council’s contractors had to abandon, unfinished, an earlier attempt to conduct the works in April. Continue reading →

Posted in Coulsdon, Croydon Council, Old Coulsdon, TfL, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mark Butcher album launch, Kennington Oval, Sep 27

Posted on August 26, 2024 by insidecroydon

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Pampisford Road Allotments Open Day and BBQ, Sep 1

Posted on August 26, 2024 by insidecroydon

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Posted in Activities, Community associations, Gardening, Purley, South Croydon | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

Woodcote garden centre is cultivating its Little Seedlings Club

Posted on August 26, 2024 by insidecroydon

Garden centre chain Dobbies is nurturing the next generation of gardeners with its free Little Seedlings Club workshop at its Woodcote Green store next Sunday.

Mindfulness: the Little Seedlings Club for 4-10-year-olds is free

Dobbies is inviting young gardeners, aged between four and 10, to explore mindfulness in a fun and engaging way at the workshop which takes place from 11am on September 1.

Promising an enriching experience that blends the joys of gardening with the calming practices of mindfulness, children will get a chance to learn about the benefits of being present in the moment and connecting with nature. Continue reading →

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Cinema strides out with its All Of Us Strangers guided walk

Posted on August 25, 2024 by insidecroydon

The good people at the David Lean have devised a two-hour amble around Sanderstead and Riddlesdown to show off the locations that play a key part of one of the best recent British-made movies
PLUS: PODCAST: Listen to director Andrew Haigh interviewed about how he made his Croydon home central to his acclaimed movie

Bit of a Rec: actor Andrew Scott, as Adam in All Of Us Strangers, much of it filmed on location in Sanderstead

The David Lean Cinema crew are doing their utmost to bring films to life, and next month they are going on a special walking tour of the locations used in the making of Andrew Haigh’s acclaimed 2023 movie, All Of Us Strangers.

Inside Croydon’s Caitlin Clifford recently outlined how Haigh had placed Croydon, and especially his childhood family home in Sanderstead, front and centre in the making of the film, which stars Andrew Scott, Claire Foy and Jamie Bell. Continue reading →

Posted in Art, Cinema, David Lean Cinema Campaign, Fairfield Halls, Sanderstead, Walks | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Solicitors’ firm gets behind Dawn of Hope walk on Sep 13

Posted on August 25, 2024 by insidecroydon

A member of staff at a legal firm with offices in Croydon has organised a sponsored walk called “Dawn Of Hope” to raise money and awareness for Grassroots Suicide Prevention, and in memory of all those lost to suicide and to support others battling with mental health.

Amy O’Shea, assistant office manager at Martin Searle Solicitors, has organised “Dawn of Hope”, drawing on her own experiences following the death of her mother in 2019.

More than 6,000 people commit suicide across the British Isles each year. “This leaves their families with unanswered questions, guilt, and little understanding of where things went wrong,” O’Shea says.

Of her own mother’s death, O’Shea says, “It happened with no warning — or at least we weren’t aware of any of the signs that she would do this. Living in rural Ireland, we had no access to services dedicated to mental health, no education at school on this topic and it certainly wasn’t ever discussed among friends and family.” Continue reading →

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Mind in Croydon drop-in sessions, Wednesdays and Thursdays

Posted on August 25, 2024 by insidecroydon

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After 12-year delay, Perry pipes up on the Bridge to Nowhere

Posted on August 24, 2024 by insidecroydon

Public reacts with contempt and derision at more empty promises from Croydon’s Mayor over a project which has now cost £37m but still has no completion date agreed

Bridge to Nowhere: Mayor Perry still can’t provide a completion date

Residents who have been kept waiting for nearly 12 years for the promised pedestrian link from Addiscombe to Croydon town centre by the Bridge to Nowhere at East Croydon Station have described Mayor Jason Perry’s latest public intervention in the matter as “pathetic”.

Inside Croydon reported last month how, although the link to Cherry Orchard Road was at last ready to be opened after a decade of delay by private developers Menta, Network Rail now has no budget for ticket machines at the long-promised entrance to the station, and maintenance work on the bridge could take until 2025 before it is safe to open.

A well-attended meeting of residents held last month, attended by Menta and Network Rail, was told that no party has yet to take financial and legal liability for the belated opening of the bridge’s Addiscombe entrance. Continue reading →

Posted in Addiscombe West, Business, Community associations, Croydon Council, East Croydon, ECCO, Mayor Jason Perry, Menta Tower, Planning, Property, Transport | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 12 Comments

Eight-year-old Naomi ignored a fall to raise £2,365 for charity

Posted on August 24, 2024 by insidecroydon

Towering achievement: Naomi Townsend has raised thousands of pounds for charity

South Croydon schoolgirl Naomi Townsend fell over but picked herself up and finished her sponsored run last weekend, exceeding her fund-raising target, with £2,365 towards the Jamaican hurricane relief fund through her sponsored run in Ashburton Park last weekend.

“Even though I fell over and hurt myself, I didn’t give up because I didn’t want to let the people down who sponsored me,” the eight-year-old said.

Naomi ran eight kilometres – about five miles – during the course of last Sunday. Continue reading →

Posted in Charity, Schools, South Croydon | Tagged , , , , | 1 Comment

Gentleman Tim and the Contenders, The Oval Tavern, Sep 1

Posted on August 24, 2024 by insidecroydon

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Textor sets out his long goodbye from Palace and its fans

Posted on August 23, 2024 by insidecroydon

Crystal Palace’s multi-millionaire American co-owner John Textor has issued a 1,100-word statement today to confirm that he wants to sell his shares in the club in order to buy a chunk of Premier League rivals Everton.

He has made the announcement after offers to buy-out the three other co-owners at Palace received no response, he says.

Textor’s switch of loyalty from one Premier League club to another has been brewing all year. “Everton represents the best of English football. How great would it be to take one of these great English clubs back to sort of glory?” Textor was reported to say earlier this year. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Crystal Palace FC, Football, John Textor, Sport, Steve Parish | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

“I believe I will be referring to a new club as ‘my club’ soon”

Posted on August 23, 2024 by insidecroydon

Here, in full, is the statement issued earlier today by Crystal Palace FC co-owner John Textor:

Eyeing Everton: John Textor

“In light of recent reports, which we believe may be well intended, but are still inaccurate or imprecise, we feel compelled to clarify our intentions as current owners of Crystal Palace Football Club, for the benefit of its community, and for the benefit of the Everton community which may be affected by these reports.

“We can confirm that we are interested in selling our interest in Crystal Palace, largely so that we can pursue a relationship with the Everton club and community. Several months ago, we hired Raine Group to begin the process of evaluating alternatives, as we were considering two very different alternatives, at that time, either a purchase of a majority interest in Palace or an outright sale.

“Since the beginning of our investment in 2021, and our initial 40% purchase, it had always been my intent to purchase a majority interest in the Club. I was invited to buy a majority interest, at that time, and I have often regretted not doing so previously. Continue reading →

Posted in Business, Crystal Palace FC, Football, John Textor, Sport, Steve Parish | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Sexual assault detective is dismissed from Metropolitan Police

Posted on August 23, 2024 by insidecroydon

Disciplinary panel chair says: ‘Police officers are expected to uphold the law not to break it’, but community groups in Croydon are asking why that’s not been applied here

A Metropolitan Police detective working in south London has been dismissed from the force after pleading guilty to sexual assault.

More charges: London’s police have dismissed dozens of officers in recent months. But Croydon has a constable with a criminal conviction who is still working here

Detective Constable Jose Poonsawat was attached to the Central South Command Unit, which covers Lambeth and Southwark. He appeared at Croydon Magistrates Court last month charged with sexual assault, after being accused of “sexually touching a woman without her consent” while off-duty in December 2022. It has emerged that the victim was a police colleague.

He pleaded guilty and was released on court bail to appear for sentencing today.

Earlier this week, the Met’s misconduct hearing found that, “DC Poonsawat’s actions breached the standards of professional behaviour as set out in the Regulation 5 and Schedule 2 of the Police (Conduct) Regulations 2020 namely: Discreditable conduct.” Continue reading →

Posted in Andy Brittain, Crime, London-wide issues, Policing | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment