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Tag Archives: Westfield
Coulsdon business makes urgent appeal: ‘Where is everyone?’
The decline in retail, and the struggles of Britain’s high streets, has been well documented for two decades. It’s the main reason that Westfield has left central Croydon to rot since 2012, their promises of a £1.4billion redevelopment of the … Continue reading
Posted in Business, Coulsdon, Coulsdon Town
Tagged Business, Coulsdon, Coulsdon High Street, Cozy Glow, Cozy Glow Candles, Croydon High Street, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
24 Comments
Crisis for Perry as Interim Adam resigns council planning job
KERSWELL’S CHAOTIC COUNCIL: A journeyman council director notorious for charging fees of £1,000 per day and taking massive pay-offs has quit as Croydon’s head of planning, following an investigation by this website. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Adam Wilkinson, the journeyman … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Adam Wilkinson, Brick by Brick, Business, Council Tax, CPO, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Adam Wilkinson, Adam Wilkinson Consultancy Ltd, Cllr Alasdair Stewart, Cllr Jason Cummings, Companies House, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Derby City Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Katherine Kerswell, Kent County Council, London, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
24 Comments
Council cuts off Whitgift Centre by closing subway permanently
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Mayor Perry’s council has made another cost-cutting decision that could put the lives of pedestrians at risk. EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES Just a few steps away from the entrance to the Wellesley Road pedestrian subway, Croydon Council … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Croydon Council, Transport, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Hammersfield, London Borough of Croydon, Phil Crawley, Wellesley Road, Wellesley Road pedestrian underpass, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
15 Comments
Interim Adam gets council job as HMRC winds up his company
CROYDON IN CRISIS: The council’s most recently appointed planning director was given the role while a company where he was sole director was being wound up in the High Court, an iC investigation has found. EXCLUSIVE by KEN LEE, Town … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Adam Wilkinson, Alasdair Stewart, Brick by Brick, Business, Council Tax, CPO, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Jason Cummings, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Adam Wilkinson, Adam Wilkinson Consultancy Ltd, Alasdair Stewart, Brick by Brick, Cllr Alasdair Stewart, Cllr Jason Cummings, Companies House, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Derby City Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Katherine Kerswell, Kent County Council, London, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
13 Comments
‘It has to be’: Westfield scheme needs millions of public money
UNDER THE FLYOVER: In our latest podcast interview, housing specialist Fiona Fletcher-Smith, now the volunteer chair of the Whitgift Foundation’s governors, discusses the housing crisis, the closure of Old Palace School, what’s happening with the long-promised ‘kiosks’ in the Allders … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Boris Johnson, Business, Charity, Croydon Council, Fiona Fletcher Smith, Housing, Inside Croydon, London-wide issues, Mayor Jason Perry, Mayor of London, North End Quarter, Planning, Property, Sadiq Khan, Under The Flyover, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
Tagged Boris Johnson, Court of Governors, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fiona Fletcher-Smith, GLA, Hammersfield, London, Mayor, Mayor Jason Perry, Roisha Hughes, Under The Flyover, Unibail Rodamco Westfield, URW, Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
17 Comments
£1,000 per day ‘Interim Adam’ lands Croydon planning job
CROYDON IN CRISIS: The council has made no announcement about who has taken over the borough’s top planning job, but this website has discovered that Heather Cheesbrough’s stand-in replacement is an ‘interim specialist’ who has pocketed more than £500,000 in … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Adam Wilkinson, Brick by Brick, Business, CPO, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Katherine Kerswell, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Adam Wilkinson, Brick by Brick, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Derby City Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Kent County Council, London, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
23 Comments
Old Palace up for ‘wellbeing’ award just weeks before closure
CROYDON IN CRISIS: The fee-paying girls’ school in Old Town has been shortlisted for a prize at a national awards event to be staged at a 5-star hotel where tickets cost £245 per head. By GENE BRODIE, education correspondent With … Continue reading
Posted in Jane Burton, Old Palace, Red Gates School, Schools, Whitgift Foundation
Tagged Bensham Manor School, Croydon, Old Palace, Old Palace School, Old Palace School of John Whitgift, Red Gates School, Sutton High School, TES Schools Awards, Times Education Supplement, Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
1 Comment
Superdry closure is the latest nail in Whitgift Centre’s coffin
With every passing announcement of the latest closure, nails are being hammered into the coffin of Croydon’s sadly declining Whitgift Centre. The latest exit is that of Superdry, the shop selling the premium British fashion brand that occupies a large, … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Housing, Mayor of London, Property, Secret Cinema, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
Tagged Body Shop, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Hammersfield, Mayor Jason Perry, Monsoon, Sainsbury's, Superdry, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
20 Comments
Foundation sells Old Palace site to Serenity special schools
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Old Palace girls’ school closes in July, with the owners having sold the site, but for less than the £7m guide price. EXCLUSIVE By STEVEN DOWNES The Old Palace private girls’ school site will likely become home to … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, CPO, Education, Old Palace, Roisha Hughes, Schools, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
Tagged Archbishop John Whitgift, Archbishop of Canterbury, Croydon, Knight Frank, Old Palace of John Whitgift School, Old Palace School, Roisha Hughes, Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
4 Comments
Bench removal confirms Perry’s PSPO is yet another failure
CROYDON IN CRISIS: Mayor’s ‘reign of error’ now includes removing benches from the high street in attempt to solve anti-social behaviour. Except that it hasn’t… KEN LEE reports Jason Perry, Croydon’s piss-poor Mayor, has spent much of the past week … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Croydon BID, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, North End Quarter, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Conservative, Croydon, Croydon BID, Croydon Council, Hammersfield, London Borough of Croydon, Marks and Spencer, Mayor Jason Perry, North End, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
13 Comments
‘More buckets than businesses’: readers quiz Labour’s Davis
‘What are you going to do about the Whitgift Centre?’ one of our readers asked Councillor Rowenna Davis, Labour’s recently selected candidate to stand for election as Croydon Mayor in May 2026. ‘At the moment, there’s more buckets than businesses.’ … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", 2026 council elections, 2026 Croydon Mayor election, Council Tax, Croydon Business Association, Croydon Council, Croydon Insider, Crystal Palace FC, Fairfield Halls, Inside Croydon, Ken Towl, Mayor Jason Perry, Neil Bennett, Rowenna Davis, Under The Flyover, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged 2025 FA Cup final, Cllr Rowenna Davis, Connie Duxbury, Conservative, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Community Energy, Croydon Council, Crystal Palace, Crystal Palace FC, Fairfield Halls, Hammersfield, Ken Towl, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Neil Bennett, Oumesh Sauba, Rowenna Davis, Tory, Waddon, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
4 Comments
Negrini enjoys her centre stage return pitching for Mayor Khan
Like Banquo’s ghost, Jo Negrini has returned to haunt Croydon after her latest jaunt to the south of France for the annual “booze and hooker fest” – or prestigious international property conference – that is MIPIM. When “Negreedy” was the … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Brick by Brick, Business, CPO, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Housing, Jo Negrini, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, Planning, Sadiq Khan, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Brick by Brick, Croydon, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, London, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor, Mayor Jason Perry, Mayor of London, Planning, Richard Plant, Sir Sadiq Khan, Stiles Harold Williams, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
10 Comments
Ex-planning chief’s rose-tinted view of Croydon developments
It appears that Heather Cheesbrough, Croydon Council’s former “director of planning and sustainable regeneration”, has been busy trying to rewrite history since leaving her £130,000-plus job earlier this month. An internal council memo gave the reason for Cheesbrough’s departure as … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Brick by Brick, Business, CPO, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Planning, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Brick by Brick, Croydon, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
12 Comments
It’s Easter – so obviously, Whitgift Centre goes all Jurassic Park
Croydon’s Centrale and Whitgift shopping centres are staging a Dino Eggstravaganza this Easter weekend, what they call “a thrilling, prehistoric-themed experience for dino-lovers of all ages”. So, full of the meaning of Easter, then… From tomorrow, Thursday April 17, through … Continue reading
Landowner wants public cash to help delayed Westfield project
EXCLUSIVE by STEVEN DOWNES The Whitgift Foundation is in talks with the Mayor of London and central government for another multi-million-pound bail-out for Croydon, this one likely to centre around building around 3,000 homes in the town centre. That’s according … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Centrale, Charity, Housing, London-wide issues, Mayor of London, North End Quarter, Old Palace, Planning, Property, Roisha Hughes, Schools, TfL, Tom Copley, Trinity School, Under The Flyover, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation, Whitgift School
Tagged Croydon, Hammersfield, London, Mayor, Old Palace of John Whitgift School, Old Palace School, Roisha Hughes, Sir Howard Dawber, Tom Copley, Trinity School, Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation, Whitgift School
7 Comments
Kiosks to open today in clapped-out shell of Allders building
Monsoon has gone. WH Smith is soon to be no more. Sainsbury’s packed up and left. So has Body Shop. But after more than a decade of broken promises, “a bold, new retail era is being launched” by Westfield in … Continue reading
Council planning chief Cheesbrough set to take ‘career break’
EXCLUSIVE: After nearly a decade in charge of Croydon’s planning department, one of Jo Negrini’s closest colleagues is to leave Fisher’s Folly. By our Town Hall correspondent, KEN LEE Heather Cheesbrough, Croydon Council’s “director of planning and sustainable regeneration” (try … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Brick by Brick, Business, CPO, Croydon Council, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, Planning, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Brick by Brick, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Heather Cheesbrough, Jo Negrini, London, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Planning, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
28 Comments
The Masterplan has just one aim, to make money for Westfield
CROYDON COMMENTARY: The Town Hall planners handing over Masterplan responsibilities for the town centre to Westfield, as Inside Croydon reported this week, has left reader CARL LUCAS angry that our council will be missing a significant opportunity for a sustainable … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Centrale, Croydon Council, Environment, Housing, Mayor Jason Perry, Michael Neal, Nicola Townsend, North End Quarter, Planning, Property, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Carl Lucas, Croydon, Croydon Council, East Croydon station, Hammersfield, London Borough of Croydon, Michael Neal, NEQ, Nicola Townsend, North End Quarter, Tory, Unibail Rodamco Westfield, URW, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
25 Comments
Housing association CEO takes lead role at Whitgift Foundation
For the first time in more than 400 years, the Whitgift Foundation is to be led by a woman. “That’s if you don’t count Queen Elizabeth I,” confided a wag at the Whitgift Almshouses, where the charity and multi-million-pound property … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Charity, Fiona Fletcher Smith, Roisha Hughes, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation
Tagged Archbishop of Canterbury, Charity Commission, Christopher Houlding, Court of Governors, Croydon, Fiona Fletcher-Smith, Hammersfield, Old Palace, Old Palace of John Whitgift School, Roisha Hughes, Trinity School, Westfield, Whitgift Centre, Whitgift Foundation, Whitgift School
6 Comments
In-depth and informed: our podcast questions the councillor
Just how does Croydon’s cash-strapped council function? Is Westfield deliberately driving traders out of the Whitgift Centre? Why won’t Mayor Perry allow some councillors to speak at council meetings? Which Newman Numpty is today the chair of a key council … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Cockneys of Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon Insider, Fairfield, Inside Croydon, Katherine Kerswell, Ken Towl, Mayor Jason Perry, Ria Patel, Surrey Street, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Cockneys of Croydon, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Fairfield Halls, Hammersfield, Katherine Kerswell, Ken Towl, Lee Townsend, Mayor Jason Perry, Oumesh Sauba, Ria Patel, Surrey Street, Surrey Street Market, The Croydon Insider, The Green Party, Tory, Under The Flyover, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
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Another Whitgift store to close – and manager blames Westfield
There’s another closing down sale in the Whitgift Centre. And this time, the exiting retail business, toy store The Entertainer, has made it abundantly clear that their decision to quit the increasingly empty Croydon shopping centre was entirely down to … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Mayor Jason Perry, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Camden Coffee House, Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Hammersfield, Mayor Jason Perry, Sainsbury's, The Body Shop, Tory, Unibail Rodamco Westfield, URW, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
3 Comments
Westfield’s latest charm offensive: £1,000 to handful of groups
Westfield, part of the multi-national Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield property group which is worth many billions, last month announced an “important strand of our community strategy”: doling out some modest grants to community groups and charities in the borough. It is more than … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Allders, Business, Charity, Community associations, CVA, Mayor Jason Perry, North End Quarter, Steve Phaure, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Croydon Voluntary Action, CVA, Hammersfield, Labour, Liberal Democrats, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Steve Phaure, Tory, Unibail Rodamco Westfield, URW, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
6 Comments
Cash-strapped council’s Mayor wants to give himself a pay rise
Our Town Hall reporter, KEN LEE, on the latest piece of self-serving nonsense from the borough’s under-achieving Mayor Jason Perry, Croydon’s part-time Mayor, wants to increase his annual salary to almost £84,000. And he expects Croydon residents to pay for … Continue reading
Posted in Council Tax, Croydon Council, General Purposes and Audit Committee, Improvement Board, Katherine Kerswell, Lynne Hale, Mayor Jason Perry, Section 114 notice, Stephen Lawrence-Orumwense
Tagged Brick by Brick, Conservative, Council Tax, Croydon, Croydon Council, Hammersfield, Katherine Kerswell, Labour, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Michael Neal, STUART KING, Tory, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
12 Comments
No apologies from council for Christmas closure of subway
A week on since Inside Croydon reported on the plight of Whitgift Centre traders, cut-off from their customers by the abrupt, no-notice closure of the Wellesley Road pedestrian underpass, and Croydon Council has responded. With an unapologetic tweet. It is … Continue reading
Posted in "Hammersfield", Business, Croydon Council, Mayor Jason Perry, Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield, Whitgift Centre
Tagged Conservative, Croydon, Croydon Council, Hammerson, London Borough of Croydon, Mayor Jason Perry, Pedestrian underpass, Tory, Wellesley Road, Westfield, Whitgift Centre
10 Comments
