Your Croydon - February 2010

Transcription

Issue 38 - February 2010
Your primary source of community information
Land Girl’s memories
of wartime home front
struggle
Page 6
www.croydon.gov.uk
Boutique businesses
flock to forgotten
corner of town
Page 13
Join call to Mayor
for more police
Susie Rundle reports on the new drive to make our streets safer.
A major initiative to boost
the borough’s fight against
crime and antisocial
behaviour –and get more
police officers on its streets
– has been launched by the
council.
Residents and
businesses are being urged
to sign a petition, which
the council will present to
Mayor of London, Boris
Johnson, on behalf of the
people of Croydon.
Although Croydon is the
largest London borough,
and a major transport hub
and retail centre with a
large night-time economy,
it has been allocated only
the eighth highest number
of police officers – fewer
than some boroughs with
lower crime rates.
The offensive is part of
the ongoing drive to make
Croydon’s streets safer,
and respond to residents’
concerns on crime and
antisocial behaviour.
Councillor Gavin
Barwell, cabinet member
for community safety and
cohesion, said: “We believe
we have a strong case for
more police officers.
“Our local police do
a fantastic job and the
council’s relationship with
them is excellent.
“But there’s clear
evidence that, relative
to other boroughs, the
number of full-time police
officers in Croydon does
not adequately reflect the
number of offences.
“For example,
Newham, Hackney and
Tower Hamlets have all
been allocated more fulltime police officers than
Croydon; yet, because they
are much smaller than
Croydon, they have to deal
with fewer offences.”
During Operation Safe
for All, between October
2008 and March 2009,
the Metropolitan Police
Service allocated Croydon
additional police officers
from the Territorial Support
Group, and it made a big
difference.
Councillor Barwell said:
“We know residents want
to see more police on our
streets. My message to
them is: get behind this and
help us to make it happen.”
Councillor Stuart
Collins, shadow crime
and public protection
spokesman, said: “This is
an initiative with crossparty support.
“We believe that
Croydon needs more police,
and our local force has
demonstrated that they can
drive down crime with the
right resources.
“I’d urge all residents to
get behind this.”
All you have to do to
add your support is visit
www.croydon.gov.uk/
morepolice and follow the
email links.
You can also support
our petition by texting
more police to 60660,
with your name, first line of
your address and postcode.
Postcards will be
available at the borough’s
libraries, and these can be
filled in and posted (you
won’t need a stamp).
Cash boost for borough sports
Boon to clubs and individuals as Croydon lands funding package.
Sport in Croydon is set to
benefit to the tune of more
than a quarter of a million
pounds over the next three
years.
Kickstart: Sport is
a council-run project
supporting both team
activity and individual
fitness pursuits, that aims
to get thousands of extra
people active every year.
As many as 50 clubs
will receive much-needed
cash so they can promote
themselves more widely.
A range of boroughwide
sporting events are planned
Letters – page 5
that will get people actively
involved in regular physical
activity.
Croydon will also
be taking part in Sport
Unlimited – a programme
that gives schoolchildren
access to more than just
their standard two hours of
On top of the world
PE each week.
This is all part of
Croydon’s wider culture and
sport partnership strategy,
designed to give anyone
in the borough every
opportunity to do more
with their leisure time.
• See page 12.
Kicking for their future – page 14
Happy: grant took Alexandra to heights of Central America
OK, Alexandra Ridout
may not, in truth, actually
be on top of the world,
but standing 3,020
metres up San Pedro
in Guatamala isn’t bad
for someone used to
the somewhat lower
hills of South Croydon.
Alexandra was one
of the lucky recipients
of a grant in last
year’s Frank Denning
Memorial Trust awards.
Aimed at Croydon
students who want to
expand their experience
with foreign travel, the
grants are once again
available, with up to
£1,000 on offer to
individual applicants.
Medical student
Alexandra said the
experience was
invaluable and that
she was proud of what
she achieved during
her time in Belize.
• To read of how
Alexandra and other
students used their
grants, and to find out
how to apply if the
prospect appeals to
you, turn to page 10.
Didn’t they do well! – page 20
2x yournews
Poisoning
revisited
The unsolved murders of
three people in Croydon in
the 1920s are the subject of
a new book to be launched
at the Central Library this
month.
Diane Janes’ Poisonous
Lies details 10 months
between 1928 and 1929,
when three members of
the same South Croydon
family died from arsenic
poisoning.
No charges were ever
brought and the mystery
remains unsolved.
Diane Janes will talk
about the murder when
Poisonous Lies is launched
on Saturday, 27 February,
at 2.30pm on level one
of the Central Library in
Katharine Street.
Free tickets are
available from 1 February
at the library, or on the day.
February
May 2009
2010 | Your Croydon
In the frame Dealing with
the potholes
Students nominate instructor for top award.
Taming technology, and
using it effectively in
his teaching, has seen a
Croydon Adult Learning
and Training (Calat)
tutor, shortlisted for a
prestigious award.
Joe Partridge, a
photography tutor at the
Calat South Norwood
Centre, was nominated
by student Marianne
Dunn, on behalf of all the
photography learners.
They saw his use of
technology, such as the
interactive whiteboard,
email groups, web-based
resources and photography
equipment in Calat’s
White Box Studio, to be
worthy of a nomination.
Marianne said: “Joe’s
an excellent photographer
and has an infectious
passion for his subject,
and this translates to each
class and every learner.
Joe said: “It was
fantastic to be nominated
for this award.
“The concept of the
White Box Studio was
all very well, but to hear
from our learners that it’s
working is excellent.
“I know the bad
workman should not
blame his tools; I’d like to
thank mine!”
Joe is up for a
Furthering My Learning
Award, part of the Becta
Next Generation Learning
Awards 2010: Technology
Excellence in Further
Popular tutor: Joe Partridge
Education & Skills.
For information on
courses, call 0870 556
1630 or visit www.calat.
ac.uk
‘Things are on way up’
Author: Diane Janes
The first results of a
new annual report into
public services, Oneplace,
revealed Croydon is a
place where agencies are
committed to improving
value for money and
residents’ satisfaction
levels.
Oneplace said there
were “good plans” in place
and work done promoting
economic growth earned a
green flag – recognition for
exceptional performance.
There were no
Oneplace red flags for
Croydon, which signal
significant concerns about
performance.
The assessment said
front-line services like
refuse collection, recycling
and street cleaning had
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yourenvironment 18
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21
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15
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23
districtcentrenews
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centre pull-out
Editorial team
Editor: Fred Hall
Email: yourcroydon@
croydon.gov.uk
Tel: 020 8760 5644
Reporter: Richard Gibbs
Email: yourcroydon@
croydon.gov.uk
Tel: 020 8760 5644
Reporter: John Bownas
Email: yourcroydon@
croydon.gov.uk
Tel: 020 8760 5644
Deputy editor: Danny Brierley
Email: yourcroydon@
croydon.gov.uk
Tel: 020 8760 5644
Reporter: Susie Rundle
Email: yourcroydon@
croydon.gov.uk
Tel: 020 8760 5644
Advertising: Paula Howell
Email: yourcroydon@
croydon.gov.uk
Tel: 020 8760 5644
Your Croydon welcomes letters for publication. They should be no more than 200 words. Receipt of a letter
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improved significantly.
People were worrying
less about antisocial
behaviour, and children
and young people were
getting better grades at
school.
It also said Croydon
was one of the few
councils in London where
satisfaction with town hall
performance had increased.
The departure, for now
at least, of the most
prolonged spell of extreme
winter weather conditions
for nearly 30 years is set
to reveal the next major
challenge for local people
– potholes.
As would have been
expected, the freezing
conditions have caused
much road-surface damage
across the borough.
Now, the council is
calling on residents and
motorists to help identify
where repairs are needed.
Highways staff who
worked around the clock
to keep roads clear of
snow, have returned to
those same roads with
trucks full of asphalt
material to carry out
reinstatement.
The biggest problems
are the cavities caused by
what’s know as “freezethaw” conditions when
water gets into cracks,
expands as ice, and leaves
a gaping hole on the road
surface.
These are the faults
that the council wants to
hear about.
Residents are asked
to report them at www.
croydon.gov.uk/
roaddefects
Emails can be sent to
streetscene@croydon.
gov.uk or calls can be
made to local Streetscene
officers on 020 8726
6200.
In all instances the
exact location is essential
and a description of the
fault would be helpful to
assist in organising priority
treatment.
Next priority: winter has left roads with many potholes
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Undercover ops see drop in
illegal knife and booze sales
Prosecution numbers rise thanks to council initiative.
Knives: this kitchen set was sold to children
A series of undercover
operations to stop shops
selling knives and alcohol
to under-age children has
seen a massive fall in the
number of retailers being
caught out.
Concern over the
number of teenage
stabbings in London
and worries over
binge drinking led to a
clampdown that began in
2008.
Trading standards
officers recruited a team
of young volunteers to test
hundreds of shops.
In the first 12 months
one in four of the 170
“test purchases” carried
out failed and dozens
were prosecuted in court.
But this year, only
one in 16 failed and
the message that it is
unacceptable to sell
either product to children
appears to be getting
through.
Croydon’s oldest
department store was
among those prosecuted.
Allders was fined
£3,000 after pleading
guilty to selling a 15-year-
old girl and 14-yearold boy a block of six
large kitchen knives in
December 2008.
The store said systems
were now in place to
prevent a repeat.
Jimmy Vigh was
among the shop workers
caught selling alcohol.
He was fined £2,800 for
selling booze to a 15-yearold boy at Drinks Paradise
in Kenley.
The undercover
operations will continue,
despite the success of the
operation.
Registering a change of office Coulsdon gas repairs
For anybody wishing to
register the birth of a child,
or engage in any of a
number of civil ceremonies,
there is now a new home
for Croydon’s register
office.
With the closure of
its former home in the
council’s Fell Road office
block, the register office has
moved along the road, into
the Town Hall.
In addition to
birth registration,
services offered include
the notification of
deaths, marriages,
civil partnerships, and
applications for citizenship.
Last year, staff handled
628 marriages, 4,751
births, 2,105 deaths, and
awarded 2,080 adult
Citizenship Certificates.
Access to the register
office is via the Town Hall
entrance in Fell Road –
the old Borough Courts
entrance – and not through
the main Katharine Street
entrance.
Opening times are
Monday to Friday, 9.30am
to 4pm.
For more information,
email register.office@
croydon.gov.uk or call
020 8726 6300.
Ongoing gas main repair
work in Coulsdon is likely
to continue until about 5
February.
The work, which
began on the southern
side of the roundabout at
the junction of Farthing
Way and Brighton Road,
before moving to the
roundabout’s northern
side, is to fix a large leak
that developed in the first
week of January.
While the works
continue, traffic on
Brighton Road through
Coulsdon’s centre will
be one-way southbound,
with all northbound
traffic being diverted
along Farthing Way to the
northern junction where it
can then turn left to access
the town centre and Lion
Green Road.
A life in service
A New Addington
councillor has been
honoured by the Queen,
for services to the
community.
Brenda Kirby was
made an MBE in the New
Year Honours List for
services that stretch back
to before she was elected
to the council, in 1986.
The 64-year-old
grandmother and former
teacher was elected to
represent New Addington
in 1986, and was made
Mayor of Croydon – the
first from New Addington
– in 2004.
Her current term,
however, is to be her last
as she does not intend to
stand in this year’s council
elections.
Describing her feelings
on learning she had been
honoured, Councillor
Kirby said that she owes
a debt of gratitude to
everybody she has worked
with at the council and
elsewhere over the years.
“Nobody in this kind
of life does anything
on their own; I’ve been
helped by some wonderful
local people and some
brilliant council officers,”
she said.
“The community spirit
is still very strong in New
Addington.
“Getting the MBE is a
real paradox – I feel proud
but incredibly humbled,
and I’d like to say thankyou to everybody I’ve
worked with.”
fraudsters by collecting
any scam mailings they
receive, and dropping
them into designated
Scamnesty bins.
The bins can be found
at local libraries, the
Citizens Advice Bureaux
in Thornton Heath and
New Addington, Age
Concern in London Road,
New Addington Pop
In in Salcott Crescent,
and Access Croydon at
Taberner House, Park
Lane.
Alan Phillips, trading
standards chief, said:
“Sophisticated techniques
to trick vulnerable people
are brought into play by
the scammers.
“It’s not only the
immediate financial loss
that affects those who fall
for these scams.
“Often their lives are
blighted as they’re left in
fear, suffering debt and
depression and being too
afraid to tell anyone about
it.
“We’d ask family
Solar station
South Croydon station is set
to cut electricity use by using
solar energy to power new
CCTV cameras and lighting –
making them 100% national
grid-free.
Transport for London has
worked with Southern
Railway, London Rail,
Croydon Council, Network
Rail and Seltrans to install
solar panels at the station,
along with other measures
to improve the station for
passengers.
The £435,000 project has
provided 42 photovoltaic
solar panels.
Business praise
The Croydon Economic
Development Company
(CEDC) has hosted two
events which formed part
of the international festival,
Global Entrepreneurship
Week.
Benita Matofska, head of
Global Entrepreneurship
Week UK, praised the
CEDC’s team for helping
to “inspire and motivate
people to start to grow their
businesses in a difficult
financial climate”.
Rent rates
People in Croydon can
now compare average rent
levels for homes across
their borough and the rest
of London, using a new
interactive website.
The London Rents Map
shows the average rents for
private accommodation for
each postcode area in the
capital.
To see more, visit www.
london.gov.uk/rents
Air quality
Members of the public can
have their say on how to
improve air quality in the
borough.
Honour: Brenda Kirby
People power cracks down on scams
Fraudsters are being
targeted in the borough’s
latest campaign aimed at
protecting consumers.
Scamnesty 2010,
jointly run by Croydon’s
trading standards
department and the Office
of Fair Trading, calls on
borough residents to
fight back against the
News in brief
members, carers and
others to help spot the
warning signs before it’s
too late.”
If you think you have
been the victim of a scam,
or you suspect a scam,
call Consumer Direct on
08454 04 05 06, or visit
www.consumerdirect.
gov.uk/scamnesty
The council is developing
measures aimed at meeting
the government’s air-quality
standards. Croydon’s Air
Quality Action Plan (AQAP)
was first published in 2002.
Copies of the AQAP will be
available on the Council’s
web pages www.
croydon.gov.uk and
copies will be available in
Access Croydon, Taberner
House and public libraries.
The closing date for
comments is Friday, 26
February.
4 yournews
February 2010 | Your Croydon
May the artistic Register – or lose the
force be with you right to have your say
Stretch your writing or artistic skills and the head of an
interplanetary villain could be yours.
A Darth Vader costume
head is among a number
of items up for grabs in
a competition run by the
library service.
The head was
donated by the Forbidden
Planet comic shop in
London Road, Croydon
for the Stories into Art
Competition.
Heroes and Heroines
is the theme chosen for
the competition, which is
open to everyone aged 12
or over.
Other items that can be
won include a Sainsbury’s
gift voucher, tickets to
see Joan Armatrading at
Fairfield on 13 May, and
money to buy equipment
for schools and community
groups donated by the
Friends of Croydon
Libraries.
To enter, select a person
or people you have read
about that have inspired
you, and produce a piece of
art work or writing about
your choice.
You may have voted in the
past, and you may pay
council tax, but neither fact
guarantees you a vote in
this year’s general election.
As pre-election
campaigning picks up
speed, the council is
warning everyone who
wants to have their say on
voting day, due between
now and June, to make
sure they are registered to
vote.
The borough’s
returning officer, Jon
Rouse, said: “We found,
after the last general
election, that many people
in Croydon, who should
have been eligible to vote,
weren’t registered.
“It’s very simple – if
you’re not registered, you
can’t vote.
“Many people assume
they’re automatically on
the electoral register if they
pay council tax or if they’ve
voted before. This isn’t the
case; you need to register
every year.
“And you need to
re-register with your new
address if you’ve moved.
“So if you want to vote
in the general election,
now’s the time to act and
make sure nothing stops
you.”
To be sure of having
your say on election day,
visit www.aboutmyvote.
co.uk to find a printable
registration form.
For local voting
information, visit www.
croydon.gov.uk/regvote
Thank you for the Mozart
Prize: the head of an interplanetary villain
You might choose a
story character, a historical
figure, a celebrity, a sports
personality or team.
Every entrant will
receive a free DVD voucher
when their effort is handed
in at their local library.
Heroes and Heroines
runs until 26 April. For
more information, ask at
your nearest library or visit
www.croydon.gov.uk/
leisure/libraries
Musicians from the
London Mozart Players,
accompanied by a massed
choir of young singers,
will be performing works
by Abba on stage at
Fairfield on Sunday 7
March.
The London Mozart
Players, founded in 1949,
is the longest-established
chamber orchestra in
Britain. Since 1989, the
orchestra has been based
at Fairfield.
The remarkable
change of repertoire is for
a public concert to raise
funds for the Mayor of
Croydon’s charities – the
Garwood Foundation
Rutherford School and
Whitgift Special Needs
Activity Project which
offers holiday activity
opportunities for disabled
and disadvantaged young
people.
The programme,
starting at 6pm, will
involve an evening of
song and dance featuring
and celebrating the
remarkable talent of more
than 100 of the borough’s
young people.
Tickets, priced £10
and £5 for children and
seniors can be bought
from the Fairfield box
office at www.fairfield.
co.uk
Programme details
can be seen at www.
mayorsshow.com
yournews 5
Gritters ready for action
After weeks of Arctic
conditions, and the ongoing
possibility of more of the
same, Croydon’s gritting As
Your Croydon went to press,
the mountain of 3,000
tonnes of salt that was
stockpiled last year remains
severely diminished by the
prolonged bad weather.
However, foresight
and an early order for an
additional 1,500 tonnes
puts the borough at the
front of the queue for when
the lorries start to roll out
of the mines again.
Steve Iles, the
council’s highways head,
has responsibility for
coordinating the borough’s
gritting and snow-clearance
operations and is cautiously
optimistic about how the
borough will cope if more
snow comes this way.
He said: “We certainly
made the right decision to
order an additional 30%
more salt than in previous
years.
“That was what saw us
through January.
“We’re looking further
afield to foreign sources
of rock salt – the bottom
line is that we’re doing
everything we can to keep
Croydon’s main roads
moving.”
Because of the national
salt shortage, it is possible
that it will be some time
before Croydon can top up
its 500-plus roadside grit
bins.
The advice from the
council is to follow the
recommendations from
the major motoring
organisations – in
conditions of snow and
ice, leave your car at home
unless absolutely necessary.
If you do have to drive,
take a shovel and warm
clothes.
If the snow returns
check www.croydon.gov.
uk for regular updates.
New health chief appointed
There is a new man in
charge of Croydon’s public
health services.
NHS Croydon and
Croydon Council have
appointed Dr Peter
Brambleby as the borough’s
first joint director of public
health.
He comes to Croydon
from his role as director
of public health for North
Yorkshire and York Primary
Care Trust and North
Yorkshire County Council,
and will take up his new
role in February.
Peter spent the first 15
years of his life in India,
where he developed an
interest in public health,
social medicine and
communicable diseases.
After qualifying in
medicine at the Royal
Free Hospital in London,
he spent six years in
hospital medicine, mostly
paediatrics, before coming
into public health medicine
in 1986.
He is married, with
three children.
Peter has a long
association with
teaching and training,
at undergraduate and
postgraduate level, for
doctors and for allied
professions.
Peter said: “I’m
absolutely delighted to
New job: Dr Peter Brambleby
be given this opportunity
to come to Croydon and
experience a very different
set of public health
challenges to those in the
north of England.”
Your letters
Steaming photo
engine, designed
was an E4 class 0-6-2 tank
Beeding (page 21, February)
st Railway.
don, Brighton and South Coa
by R J Billington for the Lon
sor the Southern
rked for the LBSCR, its succes
It was built in 1898 and wo
pped in 1957.
scra
Railways until it was finally
Railway and finally British
ber was 476. The
locomotive, its original num
Intended mainly as a freight
boiler plus two
the
ing wheels situated below
0-6-2 type has six main driv
eath the driving cab.
smaller wheels located ben
ed after towns,
ir steam engines were nam
In LBSCR days many of the
g being a small
din
Bee
London districts,
continental cities, villages and
tination – this
des
its
of
ion
was not an indicat
town in Sussex. The name
network.
have worked over the whole
locomotive would probably
Railway in Sussex,
still survives on the Bluebell
One of the E4 class engines
passenger trains.
often seen at work hauling
named Birch Grove, and is
Coast Railway
London, Brighton and South
For more information on the
.uk
visit www.lbscr.demon.co
Alan Walters, Coulsdon
Editor’s note
ntifying our
one of many from readers ide
Mr Walters’ letter was only
e to write.
tim
the
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too
o
to everybody wh
mystery locomotive. Thanks
Spreading: gritters kept borough’s priority routes clear for traffic
Best of health
What patients can expect
from the health service
has been enshrined into
an NHS constitution for
the first time.
The document, which
received royal assent last
November, sets out what
patients, the public and
staff can expect from
their local NHS.
It contains
rights, pledges and
responsibilities for
patients and staff.
There is a new right
for patients about to make
choices about their care,
the right to register with
a GP surgery of their
Loving Croydon
My top tips for Croydon (Reasons to love
Croydon, January) are:
1 - Adult education: just before I retired, I
started learning Russian at Ashburton
evening classes with a brilliant teacher,
Olga Clarke. This altered the course of
my life as I started travelling to Russia,
eventually got a degree and then
worked for a month in Eastern Siberia
for a charity called Helping Hands. I’ve
recently been on an expedition trip to
the Russian High Arctic on a Russian
ship, through the Bering Strait to
Wrangel island, “The Maternity Home
of the Polar Bear”. I’ve enjoyed 25 years
of adventure due to Croydon’s adult
education facilities.
2 - Music at Fairfield, especially the London
Mozart Players.
3 - Easy access to London and Gatwick.
Barbara Forrai, Croydon
choice, the right to receive
drugs, treatments and
vaccination recommended
by national advisory
bodies.
The government
has now proposed a
number of additions to
the constitution to reflect
recent developments in
the NHS.
As part of a
nationwide consultation,
the NHS is asking
for people’s views on
proposals that include
a new right to access
services within set waiting
times and a new right to
NHS health checks for
people aged 40 to 74
years old.
Leaflets about the
NHS Constitution and the
proposed new rights are
available at health centres
and clinics, GP practices
and public libraries.
Views on the proposals
can be submitted by email
to nhsconstitution@
dh.gsi.gov.uk, by post
to NHS Constitution
Consultation Response,
Richmond House 601, 79
Whitehall, London SW1A
2NS.
The consultation for
the new constitution ends
on 5 February.
North/south divide
I have just finished reading the late
st Your Croydon, which
tells me that it is my “. . . primary sour
ce of community
information”. Well, is it now?
I read it carefully – twice. There is a
multi-page spread about
the wonders of Coulsdon, a long item
about all the dosh which
the council is going to lavish on Purl
ey, but hardly a single
word about anywhere in north Croy
don.
Now, I know that we aren’t quite as
wealthy or posh as the
denizens of the south, and it is true
that we tend not to vote
for the incumbent party at Taberner
House, but we are still
here and we pay our council tax to
Croydon.
We must have something interesting
about us that you could
write about.
R E Brown, South Norwood
Editor’s note
The January edition covered such com
munity topics as a boost
in transport funding, the planned upg
rades for Croydon Arena,
information on the physical activity
programme and the
scheme that introduces school child
ren to music. Each edition
strives to appeal to as many people
as possible; it is not the
intention to exclude any area.
We want to know your views, email us at yourcroydon@croydon.gov.uk or write to the address on page 2
6 specialfeature
Threshing, hedging, ditching, gathering straw and killing rats – Joyce did the
lot during nearly four years as a member of the Women’s Land Army.
Digging for
An invite to the Town Hall sparked
memories of wartime farm work for
a Shirley woman, who recounted
her exploits to Richard Gibbs.
The work was
often backbreaking, with
everything being
done by hand.
Picking potatoes on
Mitcham Common was
how Joyce Lake helped win
the war.
She was also marked
ten out of ten for stripping
– though, it must be said,
that had nothing to do with
undressing. Her assessors
were scoring her ability to
squeeze the very last dregs
of milk from the cows she
was milking.
Threshing, hedging,
ditching, gathering straw
and killing rats – Joyce did
the lot during nearly four
years as a member of the
Women’s Land Army.
She risked the wrath
of her parents by signing
up when she came back
to Wallington following
evacuation. She’d been sent
down to Cornwall after
watching bombs fall on
nearby Croydon Airport.
As she returned, Hitler’s
doodlebugs were raining
down on London and
she decided she was old
enough to do her bit for the
war effort. Mind you, she
wasn’t quite tall enough,
and had to stretch to make
it seem that she touched in
at 5ft.
Working on the land
was a contribution that she
shared with thousands of
other young women.
“We took the place
of the men who had
been called up to do the
fighting,” she said.
“We did what they
would have done, working
on the farms to help put
meals on people’s plates.”
In recognition of their
unsung but invaluable
work, surviving members
of the Land Army and
Timber Corps have recently
been awarded a badge of
recognition. And town halls
around the country have
invited the veterans in for a
richly deserved tribute.
Now 82, living in
Shirley, and a grandmother
of two teenaged grandsons
close by, Joyce’s memory of
what she got up to is razor
sharp, even if the dates and
places have become a bit
hazy over the years.
She recalls working
alongside conscientious
objectors and even some
German prisoners-of-war.
“They were only young
boys and they were all
some mothers’ sons. They
always seemed so hungry
and we used to share our
sandwiches with them.”
The work was often
back-breaking, with
everything being done by
hand. Least favourite was
stone picking: “No matter
how many you found in the
fields there would always
be loads more.”
And she recalls vividly
the bitter cold when
working on a farm near
New Addington.
“To keep warm, we
stuffed brown paper up
the backs of our coats, but
the wind and rain still got
in, and when you stood
straight it cracked the ice.”
One of five children,
Joyce was virtually a
mother to her youngest
brother, born as the war
was coming to an end.
She used to cycle to
South Croydon early each
morning to catch a lorry
up to Sanderstead, where
the farm orders would be
handed out and onward
Happy memories: Joyce has clear recall of her wartime effort
transport sorted.
More often than not,
she would be able to bring
back some vegetables or
fruit to help the family diet,
and in the evenings and
weekends she would help
her mother with the infant.
She and her brother are
still very close, despite the
engineer on an RAF
Lancaster bomber, survived
unscathed, despite having
to ditch in the Channel.
“Did you get wet?”
Joyce recalls her mother
asking the lucky flyer when
he gratefully got home in
one piece.
The remaining brother,
She recalls working alongside
conscientious objectors and even
some German prisoners-of-war.
16-year age difference.
Another of her brothers
was a Bevan Boy, sent to
work down the mines.
And Ken, a flight
Bill, gave the family a claim
to fame when he spent 18
years working as personal
valet for singer and actor,
Frank Sinatra.
There was talk of
a book setting out his
memoirs but possibly
Mafia connections didn’t
rate that as a particularly
appealing idea, and Bill
had to content himself with
a mention in Tina Sinatra’s
tales of her father.
It is therefore left to
Joyce to recount that
Bill’s grooming skills were
invaluable when it came
to her wedding to former
soldier Ron in 1951, a time
when coupons were the
only way to obtain food
and clothes.
Bill made her wedding
dress, bridal veil and the
multi-tiered cake – and got
58 years of married life
specialfeature 7
Have your e-say at yourcroydon@croydon.gov.uk 58
years of married life to Ron got underway with
home-made cake, wedding dress and veil.
victory
Looking back,
I’ve no regrets,
the experience
was wonderful.
Everybody was
so friendly.
I thoroughly
enjoyed it.
All lined up with somewhere to go: land girls ready to tackle whatever job was thrown at them
together off to a great start.
Sadly, they have lost
touch, although Joyce
hasn’t given up all hope
that there might be some
future contact.
While disappointed
not to have met anyone
she knew at the Town Hall
reunion, Joyce doesn’t
think that was the first
time she had been inside
the famous building – itself
badly damaged by wartime
bombing.
She recalls being invited
to participate in a publicity
shot with one of the 1940s’
most renowned actresses,
Rosamund John – who
played the wife of Spitfire
designer R J Mitchell in the
film First of the Few.
“The picture could have
been taken in the Town
Hall,” she said.
“It was all so long ago
now and I can’t really
remember. I do know I was
pulled from a crowd to be
photographed.
“But it was lovely to be
invited to the celebration
with the Mayor.
“Looking back, I’ve no
regrets, the experience was
wonderful.
“Everybody was so
friendly. I thoroughly
enjoyed it.”
get in touch
Can you tell us where
the photos on this
page were taken?
Send an email to
yourcroydon@croydon.
gov.uk
Star struck: Joyce (far left) with film actress Rosamund John
Bale and hearty: Joyce flexes her muscles
8 yourspace
The Vision is more than just what
a place should look like, it is also
about how people want to live.
For more information visit:
www.croydon.gov.uk/vision
Imagine all the people
Following the borough’s biggest consultation, residents have set out their vision for the future.
This exercise
has truly put
the views of
our residents
at the
forefront of
what we will
do for years
to come.
Mike Fisher
Plans which set out the
next 30 years for Croydon
have been published after
more than 20,000 people
told town leaders what sort
of borough they wanted to
live in.
Over the past year,
residents in every corner
of every ward – and from
every walk of life – have
given their ideas to help
shape the vision for
Croydon.
Their views were sought
as part of the Imagine
Croydon project, which
aimed to define how local
people want to see the area
develop.
Suggestions and
ideas from those that
took part in the survey
will now influence major
regeneration projects,
planning decisions, and
what the council’s priorities
should be, as well as health,
educational and voluntary
agencies in the area.
During the biggest
public consultation exercise
to be carried out in the
borough, people dictated
that Croydon should be
London’s most enterprising
borough – and a place that
fosters ideas, innovation
and learning, and provides
skills, opportunity and a
sense of belonging for all.
The Vision is more than
just what a place should
look like, it is also about
how people want to live.
Ideas on how to nurture
the talent and creativity
that already exists in
Croydon and how to exploit
strengths – such as good
transport links and diversity
– are contained in the
document.
There are six main
strands to the proposals
that were formed from
people’s responses.
They were to make
Croydon an enterprising
city, a place that nurtures
local talent through
learning, one that is
creative, connected,
sustainable and caring.
Councillor Mike Fisher,
chairman of Croydon’s local
strategic partnership, and
leader of Croydon Council,
said: “This exercise has
truly put the views of our
residents at the forefront of
what we will do for years
to come.
“Croydon has a huge
potential and people
recognised that. They also
recognised that Croydon
has yet to deliver on that
potential but, at the same
time, gave a clear indication
of how that can be done.
“By working together
on our Vision for Croydon
we can make this happen
at last.”
We need your views
8 February - 22 March
Alongside development of Croydon’s long-term
vision, the council is producing a Core Strategy –
a key document that sets out its spatial plan
for the next 20 years and longer.
It is important that the people who live and work
in Croydon contribute to the development of
this important document as it will guide future
development across the borough, including
making sure that we have what we need in terms
of homes, schools, jobs, etc.
The formal consultation period for the Core Strategy runs from 8 February to 22 March. Copies
of the report will be available online – and from borough libraries from 22 February. Your
comments would be welcomed.
A number of events will be organised throughout the borough to enable you to have your say,
including a flagship event at Fairfield on 26 February.
For more information about these events, and how you can get involved, contact:
Website: www.croydon.gov.uk/corestrategy
Email: ldf@croydon.gov.uk
Consultation Portal: http://consult.croydon.gov.uk
Facebook Group Search for: “Croydon – Third City”
Post: Policy and Strategy, 18th Floor North West quadrant,
Taberner House, Park Lane, Croydon CR9 1JT
Telephone: 020 8407 1385
9
yourspace 15
It’s been great working as a team, especially working alongside the
beauty students. It’s a great chance to show what we can do.
Tammy Townsend
Who said pipe dreams
can’t come true?
A job for life was the hope of Ryan Martineaux, and, as he told Felix Ampofo, an apprenticeship
has helped him toward his goal.
A young plumber is living
his pipe dream thanks to
an apprenticeship scheme
that gives him training in
a valuable trade, while
earning a wage at the same
time.
Ryan Martineaux
is studying at Croydon
College – the largest
provider of apprenticeships
in south London.
Those studies are
supplemented with onthe-job experience gained
from a work placement at a
Croydon firm as he makes
his way to becoming a fully
qualified tradesman.
The 20-year-old
enrolled on a course to get
the skills needed to land a
well-paid job that would
give him a lifetime of
security.
He is now in the final
year of his four-year
course, which was split into
foundation and advanced
sections.
Ryan said: “It’s been
great for my career, I like
the factual side of things
and being involved in
things in a hands-on way.
“I hope that it will
boost my credentials as
an employee and give me
the qualifications I need to
travel wherever I want to
go.”
And it is not just the
learners who benefit from
the apprenticeship scheme;
employers, too, can gain
a lot from having an
apprentice.
Gerry Ivory, managing
director at Mechanical
Services Ltd, where Ryan
works part-time, said: “It’s
good for the people doing
apprenticeships.
“It will help them with
their future job prospects,
and helps them earn while
they learn. They also get
good training.”
According to staff
at the college, their
apprenticeships are
renowned for providing
learners with the real skills
needed in their chosen
field.
And they deliver
excellent results in
academic and vocational
courses.
Apprenticeships
combine on-the-job
and off-the-job, formal
and informal learning
opportunities.
I hope that it
will boost my
credentials as
an employee
and give
me the
qualifications I
need to travel
wherever I
want to go.
Skills: a wide range of apprenticeships is on offer at Croydon College
The college offers
apprenticeships across
a wide range of topics,
including business
administration, carpentry
and joinery, customer
service, dry lining,
hairdressing, heating and
ventilation, hospitality, IT,
motor vehicle maintenance,
painting and decorating,
plumbing, and service and
maintenance.
A college spokesman
said: “If you thought
‘learning’ was something
that could happen only
in a classroom or formal
situations, then think again.
“Apprenticeships
provide powerful
motivating experiences for
you and your employer.”
For more information
on apprenticeship training
opportunities, as either a
potential apprentice or as
an employer, call 0800
652 0784 or email laa@
croydon.ac.uk
Students provide a thriller of a night
Songs of Michael Jackson stimulate imagination of Croydon College students at annual competition.
The late king of pop,
Michael Jackson, provided
the inspiration for the
recent annual hair and
beauty competition for
students at Croydon
College.
Level 1 and 2
hairdressing students
were asked to style hair
within 40 minutes and
were assessed on health
and safety; technicality;
and professionalism of the
stylist.
The Level 1 and 2
beauty students were
guided by the hairstyle and
hair stylists’ comments in
order to carry out the makeup to complete the look.
This was a great
opportunity for both sets
of students to see how
their two specialisms work
together, enjoy a great night
and relish the opportunity
to show off their skills.
Tammy Townsend,
a level 2 hairdressing
student, said: “It’s been
great working as a team,
especially working
alongside the beauty
students.
“It’s a great chance to
show what we can do.”
Yvonne Porteous,
curriculum leader for
hairdressing and beauty
therapy, said: “The
hairdressing and beauty
skills were inspirational to
observe.
“The demonstration of
techniques learnt was also
very rewarding to be a part
of.”
With more than 13,000
students choosing to study
with the college each year,
Croydon College is one
of the largest providers
of further and higher
education courses in the
south-east, offering more
than 350 qualifications.
call 020 8760 5914 or visit
www.croydon.ac.uk
10 yourspace
The Frank Denning Memorial Trust is once again offering
help to students keen to undertake foreign travel.
Wish you were here?
Young people offered financial assistance for travel abroad.
An experience he will
take with him through
life, is how a student from
Coulsdon describes a trip
that was part funded by
a charity honouring the
memory of a Croydon
Mayor who died in office
during World War I.
Other students said
their grants had given
and the charity bearing
his name now helps fulltime students from any
discipline, between the
ages of 19 and 25, who
live (or whose parents/
guardians live) within the
borough.
Any student keen to be
considered for a grant of up
to £1,000 from the charity
them the chance to work
in tropical hospitals, or
research endangered coral
reefs.
The Frank Denning
Memorial Trust is once
again offering help to
students keen to undertake
foreign travel.
Alderman Denning
died in February, 1916,
needs to apply by Monday,
8 March.
The charity’s trustees
will interview short-listed
applicants during the
Easter holiday period
for any foreign travel
scheduled to begin after 1
May 2010 but before 30
April 2011.
No support can be
given to journeys started
or completed before 1
May; similarly, holidays are
exempt.
or to obtain an application
form, email the charity’s
assistant honorary secretary
at gerry.hudson@croydon.
gov.uk or call 020 8726
6000 ext. 62812
Philippa Coates, 21, Addiscombe
It was a
thoroughly
enjoyable and
rewarding
experience and
it enabled me
to apply my
enthusiasm for
marine biology
and love of
scuba diving.
Ready to dive: Philippa (second from right) and fellow conservationists prepare for another hard day’s work beneath the waves
A passion for marine
biology led Philippa to apply
for a grant to help fund a
research trip to study a coral
reef off the coast of Mexico,
a five-hour drive south of
the popular resort Cancun.
She said: “Each
expedition member did two
dives daily.
“Mornings began at
dawn with duties consisting
of raking the sand, cleaning
the communal areas on
base, preparing the boats for
the day’s dives, and cooking
breakfast.
“Diving continued
throughout the day, until
around 5pm, and evenings
were spent writing up
data and focusing on work
for any extra courses the
volunteers were taking.
“For me, this included
digital underwater
photography, emergency
first response (a first aid
course which includes
practices aimed at scuba
diving) and teaching English
in a foreign language.”
Through non-profit
organisation Global Vision
International, Philippa
also helped in the local
community at Mahahual,
a village along the coast
from to the research site,
assisting the local people in
being an active part of the
development of the area
and directing it toward a
sustainable future.
Philippa said: “It was
a thoroughly enjoyable
and rewarding experience
and it enabled me to apply
my enthusiasm for marine
biology and love of scuba
diving, to do something
practical and gratifying
for both myself and other
people.
“I’d like to thank the
Frank Denning Memorial
Trust for its interest in, and
support of, my expedition,
without which I would have
been unable to partake.”
Data collection: Philippa inspects the coral reef
15
yourspace 11
Mornings began at dawn with duties consisting of raking the sand,
cleaning the communal areas on base, preparing the boats for the
day’s dives, and cooking breakfast.
Philippa Coates
Alexandra Ridout, 24, South Croydon
Work and play: Alexandra (above centre) and colleagues outside the Belize hospital at which they worked – and in the saddle in her leisure time
Medical student Alexandra
spent six weeks working at
the Karl Heusner Memorial
Hospital, in Belize City,
Belize.
She said: “I opted to go
there because it’s a unique
country, embodying so
many influences; it’s a rich
mixing pot of cultures,
languages and peoples.
“My time was equally
packed with a huge
variety of experiences and
opportunities.
“The experiences I
had provided a wealth of
lessons and diversity of
feelings, many of which I’ll
incorporate into my practice
of medicine at home.”
Those experiences
included helping treat a
man bitten by a deadly
snake and who had opted
for tribal medicine before
being admitted to the
hospital, and observing
operating theatre procedure
on a four-hour-old girl with
a form of spina bifida.
And she saw, first hand,
the dedication of hospital
staff working often with
limited resources, but
boundless optimism.
Alexandra said: “The
differences between
England and Belize are
numerous and exciting.
“Diversity is alive
throughout all aspects
of this exciting country;
from the exquisite beaches
and luxury hotels of the
Caribbean coast, to the
poverty in Belize City’s
‘Southside’. Belize offers a
I’ve gained so
much, and am
proud of the
achievements
I have to show
for my time.
huge variety of experiences.
“I’ve gained so much,
and am proud of the
achievements I have to
show for my time.
“And I’m grateful for the
opportunity to experience
all this, and to the Frank
Denning Memorial Trust
for its very generous award
which helped to make it all
possible.”
Matthew Fosberry,
20, Coulsdon
After hearing about the
grant scheme, Matthew,
studying physics at Bristol,
completed the application
online, before facing an
informal interview panel,
chaired by the Mayor of
Croydon.
His foreign trip took
him to Split, in Croatia,
to attend ICPS 2009 –
with students from the
USA, Iran, Hong Kong,
Austria, Spain, Portugal and
elsewhere.
“Socially, there were
national parties (where
each delegation displayed
items from their country),
organised tours of the city,
and white-water rafting
trips.
from various institutions,
including the 1985 Nobel
Prize winner, Klaus von
Klitzing.
“The organisers had
set aside time to network
with other physics students
from around the world and
I enjoyed making contact
something which is very
rewarding as it provides
an opportunity to study
and enjoy your subject in a
stimulating setting.
“It was an excellent
experience, which the
Denning award helped
make possible.”
Going abroad
for academic
activities is
“The experience is something something which
that I’ll take with
is very rewarding
me throughout my life.”
as it provides an
opportunity to
“The experience is
the 24th International
something that I’ll take
Conference of Physics
study and enjoy
Students, attended by more with me throughout my
life, and I’d recommend the
than 500 delegates.
your subject in
grant scheme to other local
He said: “I attended a
a stimulating
students.
variety of events, including
“Going abroad for
attending guest lectures
setting.
academic activities is
held by senior academics
12 yourcommunity
Neighbourhood Watch coverage is increasing all the
time, but many roads are still not covered.
Watching the neighbourhood? Simples!
A dedicated band of volunteers does its bit to help keep
Croydon safe – but it could do with more help. Join up
and make a difference.
A Safer
Neighbourhood
Team member
will help with
setting up your
watch, and
the involvement
can be as much
as you want
to give.
When the association’s
symbol was chosen, the
volunteers of Croydon’s
Neighbourhood Watch had
no idea that TV wildlife
shows, and a popular
ad campaign, would see
meerkats become the
nation’s most popular small,
furry mammal.
The main aim of the
organisation was – and
remains – to make residents
aware of measures they can
take to protect themselves
against crime, and to
encourage them to watch
out for each other.
And that is why an
image of the ever-vigilant
meerkat was chosen.
Neighbourhood Watch
has been active in Croydon
since the 1980s, but was
formally set up as Croydon
Borough Neighbourhood
Watch Association
(CBNWA) in 2000.
Neighbourhood Watch
coverage is increasing all
the time, but many roads
are still not covered.
And that is a situation
Malcolm Saunders wants to
see change.
Malcolm, the
association’s secretary, said:
“If any Your Croydon reader
wants to volunteer to set
up coverage in their road as
a coordinator, information
packs are available.
“All they need do is
call Sarah Gardner, in the
Neighbourhood Watch
office, on 020 8649 0318
for further details.
“A Safer Neighbourhood
Team member will help
with setting up your watch,
and the involvement can
be as much as you want to
give.”
Malcolm said that the
average time commitment
was one to two hours a
month, with the basic
requirements being
to deliver quarterly
newsletters to homes in
your road, and to pass on
relevant information to the
elderly and vulnerable.
The popular
newsletter contains all
sorts of information
for householders. As
well as advice on crime
prevention measures that
can be taken to protect
people and property, it
warns of common scams,
details crime risks and
includes information on
help available from other
organisations, such as
trading standards, Victim
Support and the fire service.
Working in conjunction
with the police, the group
sends coordinators regular
email alerts concerning
crimes in their area and
current scams.
The group works closely
with Safer Neighbourhood
Teams (SNT), and awards
an annual prize to the SNT
voted best in the borough.
Every year a conference
is organised, allowing
coordinators and other
invited guests to hear
presentations on different
aspects of crime prevention.
At the 2009 conference
there was a question
and answer session,
with Croydon’s borough
commander, Chief
Superintendant Adrian
Roberts and Councillors
Gavin Barwell and Steve
O’Connell fielding audience
questions.
There were also
presentations from a
Croydon magistrate, the
Snow joke: association members, including Malcolm
Saunders (far right) keep a weather eye
Brit School, the police
cadets, Croydon Pastors,
the borough’s fire brigade
commander Kevin Biggs,
plus talks on human
trafficking and safeguarding
adults.
More information on the
work of CBNWA is available
online at www.cbnwa.com
The site features up-to-date
information and crime
prevention advice.
So, if you have a
few hours a month to
spare, why don’t you join
Neighbourhood Watch? You
could become a coordinator
and make a real difference
to your area.
Local sport gets a kick-start
Small clubs are
the backbone
of our sporting
heritage, and
the biggest
problem that a
lot of them have
is that people
simply don’t
know they exist.
Cash injection to secure future of borough sports clubs.
More than £¼m will be
invested in sport in Croydon
over the next three years
– starting with £50,000
available as grants to small
clubs.
It is expected that
clubs will use the cash for
advertising or marketing,
building high-quality
websites or training more
coaches so that new
recruits can be prepared for
competition.
They could also use the
money to pay for people to
come in and try their hand
at “taster sessions” to see if
that is the sport for them.
George Sarkodie,
Croydon’s head of sport and
green spaces, said: “Small
clubs are the backbone of
our sporting heritage, and
the biggest problem that
a lot of them have is that
people simply don’t know
they exist.
“That’s why we’re
offering grants of up to
£1,000 for organisations
who want to extend their
membership.”
Running in tandem with
a variety of international
sporting events, Croydon
will be staging a series
of high-profile, massparticipation sports events
each summer until 2012.
This year, to mirror the
football World Cup, there
will be an “all nations” fivea-side tournament.
The huge range of
nationalities represented
across Croydon will
enable every country, from
Australia to Zambia, to pit
their skills against each
other.
In 2011, the Tour de
France will become the
sporting focus.
Cycling is something
that almost anyone can
participate in, and the
Croydon event will be a
family affair at Lloyd Park,
incorporating a running
competition.
Dubbed a duathlon, it
will see hundreds of people
training to a competitive
level in activities that are
easy to do. It is hoped many
will get the bug and go on
to join clubs, and move on
to further challenges.
The event will comprise
three separate distances,
allowing people of all
capabilities to take part.
Finally, in 2012, as
London hosts the Olympic
and Paralympic Games,
Croydon will be staging
its very own Street Games
competitions.
These games, including
sprinting, two-on-two
basketball, and dance, will
bring the competitive spirit
of the Olympics right down
to a local level.
The application form is
available at www.croydon.
gov.uk/sport or by calling
the sports development
team on 020 8760 5592.
District
Centre
Purley shrugs News
off the gloom
FEBRUARY 2010
Café
Nino
New businesses spring – a classy
up across town centre coffee shop
Purley is proving resilient to the recession, with a
host of new businesses opening, and a town centre
with a positive attitude to trading in difficult times.
One of the buzziest
meeting places in Purley is
Café Nino, which has now
been open for a year in
Brighton Road.
As well as Mediterranean food and great coffee, Café
Nino offers hot chocolate with marshmallows – the
perfect comfort drink in chilly weather.
Shakes, sandwiches, panini, hearty breakfasts, pizza,
pasta and salads complete the menu. Café Nino, 945
Brighton Road, CR8 2BP. Call 020 8668 6908.
High Street (left) and Brighton Road have seen a number of new businesses setting up recently.
The town is bucking the national trend with single
percentage-figure vacancy rates for its shops, well
below the national average of more than 14%.
Its night dining scene is the envy of other district
centres in the borough, pulling in foodies from far and
wide, while its specialist shops are blossoming, helping
establish the town as a popular and characterful
destination.
New district centre manager Amber Rusk aims to
build on the foundations laid in 2009 with a programme
of improvement and enhancement through 2010.
One initiative is the empty-premises improvement
scheme, which aims to promote local art while also
brightening up any empty shops until new businesses
come along.
“By using empty shop windows to display art, as
we’ve done in other areas, we can help develop the local
arts and crafts scene, and help landlords,” she explained.
Based on a successful model established in Crystal
Palace triangle, she aims to rid Purley of depressing empty
shopfronts and replace them wit h bright, appealing art
installations.
She has even bigger ambitions for the town’s business
partnership, with the target of getting the traders’ group
to eventually run itself, just as Crystal Palace has done.
The café and restaurant scene in Purley proves
how well the town is coping in these tough times, with
highlights including Firebellys, at 10 High Street, offering
South African specialities and a wood-fired oven for
pizzas. Visit www.firebellys.com or call 020 8660 8222.
The restaurant is open from lunch until late, and
there are also pizza delivery offers, including any 16in
pizza for £9.99.
The Buenos Aires steak house at 4 Tudor Court,
Russell Hill Road, CR8 2LA, serves Argentinian food, with
a special three-course Argentinian menu from Sunday to
Wednesday for £14.95. Wednesday night is tango night.
The restaurant is open Monday to Saturday, 6
to 11pm, and Sundays from 5 to 10pm. Visit www.
barestaurant.com or call 020 8660 5200.
Counter assistant Pra serves chocolate
brownies at Café Nino.
Spotlight
on...
Purley’s shop diversity
The district centre in the south of the borough offers a range of shops providing
variety, value and personal service.
You’re fired!
With the growth in popularity of home-made gifts has
come a mini boom at the ceramic painting centre Get Fired.
Owner Lisa Downham, who is also the secretary of
the Purley Business Association, has been running the
shop in Brighton Road for six years, with the tile wall
at the back providing a fascinating ceramic record of
children’s parties down the years.
The shop hosts regular parties, allowing youngsters
the chance to decorate plates and tiles, as well as other
ceramic objects.
Winter is one of the busiest times of year at Get
Fired, with the cold weather outdoors making the idea of
indoors design even more appealing.
From cups to teapots, eggcups to figurines,
ornaments to tea caddies, candle holders to moneyboxes,
the shop offers dozens of options for decorative talent.
Opening hours are 10am to 6pm, Monday to
Saturday, with late opening on Thursdays.
There are 57 pay-and-display parking spaces right
behind Get Fired, with the entrance in Russell Hill Place.
Get Fired, 914 Brighton Road, CR8 2LN. Call 020 8660
3188 or visit www.getfired.co.uk
Lisa Downham in front of the tile wall at Get Fired
Keep your hair on
Opened in September last year by
Justina Nriagu, Careessence is a
comprehensive wig, hairpiece and
hair product shop.
It has its own salon at the back for fittings, and the
business is going well.
Careessence offers extensions, full wigs, hairpieces and
all hair-care products, and also has lines of stainless steel
jewellery, nail polish, shampoos and sports supplements.
Careessence, 919 Brighton Road, CR8 2BP. Call 020 7998
3459.
Clive Ikem with some of the hairpieces on the wall display
Careessence at 919 Brighton Road
is an inspiration
A new beauty experience
With four separate treatment rooms, Charlotte of
London is able to offer a wide variety of services from
spotlessly clean premises right opposite Purley station
and alongside the town’s main pay-and-display car park.
From waxing to manicures, acne-scarring treatment to
skin rejuvenation, the beauty centre’s list is extensive,
using cutting-edge technology and the most advanced
products.
Charlotte Hewitt and her colleagues use Elemis spa and
skincare products for facials for women and men.
Massages, detox, cellulite therapy and hair removal are
on offer, as are eyelash and eyebrow tinting, and makeup, with wedding cosmetics a speciality.
The shop sells gift vouchers for all values, making ideal
presents for Valentine’s Day, birthdays and Mother’s Day.
The salon opens at 9am, Monday to Saturday, with late
closing on Thursdays, and Sunday hours by appointment.
Charlotte of London, 21 Whytecliffe Road South,
CR8 2AU. Visit www.charlotteoflondon.co.uk
or call 020 8763 0666.
Charlotte Hewitt, who runs the Charlotte beauty centre
The salon is right opposite Purley station
All the right notes
From his prominent corner site
at 1 Godstone Road, Dave Mack
teaches guitar and hires, buys and
sells musical equipment.
Dave Mack strums an Epiphone Les Paul
Dave, 54, has a lifelong love of music, dating from his
early years in Liverpool, where, as a youngster, he was a
member of the Carlton Four band.
Pictures of Hendrix and The Beatles on the shop wall
point to his own musical favourites.
Regulars at the nearby Jolly Farmers will know Dave
from his musical outings in the pub, while local musicians
will be keen to try the recording studio that he recently
built in the shop’s basement.
From his early days as a drummer, Dave graduated
to guitar, and admits that Eric Clapton is the guitarist he
most admires.
The shop organises music lessons, runs a PA hire
service and specialises in buying and selling equipment.
Dave Mack Music is open from 11.30am to 6.30pm,
Tuesday to Saturday. The studio is available for half- or
all-day hire.
Dave Mack Music, 1 Godstone Road, CR8 2DH.
Call 020 8668 8610.
Just like Mamma makes it
When the Mamma Mia Italian restaurant shuffled along
Brighton Road from number 920 to larger premises at
948, it gave owner Antonio a chance to open an Italian
deli.
The result is Antonio’s at 920 Brighton Road, where
there are four tables for enjoying light meals and superb
Italian coffee and ice cream, plus a huge, glass deli
counter at the back.
Antonio’s offers everything from home-made lasagne
to arancini (rice and meatballs), with fresh sandwiches,
pasta, olive oil, pesto and biscuits on the shelves.
The range of deli delights includes Sicilian citrus
olives, while Antonio’s also has a wide selection of
sausages, salami, parma ham and cheeses.
Antonio’s is at 920 Brighton Road – call 020 8668
0579 – while Mamma Mia is at 948 Brighton Road.
Ritvan Isufaj at the counter of Antonio’s deli
Antonio’s, 920 Brighton Road
District
Centre
News
A stitch in time
All shops supply goods or services, but
some shops also supply inspiration.
The Wandering Line, which opened in Brighton Road last
autumn, is a good example.
A quilting and patchwork shop, it is also a training
centre and a powerhouse of ideas guaranteed to stimulate
creativity among customers.
Shop owner Debbie Holland offers everything from a
single reel of thread to the advice needed to create a vast
tapestry.
Classes, pitched at every level of ability, are held in the
rooms above the spacious shop premises, while examples
of what can be achieved hang round the walls like works of
art in a gallery.
“I grew up in an environment of craft, with sewing,
knitting and embroidery,” said Debbie, who did needlework
to A level.
Three years ago, she went into a shop to buy some
thread, and decided that quilting was exactly what she
wanted to focus on.
When a large enough shop came up – and the premises
at 950 Brighton Road are simply huge – she seized the
moment and took the plunge.
The back area of the shop is dominated by Dolores,
which is Debbie’s nickname for the long-arm, computerdriven quilting machine which can make a simple task of
wadding and backing quilts of up to 12ft in width.
The rest of the shop area contains well-spaced runs of
material in coordinated colours, displays of threads, and
work areas.
There is plenty of elbow room, and the shop has a
calm, open and uncluttered feel.
The range of classes is bewildering, with full details of
the options for all ability ranges on the shop website,
www.thewanderingline.co.uk.
Every topic has a course, from making quilted dog
coats to learning how to thread a needle, from tool use to
hand-stitching.
The shop name, incidentally, comes from the freehand
style of quilting in which the stitching wanders around the
material.
Debbie can revive customers’ half-finished quilts,
liberating them from store cupboards, and helping
customers to complete projects. She also takes on
commissions, with simple quilts costing from £380 and
more complex ‘heirloom’ designs at £900-plus.
While the modern home of quilting is undoubtedly the
United States, Debbie’s shop has already won admirers
from the other side of the pond.
“I’m a business, not a hobby shop,” she stressed, adding
that she works with British quilt designers to continually
push the boundaries of what can be achieved.
Longer-term, there are plans to create other
Wandering Lines in the UK, and to form a loyalty club for
regular customers.
The Wandering Line is open from 9.30am to 4.30pm,
Tuesday to Saturday, at 950 Brighton Road.
Call 020 8660 8600.
Get involved in
your local district
Make a difference in your area
by joining your local business
partnership. Get in touch with
your local contacts:
Purley
Amber Rusk
07997 628085 / 020 8090 5573
amber.rusk@croydonenterprise.com
Coulsdon
Christine Samson
07775 824826 / 020 8090 5572
christine.samson@croydonenterprise.com
New Addington
and Purley Way
Ken Sherwood
07876 034008 / 020 8090 5579
ken.sherwood@croydonenterprise.com
South Norwood
Carol Clapperton
07776 477366 / 020 8090 5575
carol.clapperton@croydonenterprise.com
Crystal Palace
Sharon Baldwin
sharon.baldwin@croydonenterprise.com
Thornton Heath,
Selhurst and Norbury
Debbie Holland with one of her quilts
Assistant Lisette Martin maps out a quilt design
Jason Grant
07771 842945 / 020 8090 5577
jason.grant@croydonenterprise.com
Amber takes charge
Amber Rusk has taken over the
management of Purley’s district centre.
A sunflower wall hanging
Her predecessor, Christine Samson, is now concentrating
exclusively on neighbouring Coulsdon.
Amber sees her task as developing the business
partnership, reducing the number of empty premises
by creating the right environment for new businesses
to thrive, and supporting all shops and businesses in the
Purley area.
Before being appointed as business manager of Purley,
Amber was the successful manager of the Crystal Palace
triangle, encouraging the business partnership until it
reached a level where it could manage itself.
She is always available to discuss business matters,
and can be reached by email at amber.rusk@
croydonenterprise.com
Amber Rusk in her new role
yourcommunity 13
Since these affordable lets came up, we’ve been making local traders and new businesses
aware of the opportunities available so close to the prime central retail area of Croydon.
Paul Baverstock
Taking a walk on the
entrepreneurial side
New businesses are administering the kiss of life to a small corner of central Croydon, as
Danny Brierley discovered.
The combination of cheap
rents and a prime location
is turning a forgotten
corner of Croydon town
centre into a haven for
independent, locally-run
shops.
Businesses have started
returning to St George’s
Walk – a 1960s parade
of shops running from
Park Lane to High Street –
after years of decline and
uncertainty.
The neglected shopping
area has suffered recent
uncertainty over the failed
plans to build the £500m
Park Place retail complex.
But now, small
shoots of recovery,
fed by the ambition of
local entrepreneurs, are
creating a new shopping
destination.
One of the new
ventures is Bene Bakers,
run by business partners
Ben Edwards and Tibor
Siroki.
The venture is the result
of the decades-old ambition
Tibor has harboured since
arriving in Britain as a
Hungarian refugee more
than 20 years ago.
The master baker and
food technician was taken
in by Ben’s father, a pastor,
and the two are now
business partners.
Ben, 27, said: “We
moved in at the end of
last August and it was
pretty much the price that
attracted us to St George’s
Walk. We want to be
central and there is nothing
else like this around here.
“We’d like to see it
pick up a bit more and,
hopefully, it will as other
businesses move in.”
Next door to the bakery
is SM Pinoy Foods, a
Philippine food store.
Owner Romer Mirto,
26, said: “We were
attracted by the low rents
and it’s quite central.
It was a bit quiet when
we moved in, but there are
more people coming all the
time.”
We’d like to
see it pick up a
bit more and,
hopefully, it will as
other businesses
move in.
New ventures: businesses are moving back into St George’s Walk
Trevor Bobb, owner
of Roti Master, a haven
for fresh, home-cooked
Trinidadian cuisine, moved
his business from Surrey
Street last April.
He said: “St George’s
Walk has been a lot better
for us, the premises allow
people to stay and eat, and
we’re more visible – people
on buses can see us as they
go by. “I’m very pleased, it’s
been a big turn around for
me.”
A & J Florists was
opened by husband and
wife team Jackie and Anton
Ravate. Jackie said: “It was
a bit quiet at first, but it’s
all about letting people
know we’re here.”
Paul Baverstock, of
business-support group
Croydon Enterprise,
said: “It’s our role to help
businesses find the right
retail premises.
“So, since these
affordable lets came up,
we’ve been making local
traders and new businesses
aware of the opportunities
available so close to the
prime central retail area of
Croydon.”
Celebrating Croydon’s diversity
Borough’s lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community tells its story.
A series of events has been
organised to celebrate
the annual lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender
(LGBT) history month in
Croydon.
Croydon is committed
to celebrating its diversity
and that of the community
as a whole.
The contribution
made by members of
the LGBT community
is often overlooked and
the programme of events
planned for February is
designed to highlight its
achievements and stories.
LGBT History Month
is a chance for everyone
to learn more about the
histories of lesbian, gay,
bisexual and transgender
people in the borough.
A film festival at the
David Lean cinema at the
Clocktower arts complex in
Katharine Street kicks-off
the LGBT History Month
programme.
It will feature a
screening of A Single Man,
the story of a British college
struggling after the death
of his long-term partner.
There will also be a
history trail and exhibition
in the Clocktower and the
rainbow flag – a symbol of
gay and lesbian community
pride – will be raised
above the Town Hall on 6
February.
On the same day
a service to remember
heroes, past and present,
will be held at the
borough’s main cenotaph
outside the Town Hall and
a section dedicated to items
with an LGBT connection
will be opened at the
Central Library.
And local groups
including Crocus (LGBT
Croydon) and the Croydon
Area Gay Society (CAGS)
have organised their
own events for the 2010
celebration.
on February’s programme,
or to publicise an event,
contact becky.saunders@
croydon.gov.uk or visit
people from Croydon
Roberta Cowell
(born 21 May 1921)
was born in Croydon
and was the first known
British male-to-female
transsexual to undergo sex
reassignment surgery.
Sue Perkins
(born 22 September 1969)
is a British comedienne, radio
and television presenter,
actress, and writer. She went
to Croham Hurst School in
South Croydon.
www.croydon.gov.uk/
lgbthistorymonth.
To learn more about
LGBT History Month, visit
www.lgbthistorymonth.
org.uk/ or www.
stonewall.org.uk.
Famous LGBT
Comic: Sue Perkins
Waheed Alli
(born 16 November 1964)
was made a life peer, as
Baron Alli of Norbury, in
1998 at the age of 34,
becoming the youngest and
the first openly gay peer in
Parliament.
14 yourcommunity
120
boys might attend a session – and, sometimes, boys
have to be turned away because the pitches are too full.
Teenage Kickz on
a freezing evening
It may look no more than a kick-about, but, as Susie
Rundle found out, a ground-breaking project has given
purpose to dozens of young people.
It gives them
a focus, and
they go back to
college, or use
the skills they’ve
learned here to
get a job.
It’s a bitterly cold Monday
night, when most people
would rather be on their
sofa watching TV – or
anywhere warm – than out
on a freezing football pitch.
But, at the Canterbury
Road Astroturf, something
incredible is happening.
Youngsters – some as
young as 12 – are arriving
in droves, bundled up
in hats and gloves, their
breath coming out in
steaming puffs; some still
wearing school uniform,
others in their sports gear.
They’re here out of
choice – and they’re here to
play football.
Three years since
Crystal Palace Football
Club first started running
the project at the site, its
popularity continues to
grow.
Funded by the Football
Foundation, the council
and police, it offers free
football training sessions
for local young people aged
from 12 to 18, three nights
a week.
Trevor Meaden, the
Kickz project manager for
Croydon, isn’t surprised to
see the cold weather hasn’t
stopped them turning out
for training.
He explains: “Last
February we weren’t going
to run a session because of
heavy snow, but when we
got here, the kids were so
keen they’d already started
clearing the pitch.
“The sessions are for
anyone who wants to
play football, but we’re
particularly targeting those
young people who are hard
to reach.
“It gets them off the
street and gives them
something positive to do.”
Watching the boys help
set up the equipment, their
enthusiasm is clear – as
is their respect for their
coaches.
Jarmil Sherman, 14,
explains what brings him
here: “The coaches make it
feel comfortable, and I like
the people. They’re nice to
be around.”
An average of 80 boys
attend each session, and
as many as 120 in the
summer, with some being
turned away because the
pitches are too full.
Kickz also runs projects
in Milne Park West, New
Addington, and Highbury
Community Centre,
Norbury, and is widening
the remit to offer football
sessions for girls – and even
street dance.
It has been instrumental
in helping to strengthen
local communities,
breaking down barriers and
bringing local youngsters
together through team
sport.
And it’s not only
football Kickz offers.
Through the project,
the young people attend
workshops teaching skills
to help them stay safe
and help their personal
development.
Topics have included
confidence building,
sexual health awareness,
numeracy, literacy, and the
dangers of knife crime.
But that is not all
– the football training
itself brings employment
opportunities.
Trevor explains: “We’ve
had older kids coming
here, who weren’t in school
and weren’t working – and
we’ve trained them as
qualified coaches.
“Now they’re employed
Kickz: Trevor Meaden and Aden Fordjour-Mensah
by football clubs.”
Of course, the project
also opens doors for
youngsters who are serious
about football as a career,
with talented players going
on to the Crystal Palace
academy.
According to coach
Michael Lacy, Croydon has
a reputation as a breeding
ground for professional
footballers.
Anyone watching the
sessions can be in no doubt
that Kickz is clearly helping
to turn young lives around
– so what is the secret?
Michael shrugs:
“We give them a safe
environment, somewhere
they can be themselves and
they enjoy it.
Also it teaches them
commitment.
“We see kids who have
dropped out of college
or school, they’re not
doing anything with their
lives – then they start
coming here and it gives
them something to do,
somewhere to go.
“It gives them a focus,
and they go back to college,
or use the skills they’ve
learned here to get a job.”
“Put simply – it works”
yourbusiness 15
Work hard, keep your eye on the goal you have set for yourself, and keep the
highest of standards – even if everyone around you thinks that ‘it will do’.
Sally Clarke
my croydon
In the second of our new series we speak to Sally Clarke who was awarded the MBE in
2009 after 25 years’ practising the culinary arts. Sally’s Notting Hill restaurant is regarded
as one of the best in London, but it all began in Croydon.
Home is...?
London during the week, and a hidden valley near
Godalming, in Surrey, most weekends where I have a
little vegetable and herb garden, and a big log fire.
When were you in Croydon?
For two years studying hotel and catering
operations at Croydon Technical College.
What’s your life philosophy?
One is never good enough.
What are your favourite
things about Croydon?
Other than the amazing staff at the college – every
one of them – the banana and peanut butter baguette
sandwiches which I used to buy as a treat once
a week from a sandwich bar near to the college.
Also the classical music concerts at Fairfield.
If you could give one piece of advice
to someone, what would that be?
Work hard, keep your eye on the goal you have set
for yourself, and keep the highest of standards – even
if everyone around you thinks that “it will do”.
What’s your first memory of Croydon?
Driving from my parents home near Guildford
every Sunday evening to my digs in Outram
Road. A lovely elderly couple ran a bed, breakfast
and supper house for students – dreadful food,
but the house was warm and friendly!
Who is your hero?
Alice Waters, of Chez Panisse, in Berkeley, California,
remains my guiding light, friend, mentor (and
godmother to my son!). Also, Elizabeth David, whose
books will never ever go out of style or fashion.
How important is Croydon to your
organisation?
Very important – it was there that I learned the basics.
From there everything blossomed – I moved to Paris to
study at le Cordon Bleu, and then to London working with
Pru Leith and Caroline Waldegrave.
What is the perfect dish?
Something seasonal – just picked, simply prepared, shared
with friends. It could be as simple as a salad of leaves and
herbs with delicious olive oil, or a freshly made soup, or
roasted root vegetables with Parmesan shavings. It just
needs to be appropriate for the season, the place and
the moment.
16 yourhealth 36,500
free swims have been recorded since the scheme
to get young and old in the water began last April.
The free
swimming’s a bit
of a bonus. I try
to do 30 lengths,
which takes
about an hour
– depending on
how much time
I spend chatting
in between.
Fit as a fiddle: Reuben Broder with lifeguard Emily King
Taking the plunge
Success of free swimming scheme sees record numbers splashing about in Croydon’s pools.
Weight-control and
continued suppleness are
just two of the benefits felt
by a 74-year-old Selsdon
man who enjoys regular
free swimming sessions at
his local pool.
Reuben Broder is one
of many taking advantage
of the scheme that
allows younger and older
Croydon people to enjoy
one of the most beneficial
forms of exercise, free of
charge.
Reuben, who has
been swimming at New
Addington pool since he
retired, about 14 years ago,
says: “The free swimming’s
a bit of a bonus.
“I go three times a
week and there’s usually a
regular group of us.
“I try to do 30 lengths,
which takes about an hour
– depending on how much
time I spend chatting in
between.”
Reuben says the
swimming really makes a
difference in keeping fit,
helping to keep his weight
down to a regular 13 stone,
and preventing his joints
seizing up.
“The staff at New
Addington pool are all very
friendly and helpful,” he
says, adding that he was
hopeful that Croydon’s
policy of providing free
swimming for young
people and the over 60s
would prompt more to give
it a go.
The most recent figures
show that, in Croydon,
nearly 15,400 free swims
were taken by young
people aged 16 and under,
and 9,928 recorded in the
60-plus category.
More than 36,500 free
swims have been recorded
since the scheme started
last April.
The second quarter
total was up by more than
1,000 on the previous
quarter, for people aged 60
and over, taking up the free
swims.
Claire Martin,
duty manager at New
Addington pool said:
“One month saw twice the
number of young people
coming to the pool, which
is a great testament to how
this scheme is tapping into
a desire among people to
get active.“
All Croydon’s pools are
involved in the scheme,
and anyone aged 60 and
over, or 16 and under, can
swim free by registering at
their local centre.
“It’s been hugely
popular,” says Claire.
“We’ve had a good 50%
more youngsters using the
pool as a result of the free
swimming.”
Purley Leisure Centre,
too, has recorded nearly
double the number of
young people swimming.
The scheme is jointly
funded by five government
departments, and is being
delivered in partnership
with local authorities,
the Local Government
Association, Sport
England and the Amateur
Swimming Association.
People can register
for the free swims by
collecting a £2 membership
card from one of the
leisure centres, completing
an application form, and
proving their date of birth.
visit www.croydon-leisure.com Tel: 020 8689 5300
or visit one of the borough’s leisure centres.
South Norwood Leisure Centre
164 Portland Road, South Norwood SE25 4PT
Thornton Heath Leisure Centre
100 High Street, Thornton Heath CR7 8LF
New Addington Leisure Centre
Central Parade, New Addington CR0 0JB
Purley Leisure Centre
50 High Street, Purley CR8 2AA
yourhealth 17
184
the number of blind people Rita Ohri cured
during her last 12-day visit to India.
The eyes have it
Croydon has a new senior eye specialist, and she told Richard Gibbs that conditions here are
a million miles away from some of her past posts.
With a proven track
record helping some
of the world’s poorest
people, Mayday University
Hospital’s new consultant
ophthalmologist brings a
wealth of experience to
the role.
Rita Ohri has cured
hundreds of blind people
and raised thousands of
pounds to fund sightrestoring surgery in one of
the poorest parts of India.
Dr Ohri, who started
at Mayday in January, was
sent to India by the charity
Second Sight, founded
and run by her friend and
fellow-ophthalmologist
Lucy Mathen.
India has the worst
curable blindness
problem in the world
(caused predominantly
by cataract) and Second
Sight works in the areas of
greatest need, where up to
half the population live on
less than 15p a day.
Dr Ohri has been to the
state of Uttar Pradesh, and
to rural Bihar where there
is a backlog of more than a
million people blind from
cataract.
Her last visit was at the
end of December, 2008,
when she spent 12 days
restoring the sight of 184
people.
Second Sight does not
use any donated money on
office costs, and volunteer
surgeons like Dr Ohri raise
the money for their own
travel costs.
She said: “I’m
delighted to be able to
use my skills in Croydon,
where there’s a first-class
health service.
“However, conditions
here are a million
miles away from those
experienced in India
I’m delighted
to be able to
use my skills
in Croydon,
where there’s
a first-class
health service.
New in post: Dr Rita Ohri now runs regular eye clinics at Mayday Hospital
where simple surgery, that
we take for granted, can
actually be life-changing.”
Lucy Mathen is herself
no stranger to Croydon,
nor, indeed, to television
viewers.
As a journalist on the
Surrey Mirror (now in
the same stable as the
Croydon Advertiser) she
used to work just over the
borough boundary and
often stayed in the town
during the early 1970s.
She went on to become
BBC Newsround’s first
dedicated reporter before
switching career and
qualifying as a doctor.
John Craven, the
programme’s original
presenter, who still
regularly appears on
television, is a patron of
the charity.
Voluntary work: Lucy Mathen examines a young boy in India
Lucy said: “Even if
surgery is being provided
free, blind people can’t just
walk into hospital.
“Local teams work
very hard, travelling by
foot, bullock-cart, tonga
or jeep, into remote areas,
identifying the blind and
then bringing them in for
surgery.
“They’re also highly
efficient, so that surgery
can be carried out for just
£12.50 per person.
“It wouldn’t be right
for us, as a charity, to take
any money for ourselves.
“All money goes to,
quite literally, curing
the blind.
“I don’t think there are
many other charities that
can say this.”
on the charity’s work visit
www.secondsight.org.uk
18 yourenvironment
,
£3 625
the value of fines handed out during
clampdown on illegal roadside dumping.
Crushing defeat
John Bownas reports on a battle that has seen the destruction of a van used for illegal
dumping, and the issue of hundreds of fines.
I’m glad that
someone has
been caught and
that this’ll send
out a strong
message to
tell people it’s
not acceptable
behaviour.
Caught in the act: illegally dumping rubbish on a pavement in Thornton Heath
The penalty for fly-tipping
is usually a fine – but when
council officers recently
seized a vehicle suspected
of having been used for
illicit dumping, they took
extreme measures to stop
its owners repeating the
crime.
When nobody claimed
it, the truck was crushed
and put on display around
the borough to send out a
strong message – Croydon
will not tolerate fly-tipping.
The vehicle was
impounded after it was
identified as having been
used to tip the entire
contents of a house
clearance on a Thornton
Heath street.
Checks on its ownership
proved fruitless, as the
people responsible had
registered it to a fictitious
address – but it was found
that Lambeth was already
investigating the same
vehicle.
Grant Strutt, one of
Croydon’s enforcement
officers, said: “This was
clear evidence that this
wasn’t just an isolated
incident, we were certain
that it was part of a
planned criminal operation
involving fly-tipping on
a large scale across south
London.”
The destruction of
vehicles used by fly-tippers
is just one tool available
to the council – but it is
more common for £75 and
£50 fixed penalty notices
(FPNs) to be served.
This financial year,
Croydon has already issued
more than 400 of these.
The crushing of the
vehicle came just days after
a major joint campaign
by the council and police,
which saw officers
patrolling the borough’s
streets for four consecutive
nights in a clampdown
on people and businesses
illegally dumping rubbish
on the roadside.
This targeted campaign
allowed the team to carry
out intelligence-based
patrols in known hotspot
areas – resulting in the
issue of 40 FPNs (with a
total value of £3,625).
Three larger fines
of £300 were issued
to businesses who had
already been warned about
their behaviour, but were
found to still not have any
contract in place for getting
rid of their waste.
The operation caught
two offenders in the act.
And, to make things
even worse for them, the
officers who witnessed
the offence and issued
the penalty notices were
Mark Pinnock, the head
of Croydon’s Streetscene
team, and Councillor Phil
Thomas, the council’s
cabinet member for
highways and the
environment.
Khawaja Shahabuddin,
57, of The Chase, Norbury,
was caught dumping three
bags of household waste in
St Helen’s Road, Norbury,
and Shahdaza Abbasi,
of High Street, Thornton
Heath, was apprehended
while leaving rubbish on
the pavement in Melfort
Road.
Terence Holmes, a
retired resident of St
Helen’s Road, was there
to see Mr Shahabuddin
receive his fine.
He said: “A lot of people
do think that just because
this is where they bring
their recycling they can
also dump any old rubbish
around the site.
“I’m glad that someone
has been caught and that
this’ll send out a strong
message to tell people it’s
not acceptable behaviour.”
Councillor Thomas
said: “I’m delighted at how
successful this has been –
and I was interested to hear
what these two men had to
say for themselves.
“Both were obviously
yourenvironment 19
I’m glad that someone has been caught and that this’ll send out
a strong message to tell people it’s not acceptable behaviour.
Terrance Holmes
for fly-tippers
What we want
to get across is
that the council
is watching
for this sort of
criminal activity,
and when we
catch those
responsible we
will issue a fine.
Dead end: van used for fly-tippers is crushed (above and below)
That will be £75, sir: fined for dumping rubbish
really embarrassed and
surprised at being caught,
although they clearly knew
that what they were doing
was wrong – but I think
they just thought they could
get away with it.
“What we want to get
across is that the council
is watching for this sort of
criminal activity, and when
we catch those responsible
we will issue a fine.”
Most times, fines
are issued based on the
evidence found at the
scene. Officers will sort
through dumped rubbish,
often leading back to its
original owners.
If they can’t provide a
receipt to prove that they
paid someone in good faith
to remove and dispose of
the waste properly, they
will be fined.
Uniquely in the UK,
however, Croydon offers an
alternative to paying the
fine.
Offenders are offered
the option of doing five
hours’ community service.
A small number each
year voluntarily take this
route to clear their debt to
society.
Also out on the
operation was executive
director for community
services, Tom Jeffrey.
Tom is the man with
responsibility for all of
Croydon’s street-based
services – from highways
maintenance to refuse and
recycling.
He was, however, keen
to get his hands dirty to see
how his staff coped with
the often unpleasant task of
hunting through discarded
black bags for evidence of
where the dumped rubbish
had come from.
He said: “This is a really
nasty job at times, and I
have the utmost respect for
my staff who have to spend
hours every week picking
out old letters and bills
from among the remains
of takeaway food and
disposable nappies.
“Clearing this mess off
our streets takes time and
costs money – money that
we could be spending more
productively elsewhere,
so I’m really keen that we
raise the profile of our
enforcement action.
“It’s our way of warning
people not to fly-tip or litter
in Croydon.”
It’s our way of
warning people
not to fly-tip or
litter in Croydon.
20 yourenvironment
We are a crucial service and people are always more than grateful
when you go out to them. In the bad weather I found that a lot of
them were actually concerned about me too.
Dorothy Chambers.
True grit: our winter heroes
John Bownas spoke to some of the
people who helped keep Croydon
moving during the recent snow.
The toughest
part was getting
around some
of the roads
where cars
park quite close
together or
where they were
abandoned
when the snow
came down
really heavily.
On 16 December London
got its first warning of early
snow – and although this
did not bring us an elusive
white Christmas in
Croydon, it did signal the
start of a mammoth road
gritting operation that
stretched the council’s
resources to their limits.
But gritting was not the
only critical service that
went into high gear as
temperatures plummeted
and the snow kept falling.
Thousands of public
employees made it into
work under difficult
conditions and made sure
that not only were the main
roads kept as clear as
possible, but that the
borough’s residents –
and the salt didn’t have to
work as hard.
“The toughest part was
getting around some of the
roads where cars park quite
close together or where
they were abandoned when
the snow came down really
heavily. We often had to
stop and knock on doors to
ask people to move. People
were usually pretty happy
to shift them, even late at
night. We got a lot of waves
and smiles as we made our
way round – they knew we
were the ones keeping the
roads clear for them.
“We even rescued a big
Tesco delivery van, it’s all
part of the job.”
Dorothy Chambers, a
Careline response worker
We are a crucial service and
people are always more than
grateful when you go out to them.
FACTS
Croydon started the
winter with a huge
stockpile of more than
3,000 tonnes of grit salt.
On the coldest and
snowiest days Croydon
Council had more than 170
staff working 24 hours to
spread 400 tonnes of salt.
From 16 December gritting
operations ran every day
for more than 30 days.
Gritting lorries covered
more than 11,000 miles –
the distance from Croydon
to Sydney, Australia.
All 500 of the borough’s
salt bins were topped up
before the bad weather hit.
particularly the elderly and
vulnerable – were kept safe
and warm.
Colin Dalton, one of the
council’s road gritters said:
“Since well before
Christmas there were nine
vehicles out with two guys
on each pretty much
round-the-clock shifts –
plus blokes down at the
depot loading salt and more
in the office coordinating
the rounds and shifts. The
most important advice that
I could give if this happens
again is: simply don’t drive
unless you’ve got to. Just
stay indoors.”
Another gritter, Charlie
Cuffe, said: “Luckily, we
had new trucks this year
with four-wheel drive and
ploughs, and a lot bigger
capacity for carrying grit.
That meant we didn’t have
to go back to the yard as
often, and the ploughs
shifted a lot of the snow. It
was easier to get through
said: “The worst weather
came during my first month
working for Careline, so it
was a bit of a baptism of
fire – or maybe ice.
“We are a crucial
service and people are
always more than grateful
when you go out to them.
In the bad weather I found
that a lot of them were
actually concerned about
me, too. They were worried
that I was safe getting to
them.
“When we phoned
around to check that people
were OK, we got loads of
thanks because people
didn’t know we did that. It
was a simple thing, but it
made a big difference to
people to let them know we
were there if they needed
us.”
Joylyn Lindsay, who
also works as a Careline
response worker said:
“When someone hits their
alarm they get put through
United effort: some of the council staff who helped maintain services
to a call centre. If it’s a real
emergency, then the
ambulance might get called
straight away – but we still
have to go out to let them
in. Normally we aim to get
out in no more than 20
minutes. Every time we go
out it is a potential life
saver – even a simple fall
can be fatal if people can’t
move to help themselves.
“Even in the bad
weather we managed to
keep this up – sometimes it
meant parking a way from
people’s homes and walking
the rest of the way. But it
was better to do that rather
than get stuck and not be
able to get to the next call.”
Other organisations
praised the efforts of
council staff.
Nick Hulme, chief
executive at Mayday
hospital, said: “I know that
council staff worked around
the clock to keep main
roads and many pavements
clear and gritted. This
undoubtedly helped vital
hospital staff get to work,
as well as reducing the
numbers of accidents we
might otherwise have
seen.”
Caroline Taylor, chief
executive of NHS Croydon
said: “How well Croydon
Council gritted the roads
meant that our staff were
able to continue to provide
health services to local
residents, which in such
severe conditions proved
vital for vulnerable people
living in the borough.”
Croydon police Chief
Inspector Steve Lawrie said:
“Feedback from my officers
has been that the gritting
effort by the local authority
definitely made getting
about on the borough easier
than expected and we were
able to respond, in the most
part, to the people who
have needed our assistance
quickly and safely.”
Steve Garrod, training
manager at the UK Drivers
Instructors Association in
Beddington, said: “Praise
where it’s due, even a lot of
Croydon’s narrow roads
were clear of snow and ice.
It’s hard enough to keep the
main roads open – as
anyone trying to travel
south of Croydon would
have experienced – so to
manage to salt and plough
some of the smaller routes
really does deserve a round
of applause.”
yourheritage 21
I’m astounded by the emerging music talent coming out of Croydon.
Jim Benner, head of live events at Xfm.
Heats
Singer/songwriter
16 February 2010
Visionary Heights
Joe Hood
Megan Davis
Peter Walsh
Hospital Radio
Melodic Janelle
Starting out: last year’s Testing 1,2,3 winner, De’Borah, wowed the judges with her soulful voice and guitar accompaniment
Four nights of live music
Final rehearsals are under way for the borough’s premier talent competition.
Back for a sixth successful
year, Testing 1,2,3 will see
18 of Croydon’s top
up-and-coming musicians
and bands line up to try to
launch their careers.
Three nights of heats
will take place at the
Braithwaite Hall, Katharine
Street, in February, with this
year’s contestants keen to
emulate the success of last
year’s winning act, singer/
songwriter De’Borah.
Performances are
grouped under singer/
songwriter, hip-hop/R’n’B,
and bands, two acts will go
forward from each night to
the final on 19 February.
And, based on the
quality of the tracks
submitted for shortlisting,
the judges will have a tough
time picking out the best of
an excellent bunch.
Acts will play two of
their own songs and a cover
version.
The cover is chosen by
the judges and every act
will be expected to use their
imagination and musical
skills to interpret it .
Croydon is experiencing
a surge in musical talent, as
two acts from the borough
– soul singer Rox and dance
producer Joy Orbison –
were both tipped by the
music industry as being
ones to watch for 2010.
They were included in
the BBC’s list of potential
breakthrough bands – a list
that, in past years, has
included Mica, La Roux
and Kaiser Chiefs.
Testing is run by
Croydon Council with
support from local music
and arts organisations.
It is judged by
professionals and artists
from the established music
industry, and is held in high
regard by those who get
involved.
Jim Benner, head of live
events at Xfm and a final’s
judge said: “I’m astounded
by the emerging music
talent coming out of
Croydon.”
In addition to receiving
a package of prizes
ranging from personalised
T-shirts from local store
Timebomb, vouchers from
Market Place, David Lean
cinema tickets, recording
time at Antenna and
Online Studios, and a
photo shoot from
Bowdown Photography,
the winning act will get to
play at the 2010 Croydon
Summer Festival in Lloyd
Park – to a potential
crowd of thousands.
And, with a little
modern-day thinking
showing itself, the report
continues: “But it is
necessary for every man
and woman to keep in
condition in the winter,
as well as in the summer,
Soul Glo
Natural VybeZ
Fobiah
Bands
18 February 2010
Oil in Canvas
Strange Blues
Inhaled
Queasy Fish
Soul Reflex
The Unready
Grand final
19 February 2010
Show times
Doors 7.30pm - Show 8pm
Tickets
Heats £3 - Final £5
With the Great War looming, Croydon people knew how to have a good time for a tanner.
Box Office, 1st Floor,
Croydon Clocktower,
Katharine St, CR9 1ET
and there is no more
fascinating or healthful
indoor exercise than roller
skating.”
From the John Gent Collection, Croydon Local Studies Library and Archives Service
sit on the sidelines and
watch them glide around
the wooden floor.
And, in the days before
taped music, a uniformed
band, who can be seen in
a balcony area at the top
centre-right side of the
image, accompanied the
skating.
A newspaper report
from the time said:
“Cherry Orchard Road will
attract many new visitors
for the next few months;
outdoor athletics will be
almost impossible for the
average person.
“We do not all play
such strenuous games as
football or hockey, neither
are we all capable of
cross-country running.”
Trixta
Peter Croucher
Skating with the Croydon rollers
This photograph from
1913 shows a crowd
of people taking their
exercise at a skating rink
in Cherry Orchard Road.
Some 50 years after
the first recorded use of
roller skates, the picture
shows skating had become
a popular pastime,
particularly with those
who favoured indoor
exercise.
People paid a
tanner (6d – or 2.5p
in new money) which
included the hire of the
skates, to skate at the
rink, while those who
took their exercise by
proxy – the spectators –
parted company with a
threepenny bit (1.75p) to
Hip-hop & R’n’B
17 February 2010
Innocent times: the Cherry Orchard Road roller rink regularly drew large crowds
Tel: 020 8253 1030
Minicom: 020 8253 1027
www.croydonclocktower.
org.uk
22 yourevents
Fairfield, Park Lane, Croydon CR9 1DG
Box office 020 8688 9291
Book online at www.fairfield.co.uk
where you can choose your own seats.
A booking fee of £2.25 per ticket may apply
Fairfield
The Moscow State Circus
– Legenda – “Once in a
Lifetime”
Mon 1, 8pm; Tue 2 & Wed
3, 5pm & 8pm
The Moscow State Circus
returns to the UK with this
once in a lifetime opportunity
to see this award winning
show Legenda, bringing with
it a huge cast of Russia’s
greatest and most flexible
circus performers.
Adults £24.50, £22.50, £16;
children £12; family ticket £66
(seats four)
Lunchtime event:
Martin Toal
Tuesday 2, 1.05pm
Martin invites you to join him
and his pianist, violinist and
guitarist for a very special
concert of all your favourite
popular operatic and Irish
songs, including Granada,
Danny Boy, Mario Lanza’s
Drinking Song, Molly Malone
and, of course, the ultimate
Puccini tenor aria Nessum
Dorma!
£5, ShowCard £4.50
Me and My Life
Wednesday 3, 8pm
Featuring all the hits of The
Tremeloes, this musical
journey takes you back to the
early ’60s with original lead
singer Brian Poole and such
hits as Twist and Shout and
Do You Love Me through to
the latter ’60s and ’70s with
lead singer Chip Hawkes and
hits such as Here Comes My
Baby and Silence is Golden.
£17.50
Voulez Vous
Friday 5, 7.45pm
Voulez Vous brings the full
Abba experience to life. This
superbly executed show
uses enhanced multi-screen
projection and voiceover
narration outlining the story of
Abba’s rise to fame and the
eventual split. Dig out your
bellbottomed flares, wigs and
platform heels as this is sure
to be an Abba extravaganza
to remember.
£15.50
Croydon Comedy Club
Friday 5, 9pm. Doors open
8pm
See some of the circuit’s
top comedians, plus special
guests and exciting new
acts. Great for celebrations,
birthdays, hen nights, work
parties or just a fun night out
with friends.
£9
Soul Disco Special with The
Temptations and Tavares
Friday 5, 8pm
Get on down to the funkiest
place in town! Disco inferno
live from the USA! The kings
of disco, Tavares, will be
performing all their hits such
as Heaven Must Be Missing
An Angel, More Than A
Woman and Never Had A
Love Like This Before. Plus,
the kings of soul, Richard
Street’s Temptations, with hits
including My Girl, Get Ready,
Just My Imagination and Papa
Was A Rolling Stone.
£25, £29.50
Arthur Davison Family
Concert: The Snowman
Saturday 6, 11am
An exciting programme of
the elements with Holst’s
Spirits of the Earth, Falla’s
Ritual Fire Dance, Handel’s
Water Music and Britten’s
Wind Storm. Frost and ice
are represented in Vivaldi’s
Winter, and thunder and
lightning in Strauss’ lively
Polka. And, of course, the
elements would not be
complete without the popular
story of The Snowman with
its chart-topping song We’re
Walking in the Air, sung by
pupils from Downside Lodge
and St David’s schools.
Adults £9, children £7.50
Sean Hughes – What I
Meant to Say Was
Saturday 6, 7.45pm
Sean Hughes, star of Never
Mind the Buzzcocks and
Sean’s Show, is back with a
brand new show, bursting at
the seams with darkly brilliant,
self-deprecating barbed wit.
£15
Divinity
Sunday 7, 7pm
A special evening,
featuring 40 musicians in a
collaboration between Indian
musicians of the Raga Jyoti
and members of the Halle
Youth Ensembles. Including
divine chants in Sanskrit,
digital projection about India,
and choral arrangements.
£10, concs £2 off, family £32
Bromley Schools Prom
Mon 8, Tue 9, Thu 11 & Fri
12 Feb 7pm
Bromley Youth Music
Trust presents a musical
spectacular, featuring more
than 800 performers each
evening, showcasing the
musical talent in Bromley
schools, from rock to
Rachmaninov
£8, £10, £12
of Fire, I Walk the Line and
Hurt.
£15
Royal Philharmonic
Orchestra – Romantic Love
Classics
Saturday 13, 7.30pm
An evening of romantic
orchestral favourites, the
perfect Valentine’s treat.
Featuring Tchaikovsky’s
Romeo & Juliet Fantasy
Overture, Gershwin’s
Rhapsody in Blue and
Tchaikovsky’s immortal Fifth
Symphony. Conductor/piano:
Andrew Litton.
£10 - £29.50
Peppa Pig – Peppa Pig’s
Party
Sat 13, 10am, 1pm & 4pm;
Sun 14, 10am & 1pm
Peppa is a playful little piggy
who lives with her younger
brother George, Mummy Pig
and Daddy Pig. Today is a
very special day. It’s Peppa
Pig’s birthday. Featuring trueto-life puppets.
Adults £14.50, £12.50 & £10;
children £12.50, £10.50 & £8;
family ticket (seats four) £50
Lunchtime event: B3 Classic
Tuesday 9, 1.05pm
Since its formation in 1992,
this trio of clarinet, cello and
piano has become one of the
most stable, consolidated and
well-known ensembles of this
kind in Europe.
Sylvia Anderson –
My FAB Years
Wednesday 10, 7.45pm
An entertaining show centred
around Sylvia Anderson’s
biography My FAB Years.
Sylvia, who was the
unforgettable voice of Lady
Penelope, talks about her
personal journey and career.
£14, £16
The Johnny Cash Story
Thursday 11, 7.45pm
Since appearing on TV at
the age of 14, singing The
Tennessee Flat Top Box,
Roger Dean has been playing
Cash’s music most of his life.
With the Lazy Boys he will be
singing classics such as Ring
Lunchtime event: Mark van
de Wiel and John Constable
Tuesday 16, 1.05pm
The Philharmonia Orchestra’s
joint principal clarinet Mark
van de Wiel is joined by the
world-renowned pianist John
Constable. Featuring music
from Weber, Brahms and
Poulenc.
Halfway to Paradise – The
Billy Fury Story
Hear the voice of Colin Gold
and Billy’s own band play his
timeless hits, including Last
Night Was Made For Love.
Set to a moving backdrop
of this wonderful era and
including personal movie
footage.
£18.50, concessions £17.50
London’s Best Dance Crew
Wednesday 17, 7.30pm.
Doors open 7pm
The search for London’s best
dance crew. Running from
14 January to 7 April, the
capital’s best crews will be on
stage competing for a £3,000
cash prize and a chance to
perform in America.
£10
Croydon Comedy Club
Friday 19, 9pm. Doors
open 8pm
See some of the circuit’s
top comedians, plus special
guests and exciting new
acts. Great for celebrations,
birthdays, hen nights, work
parties or just a fun night out
with friends.
£9
Treorchy Male Voice Choir
Saturday 20, 7.30pm
The world-famous choir
returns, after a number of
years performing around the
world, performing a range
of music to meet all tastes.
All proceeds will support the
work of the Wooden Spoon
Society - rugby’s charity
supporting disadvantaged
children and young people.
£18, £22.50, £24.50
with their new show following
last year’s sold out UK tour.
Dance icons and national
treasures from the BBC’s
Strictly Come Dancing, Anton
& Erin will dazzle and charm
with their ballroom magic that
perfectly showcases their
enchanting talent.
£36, £38.50 (£2.50 booking
fee per ticket)
Lunchtime event:
Steinberg Duo
Tuesday 23, 1.05pm
Following a successful debut
at the 2007 Lake District
Summer Music Festival, the
violin/piano duo has played
regular concerts. Programme
to include music by Mozart
and Franck.
Pack Up Your Troubles
Combining the very best of
Music Hall with the great
songs of the ’40s for a nonstop stream of sing-along
favourites, fun and laughter.
A good old-fashioned singalong knees-up!
£10
Anton and Erin –
Steppin’ Out
Sunday 21, 7.30pm
Step out with Anton Du Beke
and Erin Boag as they return
David Lean
Fri 5 to Thur 11 February
The Boys Are Back (12A)
Up In The Air (15)
Chocs and a glass of
bubbly for the rereleased
Breakfast At Tiffany’s (PG)
Fri 12 to Thur 18 February
Nine (12A)
A Prophet (18)
Disgrace (15)
Fri 19 to Thu 25 February
It’s Complicated (15)
Precious (15)
Fri 26 to Thu 4 Mar
Invictus (12A)
A Single Man (12A)
Crude (12A TBC)
Sat 13 February
Braithwaite Hall Valentine
Special evening
yourdiary 23
yourevents
Details of all Croydon
Council meetings can be
found on the council website
at www.croydon.gov.uk/
meetingsofthecouncil
Croydon Clocktower,
Katharine Street, Croydon
Ticket office: 020 8253 1030
Online: www.croydonclocktower.org.uk
Clocktower
2010: A Space Oddity
Wed 3 Feb 7.30pm
With every cliché from
every space movie you’ve
ever seen, Company Gavin
Robertson, who had huge
success with Thunderbirds
FAB, presents its latest
comedy.
£7.50 /£6 concessions
John Hegley’s The
Adventures of Monsieur
Robinet
Thu 4 Feb 7.30pm
Poet, comedian and singer
John Hegley returns to “one
of his favourite venues”
(his words not ours) with
his new show. With tales
about a Frenchman with
some unusual [but clean]
habits, and a poem about
a non-talking parrot this is
guaranteed good fun.
£12 /£10 concessions
Skip “Little Axe” McDonald
plus support
Fri 5 Feb 8pm
Skip McDonald formed the
house band for the pioneering
Sugar Hill label, and provided
music for some of the most
seminal records of the ‘70s
and ‘80s by Grandmaster
Flash, Afrika Bambaataa,
Force MD and many more.
Although Little Axe’s Hard
Grind draws comparisons to
Moby’s Play, it was Skip who
pioneered the fusion of blues,
dub and electronic music.
Tonight, Little Axe gives you
the blues as it was meant to
be heard – live.
£6 / £5 concessions
Little Red Riding Hood
and Friends
Sat 6 Feb 11am & 2.30pm
Our hero meets the pop star
Cinderella and a vegetarian
wolf in a comical mixture
of fairy tales with audience
participation and mime. Bring
your own carrots.
Ages: four-plus.
Hopefool
Wed 10 Feb 7.30pm
Come and witness the life of
a professional confetti maker.
This full-time factory worker’s
fears, fantasies and ambitions
go far beyond cutting paper.
Hopefool combines live
music, singing, crazy dancing
and bizarre puppetry as our
hero strives for romance,
fame and family.
Dates for your diary
£7.50 / £6 concessions
Frida Kahlo – Viva La Vida
by Humberto Robles
Thu 11 Feb 7.30pm
This is an explosive on-stage
portrait of Latin America’s
greatest female painter.
Sharp, witty and bursting
with colour, this multi-awardwinning play powerfully
recreates the intimate life
of an exceptional artist
who managed to transfer
her vibrant culture and her
deepest dramas onto canvas.
£7.50 / £6 concessions
Led Bib plus support
Fri 12 Feb 8pm
One of the original torch
bearers for the revitalized
young British jazz scene,
Mercury Music Prize
nominees Led Bib released
their third album Sensible
Shoes to worldwide acclaim.
The album was described
as a modern classic by the
press. See them live.
£10 / £8 concessions
Princess and the Pea
Sat 13 Feb 11am &
2.30pm
A playful and comic
adaptation of Hans Christian
Andersen’s bedtime tale
of a prince in search of a
real princess, a tower of
mattresses and, of course, a
tiny pea.
Ages: two-plus
Warehouse
Council
Deadlines for public questions for forthcoming full council meetings (all start at 6.30pm).
Noon on the relevant deadline date
Meeting: Monday, 22 March
Deadline: Monday, 8 March
To submit a question (maximum number of words: 50) for consideration at a full council
meeting, email it to council.questions@croydon.gov.uk; fax it to 020 8760 5657; print and
complete the form at www.croydon.gov.uk/councilquestion and post it to Questions for the
council, Democratic and legal services, Taberner House, Park Lane, Croydon CR9 3JS; or call
020 8726 6000 extn 63876.
Scrutiny
Deadlines for the forthcoming scrutiny and overview committee public question sessions
Noon on the relevant deadline date
Meeting: 9 February Scrutiny and overview
Deadline: 1 February
Cabinet member: Councillor Mike Fisher, leader of the council
Meeting: 23 February Children Learning and Leisure
Cabinet member: Councillor Tim Pollard, cabinet member for children, young people
and learners
Meeting: 2 March Community services
Cabinet member: Councillor Dudley Mead, cabinet member for housing
To submit a question (maximum number of words: 50) to the cabinet member detailed above,
email it to scrutiny.public.questions@croydon.gov.uk ; fax it to 020 8760 5657; post it to
Scrutiny public questions, Democratic and legal services, Taberner House, Park Lane, Croydon
CR9 3JS; or call 020 8726 6000 extn 62529 or 62683.
Neighbourhood partnership
Neighbourhood partnership meetings (start at 7.30pm)
Meeting: 3 February
Group: Addiscombe, Woodside and Ashburton
Venue: Ryelands Primary School, Albert Road, South Norwood SE25 4QL
Meeting: 10 February
Group: Broad Green and Waddon
Venue: Salvation Army (Citadel) Community Hall, Booth Road, Waddon CR0 1XY
Meeting: 3 March
Group: Coulsdon East and Coulsdon West
Venue: St John the Evangelist Church, Canons Hill, Old Coulsdon CR5 1HB
For information on Neighbourhood Partnerships, visit the website at www.croydononline.org/
neighbourhood_partnerships/, email neighbourhood.partnerships@croydon.gov.uk,
write to Neighbourhood Partnerships, Democratic and legal services, Taberner House, Park
Lane, Croydon CR9 3JS or call 020 8726 6000 extn 62564 or 64919.
Croydon Community Police Consultative Group
Meetings of the Croydon Community Police Consultative Group are held in the Council
Chamber of the Town Hall. All are open to the public and begin at 6.30pm. For further
information, go to www.croydononline.org/ccpcg
Forthcoming meeting date is… Meeting: Tuesday, 23 March.
Details of all Croydon Council meetings can be found on the council website at www.croydon.
gov.uk/meetingsofthecouncil
Crystal
Palace
February fixtures
Date Team
Kick-off
9 Swansea City 8pm
16 Reading
8pm
20 Coventry City 3pm
Contact us
Dick Barton – Quantum of Porridge (World Premiere)
Playing until Sun 21 February
Directed by Ted Craig, Quantum of Porridge is written by
Duncan Wisbey, with music and lyrics by Stefan Bednarczyk.
Our favourite special agent returns in a new adventure.
Tuesday 6.30pm £14 (£11); Wednesday 8pm £14 (£11));
Thursday 8pm £12; Friday & Saturday 8pm £17; Sunday 5pm
£14 (£11)
General enquiries
T: 020 8726 6000
Opening hours
8am-7pm (Monday),
8am-6pm (Tuesday-Friday)
F: 020 8760 0871
Minicom: 020 8760 5797
Email: contact.thecouncil@
croydon.gov.uk
Housing
T: 020 8726 6100
F: 020 8760 5745
E: housing@croydon.gov.uk
Environmental reporting
T: 020 8726 6200
E: contact.enviroteam@
croydon.gov.uk
Planning and building
control
T: 020 8726 6800
F: 020 8760 5406
E: planning.control@croydon.
gov.uk
Adult social services
Tel: 020 8726 6500
Fax: 020 8633 9428
Email: referral.team2@
croydon.gov.uk
my council...
“...gives me somewhere to play”
Your council looks after 127 Croydon parks and open spaces
020 8726 6000
%
www.croydon.gov.uk/parks

Your Croydon - February 2010

Transcription

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