FREE DRAMA WORKSHOP - May 25th

 

 

FREE DRAMA WORKSHOP as part of Lewisham Borough of Culture 2022


As part of Borough of Culture TEATRO VIVO have been made 'Artists of Change' working with the Climate resilience team at the council.

The end result will be a 20-minute show that will be performed twice in every ward in the borough - representing what the people of Lewisham think the borough should be doing around climate, greening, and reaching net zero by 2030.

After working with the climate team, we're reaching out to residents to hear what they want to say and we’d love for you to get involved. We’re running a drama workshop in each ward in the borough including one at Albion Millennium Green on Wednesday, May 25th 6.00-7.30pm.

To participate, please contact email@foresthillsocety.com


For more information then please visit www.teatrovivo.co.uk

Rubble, Frogs and Mince Pies: The December Workday on Albion Millennium Green

By Jorella Andrews, Chair of the Albion Millennium Green Trust

Saturday 12th December dawned fresh, cool and dry after a night of rain — ideal conditions for the work of digging and clearing we were carrying out on the Green, in preparation for planting a hedge along the Green's boundary with the recently extended housing development of Longfield Crescent. In fact, according to an 1870 map tracked down by Sheila Carson, Secretary of the Friends of Albion Millennium Green, we will be rejuvenating part of an old boundary line consisting of hawthorn trees that once ran from the railway line, along what is now the south side of the Green, up the south side of Redberry Grove, and on to meet Sydenham Park Road. 

Some of these trees are still living. We plan to reduce them in height and insert new hedging plants, between and slightly in front of them, with the aim of growing a new thick, mixed-species hedge. The hedge should provide food (hawthorn, holly and wild privet berries, rosehips, and hazelnuts) and nesting sites for birds, as well as sloes which could be foraged for gin-making. But before we can plant, we need to remove an expanse of bricks, rubble and lumps of cement that have been dumped onto the land over time and are now buried underneath it, shrouded by overlying brambles. Then we need to prepare the ground before planting next winter. 

On our workday, as we forked energetically into the earth and turned it over, we were conscious of the small lives we were disturbing: fleshy worms, wood beetles, spiders, slugs, and the acrobatic frogs, which would suddenly leap into view. We relocated the latter to a safe spot close to the Green’s pond.

We had a fantastic (socially-distanced) workout, cheered along by good conversation, coffee and mince pies. If this sounds appealing, look out for our next socially-distanced workdays on the second Saturday of each month. We meet at 10.30am in the area of the Green adjacent to Albion Villas Road. Bring gardening gloves and sturdy footwear. Even if you are only able to stay for an hour or so, we will gladly appreciate your company and your help.

Albion Millennium Green: An Ambitious Programme

By Ann Field, Friends of Albion Millennium Green
We started the year with an ambitious programme and already we have increased the number of volunteers coming forward for our regular, second-Saturday-in-the-month workdays. Our “Shared Vision” programme involves enriching nature and people’s experience and use of the Green, cultivating and nurturing the orchard, keeping the Green tidy, providing signage and better information about the Green and raising funds.

One of the key elements of the programme was the construction of a new pond, to replace the previous, smaller pond damaged by large dogs and foxes. The pond was dug in August and a frog has already taken up residence. There will be an official opening event on 1st and 2nd October. Look out for details on our website.

Forest Hill School Geography Ambassadors’ Group

This group conducted a survey among 120 KS3 students earlier this year. They discovered that most of the students had not heard of the Green; and then they asked for the views of those who had and how the space could be used more effectively. The second stage of the school’s research involved a survey of the parents of all students living in the area, and included questions about publicity, better use of the space and how to attract more volunteer support. In addition, a focus group of students was asked to come up with a more detailed list of activities and publicity methods that the Green’s organizers could use. Among the conclusions was the comment that “more needs to be done to publicise the existence of the Green and promote the work that the many volunteers do by means of social media and general publicity”. The Friends group will be seeking to work with the school and other local partners to organize events and to promote the Green.

We have had some bad luck with our existing notice boards so we are looking at replacing them with weather-proof notice boards which are also less vulnerable to vandalism.

Our efforts have been unsuccessful so far to raise sufficient funds and obtain permission to erect good quality signage for the Green on lamp posts in the area, but we will be having another go. If you would like to help us with these two initiatives or with any other aspect of our efforts for the Green, just get in touch. There is a special appeal for funds to enable us to buy the equipment and materials needed to carry out this programme of work.

Full details of our “Shared Vision”, the calendar of events for the year, how to join the Friends or make a donation can be found on our website www.amgfriends.org.uk or Twitter: @albionmilgreen.

News from Albion Millennium Green

We started the year with an ambitious programme agreed at our AGM, and already we have doubled the number of volunteers coming forward for our regular second-Saturday-in-the-month workdays.

Our ‘Shared Vision’ involves enriching both nature and people’s experience and use of the Green, cultivating and nurturing the orchard keeping the Green tidy, providing signage and better information about the Green and, crucially, raising funds. The programme includes:

• filling in the gaps in the railway path’s mixed species hedge with new plantings
• renovating Privet hedges
• planting perennial woodland edge and shade species
• replacing self-seeded Sycamore with a Hazel coppice
• in a proposed ‘natural play area’ 
• replacing boundary Sycamores and chain-link tennis fencing with native broad leaved species
• constructing a new pond with a low fence from materials found on site, to replace our existing pond, which had been damaged by large dogs piercing the membrane. The pond will be dug in August and its first day after completion will be marked by a lively Teatro Vivo procession
• increasing the variety of native perennials in the flowering slope next to the area where the tennis clubhouse once stood
• developing a fruiting hedge beside the labyrinth, with native species such as Blackthorn and Damson
• creating a bee-friendly wildflower 'river' on the bank of a 15 meter section of curving pathway
• creating a living roof for our new metal storage container, and insect habitats for the walls of the container
• installing signage to guide people around the Green
• Continuing to work with local schools, groups and organisations
• improving the effective use of notices — possibly replacing them with weather-proof notice boards which are less vulnerable to vandalism.

In this year we are making a special appeal for funds to enable us to buy the equipment and materials needed to carry out this programme of work. Full details of our ‘Shared Vision’, the calendar of events for the year and how to donate can be found on our website: www.amgfriends.org.uk 

Article by By Ann Field
Photo: An emerging bluebell wood

Woodlands — Springing Back to Life!

Three of Forest Hill’s natural assets are relatively small pockets of woodlands located next to the railway line running between Honor Oak Park and Sydenham stations. These sites are open to the public, albeit on limited days in two cases, and are managed by dedicated groups of volunteers. Now that spring has arrived after winter’s lull, activities — as well as plants — at these sites are starting to show signs of renewed life.

Devonshire Road Nature Reserve (DRNR) abuts the west side of the railway line between Forest Hill and Honor Oak Park stations, and has been run by the Friends of Devonshire Road Nature Reserve (FDRNR) for 15 years now, who have been awarded a Green Pennant year after year.

Since October, the Friends have been doing tree and brushwood removal around the edges of the reserve’s meadows, and improving paths. Starting this spring, guided school visits — or ‘Muddy Boots’ sessions — will be offered to primary school children.

The Friends are in desperate need of someone to help run their website and with publicity, as well as to volunteer in general; for more info, see contact details below or attend the Friends’ annual general meeting on Sunday 22nd March.

DRNR is open to the public on the last Sunday of each month (currently between 2-5:30pm). 170 Devonshire Rd, SE23 3SZ.
For more info: www.devonshireroadnaturereserve.org

 

Albion Millennium Green (AMG) is situated on the west side of the railway line between Sydenham and Forest Hill stations. It is managed by the Friends of Albion Millennium Green, who organise a range of arts-related activities and plantmanagement work days throughout the year. After a winter break, work days, which occur on the second Saturday of each month, will start again in March.

At the Friends’ annual general meeting held on 21st February at Forest Hill Pools, activities and achievements in a very productive year were highlighted, including:
• Work carried out by volunteers that resulted in a Green Flag Award being awarded again.
• The AMG’s owner, the Albion Millennium Green Trust, a charitable trust, being revitalized at its AGM in November with the election of a new board of trustees.
• Also in November, the Friends being successfully awarded a Forest Hill Assembly grant for a much-needed 10-foot storage container, in order to securely house equipment and materials.

AMG is accessed year-round from Albion Villas Road, SE26 or the path adjacent to the railway line. For more info: www.amgfriends.org.uk

Dacres Wood Nature Reserve (DWNR) abuts the east side of the railway line between Forest Hill and Sydenham stations, and is run by the Friends of Dacres Wood Nature Reserve (FoDWNR) committee.

Having closed for the winter months, the Friends group is planning to re-open the reserve to the public on 28th March for regular last-Saturday-of-the-month open days. A variety of outdoor sessions and activities, including nature trail days, will then be offered in the spring for pre-school children and school children aged 5-plus.

The Friends group is looking for more volunteers to help on open days, plan and run events, or even join the committee.

DWNR is situated behind Homefield House, Dacres Estate,Dacres Road, SE23 2NZ. Its main entrance is at the end of Honeyfield Mews, which is off Dacres Road and just south of Catling Close. For more info: dacreswood.org.uk.

Article by John Wysocki, Newsletter Editor

ALBION MILLENNIUM GREEN: re-launching the Trust

Readers may know that the Green is owned by a local charitable trust formed in 1998 with the specific purposes of purchasing the land from the former tennis club trustees and protecting and enhancing the space for the benefit of the local community. The Trust has been moribund for several years but following welcome intervention by Lewisham Council a new set of trustees is about to be appointed from local community groups in the area and active Green supporters. The appointments will take place at the Trust’s annual general meeting and anyone living in the area is invited and very welcome to attend.

Albion Millennium Green Trust Annual General MeetingSaturday 1st November 2014, 11am
Forest Hill Pools, Dartmouth Road

The Friends of Albion Millennium Green group will continue to care for the Green and its upkeep, and will continue to organize and host the many events and activities which have become established as regular features.

Activities this year have included performances by the Bedlam Bunch for the Sydenham Arts Festival, several children’s birthday parties organized by local parents and visits by groups of environmentalists and botanists.

We took part in the Capital Clean-Up scheme with workday sessions clearing rubbish, chain link fencing and brambles. The Green is looking better than ever as a result, but also because local residents have devoted a great time of time and effort in mowing the grass and clearing the paths of weeds. Litter clearing helps too, and this year we have had less of a problem with dog mess as more people are clearing up after their pets.

Our fruit trees are thriving and although we had a large crop of blackberries they were rather small this year. Insects and birdlife abound as well as plants and vegetation. Anyone interested in bird watching would be most welcome to update the amazing list given to us in February 2013: www.amgfriends.org.uk

The Green is accessible from Albion Villas Road and the railway path which runs between Forest Hill and the iron bridge over the railway leading to Sydenham.

Little Ecological Arts Festival

The Little Ecological Arts Festival (LEAF), will take place on Albion Millenium Green. There will be a series of events running from 2pm to 8pm on Wednesday 1 May to Saturday 4 May. In true artistic fashion, all timings are approximate! For latest details, check the littleecologicalart blog.

• ‘Tree / Book’ an Interactive Installation by Camilla Nelson
  Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday 2pm to 8pm
  Make your mark on this interactive web of tree-related reading & writing materials
• ‘Enclosure’ an Installation by Dan Eltringham
  Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday 2pm to 8pm
  Dan needs more space for his things. He's staked a claim and privatised part of the Green. He might consider leasing it to you.
• ‘Labyrinth’ an Installation by Maria Strutz
  Wednesday, Thursday 2pm to 8pm
  A walkable sculpture
• ‘The Keithettes: Divination’ a Performance by Beetle and Bird
  Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday 2pm to 3pm
  London based performance company Beetle and Bird pay homage to their Irish heritage. The Keithettes retell a traditional Irish May Day folklore with the help of some snails.
• ‘Nest’ a Performance Installation by Nathalie Hauwelle
  Wednesday 5pm to 8pm, Thursday, Friday 2pm to 8pm
  A nest fit for a human is built from wood found on The Green.
• ‘Insect Hotel’ Performance by the International Collective of Ecological Actors
  Thursday, Friday 2pm to 8pm, Saturday 2pm to 6pm
  You are trying to check in but the receptionist is busy building bed-space for some exceptional guests.
• ‘The Tempest’ by Teatro Vivo
  Thursday, Friday, 7pm to 8pm
  The Spirits of Albion Island invite you to come and celebrate Independence Day! The tyrannous Prospero has relinquished control and the Spirits will be celebrating by planting a memorial. Discover lovers and kings, monsters and men creating a storm in the undergrowth. This will be a work in progress showing inspired by Shakespeare’s The Tempest
• ‘I Surrender’ by Rachael Henley
  Friday 2pm to 8pm, Saturday 2pm to 7pm
  Live Performance Installation Knitting - Live .
• ‘Gleaning, Leaning and the Lean’ Workshop by Natalie Joelle
  Friday 4pm to 5pm
  What does it mean to glean and what are the ecological implications of its gestures?
• ‘The Last Cuppa’ Theatre by Elaine Pantling
  Friday, Saturday 4pm to 8pm
  There is comfort in a cup of solitude but there is much more pleasure in sharing a pot of tea with friends. Every cup, every sip stirs up a story and invokes a memory never to be forgotten…
• ‘Linus Slug’ by Mendoza
  Friday, Saturday 6pm to 7pm
  Insect Poetry from Northumberland.
• ‘Sprites In Shorts’ a Performance by Simon Harrison and Phiip Engleheart
  Saturday 6pm to 8pm
  The festival finishes with Crystal Palace's finest. Famous for their ‘Blessing of The Pond’ on Albion Millennium Green
• ‘Where Do We Go From Here?’ Interactive Installation by the International Collective of Ecological Actors
  Thursday, Friday, Saturday 2pm to 8pm
  Reveal the path to the future

Man Dug Pond

A new wildlife pond has arrived on Albion Millennium Green. ‘Man Digs Pond’ was the creation of local performer, Bruno Roubicek who collaborated with Friends of Albion Millennium Green to produce this unique community event.

The pond was constructed during 24 hours from the 5 – 6 November, accompanied by around 40 singers including a choir from Holy Trinity School and a community choir organised by Alix McAdams.

With around 21 volunteers and support in kind from such diverse sources as Theatre Royal Stratford East and Lewisham Green Scene, the event involved a big effort from many in Forest Hill and beyond, so thanks to all who helped, especially Mark Edwards who supplied the delicious food at cost price and Rosalind Meadows who helped out with some great pond plants and advice.

Two weeks later and the pond looks great. Lets hope we get some frogs in the Spring.

Man Digs Pond

An exciting event from our friends at Albion Millennium Green...

• A Man will move.
• A Man may sing.
• A Man will not speak.
• A Man may cry.
• A Man will not leave until A Man has dug a pond.

Over 24 hours, A Man will dig a wildlife pond, complete with a garden bog area, flora and fauna and a rock garden for amphibians.

Start: Saturday 5th November 8.00pm
End: Sunday 6th November 8.00pm

Venue: Albion Millennium Green

From 1.00pm - 8.00pm on Sunday, delicious and great value bbq food for sale, (with veggie options).

This is a free event. The audience can come and observe A Man working for as long as they want. There will also be an opportunity to sing if you want to. School choirs and groups and individuals of mixed singing ability will sing a song or two as an accompaniment to the action. From 1.00pm till 8.00pm Sunday you can just turn up and sing anything you want. As long as there is nothing offensive in the lyrics. There will be no amplified sound, so no microphones. Feel free to bring an acoustic instrument. Out of respect to the neighbours there will be no drumming after dark.

Getting There:
Entrance at the end of Albion Villas Road. London. SE26 4DB.

More little Russets

In the last Newsletter, we told you about Tom and Sara Russet’s plan to celebrate their daughter’s birth by planting some Russet apple trees on Albion Millennium Green.

Well, on 23 January the planting ceremony was carried out and we hope that in years to come Nell Margie Russet - and the rest of the community - will be able to enjoy the fruit planted in her honour. We would love to hear from other members of any similar stories!

To the right: Tom, Sara and Nell enjoying the planting

Grand May Day on Albion Millennium Green

Sunday, 1st May: 12 – 3.00pm

The Bedlam Bunch return to offer two shows (12

and 2.00 for children aged 3 – 8. Parents welcome.

Bring your own picnic lunch (1.00pm – 2.00pm).

Face painting, (squirrels, badgers, hedgehogs galore), May Kings and Queens, bird boxes, cakes and much more.

With support of The Localities Fund, LB Lewisham.

Little Russets!

How do you celebrate the birth of a child?  Sara and Tom Russet came up with a very special idea which benefits the whole community.

On the 13 June our first child, Nell Margie Russet, was born. Trying to think of an apt way to celebrate her arrival we happened upon the idea of planting a tree.  We wanted to bring our name into the equation so we decided upon a Russet apple tree. Living in a flat with little garden space, we thought that Albion Millenium Green was the perfect location as it is a lovely public space that we could visit even if we had to move away and the tree could be part of a bigger, community project. To this end we have ordered two trees which will arrive in the last week of January. As we need to clear the undergrowth towards the back of the orchard prior to our planting, it looks like we'll probably do it the first weekend of February.

May Day at Millenium Green

Despite inclement weather, May Day was celebrated in style at the Millenium Green off Albion Villas Road. The quagmire of the day before had dried out with the help of the sun enabling the planting of six heritage apple species providing the foundation of the Millennium Green Community Orchard. 

The Forest Hill Ward’s Localities Fund had provided the money for the purchase of the trees, support stakes and mulch mats and with the planting holes pre-prepared, on May Day Shaun Spiers (Chief Executive, Campaign for the Protection of Rural England), John Thompson (Director, Lewisham’s Green Scene), our respective Chair and Vice Chair Richard Hibbert and Michael Abraham, Tim Lund (Chairman, Sydenham Society), and Bruno Roubicek (local resident and AMG prime mover) popped the trees into the ground.

Work with Lewisham’s Nature’s Gym and many other volunteers over the previous months had cleared the undergrowth in preparation for the Great Day and already damson, plum, greengage and a mulberry tree had been planted.
The planting was followed by an auction. The local artist, Maria Strutz, had generously donated an apple- themed original art work entitled ‘Labyrinth’ which had been kindly framed by Jacob Twyford.  Tim Lund auctioned his backpack of freshly-picked heritage rhubarb and a collection box was passed around – all of which raised a total of just over £200. This will go towards redirecting the Green’s naturally rising spring water into the creation of a small wild life water feature.

A picnic lunch (with a shower of hailstones) was followed by a performance by the Dacre Ladies’ Morris Dancers.  Spectators were invited to join in – an invitation eagerly taken up by those whose feet were not numb or encased in mud.

May Day at Albion Millennium Green

Dacre Lady Morris Dancing


Tree Planting

Albion Millenium Green - The Next Decade

Ten years ago the Albion Millennium Green Trust was established to protect and preserve this tiny green oasis, tucked away at the end of Albion Villas Road, off Sydenham Park Road. Now with the help of Nature’s Gym volunteers, they’re planning for the next decade.

Nature’s Gym is organised by Lewisham Council and is designed to help people improve their fitness by getting involved in conservation work in the parks and green spaces around the borough. They can also organise environmental projects tailored for specific local groups, like the Albion Millennium Green Trust.

So, on a damp January morning, despite snow still lying on the ground, ten bold members of Nature’s Gym gathered to attack, hack, sift and generally sort out the litter and undergrowth in preparation for the Trust’s spring programme. More ground preparation work was carried out in February.

If you’d like to get involved in the next Nature’s Gym day at the Albion Millennium Green, do come along on April 8th 11am-2pm where they’ll be carrying on the good work and preparing six plots on the west side for MAY DAY!

Bank Holiday Monday May 3rd will be a fun day. To mark the Green’s tenth anniversary, a small orchard of six heritage apple species are going to be planted at the west end of the Green. Several local eminences have already agreed to be official tree planters. We may get a surprise celebrity!

Starting at 12 noon, the programme will be:

12.00-1.00 - tree planting

1.00-2.00 - bring-your-own picnic lunch;

2.00-3.00 - traditional May Day Morris dancing.

The Dacre Lady Morris dancers will give two performances and then invite audience participation in two teaching sessions.

Come along to mark this historic occasion. Bring friends and family, food and drink, skittles, boules or cricket bats and have a really fun celebration of May Day and the continued success of Albion Millennium Green!

To find out more about Nature’s Gym, you can visit the Lewisham Council website or email them at greenscene@lewisham.gov.uk

May Bank Holiday Revels on our Millennium Green

Some places celebrate May Bank holiday with parades, or dancing, maypoles and ribbons. Forest Hill and Sydenham Societies decided to join forces to celebrate with.... a group litter clear-up.

Millennium Gardens, a little visited green oasis at the end of Albion Villas Road, off Sydenham Park Road, was the venue. And, true to Bank Holiday tradition, on a grey, overcast day, enlivened with occasional drizzle, a small group of stalwarts turned up armed mainly with eagerness to sort out any mess.

If that all sounds a bit grim, well, it really wasn’t. With a freshly mown grass meadow, a copse of deciduous trees, bluebells, lilac, frothy masses of mayflowers and the remains of a tennis court with benches, we set to hacking through stinging nettles to retrieve the miscellany of rubbish which had been dumped over the perimeter wall. An hour or so later, a now warmed-up people-chain had passed old sofas, defunct computers, bags of domestic and garden refuse and other junk into a clearing near to the exit from where it could be collected.

It’s amazing what people throw away – and where they choose to throw it. Why would anyone dump their junk into a lovely public space like Millennium Gardens? But discarded old chestnut paling was quickly identified by gardeners in the group as recyclable for bean or netting supports. And a couple of wooden pallets, separated by bricks and stuffed with other debris, were reconstructed into a bug hotel.

There were about thirty of us for the picnic lunch, tucking in with a satisfied air after a job well done. Revels it wasn’t, but a junior cricket match on the meadow green and senior boules on the old tennis court rounded off the afternoon.

Maybe next year we could have dancing and ribbons and maypoles?

DATES FOR YOUR DIARY

Wednesday 25th March 7.30-9.30pm
Forest Hill Ward Assembly Meeting. Living Springs International Church, 8-10 Devonshire Road, London SE23 3TJ

Thursday 7th May - 7:30pm
Forest Hill Society GENERAL MEETING - The Hob, 7 Devonshire Road SE23 3HE

OUT AND ABOUT
Sunday 29th March at 2pm
Nature and history walk at Dacres Wood Nature Reserve. Meet in the grassy area in front of the reserve gates, (to the left of Homefield House.) Led by Alona Sheridan & Steve Grindlay.

Thursday 30th April - Pub Crawl.
Starts 7.30pm at the Railway Telegraph, 112 Stanstead Rd, SE23 1BS. Ends at Mr Lawrence's Wine Bar, 391 Brockley Road, SE4 2PH

Monday 4th May from midday
May Day Tidy plus picnic. Albion Millennium Green. Entrance at the end of Albion Villas Road, off Sydenham Park Road.

THE 23 CLUB
Monday March 23 at 8pm - classic Italian.
The Old Bank, 76-78 Honor Oak Park SE23 1DY Phone 8291 1738.

Thursday April 23 at 8pm
The Dartmouth Arms pub, 7 Dartmouth Road SE23 3HN Phone 8488 3117

Saturday May 23 at 8pm
The Thai Orchard, 3 David's Road SE23 3EP Phone 8291 3901

Environment and Leisure Committee

We love being close to the big metropolis and having all the amenities that come with urban living. But we also love the tranquil, green spaces that make SE23 so special. James Marmion is on a mission to make Forest Hill a community we can all enjoy and we’re delighted that he’s volunteered to chair the Society’s Environment and Leisure Committee. We asked him to set out his vision.

I’ve lived in Forest Hill for ten years and in southeast London for twenty. Before coming to London, I lived in Liverpool, overlooking a lovely beach now filled with figures made by Anthony Gormley, the Peckham sculptor (which makes it even lovelier).

In SE23 we benefit from all the good places to go out that come with being close to a big metropolis. But the main reason I became involved with the Forest Hill Society was to try to round off some of the sharper urban edges that come with being next to that great metropolis. So what do we need to do?

We need to foster our green spaces. It’s been great to see the continuing development of the green chain walks and we have an active community presence at our several local nature reserves at Devonshire, Garthorne and Dacres Roads. We’ve organised a walk around Dacres Road reserve to raise its profile, stimulate involvement and, not least, admire the last remaining remnants of the canal that preceded the railway line. We’ve also combined volunteering with relaxation by organising a tidy-up followed by a picnic in one of our hidden away green spots. Elsewhere, I’d like to build support for the excellent community idea of using the vacant lot next to One Tree Hill allotments as a family allotment space.

We should promote green issues too – such as supporting the Eco Street project running in the “Rockbourne Triangle” and persuading the council to rollout benefits such as improved recycling schemes across SE23.

We need to smarten up our streetscape and immediate surroundings. The Honor Oak Park Action Group has performed wonders to improve the look of Honor Oak’s Parade and station. Wouldn’t it be good if we could have a similar, community driven group to smarten up London Road and Forest Hill station? Friends and neighbours often complain about how development of our area is handicapped by the presence of the South Circular Road. So how do we turn a handicap into a virtue? Can we improve the road with street art or planting? The railway bridge too is in desperate need of smartening up - a shame as it has the potential to provide a wonderful welcome point to Forest Hill with a good clean, a lick of paint and a well-designed sign.

Most of all I’d love to see children and families get involved – harnessing that sense of civic pride for those growing up or settling down in the area – and having our local schools and youth clubs join in with environmental projects.

I need to hear your ideas too. If you want to drop me a line about them, or if you’re inspired to get involved with what we’re doing, you can write to me at james@foresthillsociety.com.

Planning Application Redberry Grove

Below is the text of the Forest Hill Society submission regarding planning application DC/08/69263/X, 4 Redberry Grove.

On behalf of the Forest Hill Society I wish to object to the proposed development at 4 Redberry Grove which we believe is out of context for the local area.

Redberry Grove is very special road in the Sydenham Park conservation area and the development of a building that is substantially out of character will have a significant affect on the nature of the conservation area in close proximity to an area of nature conservation - Albion Millennium Green which has only recently been designated as such. By developing a new backland development in such close proximity to Albion Millennium Green we are concerned that it will have a negative effect on this area of nature conservation and access to it. Additionally 3 Redberry Grove is a listed building and again this proposed development would negatively impact on the context of this listed building.

Whilst the design and the materials used for this building are state of the art and make a very interesting modern building these are totally out of context within the conservation area, which is primarily one of large Victorian houses which have been well preserved due to the conservation area. It would be a great shame to spoil this area of outstanding Victorian architecture by the discordant nature of this development.

Policy URB 5 sections c-g should be taken into account when considering this development and we believe the council should reject this application.