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The planning application for the new pool can now be found on the Lewisham Council Website.
Your Neighbourhood Matters
A Society for Forest Hill, London.
To contact the Society about our activities please email email@foresthillsociety.com
Support the Forest Hill Society - become a member today.
Wednesday, 17 March | Forest Hill Station 4.30 pm - 6.30 pm |
Thursday, 18 March | Forest Hill Library 9 am -8 pm |
Friday, 19 March | Sainsbury's (London Rd) 5 pm -7 pm |
Wednesday, 24 March | Forest Hill Station 4.30 pm - 6.30 pm |
Thursday, 25 March | Forest Hill Library 9 am -8 pm |
Friday, 26 March | Sainsbury's (London Rd) 5 pm -7 pm |
Wednesday, 17 March | Forest Hill Station 4.30 pm - 6.30 pm |
Thursday, 18 March | Forest Hill Library 9 am -8 pm |
Friday, 19 March | Sainsbury's (London Rd) 5 pm -7 pm |
Wednesday, 24 March | Forest Hill Station 4.30 pm - 6.30 pm |
Thursday, 25 March | Forest Hill Library 9 am -8 pm |
Friday, 26 March | Sainsbury's (London Rd) 5 pm -7 pm |
A busy week in Forest Hill with the 23 Club, the Ward Assembly, and a visit to possibly the last section of canal in Forest Hill!
'23 Club' at The Old Bank – This Monday, 23rd March, 8pm
This Italian restaurant is situated close to Honor Oak Park Station. Booking is not necessary for this evening but do look out for other SE23 Club members. The Old Bank, 76-78 Honor Oak Park, SE23 1DY, Phone 8291 1738
Dacres Wood – Sunday, 29th March, 2pm (BST)
As British Summer Time begins (at last) join us for a fantastic opportunity to take a look round this site which is not normally accessible to the public. As well as interesting flora and fauna, you will see one of the last surviving parts of the Croydon Canal. The tour will be led by Alona Sheridan and the local historian, Steve Grindlay. Sturdy shoes and appropriate outdoor clothes are recommended.
Meet in the grassy area in front of the reserve gates, (junction of Silverdale and Dacres Road).
Forest Hill Pools
Over the next few months the council will be consulting about the future of the Forest Hill swimming pool. At present they are proposing two options;
1. Move the pool to Willow Way SE26 in 2011 and sell off the existing site for housing, or
2. Put the project on hold until 2012 before looking again at Option 2 (new build on existing site, retain Victorian frontage, cross subsidise from Willow Way) with possible delivery in 2015.
The Forest Hill Society favour the development of Work/Live units on the Willow Way to help fund a pool development on the existing site, but want this to happen considerably sooner than 2015. A petition has been put together which supports 'Keeping Swimming in Forest Hill ' which you may wish to sign at http://keepswimming.notlong.
Forest Hill Ward Assembly - Wednesday 25th March, 7:30pm
The Forest Hill Ward Assembly is an opportunity for residents living in Forest Hill ward to discuss issues that effect the local area, including the pools which is one of the items on the agenda. Further details of the Assembly can be found on the council website.
Venue: Living Springs International Church, 8-10 Devonshire Road , London SE23 3TJ (see Google StreetView)In October the Council commissioned further feasibility work to examine how a two-pool leisure centre could be delivered for Forest Hill, taking into account the results of public consultation and the listing of Louise House. This further work was to include examination of how Louise House and possibly the old pool building frontage could be incorporated into a new scheme. It would also assess the potential for other community uses, the scope for housing cross subsidy, the timetable, and the revised costs and risks for the project. At that stage, a stakeholder meeting was planned for 22nd January 2009.
The Forest Hill Society, along with the Sydenham Society and Save the Face of Forest Hill were not happy with the previous consultation process. We felt that there had been no opportunity for a two-way discussion.
As the autumn progressed, it became evident that the brief for the feasibility study was regarded as confidential. It seemed to us that excluding the community from the process of developing a brief was part of the reason that the plans presented in the summer were derailed so spectacularly. We approached local Councillors and officers for a meeting to discuss ideas we have for an innovative consultation event to draw up a brief which would then inform a design competition, as had been done elsewhere. This would provide real options for local stakeholders to consider, and does not have to be an expensive process. We had great difficulty in getting a meeting, but eventually it took place on the 8th January 2009.
There was some initial disagreement about the purpose of the meeting, as the Council officers felt that they had been directed to hold the consultation in a particular way, and only really wanted to look at the sketch plans which a local architect had shared with the societies. These demonstrate that even with the retention of Louise House and the Pools frontage building, there is space on the site for two pools, changing and other facilities, along with some housing. It would still require demolition of the laundry block at the back of Louise House in order to have plant and chemicals access. This is not out of the question because even when a building is listed it can still be possible to change or demolish parts of the building, as long as a strong and comprehensive case is put forward for it - in this case focussed around the positive reuse and repair of the building for a community use.
It was eventually agreed that the Forest Hill Society, Sydenham Society, Save the Face of Forest Hill and any other stakeholders would be able to table items for the agenda at the next stakeholder meeting. Thus we will have a forum to bring up our ideas about the consultation process. However, the Council officers are not prepared to have a stakeholder meeting until the feasibility study has been completed, and this will not be by the 22nd January date previously agreed but has be delayed to 5th Febuary. Yet again, the timetable slips.
If you have any ideas about how Louise House could be used, please email the Forest Hill Society representatives on the Stakeholder group: