Forest Hill Pools Open Day

Lewisham Council has arranged a drop-in session for all residents as an opportunity to meet the Willmott Dixon team and ask any questions they may have about the construction works. The first session takes place today in Louise House, from 5 pm to 7 pm. There will be a further opportunity on 5th April.

Willmott Dixon Construction have been on site at Dartmouth Road for just over two months and in that time they have made a great start to the programme:

• The first few weeks were dedicated to enabling works, which included extending the hoarding line, carrying out remedial works to Louise House, setting up welfare facilities for the staff
• Lewisham Planning Department granted approval for all pre-commencement conditions, which allowed Willmott Dixon to commence building works.
• Construction work began in early February with ground excavation and levelling, using crushed material from the demolition of the pool halls to form a ‘piling mat’ - a temporary surface to carry the weight of heavy machinery such as the piling rig.
• To date Willmott Dixon have excavated and removed approximately 2,500m³ of soil, to be re-used on another site, and are currently carrying out piling works (piling 22 metres below ground level), in preparation for the new building’s foundations.

Drop in to the Swimming Pool

Taken from Forest Hill Pools Resident Newsletter - March 2011

Following on from the ‘Stakeholder Presentation’ which took place on 9th December, which we believe was well received, two further ‘Drop-In Sessions’ for local residents have been arranged for 22nd March & 5th April 2011 between 5pm & 7pm.

This is an opportunity for you to meet the Willmott Dixon team and ask any questions you may have about the building works. A representative from Lewisham Council will also be there to answer any other questions you may have on the scheme.

The latest plans and Computer Generated Images of the new building will be on display for residents to view. Both sessions will take place in the 1st Floor Meeting Room in Louise House, which we are using as temporary office accommodation for the duration of the project and afford an excellent view of the site. The sessions are open to all local residents and there is no requirement to pre-book ... please just ‘drop-in’!

Oyster Simplified

One of the most confusing aspects of Oyster usage on National Rail is coming to an end. As of 22 May, the Oyster Extension Permit (OEP) will no longer be required for travel on the trains.

As explained in our earlier article an OEP was required if you had a Travelcard loaded on your Oyster and travelled from a station covered by your Travelcard to a Network Rail station outside your zones. For example, if you had a zone 1-3 Travelcard and travelled to Croydon from Forest Hill, then you needed an OEP if travelling to East Croydon (operated by Network Rail), but not West Croydon (operated by TfL).

This simplification will be welcomed by all Oyster Travelcard holders who will now simply tap in and out on their PAYG journeys.

Free Composting Days

Lewisham Council is running its free weekend garden waste recycling scheme again this year. From March 19 until November 27, residents can dispose of their garden waste every Saturday and Sunday between 9am and noon at four sites including Girton Road car park, Sydenham SE26 5JX and Laurence House Car Park, Catford SE6 4RU

Gardeners are being encouraged to take their waste including flowers and plants, grass clippings, hedge trimmings, leaves, and twigs and branches up to four inches in diameter in plastic or reusable bags. Kitchen waste, trade waste or trailers, vans or open back vehicles will not be allowed.

The service is free, but residents should take a proof of address and ID. For more information visit lewisham.gov.uk.

If you cannot make it on a Saturday or Sunday, there are two other options open to you. Either get rid of your garden waste seven days a week at the re-use and recycling centre at Landmann Way, New Cross or pick up garden waste sacks from your local library. The sacks come in rolls of 10 and cost £10 per roll (cash payments only) which covers the costs of collection and transporting the waste to a composting site. Once one or more bags are full, contact CallPoint on 020 8314 7171 to arrange a collection.

BBC News reports on Honor Oak Rec

BBC London reporter Sonja Jessop came and interviewed various people at Honor Oak Rec yesterday. A short piece appeared on their website, with additional pieces on the lunchtime and evening news.

It was a pity that the Southwark Press Officer felt unable to introduce us to Councillor Barrie Hargrove, Southwark's cabinet member for transport, environment and recycling who will be making the final decision.

Lunchtime News

Evening News

The campaign also been on the radio recently too.
BBC London


BBC Radio 4's Today Programme

World Book Night

Forest Hill Library is the only one of Lewisham's libraries taking part in the largest book give-away ever attempted in the UK, World Book Night 2011.

This dynamic and unprecedented initiative to celebrate adult books and reading will see one million free books given away on World Book Night by 20,000 passionate readers to other members of the public across the UK and Ireland.

From 4.30-8pm on Saturday 5 March 2011, members of the public will have the opportunity to take part in a special event at Forest Hill Library SE23 3HZ. This free to attend event will form part of a nationwide celebration of books and reading on a single evening when 1 million people will receive a gift of a book by one of the 20,000 people who have successfully applied to give away 48 copies of a title they have already read and love. The books being gifted have been chosen from a carefully selected list of 25 titles.

The Forest Hill Library event showcases published local writers and performance poets.

Lauded performance poet and celebrated editor in chief of his own independent publisher (Flipped Eye), Nii Ayikwei Parkes introduces his debut novel, Tail of the Blue Bird, published by Jonathan Cape. It's a beautifully written murder mystery set in a rural part of Ghana and built around the relationship between a western trained forensic scientist and an elderly hunter steeped in the folklore of the village. (Click this link for an interview and reading by the author)

Winner of the Mail on Sunday novel competition, Bronia Kita, tells of The Swansong of Wilbur McCrum, published by Picador. A tale set in the Wild West during the gold-rush as seen through the eyes of an inspired fictional creation.

Chrissie Gittins is Forest Hill’s resident poet. Her poems have won prizes, been broadcast on BBC Radio 4, animated for Cbeebies television, and are widely anthologised.

Steve Smith will introduce his insightful book on the origins and development of gospel music in Britain which traces the early days of British black gospel, from the pioneering African American Choir %th Jubilee Singers in 1873 to the formation of the London Community Gospel Choir an Hip Hop artists of the 90s.

Members from local writing group, Inspired Word, will also contribute to the evening, which will be compered by storyteller, Sandra Agard.

The event is free to attend with courtesy refreshments and you might walk away with a gifted book or be enticed into buying a signed copy of a book from our writers performing on the night. Places must be pre-booked with Forest Hill Library (Tel: 020 8699 2065) - You don't have to attend all the event!

Bird Walk in Mayow Park

The Friends of Mayow Park have organised a Bird walk in Mayow Park on Sunday 6th March 2011 at 7am, so if you are up in time, go along and experts will help you identify the birds you see. The walk will last about an hour.

If you have a pair of Binoculars, please take them with you. Meet by the Pavilion near the Burghill Road entrance gate

Route Utilisation Strategy Response

Network Rail are consulting over development of rail services beyond 2019 in their Route Utilisation Strategy for London and the South East.

Issues for consideration:

• 12 carriage trains on the Sydenham line into London Bridge
• Improved numbers of evening peak services on the Sydenham Line
• Increased frequency of services on the Crofton Park route
• Increased utilisation of the central platforms at New Cross Gate
• Integration of Bakerloo line extension options into the London and South East RUS (with interchange on the Sydenham line)
  
• Additional carriages on the East London Line
• Late evening and weekend services from central London termini

You can read the full Forest Hill Society Response here.

Getting rid of old electrical items

Have you ever had something like a kettle, toaster or hairdryer that doesn’t work anymore and you’re unsure what to do with it?

The answer is here – six brand new small appliance banks have landed in various locations across Lewisham, including the Sainsbury's Car Park on Pearcefield Avenue. This is starting off as a trial, but subject to demand will be extended to cover more locations throughout the borough.

The banks will help Lewisham divert more of its waste to be recycled as well as providing a convenient service for residents, at no cost to the council. The electricals will be taken to SWEEEP to be recycled – click here for more details about the process.

The banks can be found mainly in the south of the borough as residents in the North have easier access to the Reuse and Recycling Centre at Landmann Way in New Cross – where these items can also be taken.

Items which can be receyled in the new banks include Phones, Remote Controls, VCRs, Digiboxes, Electronic Toys, Kettles, Hairdryers, Electric toothbrushes, Shavers, Small kitchen appliances, Irons, Small DIY tools, Clocks and Radios. However, please do not dump TV Monitors, Computers, Cookers, Washing Machines, Lightbulbs, Batteries or anything that won’t fit in the chute here.

The six banks are located at
•Sainsbury’s car park (Pearcefield Avenue, Forest Hill) SE23 3EU
•Laurence House car park (Entrance off Canadian Avenue) SE6 3AT
•Catford Bus Garage (Bromley Road) SE6 2PF
•Grove Park Bus Garage (Baring Road) SE12 0DU
•Junction of Sydenham Road and Porthcawe Road, SE26 5SF
•Junction of Leyland Road an Eltham Road, SE12 8DU

Save Honor Oak Recreation Park

Honor Oak Recreation Ground is under threat again as Southwark Council faces pressure to provide more burial provision. Southwark council runs several current and closed cemeteries including Nunhead Cemetery, Camberwell Old Cemetery and Camberwell New Cemetery, but according to Southwark councillor James Barber, there was only a year's supply of spaces for burials last September. As a result, Southwark's officers have put forward two options to provide more burial spaces.

The first option is to reuse common graves once they have obtained Home Office approval – this involves adding two foot above the current plots (which are only 4 foot deep). Their initial thoughts are to use concrete blocks to add the required extra height, but this would be contrary to Southwark’s climate change strategy as concrete manufacture is carbon intensive. This option would give another 10-12 years of burial plots.

The second option is to use an adjacent sports playing field (Honor Oak Recreation Ground) giving another 25 years of burial plots. This is what they claimed when they took part of the Rec in 2000.

Friends of Honor Oak Park Recreation Ground are asking a series of questions of local councillors and have started a petition at petitionbuzz.com, but time is short as Southwark are due to make a decision this month. Sign up now to voice your concern.

Lack of burial space is not a new problem for Southwark. In the 1850's, the parish of Camberwell was having difficulty finding space for burials in its churchyards. The Camberwell Burial Board was established to find a solution to the problem, which they did - in 1855. The board bought 30 acres of meadow land and established it as the Burial Ground of St Giles, Camberwell. Camberwell New Cemetery was founded in 1901 in order to provide more space and was opened in 1927. By 1984, 300,000 burials had been carried out at the cemetery. The majority of burials now take place in the New Cemetery.

When you buy a grave in one of Southwark's cemeteries, you buy the 'exclusive right of burial' for that particular grave and this lasts for a period of 50 years. At the moment, anybody can buy a plot, although the fee is greater for those who are not or were not residents of the borough. Some religions prohibit the reuse of graves, but the Diocese of Southwark advises that while the reuse of graves within a period of less than 75 years is likely to cause distress and offence to the living, as well as appearing disrespectful to the dead, the reuse of graves as soon as 75 years have elapsed after the most recent burial should be encouraged, not least so that those presently arranging a burial are informed of what is likely to happen in the future. Rather than planning for re-use on a grave-by-grave basis, there is merit in seeking to bring larger areas into re-use as part of a coherent plan.

WHAT CAN YOU DO?

• Contact, email or write to your local Lewisham or Southwark councillors. Tell them how you feel about the loss of open space, how you use the recreation ground and what it means to you.
• Sign the petition at petitionbuzz.com.

On a side note, Southwark has spent a lot of time and money cleaning up the illegal dumping of building materials near Honor Oak Park station. This cleanup has taken over 18 months and will finally be resolved with the planting of new trees and bushes. This area is only expected to accommodate one year of burials.