Bring something good, take something better

This Saturday, 23 February, sees our sixth Bring and Take event (which is slightly misnamed) take place at Devonshire Road Nature Reserve, 170 Devonshire Road, SE23 3SZ - you can just take if you so desire. Simply Bring any good quality items for somebody else to reuse and Take anything you fancy; all for free.

We cannot accept the following items:

• NO Electrical items larger than a toaster
• NO DVD/VHS/CD recorders / players
• NO TVs, PCs or monitors
• NO printers or scanners
• NO VHS or cassette tapes
• NO vacuum cleaners
• NO Furniture or carpets
• NO Jumble or broken items

as Lewisham Council will not be taking away the unwanted items this time.

On your bike!

Widehorizons and Sainsbury's Forest Hill are attempting to break the Guinness World Record for the most people riding 1km on an exercise bike in a 24-hour relay.

There will be a bike outside Sainsbury's Forest Hill from 7am on Saturday 18th May until 7am on Sunday 19th May and they are inviting as many people as possible to come and ride 1km. If 300 people come along and cycle then you will have set a new Guinness World Record!

As part of this amazing adventure, Widehorizons are asking participants to raise as much money as they feel able to support their work providing life-changing adventures for children and young people. Please donate £5 or more via Virgin Giving

People's Question Time, 7th March in Catford

People’s Question Time is a twice yearly event where members of the public can see the Mayor and London Assembly in person and ask questions on topics currently being discussed here on Talk London and more.

March's People's Question Time will take place at the Broadway Theatre, Catford and topics to be discussed will include growing London's economy, transport and environment, housing and policing and community safety.

You can apply for free tickets at the following link.

More details from http://talklondon.london.gov.uk/events/peoples-question-time-lewisham-7-march
Apply for tickets at http://talklondon.london.gov.uk/forms/thank-you?event=265

Planning Application: 14 Waldram Park Road

The Forest Hill Society has written in support of the latest application for 14 Waldram Park Road.


This site has seen a number of applications which were unsuitable for the location, and which were rightly rejected by the council planning committees. We believe that this application, unlike the ones previously, is appropriate to the character of the area and to the neighbouring houses. The inclusion of family units and a reasonable amount of garden space are to be welcomed, and the general design and layout would appear acceptable.

We would like to thank the architects for engaging with the Forest Hill Society to understand our concerns and find ways to address them in an appropriate manner.

The plans can be viewed on the council website.

Forest Hill Fashion Week 15-19 February

Explore pop-up boutiques, learn how to upcycle your faded favourites, watch catwalk shows and enjoy fabulously fashionable parties in some of Forest Hill’s best bars and restaurants.

There’s plenty to see, make, buy and get involved with – including dress-up fashion shows for children, and a chance to master the art of creating unique hand-made accessories on a budget.

Events start on Friday, 15th February at the pop-up SEE BOUTIQUE at 10a Dartmouth Road

View all the events at www.see3.co.uk/fhfwevents

Forest Hill Assembly - Wednesday 6th February 2013

There is a Forest Hill Assembly next Wednesday from 7.30pm at Honor Oak Christian Fellowship, 39 Honor Oak Road, SE23 3SH.

At this Assembly we will have in attendance Chief Inspector Stuart Bell who is in charge of Neighbourhood Policing in Lewisham, he will be able to tell you about the future of Sydenham Police Station, update you on important changes to neighbourhood policing and of course talk about any policing issues that you may have.

We will also have the latest news concerning Lewisham Hospital, an update from SEE3 regarding the Portas Pilot, information about the Council's budget cuts and parking.

 

The Forest Hill Assembly is organised by Lewisham council for the Forest Hill ward (west of the railway, between Kirkdale and Honor Oak Park)

Forest Hill Food Fair - Sunday 3rd February

At the station car park from 11am

Wanted! Creative Writers

South London & Maudsley, Ladywell Unit are looking for volunteers to join their flourishing creative writing project.

Their groups seek to improve the well-being of patients during their admission. Working on acute mental health and alzheimer wards, they seek to provide an environment where creativity is used as a form of self-expression. If you have some experience in music, arts and craft, dance or working with Alzheimer sufferers they would also like to hear from you.

You will be involved in enabling small groups on an adult acute mental health ward

• To access poetry/literature as part of promoting well-being and recovery.
• To maintain accurate records of sessions.
• To prepare and deliver small group poetry/literature sessions
• To work within a team of volunteers to give support.
• To occassionally assist in accompanying small groups to off-site activities

If you are interested in getting involved, please email fay@volunteercentrelewisham.org.uk for further details. The deadline for applications is Friday, 1 March 2013.

March with us to Save Lewisham Hospital

Act Now!

Defend yourselves from having one A&E between 750,000 residents.

As you hopefully know, various services at Lewisham Hospital are under threat due to the recommendations of Matthew Kershaw, the TSA appointed to review the South London Health Trust. The South London Health Trust was created in 2009 to try and solve the problems of the Princess Royal in Orpington, Queen Mary's in Sidcup and the Queen Elizabeth in Woolwich which were losing money. The trust has since accrued debts of more than £150M. The TSA has made a series of recommendations to the Secretary of State for Health on how he would deliver access to safe, high quality, affordable health services and a long-term sustainable health economy for the people of south east London. These incluse closing parts of Lewisham Hospital, selling off land and expecting us to go to King's College Hospital in Camberwell or Queen Elizabeth in Woolwich.  We, and many physicians, disagree with his conclusions.

Save Lewisham Hospital is a community campaign fighting against the proposed closure of Lewisham Hospital including its new A&E department, Intensive Care, maternity and children's services. We will be joining them in a demonstration on Saturday 26th January to show Jeremy Hunt that the people of Lewisham are determined to SAVE LEWISHAM HOSPITAL! Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, will make his decision at the start of February.

If you would like to join us, please either meet us at The Capitol (JW Wetherspoon's) on London Road at 10:45am or at Catford Bridge station, where we will be catching the 11:38am Southeastern train service towards Lewisham and London Cannon Street Rail Station. The march will start at Lewisham Roundabout (by the station) at 12 noon on Saturday 26th January and march past the hospital to Mountsfield Park for a rally, music and giant petition (about two miles). If you are planning to travel to the march independently, there are four buses from Forest Hill to Lewisham; routes 122, 185, 75 and P4. However, based on experience from the previous demonstaration, we would recommend either walking from Catford or catching a train to Lewisham as traffic in Lewisham was severly delayed.

Over 10,000 people marched through Lewisham on 24th November 2012 – young, elderly, families and people from every background, so we have allowed for delays in getting to the march. We need a huge turnout, so encourage everyone you know to come and march with us on Saturday 26th January. We will be easy to spot - we will have placards and hi-vis jackets on.

The Big Sunday Sing

The Big Sunday Sing is taking place on Sun 17th Feb 2013, 10.30am - 5.30pm at Forest Hill Pools.

The workshop is being organised by Sydenham Singers, a community choir in association with the charity Sydenham Garden, and part-funded by Sing Out (Lewisham Arts). The aim is to have a joyful day of singing in harmony in a big group with an informal performance of what we've learnt at the end.

The charge is £10 full / £6 conc / £5 under18s for the whole day, and it's £2.50 for members of the public to attend the concert which will be from 5-5.30pm and is fundraising for Sydenham Singers. I'm leading the workshop (I also lead Sydenham Singers choir sessions), everything will be taught by ear and there's no need for any experience. All welcome from 12+. (12-16s must be accompanied by an adult).

Booking is essential - Contact Lynn Barclay: 0208 659 1227