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brixtonblog.com
2016 JUNE
Elderberries anyone? The charm of Brixton’s hidden lane of cottages Resident Annabel Sampson sings the praises of Archbishop’s Place, a world and 20 minutes away from frenetic central Brixton Thoughts of Brixton conjure were originally created as homes up technicolour market stalls, for the staff of “The Elms” of jerk chicken from makeshift Elm Park – a grand old house, barbecues, bellowing, once home to society’s carriagepavement-obstructing preachers owning elite. and a bustle that doesn’t simmer Today, the cottages still stand, a down come nighttime. London’s symmetrical avenue of two-storey answer to Morocco’s Djemmaa semi-detached properties formed el Fnaa square perhaps, a of a distinctive red brick, unique cultural melting pot with an to this Brixton oasis. obstacle course of The cottages are happenings vying for tucked back from your attention? the road with The adjectives perfectly formed leafy, tranquil front lawns and rural framed by don’t quite mismatched make the picket fences, cut – but a nod to that’s where the larger Archbishop’s garden at the Place rear. comes in. Brixton Archbishop’s was once a Annabel Sampson: Place is a street classic Victorian Close-knit I have rented on suburb, community now for approaching transformed from two years. Steeped in open fields only in the history and just a five-minute 1860s, therefore, its urbanisation, bus or 20 minute trundle up from is in greater historical terms, a Brixton Hill, this charming, leafy fairly recent thing. cul-de-sac that is more Cornish “Sought after residential road” country lane than boom-town and “Brixton’s most idyllic Brixton. Built in 1850s Victorian quarter,” claim estate agents England, the artisan cottages worth their salt. Its distinctive
character has now been formally (and duly) recognised with a listed preservation order following an appraisal by Lambeth Environmental Services, an official testament to the street’s historic and aesthetic merits. Abounding with plant life, Archbishop’s is an honest reflection of the seasons; cherries, mint, bluebells or jasmine? What were once uniform front lawns are now a landlord’s rural playground and backyard mercado. A garden shed – an astrologer’s den or vibrant aperitif haunt? Palm trees, ponds, a park bench – no two gardens quite the same. The cats of Archbishop’s roam free, a VIP
tenant at each of the cottages. Notably, the street is home to a close-knit community with correspondence made simple via the “Archbishops Google Group”. A communication thread where local and village issues are discussed, surplus, unwanted furniture offered up and invitations to local goings on proposed. The inaugural email I received was entitled “elderberries anyone?” All comes to a head each
summer in August, with the Archbishop’s Street Party and its climactic tug-o-war. This kind of activity defies reserved, aloof London. As brilliantly summarised in Urban 75’s Unseen Brixton. “Cool Brixton this is not” . But the post goes on to explain that: “The friendly, community spirit, and quietly eccentric atmosphere make it one of the most distinctive and much-loved streets in the area.” Hear, hear.
Poets’ Corner pupils do the right thing for their friends in Nairobi Brixton primary school St. Jude’s organised a fundraising barbecue for international development charity Farm Africa St Jude’s C of E Primary School in Brixton’s Poet’s Corner is a small school with around 210 pupils, most of whom come from Brixton and Herne Hill. Its year 3 students and their teacher Daisy Ross decided to act after a letter exchange with children at a school in the Kenyan capital of Nairobi which is supported by the charity Farm Africa. Farm Africa says that many primary school children in Nairobi get their main daily meal at school but that it often lacks nutritional balance. Poor diet leaves children vulnerable to malnourishment, which can cause irreversible health problems like stunted growth and impaired cognitive development. Farm Africa helps primary schools in Nairobi to create urban vegetable gardens so that students, teachers and parents can come together to grow fresh vegetables that children can eat for lunch, improving their diet and enabling them to learn and grow better. The letters swapped between St. Jude’s and pupils at Mutuini Primary School shared moving details about their lives. Daisy Ross said: “The children decided to do a sausage sizzle as they thought it would be an exciting way to raise money for the charity. They
are excited about enabling people in less fortunate areas of the world to lead healthier lives and it’s a very empowering feeling for them to be doing something to make a difference.” Keeping it local, the sausages for the barbecue were donated by Jones the Butcher on nearby Dulwich Road. Django, aged 7 said: “I think it’s sad that some children don’t get enough to eat and it makes me feel angry because they should have the same rights as we do. If I was hungry I would be happy if I knew that children in another country were doing things to help me. “It would be fascinating to visit a school in Kenya. I would like to know what their school dinners are like and we could play games like ‘Stuck in the Mud’ and ‘It’.” Mack, aged 8, said: “I would like to go to Kenya to meet children because I like exploring new places and it would be fun to play football with them because they like some of the same teams as us.” Deputy headteacher David Winn said: “These kinds of charity focused events are what we are all about as a school. We want to teach our pupils about doing the right thing and we think it’s important that global issues are brought to their attention so they can develop an understanding of what life is like for children in other countries.” St. Jude’s has also done a fundraising welly walk on behalf of the charity.
Meal time at Mutuini primary school in Nairobi
St Jude’s fundraising welly walk