Information from the Royal Borough of Greenwich for our residents
GREENWICH SUPPORTS: HERE TO HELP
The Royal Borough of Greenwich is here to support you through winter and beyond. We know times have been tough and that you may be concerned about your finances or wellbeing. There is lots of support available from the council, local charities, and community groups. For example...
Are you worried about being homeless?
Healthy Start
If you’re more than 10 weeks pregnant or have a child under four, you may be able to get help to buy healthy food, milk and vitamins. You will be given a card that you can use to buy:
• cows’ milk or infant formula
• fresh, frozen, and tinned fruit, vegetables and pulses You can also use your card to collect:
• vitamins for pregnancy and breastfeeding
• vitamin drops for babies and young children.
Sign up at healthystart. nhs.uk - if you need help applying, contact our team on 020 8921 6375 on Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, from 10am to 1pm.
Help through
South East London Community Energy
Support is available for people who need help to heat their home or keep up with the rising cost of energy prices. South East London Community Energy (SELCE) can provide advice and support at pop-up energy advice cafes. Call 020 4566 5764
If you are homeless or worried about becoming homeless, contact the council as soon as you can. We can help by:
• providing advice on your tenancy and explaining your rights
• working with you to try and prevent your homelessness and resolve any housing issues you may have
• negotiating with your landlord or advising you on finding somewhere else to live Call 020 8921 2863 to speak to our team.
Emergency housing
If you can’t remain in your home because you are at risk of domestic abuse, we will support you. To get information about emergency housing, you can either:
• call 020 8921 2863 (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm)
• call 020 8854 8888 (out of hours)
• visit the Woolwich Centre (Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm).
Find more on our website, from benefits and grants to free advice and low-cost options for food and entertainment: royalgreenwich.gov.uk/ greenwich-supports
If you need help now, call our advisors at Live Well Greenwich for free on 0800 470 4831.
The
Pick of the Week
Greenwich & Lewisham Weekender is an independent weekly newspaper, covering the boroughs of Greenwich and Lewisham.
We publish every Wednesday, covering every postcode sector of the borough, and boasting, by far, the highest weekly circulation in Greenwich. Each week, we deliver our paper to every Greenwich neighbourhood, with further copies stocked at convenient public stands. We are also the highest distribution newspaper in Lewisham.
You can also view each edition online, as well as daily news and events, on our website: www.weekender.co.uk
The Greenwich & Lewisham Weekender covers all aspects of life in the boroughs, including music, theatre, comedy, film, events, and food and drink, as well as all your community events and campaigns.
Eliza Frost Weekender
The Greenwich and Lewisham Weekender is a member of the Independent Press Standards Organisation (which regulates the UK’s magazine and newspaper industry). We abide by the Editors’ Code of Practice and are committed to upholding the highest standards of journalism. If you think that we have not met those standards and want to make a complaint, please contact 020 7231 5258. If we are unable to resolve your complaint, or if you would like more information about IPSO or the Editors’ Code, contact IPSO on 0300 123 2220 or visit www.ipso.co.uk
Weekender Editor: Eliza Frost
Media Partnerships: Anthony Phillips
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Editorial: Michael Holland; Eliza Frost
Design Manager: Dan Martin
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Finance: Em Zeki - Tel: 0779 883 3758
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Offices at: A202, The Biscuit Factory, Drummond Road, SE16 4DG.
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@insouthlndn
Issue: GLW395
Do you have an astronomy-mad kid? Enjoy staring at the stars or recognising the moon phases? Well, over at the Royal Observatory, they are hosting a family workshop exploring the moons in our solar system. This morning of science and discovery will begin in the planetarium as you explore the moons of our solar system. Then, join in for an interactive workshop as your knowledge is put to the test. Throughout the event, you’ll have the chance to ask the Royal Observatory’s astronomers all the questions you have about space and astronomy.
Date: 18 February 2025
Tickets: £5 per child, recommended for those aged 7+ Royal Observatory, Blackheath Avenue, SE10 8XJ www.rmg.co.uk/whats-on/royal-observatory/outworld-moons
Outof ThisWorld
The Rainbow Butterfly
Experience an immersive show that blends traditional storytelling with aerial circus, contortion and contemporary and hip-hop dance; join Maja with their wings that sparkle and shimmer at The Albany this February. Perfect for children aged 3-7, the show sees you explore the world and outer space
as a Rainbow Butterfly. Inspired by the lifecycle of the butterfly, this children’s story gently opens up an invitation to explore what it is to be non-binary while celebrating heroes such as Mae Jemison, the first Black woman astronaut, as well as inviting audience members to take part in the show, make sounds and have fun. Performed by artists from the global majority, this show celebrates
So Last Century Vintage Fair
how unique each person is using creativity, carnival, aerial circus, beatbox and dance to help Maja fly all the way to the moon: because the Earth without Art is just Eh.
Date: Sunday 2 February 2025
Tickets: £9.50 Douglas Way, SE8 4AG www.thealbany.org.uk/shows/therainbow-butterfly
So Last Century’s Vintage Fair is back in Catford at St Dunstan’s College for its first big weekend event this spring. You’ll find more than 40 hand-picked vintage dealers each day, in two large halls: the 1960s Modernist Refectory building and the contrasting Victorian Great Hall. You can expect to find displays of affordable mid-20th century furniture, homeware, lighting, ceramics, glass, decorative objects, textiles and furnishings, original ‘60s and ‘70s posters and art, prints and charts, books, records, salvaged
Die Fledermaus
Revel in the wit and mischief of Strauss’ timeless operetta Die Fledermaus at Greenwich Theatre this season. Whether you’re a seasoned opera lover or a newcomer to the world of operetta, the Merry Opera’s singers, directed by Guido Martin-Brandis with a witty English translation, promises a night of unforgettable melodies, fizzy frolics and cheeky capers. A relaxed afternoon viewing is planned for the Saturday showing of Die Fledermaus.
Dates: Friday 31 January to Saturday 1 February 2025
Tickets: £25
Crooms Hill, SE10 8ES greenwichtheatre.org.uk/events/ diefledermaus
Davy’s Wine School Tasting
Davy’s Wine School tasting classes are a fun but informative way to learn professional tasting techniques and explore wine regions and styles under expert guidance, with Sam Price, Davy’s Wine Shop manager. Welcomed with an aperitif to freshen up your palate, the wine tasting will then begin at 6:30pm. You will enjoy six tasting samples, and by the end of the session, you should be able to taste and assess a wine like a pro. The Weekender’s top tip, remember to taste with the nose first…
Date: Tuesday 4 February 2025
Tickets: £45
171 Greenwich High Road, Greenwich, SE10 8JA www.davywine.co.uk/product/ davys-wine-school-tasting-12
Strictly Come Dancing: The Live Tour 2025
items, French brocante, vintage fashion and lots more. Outside on both days, there’ll be a barista coffee van and chocolate brownie stall to keep you energised over the weekend. Most traders take card payments on the day, and many offer a delivery service if you want to buy something big, like furniture.
Dates: Saturday 15 to Sunday 16 February 2025
Tickets: £4, or £3 if you follow them on social media
St Dunstan’s College, Stanstead Road, SE6 4TY www.solastcenturyfair. co.uk/next-events/catfordfebruary-2025
Experience a night on the tiles as your favourite weekend TV show takes to the stage at The O2. The full line-up of celebrities for the 2025 Strictly Come Dancing Live UK Tour includes actor Jamie Borthwick; broadcaster, presenter and opera singer Wynne Evans; singer, TV presenter and author JB Gill; and model and TV personality Tasha Ghouri. They will also be joined by Gladiator and Olympian Montell Douglas; actress Sarah Hadland; and actor and singer Shayne Ward. Watch on as they don their dancing shoes to dazzle you with all glitz and glamour of the TV show.
Dates: Friday 7 to Sunday 9 February 2025
Tickets: From £42 Peninsula Square, SE10 0DX www.theo2.co.uk/events/detail/ strictly-come-dancing-2025
© National Maritime Museum
© Jodie Canwell
The free community wellbeing festival is designed to help you tackle winter blues in a fun and creative way
“Thrive was inspired by the desire to create an uplifting space for people to focus on their wellbeing, invest in self-care and find joy through movement and mindfulness,” says Laura Flanagan, director of Greenwich Peninsula.
“January and February are often challenging months for many, particularly following the festive season. With dark days and cold weather, it’s easy to feel the winter blues,” she says.
Thrive Wellness: Winter Wellbeing programme is a free community wellbeing festival at Greenwich Peninsula running until 9 February and designed to beat those blues through “fun, energy, connection and creativity”.
Thrive has been running for several years now, and “is a fantastic, well-established platform for local residents and others to get involved with”, adds Laura.
The nine-week programme features physical and mental wellness sessions, including:
• Zumba: Led by Sharon Powell, a seasoned dance fitness instructor, these classes are a vibrant way to improve cardiovascular fitness while having fun to beats from Afro, Soca and Bollywood music.
Wellbeing and a qualified mindfulness coach.
• Group Reiki: A healing session led by Reiki master Mayra, where participants experience energy work and reflection through oracle cards.
• Vinyasa Yoga: Perfect for all levels, this class is led by Liloo Ait Arane, a longtime Greenwich resident and experienced yoga teacher. It focuses on strength, breathwork and flowing sequences.
• Flow and Mindfulness: Combining gentle yoga flows, deep stretching and guided mindfulness, this class is led by Jazz, founder of The Hour
• Nutrition Workshop: Angie Kouroupaki will guide participants in understanding sustainable weight and fat loss through balanced diets, macronutrients and micronutrients. Angie brings her expertise as a sports nutritionist and personal coach.
Each of these classes is beginner-friendly and led by experienced instructors who create a supportive environment.
“Thrive is about more than just physical fitness, it’s about creating a holistic approach to wellbeing, and this programme has been designed to cater to the mind, body and soul,” says Laura.
The sessions are also free, and Laura says that “wellbeing shouldn’t be a luxury”.
She adds: “London can be expensive, and we believe it’s vital to make wellness opportunities accessible to everyone, regardless of their situation.
thrive with Greenwich Peninsula’s Winter Wellbeing programme
“By offering these sessions for free, we’d like to think we’re fostering a sense of community and ensuring that anyone can benefit from prioritising their health and happiness.”
Prioritising a sustainable approach to health is important, too, without simply being a New Year’s resolution.
Laura explains: “Sustainability in fitness is about focusing on wellbeing rather than chasing unrealistic goals. The messaging around ‘New Year, New Me’ can be overwhelming and negative. Instead, we encourage people to find joy in movement and activities that resonate with them.
“These sessions are designed to be accessible, enjoyable and stress-free, ensuring participants can develop habits that last beyond January.
“By prioritising mental health and wellbeing, people are more likely to stick with their wellness journeys. The Thrive programme embodies this philosophy by offering a mix of fitness, mindfulness and self-care activities that cater to all levels.
“Wellbeing can also just be about getting out of your house and into
some fresh air. There is nothing more sustainable than a walk down the river or through a local nature spot. Luckily in Greenwich Peninsula, we have plenty on the doorstep, from the Tide walkway to Central Park and the four acres of freshwater habitat to explore at the Ecology Park.”
As well as Thrive, Laura highlights that Gather, formerly known as Greenwich Training, is relocating to Greenwich Peninsula in January 2025.
She says it is a “gym for people who want real results without the typical gym experience”, adding that you will find a “supportive, no-judgement environment where every session focuses on helping you achieve longterm health and fitness”.
Whatever your wellness goal is this new year, there is lots to get involved with at Greenwich Peninsula.
“Whether you’re a complete beginner or someone looking to refresh your routine, we hope that Thrive will offer a welcoming space to explore wellness in a way that works for you,” says Laura.
www.greenwichpeninsula.co.uk/ whats-on/thrive-wellbeing
Floral events, weddings farewell florals, dinners weekly floral deliveries potted gardens, restaurant contracts.
Bespoke, sustainable floral design. Sourcing with the best of the seasons at the forefront of design.
Deptford scratch returns for 2025
The organiser of this year’s event explains why it is so ‘crucial to the creative industry’ as a platform to showcase work-in-progress projects
“Deptford Scratch is just one of the many things we have developed to bring creativity into our community and make it accessible for everyone to share in,” says duty manager of the Albany’s Deptford Lounge Jessica Fowler.
Jessica is an actor based in southeast London and has curated the Deptford Scratch event for 2025, which takes place on Thursday 23 January.
She first took part in a Scratch night in January 2020, which was organised by Jordan Scott-Turner and Red Jay Theatre at the time. “That experience, in a supportive and creative environment, helped me regain my confidence and passion for performing,” she explains.
Here, she tells us what to expect from this year’s event and how “there is something for everyone at Deptford Scratch”.
Greenwich Weekender : What is Deptford Scratch?
Jessica Fowler: Scratch nights are crucial to the creative industry, offering a platform for work-inprogress projects to be shared in a low-pressure setting, helping artists hone their skills and receive feedback from a live audience.
Deptford Scratch is a little different to others I have seen in that we hold a free connection event, allowing writers to cast their own work and find their own directors if they choose. This ensures the casting aligns with their vision and gives actors and directors a chance to network, even if
they aren’t selected, as they can still attend the event and share ideas.
What can audiences expect on the night?
On the night, you can expect to see six pieces of writing that have been carefully selected from our open submissions, each a maximum of 10 minutes long.
Our writers take to the stage to introduce their work, giving you the chance to connect with them and learn more about who they are and what they do. Afterwards, you can grab a drink and stick around to chat with the creatives involved, too.
What performances are on the agenda?
We have a fantastic lineup for our Scratch event on 23 January. I don’t want to give away too many spoilers, but we have the following pieces being performed on the night:
• ‘A New Leaf’ by Paul Kristovic
• ‘Customer Care’ by Enomwoyi Damali
• ‘Eyes’ by Ruru Matsitsiro
• ‘Theory Into Practice’ by Avouleance Cook
• ‘Trending’ by Ian Pink
• ‘Unhinged’ by Elysia Krishnadasan Torrens
What I will say, though, is they are based on the challenges, relationships and humour we as human beings will all encounter at some point in our lives.
Some of the themes touched on include perceived toxic comedy, modern-day dating and the pressures of social media. There is something for everyone at Deptford Scratch.
How does an event like Deptford Scratch support creativity in the area?
Deptford Scratch provides a platform in Deptford to showcase creativity. Most of our marketing is focused within our local community by putting up posters in local businesses, which ensures that creatives who live in the area can find the information and get involved.
In doing this, we hope to open doors
for local artists who perhaps never thought it would be achievable. While we support the community, we do welcome artists from further afield as well.
Tickets are pay what you decide, is this important to the ethos of the event?
This is one of many free or PWYD events run by the Albany and Lewisham Libraries at Deptford Lounge. It is paramount for us at Deptford Lounge as we understand the cost of living and without events such as these, we would not be accessible to such diverse creatives and audiences.
Deptford Scratch is on Thursday 23 January 2025 at 7pm 9 Giffin Street, Deptford SE8 4RJ deptfordlounge.org.uk/whats-on/ event/deptford-scratch
COMMUNITY TRUST
At The Heart Of The Community
Reflecting on CACT’s extraordinary 2024
Following the end of 2024, Charlton Athletic Community Trust (CACT) can look back on a year filled with extraordinary achievements, reaching new milestones in community engagement and social impact across South East London and Kent.
• RECORD CHARITABLE SPEND
For the year ending March 2024, CACT achieved the largest turnover in the organisation’s 32-year history, which has allowed for a record committed spend of £6.74m on charitable work within the community.
• EFL COMMUNITY CLUB OF THE SEASON
In March, Charlton Athletic were named as EFL Community Club of the Season at the 2023-24 EFL Awards, an acknowledgement of the outstanding, life-changing work which CACT does with more than 25,000 participants.
• THE UPBEATS’ RECORD BREAKING 12 MONTHS
In April, more than 200 walkers participated in the Upbeats Walk, raising a record-breaking £55,000 for the Charlton Upbeats programme. Upbeat Will’s ‘Golf Life’ video on YouTube attracted nearly 50,000 views and contributed to the record sum raised! The Upbeats also won the inaugural Down’s Syndrome Football Festival in October. Clubs from across the country competed to be crowned as the Football Festival champions, and a competitive final between the Upbeats and Everton ended 4-2 to the Addicks. The festival was hosted by CACT and Bluewater, with the support of CACT’s principal partner ITRM.
• CACT AWARDS AT THE HOUSE OF LORDS
CACT hosted its annual awards ceremony at the House of Lords in October. The event celebrated the achievements of CACT’s participants, staff and partners. On the night, first-team manager Nathan Jones praised CACT’s lifechanging impact, highlighting the story of Michael, a participant who overcame addiction and mental health challenges with the help of CACT’s Men’s Health Services.
• CELEBRATING EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION (EDI) ON RED, WHITE AND BLACK DAY
In October, Addicks fans and more than 500 students participated
in Charlton’s annual Red, White and Black Day parade. The parade celebrated EDI and promoted the club’s All Different, All Together, All Charlton message.
• SPOTLIGHTING CACT’S WORK WITH NATIONAL MEDIA COVERAGE
In November, Charlton hosted the EFL’s ‘Beyond the 90: Impact in Action’ event at The Valley. The event showcased community projects across the EFL. Nathan Jones, and first-team players Ashley Maynard-Brewer and Carla Humphrey, engaged with attendees from Sky Sports and talkSPORT to spotlight CACT’s Extra Time Hub and LiveWell Greenwich Bus to a wider audience.
Please consider making a regular or one-off donation to help CACT continue its lifechanging work during 2025. You can set up your donation today by visiting cact.gives/donate or by scanning the QR code.
Burning bakeries, Shipwrights’ Mill and early Co-ops
I understand that there is some local interest in a national cooperative event to be held in Woolwich and I thought it wouldn’t hurt to write something which points out that the earliest recorded co-ops were in the Royal Dockyards - Woolwich, Chatham and Deptford.
Before I start, I think we need to get out of our heads that the ‘Co-op’ is just a shop owned by a ‘Society’ which sells groceries or whatever and pays a ‘dividend’ to its Members from profits. There is still a huge national Co-op which does just that, but once we had our own ‘Society’ in Woolwich with the Royal Arsenal Cooperative Society and very successful one it was too. But a ‘co-op’ doesn’t have
to be a shop – it can be any sort of organisation or business set up on a model where any profits are shared out between a group of members.
Greenwich Borough has a huge record of support for co-ops and since the 1980s we’ve had Greenwich Co-operative Development Agency actively promoting them locally. This was
set up by the Council, originally to help provide more local jobs. It’s been very successful – possibly it’s the most successful Cooperative Development Agency in London. I might do a whole article sometime about them, but first I’m going to look at these early ventures. In Woolwich we had the earliest co-ops recorded – and it’s these that this article is about.
Labour relations in the Royal Dockyards in the 18th and 19th centuries were not good, to put it mildly, but historians have found what they describe as ‘indications of mutual activity’. After a long strike in 1745 there is a report of groups of shipwrights getting together and making offers to various contractors to deal with them rather than with their employers. The Survey of Woolwich describes how ‘enterprising mutualists’ developed in the Thameside 18th naval dockyards. Shipbuilding was, they say, ‘an unusually co-operative trade and dockyard employment fostered strong collective values’.
Dockyard shipwrights came together in the 1750s to form a retail society, and hoped to gain some control over the supply and price of basic food. ‘Open to all who were employed within the yards, this was, it has been claimed, the first co-operative society in England. This Society of Shipwrights came into existence as a retail co-operative society’. It opened a bakery in Chatham, a corn mill in Woolwich and a butcher shop in Church Street, Deptford. Chatham is, of course, outside my remit here – but it seems likely that they had a corn mill and a bakery. Their business ‘the Baking Shipwrights’ - was thought to be forcing down the price of bread by undercutting local bakers by a penny a quartern loaf - which didn’t go down too well with the established trade. Kent and Chatham bakers had the shipwrights prosecuted for
Mary Mills
‘selling bread at lower rates than the Bakers and making the same, not having served an Apprenticeship’. The case went to Maidstone Assizes in April 1758 where it was thrown out; later a hearing at Quarter Sessions had the same result. This is said to have led to ‘great rejoicing’.
In Deptford a report of 1758 describes a new Butcher Shop, ‘set up by subscription of the Artificers in his Majesty’s Yard at Deptford... opened in Church Street, to the great benefit of the poor in the Town - the Meat being sold at the lowest prices ... which immediately occasioned a great fall in the value of meat’. I can’t imagine that went down well with the local butchers either, but I have found no report of their reaction.
Happily we know more about the Woolwich corn mill.
Mill Lane in Woolwich is a turning off Woolwich New Road. It is on land once known as Mill Hill because several windmills were sited there, probably from the 15th century. Among them was the ‘shipwrights mill’ built on the high ground in 1758 by the Shipwrights’ Society along with a bake house. In the 17th century the Board of Ordnance had owned land here and built a conduit to supply water to what became the Arsenal down at the Warren. The Shipwrights Society got permission to build on this area for the annual rent of a shilling, so long as they allowed artillery officers and Ordnance Board employees to subscribe and that
they supplied bread to the barracks if necessary. It was said later that “some time ago the Artificers in his Majesty’s Yard at Woolwich had agreed to build a Corn Mill, and make their own Bread, in imitation of their Brethren at Chatham.’
A public house just across Woolwich New Road was known as the Jolly Shipwrights.
However in March 1760 ‘the mill built by the Shipwrights belonging to His Majesty’s Dockyard at Woolwich was on Sunday, the 16th of this instant, consumed by fire - and the said Mill had worked for about six Weeks, but did not work on Sunday. Nor was there any Body in it from Twelve that Day, yet that Night it was entirely consumed, by what Means, is variously suspected”. Naturally it was other local bakers who were suspected.
As a result of this fire there was some alarm at Chatham - “the late Accident burning down – the Shipwright’s Mill in Woolwich, has put the Shipwright Bakers upon their Guard, and all necessary precautions are taken to preserve their Mill from the like fate and especially to prevent any malicious Design’.
It was said ‘scandalously and maliciously’ that Woolwich bakers ‘were concerned in setting the same on fire’. Six Woolwich bakers swore before the Lord Mayor of London on March 24th 1760 that they ‘do severally make oath and say that they neither knew nor heard of the
same in flames, and that they, nor any of them, did not set the same on fire or were in any matter whatever accessory to the said accident’.
The rebuilt mill appears to have settled into productivity –although in 1782, when trade was slack, the shipwrights approached the Board Ordnance offering to supply the newly built Royal Artillery Barracks with bread. However the shipwrights carried on trade with the mill for over eighty years. It was drawn in 1845 by an artist, W Clifton, who shows an octagonal timber smock-mill. Later the mill was let to a private company and was empty and disused by the 1840s. The property was finally ‘acquired’ by the War Office and it was demolished by the 1850s, when housing began to be built in the area.
The Dockyard itself closed in the 1860s when the mill was long gone, but there are hints of suggestions of mutual organisations in its final years. However as the Dockyard closed so the first hints of a different sort of Co-op began among workers in the Arsenal – and the start of what was to become the vast Royal Arsenal Co-operative Society.
It would be interesting to discover if ideas of mutual trading organisations spread almost as a legacy from the Dockyard to those able to take forward these values to Arsenal workers.
See: C.R.Dobson ‘Masters and Journeymen’. & archive material collated by Ron Roffey.
Woolwich dockyard from the river 1739
Woolwich Shipwrights Mill 1840s
Mill lane
Woolwich site of shipwrights Mill
CLOSURE OF GALLIONS MOUNT PRIMARY SCHOOL
PURRETT ROAD, PLUMSTEAD, LONDON, SE18 1JR DFE NO. 203/2242
Notice is given, in accordance with Section 15 (1) of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 (as amended by the Education Act 2011) and the School Organisation (Establishment and Discontinuance of Schools) Regulations 2013, that the Royal Borough of Greenwich intends to close Gallions Mount Primary School with effect from 31st August 2025.
We have considered the responses to the recent informal consultation on the future of the school which ended on 20 December 2024. As it did not provide any viable options to support the school remaining open, we are publishing this statutory proposal for closure.
Should the decision to close Gallions Mount Primary School be taken, all children attending the school would be supported to find places at alternative schools in line with parental preferences and/or availability of places within the area starting in September 2025.
Within four weeks from the date of publication of this notice, any person may object to or make comments on the proposal by either:
a) Emailing objections, comments, or questions to: school-place-planning@royalgreenwich.gov.uk or b) Writing to:
Admissions, Place Planning & Capital Projects Service, Royal Greenwich Children’s Services, First Floor, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, London SE18 6HQ.
Responses must be received by 5pm on Friday 7th February 2025 when this statutory notice and the representation period will expire. In line with the requirements of Schedule 2, Paragraph 18 of the Education and Inspections
decision must be taken by the decision maker no later than two months following the expiry of the representation period. Therefore, the Council’s Cabinet must make a decision on this proposal by 7th April 2025 (subject to a 5-day
Schools Adjudicator.
Details of the proposal is below and published on our website. A copy can also be requested by emailing school-place-planning@royalgreenwich.gov.uk.
STATUTORY PROPOSAL TO CLOSE GALLIONS MOUNT PRIMARY SCHOOL
The Royal Borough of Greenwich hereby publishes this statutory proposal under Section 15(2) of the Education and Inspections Act 2006 to close Gallions Mount Primary School with effect from 31st August 2025. CONTACT DETAILS:
1. The Proposer
The Royal Borough of Greenwich, The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, Woolwich, London SE18 6HQ Website: www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk
2. The School Gallions Mount Primary School, Purrett Road, Plumstead, London, SE18 1JR Telephone: 020 8854 2691 Email: info@gallionsmount.greenwich.sch.uk
3. School category: Gallions Mount Primary School is a community school maintained by the Royal Borough of Greenwich. IMPLEMENTATION:
The planned implementation date for the closure of Gallions Mount Primary School is 31st August 2025. REASON FOR CLOSURE:
The main factors leading to the closure proposal are low and falling pupil numbers impacting on the school’s financial viability and consequent ability to sustain a high-quality education for pupils. Pupil numbers at Gallions Mount Primary School have consistently declined over recent years. As school budgets are based on the number of pupils a school has on its roll, there has been a growing financial pressure on the school’s finances, which is expected to worsen if Gallions Mount Primary School were to remain open. By the end of the 2024/2025 academic year, the school is projected to have a deficit of £527k, rising to £1.2M by the end of the 2025/2026 academic year. This represents 30% and 75% of the school’s budget respectively.
PUPIL NUMBERS AND ADMISSIONS
Despite extensive efforts by the school to attract more families, Gallions Mount Primary School has not seen any improvement in the number of families applying to the school. From October 2021 to October 2024, the total number of pupils enrolled at the school decreased by nearly a quarter, dropping from 295 to 174 (see Figure 1 below). By December 2024, live data from our attendance monitoring system shows that the number of pupils currently enrolled at the school has fallen further to 157 pupils, excluding nursery-aged pupils. This continuous decline in pupil numbers has resulted in a significant loss of essential funding year after year. With a per pupil funding rate of £7,690 in 2024/25, the school’s lost revenue this academic year is estimated at £407,570. With the current enrolment number being well below the expected number for a one-form entry primary school, which has a capacity for 210 pupils from Reception to Year 6, the school is not considered financially viable to continue to operate.
Figure 1 below shows the number of pupils enrolled at the school’s nursery and Reception Year in January and October 2024, while Figure 2 shows the number of pupils enrolled in each year group as of the October 2024 census. Figure 1: Gallions Mount Pupil Numbers in January and October 2024
Figure 3 below shows the gender split and the number of children with an Education, Health and Care (EHC) Plan enrolled at the school as at October 2024 school census. The consultation process on alternative schools for
to ensure that these children are not impacted by the proposal to close the school, should it be implemented.
Figure 3: Gender and SEN characteristics of pupils on roll by Year Group as of October and January 2024 school
DISPLACED PUPILS, IMPACT ON THE COMMUNITY, BALANCE OF DENOMINATIONAL PROVISION AND TRAVEL
As at the October 2024 census, there were 174 pupils on roll in Reception to Year 6. Since the
Figure 4 below shows the number of places available in Royal Greenwich
together through
pupils to transfer together and complete their primary education with their classmates.
Working collaboratively with other schools in the borough, measures are being taken to facilitate redeployment (where possible and appropriate) of staff likely to be displaced by the closure to other Royal Greenwich schools where there are staff vacancies. Where redeployment is not possible, appropriate individual support will be offered to limit the impact of the closure on affected staff.
In addition, the Trades Unions and relevant professional associations will be consulted with regular liaison maintained with them throughout the closure process, if closure is agreed.
Royal Borough of Greenwich
Town & Country Planning Act 1990 (AS AMENDED)
Town & Country Planning (Development Management Procedure)(England) Order 2015 Planning (Listed Buildings & Conservation Areas) Act 1990 (AS AMENDED) Planning (Listed Buildings & Conservation Areas) Regulations 1990 (AS AMENDED)
Notice is hereby given that application(s) have been made to The Royal Borough of Greenwich in respect of the under mentioned premises/sites. You can see the submissions and any plans at http://www.royalgreenwich.gov.uk/planning.
If development proposals affect Conservation Areas and/or Statutorily Listed Buildings under the Planning (Listed Building and Conservation Area) Act 1990 (As Amended) this will be shown within the item below.
Anyone who wishes to comment on these applications should be made in writing to Development Planning within 21 days of the date of this notice.
Please quote the appropriate reference number.
Date: 08/01/2025
Victoria Geoghegan
Assistant Director - Planning and Building Control
List of Press Advertisements - 08/01/2025 Publicity for Planning Applications
Applicant: Mr Raza Rentease Ltd 24/3974/F
Site Address: 183-185 TRAFALGAR ROAD, LONDON, SE10 9EQ
Development: Construction of a mansard roof extension to create a 3-bedroom flat at the mansard level; other associated external and internal alterations.
Conservation Area: adjacent to East Greenwich
Applicant: Sean Stapleton 24/4104/HD
Site Address: 71 ASHBURNHAM GROVE, GREENWICH, LONDON, SE10 8UJ
Development: Installation of new timber box sash windows to the front and rear of the property, to match existing style of other windows.
Conservation Area: ASHBURNHAM TRIANGLE
Applicant: Rebecca Hopewell
24/4123/HD
Site Address: 83 BLACKHEATH PARK, BLACKHEATH, LONDON, SE3 0EU
Development: Construction of a side extension and elevational alterations.
Conservation Area: BLACKHEATH PARK
Applicant: Mr Siddharth Agrawal 24/4139/HD
Site Address: 62 CORNER GREEN, BLACKHEATH, LONDON, SE3 9JJ
Development: Installation of a porch.
Conservation Area: BLACKHEATH PARK
Applicant: Mr K. Nirvan
24/4209/HD
Site Address: 57 HERVEY ROAD, KIDBROOKE, LONDON, SE3 8BX
Development: Construction of a 3.0 metre single storey rear extension.
Conservation Area: SUN IN THE SANDS
ROYAL BOROUGH of GREENWICH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 – SECTION 14(1) LASSELL STREET PLANNED ROAD CLOSURE (ORDER)
1. The Royal Borough of Greenwich makes this Order in exercise of powers under section 14(1) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. This is to facilitate works by Thames Water who need to install a new water connection.
2. The Order will come into operation on 13th January 2025 and would continue to be valid for 18 months. However, the works are expected to take 4 days. The duration of the Order can be extended with the approval of the Secretary of State for Transport.
3. The effect of the Order would be to temporarily prohibit vehicles from entering, exiting, proceeding, or waiting (including waiting for the purposes of loading or unloading) in Lassell Street at the junction of Trafalgar Road.
4. Whilst the Order is in operation traffic will be diverted via the placing of the appropriate signage Prohibitions remain in force; pedestrians are not affected, and vehicle access will be maintained wherever possible.
5. Nothing in this Notice will apply to anything done with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in uniform or traffic warden, to emergency service vehicles, or to vehicles being used in connection with the works.
6. The restrictions described above will apply only during such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by traffic signs as prescribed by the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016.
7. Queries concerning these works should be directed to the Royal Borough of Greenwich’s Directorate of Regeneration, Enterprise & Skills on 020 8921 6340.
ROYAL BOROUGH of GREENWICH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - Section 14(1) GODSTOW ROAD PLANNED PARKING ORDER
1. The Royal Borough of Greenwich makes this Order in exercise of powers under section 14(1) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. This is to facilitate works by ALEXANDER JAMES to allow access to their construction site.
2. The Order will come into operation on 06/01/2025 00:00 and would continue to be valid for 18 months. However, the works are expected to take 365 days. The duration of the Order can be extended with the approval of the Secretary of State for Transport.
3. The effect of the Order would be to temporarily prohibit vehicles from parking or waiting (including waiting for the purposes of loading or unloading), at the side of 113 TO 131 Godstow Road.
4. Prohibitions remain in force; pedestrians are not affected, and vehicle access will be maintained wherever possible.
5. Nothing in this Notice will apply to anything done with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in uniform or traffic warden, to emergency service vehicles, or to vehicles being used in connection with the works.
6. The restrictions described above will apply only during such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by traffic signs as prescribed by the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016.
7. Queries concerning these works should be directed to the Royal Borough of Greenwich’s Directorate of Regeneration, Enterprise & Skills on 020 8921 6340.
Ryan Nibbs Assistant Director, Transport. The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, SE18 6HQ Dated 05/12/2024
INTERNAL REF: PL / FN717 / Lic. No: 72261
ROYAL BOROUGH of GREENWICH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14(1) SUN LANE PLANNED ROAD CLOSURE (ORDER)
1. The Royal Borough of Greenwich makes this Order in exercise of powers under section 14(1) of the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984. This is to facilitate works by Southern Gas Network who need to install a new service connection.
2. The Order will come into operation on 13th January 2025 and would continue to be valid for 18 months. However, the works are expected to take 5 days. The duration of the Order can be extended with the approval of the Secretary of State for Transport.
3. The effect of the Order would be to temporarily prohibit vehicles from entering, exiting, proceeding, or waiting (including waiting for the purposes of loading or unloading), in Sun Lane side of 123 Shooters Hill Road.
4. Whilst the Order is in operation traffic will not need to be diverted as this is a dead-end road. Prohibitions remain in force; pedestrians are not affected, and vehicle access will be maintained wherever possible.
5. Nothing in this Notice will apply to anything done with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in uniform or traffic warden, to emergency service vehicles, or to vehicles being used in connection with the works.
6. The restrictions described above will apply only during such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by traffic signs as prescribed by the Traffic Signs Regulations and General Directions 2016.
7. Queries concerning these works should be directed to the Royal Borough of Greenwich’s Directorate of Regeneration, Enterprise & Skills on 020 8921 6340.
Ryan Nibbs Assistant Director, Transport. The Woolwich Centre, 35 Wellington Street, SE18 6HQ
Dated 11 November 2024
INTERNAL REF: PL / LA479423 / FN710 / Lic. No: 72534
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We’ll take your real Christmas tree as part of the green top bin service. Just remove all the decorations and place your tree next to your bin.
Stay safe this winter
Over the weekend, the Met Office issued a yellow weather warning for snow and ice. We are monitoring the situation as the cold weather and wintery conditions continue, with our team gritting priority routes across the borough.
These are:
• main roads
• public transport routes
• hospital access routes
• hills which are used frequently.
In the meantime, please take care when out and about. Read more: royalgreenwich.gov.uk/winterweather
Join the discussion on health and care in Greenwich
Discuss health priorities and share your views at the Healthier Greenwich Partnership Public Discussion Forum. Monday 13 January, 6pm to 8pm. Join us virtually and share ideas from anywhere: royalgreenwich.gov.uk/join-hgp-forum
Get winter strong
Winter is still here, and so is winter illness season. Protect yourself and your loved ones by getting your COVID-19 and flu vaccinations. It’s not too late! Check if you’re eligible and stay safe this winter: royalgreenwich.gov.uk/winter-strong
It’s time to quit smoking
Take the first step to becoming a new you in 2025. Download the free Smokefree app and access the help you need with free NRT/vape, digital tools and 24/7 support: royalgreenwich.gov.uk/smokefree-app