£20,000 reward as police still hunt killer of teenage boy
buggies might be rolled out across london
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By Noah Vickers Local Democracy Reporter
Almost 100 of the capital’s public toilets have closed over the last ten years, according to new research by Age UK london.
A report by the charity this week warns that the issue is a “serious public health concern” and reveals that the last decade has seen around three times as many public loos being shut or removed by councils as were opened by them.
John McGeachy, Age UK London’s campaign manager, said: “Public toilets are essential for a civilised and welcoming city. For older people, those with health conditions and many others, the availability of public toilets can determine whether they feel able to leave their homes.
“We’ve known provision has been declining in London and across the country for a long time, but this new report means we have a much clearer picture about the scale of decline. We urge all relevant bodies to take immediate action to address this pressing issue.”
Age UK London’s research was conducted by sending Freedom of Information requests to all 33 of London’s local councils, though only 30 responded, and some of those that did were not able to provide all the requested information.
The data revealed that, within 25 of those boroughs which responded to a sufficient level of detail, at least 97 of the public toilets they were responsible for were closed between the financial years 2013/14 and 2023/24.
In at least 14 boroughs, no new public loos were opened at all in that same time-span.
About 32 new public toilets were opened however across 11 other boroughs.
The report urges councils to draw up bespoke strategies to boost the number of publicly accessible loos in their areas, and for the Government to “fund local authorities sufficiently so that they can achieve good provision of public toilets”.
A spokeswoman at London Councils – the capital’s local government association – said in response to the report: “Boroughs are keenly aware of the importance of public toilets.
“Although there is support for expanding toilet provision in the capital, the enormous funding constraints facing boroughs mean this can be extremely challenging. We will note the recommendations of this report and continue to work with partners on this agenda.”
Analysis by London Councils shows that boroughs’ funding per Londoner has fallen by 28 per cent since 2010, amid an 11 per
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‘a lmost 100 of the cap I tal’s publ Ic toIlets have closed over the last ten years’
cent growth in London’s population and “dramatic rises in demand for services”, the group said.
London Councils also estimates that boroughs will collectively face a funding gap of at least £500m in the coming year.
A spokesman at the Ministry for Housing, Communities and Local Government said: “Local authorities are best placed to understand local priorities, including on the important issue of provision of public toilets
“We know that councils have suffered from short-term solutions, which is why we are injecting £69bn of funding into council budgets across England to help them drive
forward the government’s Plan for Change.”
The report separately recommends that City Hall should draw up a public toilets plan to coordinate action on improving public toilet provision across London, with a designated staff member to oversee the plan.
Their responsibilities “should include working with boroughs and community organisations to identify ‘loo deserts’ and develop solutions”, Age UK London said.
A spokeswoman for mayor Sir Sadiq Khan said: “Public toilets are a vital part of social infrastructure and essential for people moving around London, particularly those
who are older, disabled or with certain illnesses.
“The mayor’s Age Friendly Action Plan commits to support the provision of accessible public toilets and last year he announced the biggest investment in toilet provision that London’s transport network has seen, totalling £15m over five years. This will see new public toilets opening up across the capital in areas where they’re needed most
“The mayor continues to work with Transport for London and partners to ensure the availability and accessibility of public toilets across the capital.”
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Members and supporters of the new London Loo Alliance gathered on Tuesday by a set of closed public toilets on Broadwick Street in Soho. Credit: Charlie Milligan
old kent road resIdents dIsmIss mysterIous posters opposIng the bakerloo lIne extensIon
By Robert Firth
Local Democracy Reporter
olD KENt road residents have dismissed mysterious posters that have appeared opposing the Bakerloo line extension and claiming the project will price out locals.
The flyers against the planned lengthening of the London Underground line south east from Elephant and Castle towards Lewisham were stuck up around the Old Kent Road earlier this week.
The posters, which aren’t attributed to any organisation, call on people to ‘derail the trainline extensions’ and accuse Transport for London (TfL) and local councils of ‘preparing the way for the biggest ever wave of property speculation’.
New stations would be created at the Old Kent Road, as well as Burgess Park, New Cross Gate and Lewisham under the billion pound TfL project, which could get funding as early as spring.
When shown the flyers on Thursday (January 16), Old Kent Road residents seemed unimpressed — with not a single person the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS) spoke to expressing opposition to the Tube line extension.
Natasha Jones, 53, said: “I think [the project] will be good for the area because it will be bringing money, jobs and events.
“It will also make it easier for people needing to move across London. I think with all the building work going on, the area needs better transport. The buses are not terrible. But sometimes at peak times around 5pm and 7am and 8am it’s hard to get on to a bus because they’re almost full.
“Yes it [the extension] will push up prices. But this is a sought-after area even without the Underground and prices are already high.”
Mum Fatima Sesay, said: “I think [the Bakerloo line extension] is great because it will mean easier transport links. It can feel quite isolated here. I got rid of my car because of ULEZ and I rely on public transport. On a selfish level, it would reduce my commute by about 20 minutes or so.”
The 40-year-old added that the regeneration of South East London had been in motion for over a decade and better public transport couldn’t be blamed for increasing rent and house prices.
She continued: “Campaigning should have started when they moved everybody out of the Heygate and Aylesbury [estates]. I grew up around here and there’s everybody I grew up with being forced to move. It’s heartbreaking. But let’s look at the bigger picture here: the trains aren’t responsible for the prices going up. That started ages ago.”
Abdul Hassan, 34, added: “I think it [the extension] would be good for this area. The buses
are okay because we are close to Elephant and Castle but from Elephant to New Cross there’s no stations. It does not make sense for people to be driving around and I say that as someone who has a car.
“I mean it’s a concern [house prices going up] but I have lived here for 20 years now and we’ve not had any improvements in our transport and the price of housing has still increased.”
The flyers, which are printed with a map of some of the proposed new Tube stations and upcoming developments along the Old Kent Road, invited residents to a meeting on Monday evening, January 20, at an unspecified location in Deptford.
A phone number and URL are provided where it is indicated readers can find the address. But the posters warn political groups, activists and journalists that they are not invited to the meeting.
In a joint statement, Lewisham and Southwark councils said: “The Bakerloo line is vital to unlocking new homes, jobs and investment for both Lewisham and Southwark. We’ve been campaigning for the Bakerloo line upgrade and extension for many years and it is obvious the clear benefits not just for Lewisham, Southwark, and London, but for the whole country.
“The Bakerloo line is vital for London’s continued growth. Locally it would slash journey times, and provide much-needed capacity at our busiest stations as well as the least wellconnected parts of South East London. It would create 9,700 new jobs and unlock 20,400 new homes, generating a £1.5bn boost to the economy, as well as make our capital city greener and more sustainable.
“[The] Back the Bakerloo campaign has more than 21,000 people who have signed-up to support the project. When TfL held a formal consultation on the proposals in 2019, 89 per cent of people favoured the extension – TfL’s biggest majority in favour of any proposal ever.”
TfL was contacted but hadn’t replied at the time of publication.
The posters opposing the Bakerloo line extension have appeared around the Old Kent Road
Natasha Jones said she thought the Bakerloo line extension would ease pressure on local buses
The flyers call on Old Kent Road residents to ‘derail the trainline extensions’
s outh Wark study h I ghl I ghts ho W uk
counc I l hous I ng targets can’t be met
l ambeth asks government for a £40 million bailout to help to balance its books
By Robert Firth Local Democracy Reporter
Lambeth counciL has asked the government for a £40 million bailout to balance its books.
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) has yet to respond to Lambeth Council’s request regarding its Housing Revenue Account (HRA). But without at least £40 million in financial support the Labour-run local authority says it will be unable to set a balanced HRA budget from April this year. The HRA records the costs and income associated with running a council’s housing stock. It is a ringfenced funding pot separate from the rest of a council’s finances and it must not operate at a loss.
A report on Lambeth’s HRA set to go before the council’s Cabinet next Monday (January 27) says that financial assistance requested from the government is ‘critical’ to enable the HRA to be balanced from April. The council has asked for support through an accounting trick known as a ‘capitalisation direction’, which allows
the local authority to treat short-term revenue costs as capital investment costs.
Lambeth faces a £1 billion black hole in its HRA account over the next 30 years. The report blames the shortfall on the previous Conservative government’s council rents reduction policy from 2016 and a seven per cent council rent rise cap in 2023.
The report continues: “Successive governments have placed considerable additional regulatory requirements on social landlords for building and fire safety, without the funding to cover the costs of these additional requirements.
“These requirements disproportionately affect boroughs such as Lambeth, with higher levels of high-rise blocks and will cost the council £76 million from 2018 to 2028.
Previous government decisions to remove funding on the Decent Homes Standard means that we have had little funding to invest in our ageing stock as its condition worsens.”
Next Monday (January 27), Lambeth’s Labour Cabinet is set to approve a 2.7 per cent rise in council rents from April 2025. The average council rent will
By Isabel Ramirez
Sixty-eight per cent of councils managing their own social housing will have to cut back on building new homes unless they get more government funding, a study by southwark Council has revealed.
Councils are warning they can’t balance their budgets and are struggling to keep up with basic housing services.
The survey, covering 76 councils responsible for over 870,000 homes, reveals the crisis many are facing. More than six in ten councils have already paused or delayed building projects, and nearly seven in ten say they will need to scale back plans to build or renovate social housing.
On top of that, 71 per cent of councils expect to cancel or delay ongoing projects, and 28 per cent say they may have to sell off existing housing just to stay afloat.
Emergency reserves are being used to plug gaps in day-to-day budgets, with almost half of the councils already dipping into these funds. Over a third fear they will run out of reserves by the end of this parliament.
Nine in ten councils report serious financial strain, and drastic cutbacks are becoming the norm.
Cllr Kieron Williams, Leader
of Southwark Council, urged the government to act fast: “The government’s ambition to build 1.5 million new homes is critical to ending the housing crisis and council housing must play a central role in this effort. However, without significant further action councils will be unable to build at scale and unable to bring existing homes up to green and decent standards fit for the future.”
Last September, 109 councils signed a report that calls for the government to rethink how social housing is funded. It suggests overhauling the Housing Revenue Account, launching a Green & Decent Homes Programme to upgrade old housing, and boosting funds for new council homes through a better Affordable Homes Programme.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of Housing, Communities & Local Government said the government is committed to building 1.5 million homes and is already making changes. “This includes overdue reforms to the Right to Buy scheme, an extra £500 million for the Affordable Homes Programme, and more measures to be announced soon,” they said.
In addition to these measures, the government also has committed £69 billion of funding to council budgets across England to help them drive forward the government’s Plan for Change.
increase by £3.60 per week (£14.40 per month) to £137.10 per week (£548.40 per month).
The report says an additional £4.2 million will be raised for the HRA by the rent rise. Service charges will reduce by 76p per week and heating and hot water charges will decrease by £1.04 per week. The reductions are a result of the council now recovering a shortfall in service charges and energy costs that it accumulated two years ago, according to the report.
Lambeth is the second largest council landlord in London after Southwark, with 23,600 homes, as well as 10,000 leasehold properties.
Cllr Danny Adilypour, Deputy Leader of the council, described the financial outlook of the council’s HRA account as ‘stark’. He said: “Short-term decisions by the previous government have taken £1 billion out of our HRA over the next 30 years, seriously limiting the amount of money we have to maintain our estates.
“The council is committed to making sure council housing is up to as high a standard as possible, is repaired promptly when needed and meets the
Cllr Danial Adilypour, deputy leader of Lambeth Council, described the financial outlook for the council’s HRA account as ‘stark’ in December 2024.
needs of residents. But we’ve been working with one arm tied behind our backs.
“The previous government imposed caps and limits on our rental income, but without providing extra funding to make up the gap, which of course means there’s not enough money available to do all of the work on our estates that we know we need to.
“We’ve also been asked to do lots of extra work – without any additional money to fund it. Housing in Lambeth is ageing and needs investment, with most of our council homes being flats that are on average more than 60 years old. It’s a really difficult situation which is why we have been working closely with the new government to find a way forward.”
Council homes in Peckham, Blossom Court
Family fun this half-term
Imagine Festival is back at the Southbank Centre this half-term from Tuesday 18 –Sunday 23 February, full of world-class theatre, comedy, music, dance, talks and activities for children aged 0 – 11 and their grown-ups!
Ross Collins’s beloved story There’s a Bear on My Chair comes to life for the first time in a brand new stage adaptation with loveable puppets from Toby Olié (Spirited Away, War Horse) Also on stage, enjoy pop-punk juggling in Rollercoaster, join a rip-roaring, prehistoric science pop gig in The Colour of Dinosaurs, and see lots of CBeebies friends and animals celebrate the natural world in music and song at the spectacular CBeebies Wildlife Jamboree.
Be wowed by amazing authors and writers, including the return of award-winning festival favourite Rob Biddulph for an afternoon family session fizzing with laughs, creativity and one of the famous ‘Draw with Rob’ draw-alongs. Jodie Lancet-Grant also brings a rip-roaring event of interactive storytelling and Wild West-themed games at The Wild West Twins, Dr Ronx teaches fun practical skills and useful facts at How to Save a Life, and Athena Kugblenu debunks fact from fiction from throughout history at History’s Most Epic Fibs. On top of that, celebrate the joy of dance with Yasmine Naghdi & Chitra Soundar at Ballet Besties, discover how to grow mighty ingredients to make plant-powered feasts with Darryl Gadzekpo & Ella Phillips at Plant to Plate, and enjoy Lunchtime Comedy with The Lollies, jam-packed with jokes, laugh-outloud live drawing and fabulously funny stories.
Every day there's plenty of free things to do for a full day out, including songs with Singing All Over the World, comedy with Big Laughs for Little Bellies and storytelling with When Stories Come Alive! Come and dance the day away with Afro Dance With HomeBros, ZooNation's Hip-Hop Half-Term and Prancer the Dancer's DanceDanceDiscoParty FunShow. Plus, art fans can scribble, doodle, draw and create to their heart’s content at Imagine's Giant Chalkboard
Imagine Festival
The very popular REPLAY: A Limitless Recycled Playground is also back this year, perfect for little ones and their grown-ups to enter an endless world of play and invention.
Imagine Festival is a Relaxed festival, meaning that all performances have a relaxed approach to noise and movement in the space. Discover more at https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/imagine
WeSt duLW ich residents are taking lambeth Council to court over a controversial new low traffic neighbourhood (Ltn).
West Dulwich Action Group (WDAG) has accused the council of carrying out a “seriously flawed” consultation process.
LTNs are areas aiming to reduce motor traffic in residential areas through cameras, planters or bollards.
The group is challenging an LTN between Rosendale and Norwood Road that prevents vehicular traffic from entering, passing through or waiting within the area.
They claim the council disregarded the results of a questionnaire in which 67 per cent of respondents said they were unhappy with the scheme.
The group also said the questionnaire only gave respondents the opportunity to give their view on the current LTN proposals, without a ‘no-LTN’ option.
Consultations over the introduction of the LTN began in January 2022, with the first proposals published in April 2023. In February 2024, an eighteenmonth trial scheme was launched.
Campaigners hope the legal battle will end with Lambeth Council traffic management orders being quashedopening the area back up to traffic.
WDAG said it was optimistic about the outcome, adding: “We feel confident in exposing what we perceive as serious flaws in the LTN development and implementation and related decision-making processes by the council.”
They have also been objecting to the introduction of a new controlled parking zone in the area (CPZ) which sees residents pay for permits to park their vehicles.
In a report released over Christmas, Lambeth Council signalled its intention to push ahead with the scheme, which will operate between 12pm and 2pm from Monday to Friday.
But the campaigners have accused the council of misrepresenting the scale of local opposition in the report, which acknowledged the objections but claimed there was “some support” for the scheme.
However, WDAG’s analysis of the representations found the overwhelming majority – 93% - were opposed to the scheme, with 88%
opposed to any kind of CPZ at all.
A council spokesperson said: “Lambeth Council is working to make all our neighbourhoods safer and healthier for everyone, especially young children and the elderly - who are the most vulnerable to road danger and the effects of air pollution.
“The range of street improvement measures in West Dulwich, proposed after residents and businesses called for traffic reduction on their streets, is designed to make the local neighbourhood safer and healthier for all. We have thoroughly engaged with – and listened to - the local community throughout the development of these proposals, and provided opportunities for residents and businesses to feed back. We are confident that we have complied with all legislative requirements.
“The council considered all the views expressed during the CPZ consultation and, based on the feedback, we have decided to carry out a second consultation, this time based on a two-hour restriction period. Local residents and businesses will once again be contacted to provide their views.”
Imagine Festival will be returning to South Bank this February half-term
By Isabel Ramirez
a Six-day event with a range of free activities and performances for children returns to south Bank this february half-term.
It’s just one month to go until London’s leading arts festival for families starts!
From Tuesday 18 to Sunday 23 February, the Imagine Festival is coming to the Southbank Centre.
Highlights include There’s a Bear on My Chair, a stage adaptation of Ross Collins’ popular book brought to life by
award-winning puppeteer Toby Olié, running throughout the festival. On 21 and 22 February, Wes Peden presents The Rollercoaster, a high-energy juggling show inspired by adrenaline and movement.
There are lots of free events and performances!
Roblox fans can enjoy a free workshop on 22 and 23 February where they will be able to create their own game designs.
On 22 February, illustrator Rob Biddulph leads a live drawing session, offering kids the chance to sketch
What’s happenIng WI th pyrotechnI sts a rms
In nunhead after closure?
By Callum Smyth
monthS after a popular Nunhead pub suddenly closed, the owners are still looking for someone to take it over.
The Pyrotechnists Arms, known locally as The ‘Pyro’, on Nunhead Green has sat derelict since late November after closing its doors with no explanation.
Originally built in 1874, it was one of the oldest surviving pubs in the area. Its name comes from workers from a
Fancy first date?
By Herbie Russell
channeL 4 is calling on readers to apply for a new series of first Dates.
The BAFTA-award-winning show sees singles matched by experts for the ultimate first date.
The 11th series will be filmed in Bath in March 2025.
TwentyTwenty, casting for the show, wrote: ‘Every couple is carefully matched based on their unique personalities and interests— if Cupid’s arrow strikes, this could be the beginning of something truly special.’
Fred Siriex, the suave Frenchman who presents the show, was known to live in Peckham as recently as November 2023.
“It’s amazing. I bought in Peckham
nearby firework factory who used to be regulars.
The pub’s sudden closure has prompted locals to ask questions, with speculations online suggesting they might only be closed temporarily.
One East Dulwich Forum user wrote: “I thought they were having a revamp ... at least I’m sure that’s what one of the staff said a couple of months ago.”
The Pyrotechnists Arms is owned by Stonegate Pub Company.
Stonegate has declined to comment but is currently advertising for new tenants.
because it was cheap. Now I can’t afford my own home,” he told The Resident. “I wanted to learn English so I came over and never looked back,” Fred said, who relocated from Limoges, France. Apply via these two links: www.twentytwenty.tv/takepart/677/ first-dates www.channel4.com/4viewers/take-part
alongside the award-winning artist.
The festival concludes with the CBeebies Wildlife Jamboree on 23 February, a musical celebration of the natural world featuring the BBC Concert Orchestra and familiar faces from CBeebies.
The Imagine Festival is relaxed and inclusive, with BSL-interpreted, captioned, and audio-described performances ensuring accessibility for all.
Full programme details are available on the Southbank Centre websitesouthbankcentre.co.uk
The West Dulwich Action Group
mayor claIms £2.2 bIllIon sIlvertoWn tunnel has been buIlt under budget and In record tIme
By Noah Vickers Local Democracy Reporter
sir sADiQ Khan has said londoners should be “incredibly proud” of the soon-to-open Silvertown tunnel, dubbing it a “great piece of infrastructure” which will “transform” lives.
The new £2.2bn road tunnel under the Thames, which will link Silvertown with the Greenwich Peninsula, is due to open on April 7, with the mayor saying he “hopes” to attend its launch.
The tunnel has been heavily criticised by environmental campaigners who argue it will have the opposite of its intended effect of improving congestion and air quality, and will in fact only encourage more car use.
The £4 peak-time toll to use the tunnel, and the fact that the neighbouring Blackwall Tunnel will have a toll for the first time in its 128-year history, has also attracted anger – with more than 45,000 people having now signed a petition calling for the charges to be scrapped.
Asked whether he will attend the tunnel’s opening in just under three months’ time, Sir Sadiq said: “Well, I hope so. What this tunnel will do is it will transform life for those in southeast London and those in east London who’ve experienced, for years now, record congestion, poor air quality, [and an]
impact on productivity.
“What this tunnel is doing is it’s selffinancing, with those that use [pay] the toll. It will not only improve air quality, improve congestion, alleviate pressures, but also have a lane reserved for doubledecker buses, taking people across the river, but also cyclists as well.”
Asked if he was excited about the tunnel’s opening, despite the significant controversy it has attracted, he said: “It’s a great piece of infrastructure. We should be incredibly proud.
“[It was] built under budget, in record time and will revolutionise travel in that part of London.”
The mayor’s claim that the tunnel has been built “under budget” would appear to contradict papers published by Transport for London’s (TfL) programmes and investment committee in October last year.
The vast majority of the scheme is being privately financed by Riverlinx, the company which has been building the tunnel and will maintain and operate it.
But TfL is also facing some “direct costs” of its own in bringing the project to life, according to the October committee papers – with an ‘estimated final cost’ to TfL of £187.7m. The papers state that this is some £10.1m over a previous estimate of £177.6m. A December update said however that the final cost to TfL “has the potential to reduce as the end of
construction in 2025 approaches”.
Sir Sadiq’s claim that the scheme has been delivered “in record time” is also arguable. The April opening date is indeed slightly sooner than the ‘summer 2025’ timeframe TfL had been citing last year. But when the project was initially consulted on by the then-mayor Boris Johnson back in 2012, TfL had said the tunnel could be in place by 2021.
Campaigners opposed to the tunnel’s construction have said it will increase traffic, congestion, pollution and carbon emissions, and point to TfL modelling that suggests that about 100,000 motorists a day will continue to use the Blackwall
F A ALBIN & SONS
tunnel – and 15,000 to 30,000 a day will use the new Silvertown Tunnel.
TfL maintains that the project will “help to reduce congestion at the Blackwall Tunnel, deliver faster journeys during peak times, help manage overall air quality and allow for better crossriver public transport”.
sir sADiQ Khan has been urged to hold a review into whether the capital’s water supply should be fluoridated to reduce tooth decay among londoners.
Following a cross-party investigation, the London Assembly’s health committee has, among other recommendations, told the mayor the move could play a valuable part in improving oral health across the capital.
Sir Sadiq’s team said he was “concerned about the challenges many Londoners face accessing dental services” and would respond to the committee “in due course”.
The recommendation about potentially fluoridating London’s water was issued after the committee was told by NHS consultant Charlotte Klass that fluoridation successfully reduces the prevalence of tooth decay “in all sectors of society, irrelevant of age, and most importantly it does not require a sustained behavioural change at an individual level”.
Water is not routinely fluoridated in London, but since 2022, the Health Secretary has had the power to introduce water fluoridation schemes in different parts of the country.
Public consultation is needed before using that power. In 2024, the Government consulted on expanding water fluoridation schemes in the north east of England, but has announced no such plans for London.
The committee said the mayor “should carry out a review of the feasibility of fluoridating London’s water in 2025” and “should submit the findings of this review to the Government”.
In their investigation, the committee found that some 25.8 per cent of five-year-olds in the capital experienced tooth decay in 202122 – slightly higher than the English average of 23.7 per cent. In the year that followed, more than 5,000 children aged 0 to 9 in London were admitted to hospital for tooth extractions.
Looking at the two years to March 2024, just 39 per cent of the capital’s adults accessed an NHS dentist.
The report states: “The current NHS dental contract is severely flawed and needs fundamental reform.
“As well as disincentivising dental professionals from taking on NHS work, the evidence received by the committee suggests that the contract disincentivises them from targeting work towards those with the highest needs and is not designed to focus on
calls to add fluorIde to drInkIng Water as a Quarter of fIve-year-olds In london experIence tooth decay
prevention.
“Funding for NHS dentistry has not kept pace with inflation. There is currently not sufficient commissioned NHS activity to meet the needs of London’s population.”
The committee’s Labour chair, Krupesh Hirani, said: “We examined the current state of dental education in schools, as well as the challenges faced by Londoners in accessing NHS dental services and receiving quality care.
“We found much that was successful, but the gaps in preventative work and emergency treatment are significant and people must have access to emergency care when they need it.”
Mr Hirani, who represents Brent and Harrow on the Assembly, added: “Good oral health is essential for overall wellbeing. There are things we can do to look after our teeth, but we should be able to get an appointment when it is needed. Access to healthcare should be a right not a privilege, and that includes dentistry.
“London should smile with pride at its dental care – that sadly isn’t the case at the moment.”
Responding to the committee’s report, a spokesman for Sir Sadiq said: “The mayor has no powers over the commissioning or provision of dental or other health care, but he is concerned about the challenges many Londoners face accessing dental services, following significant cuts by the previous Government.
“He is encouraged by the new Government’s focus on improving NHS services and welcomes its Dentistry Rescue Plan which aims to prevent poor dental health. The mayor will respond to the Assembly in due course.”
The committee also recommended that the Government “carry out a review to understand why poor oral health is so prevalent across the country, and develop an action plan to address this”.
A spokeswoman at the Department of Health and Social Care said: “This Government is committed to rebuilding NHS dentistry, but it will take time.
“We are starting with an extra 700,000 urgent dentistry appointments to help those who need it most, supported by a £26 billion funding boost for health and social care, and will reform the dental contract to encourage more dentists to offer NHS services to patients.
“We will also introduce supervised tooth brushing for three-to-five year-olds in the most deprived communities.”
lAst yEAr, a newly-elected Labour mp was seen ambling across the room during one of the new government’s first parliamentary debates.
Suddenly, a deafening roar erupts from the Opposition. Before the MP knows it, she is being showered with a torrent of taunts from the opposing benches. Confused, and perhaps slightly embarrassed, she scrambles to safety, flinching under Madam Deputy Speaker’s disapproving eye. Little does Miatta Fahnbulleh know, she has just committed Westminster “blasphemy”.
More than half (335) of MPs are newcomers following the 2024 general election. Since that bemusing first day in Parliament, there has been plenty for them to get their heads around. None more so than for the new MP for Peckham who, replacing Harriet Harman, has been thrust into a ministerial position at the first time of asking.
‘It WAS AS IF I’D CommIttED WEStmInStEr BLASPhEmy’
In her first full interview since being elected in July, she tells the News that Parliament is “a maze. I still get lost. I’ve got one set route and if I deviate from it I’m lost.”
The centuries-old rule she broke was crossing the line of sight between the Speaker and a Member asking a question. “They were shocked as if you had done blasphemy in the house… the Speaker game me evils,” she says.
Fahnbulleh has also found ‘bobbing’ “very weird”. It literally means bobbing up and down to catch the Speaker’s eye when you have a question, sometimes for hours on end.
“It’s a strange world,” she says. “There’s a whole new rule of engagement that you’re learning as an MP as well as figuring out how you use this amazing institution to raise the concerns of your constituents and have impacts.”
Daughter of Liberian asylum seekers who fled the country’s 1986 civil war, Fahnbulleh attended an independent boarding school in Kent before studying PPE at Oxford. She later became chief executive of the left-wing economic thinktank New Economics Foundation, becoming a well-known face through TV appearances such as on Question Time.
While this may all sound like a fairly typical route for a member of the political establishment, Fahnbulleh is a self-confessed “newbie” to the world of Westminster politics. Unlike all four of her parliamentary colleagues in Southwark - Neil Coyle, Helen Hayes, Victoria Eshalomi and Ellie Reeves - she did not cut her teeth in the party’s typical training ground of local politics. Despite this comparative lack of experience, she was immediately made Minister for Energy Consumers - a critical role given the nation’s struggles with rising energy bills. In July, she was named among the Guardian’s ‘one to watch’ list of new Labour MPs.
‘I’VE hAD 3,500 LoCAL CASES - my PArLIAmEntAry CoLLEAgUES gEt 500’ South of the Thames, and away from the spires of Westminster, she speaks to Southwark News from inside a converted warehouse, now a popular
neW peckham mp talks about housIng, energy, torIes’ taunts, and break WIth predecessor on not maIntaInIng a local offIce
Miatta Fahnbulleh reflects on the ‘strange’ world of Westminster
hang-out for Peckham’s students and arts folk.
Later tonight, the rooms above will rattle with sub-woofers and the footsteps of trendy youngsters from local arts colleges. Fahnbulleh will be long gone by then. Her next stop after the interview is a visit to a local soup kitchen which is desperately searching for a new home amid developer Berkeley’s controversial plans to redevelop Peckham Town Centre. It is one issue, along with 3,500 pieces of casework, that has come across her desk in just six months.
“It’s been on everything from housing and immigration. If you compare that to constituencies in London or out of London, that is huge. I’ve had colleagues that have had 500 in that time. With it comes a huge sense of responsibility because often people are coming to you as their MP because it’s a last resort. They’re banging their heads against the wall and the system isn’t working for them.”
Before she was chosen as Labour’s candidate for Peckham, a race riven with drama, one of her key pledges was to set up a constituency office where residents could meet her face to face. Her predecessor Harriet Harman, ‘Mother of the House’ until she stepped down last year, was criticised for not having a dedicated place where her constituents could
meet her in person.
Six months after her election, Fahnhulleh’s team says it has struggled to find a space that is within budget and meets security concerns. “We are getting there. We’ve been looking at spaces around Rye Lane and Nunhead. It’s proved a bit harder than I thought it would be to find the right space that is within our budget, a space that is accessible for people in the community, and that the security services think is the right space.”
But she is clear that she does not fear for her safety in Peckham, and Elon Musk’s running commentary on British politics, including branding Jess Phillips MP a “rape genocide apologist”, will not change that. “This is my patch and my community. I never feel worried or unsafe in Peckham but that doesn’t mean that the threat isn’t there.”
AyLEShAm AFForDABLE hoUSIng
U-tUrn WAS A ‘ShoCK AnD A BLoW’
In fact, she says she is “proudest” of the work she has done while in office to help struggling families, rehousing those languishing in hotels and temporary accommodation.
Southwark has over 18,500 people on the housing waiting list and, unsurprisingly, housing queries form a huge bulk of her casework. The housing crisis is brought even sharper into focus due to the 877-apartment development planned for Peckham’s
Last month, the developer Berkeley, already battling a wave of public opposition, astounded both locals and Southwark Council by dropping its affordable housing offer from 35 to 12 per cent. “Really disappointing,” she says. “It was a bit of a shock and a blow to see what was proposed.”
Though she says she is “very prodevelopment” and it is a “tough context for developers” amid rising construction costs, she adds: “Planning is a quasi-judicial process so it needs to go through that process and it is for the council to do that and if it gets escalated by the council it is for the MHCLG [Minister of Housing, Communities and Local Government] to go through the due process but it seems for me a very, very difficult proposition that you can have a massive new development in the heart of Peckham where we have got a huge housing affordability crisis.”
Labour will streamline the planning process, potentially taking more decision-making away from local authorities, in a bid to boost its march towards £1.5 million homes within its first term. This has led to fears among some locals that, if councillors reject the proposal, and Berkeley appeals the decision, the MHCLG will be minded to give planning permission despite affordable housing concerns.
Asked if she thinks this might happen, she says. “I don’t know is
the honest answer. What I do know is that we’ve been clear that we want to build more homes - 1.5 million - but we have also been clear that we want to see the biggest boost to social housing for a generation. You’re driving it through two routes. In the end, the reason house prices are so high and unaffordable is because we’ve got a massive supply constraint so you’ve just got to build more. But until you get to the point where prices naturally rebalance, you’ve got to build affordable housing.”
SPEArhEADIng An EnErgy ‘gEAr ChAngE’
Another key issue cropping up in her inbox is unique in covering both her constituency and ministerial responsibilities.
Leaseholders on the North Peckham Estate, and across Southwark, have complained about the gas bills being triple government guidelines, which they is due to the inefficiency of their district heating networks.
As Minister for Energy Consumers, she has been charged with spearheading a “complete gear change” in the department, which she says was forced into a state of “floating and dithering” due to the Conservative’s neglect. “They just stopped [governing],” she says. Thanks to a new regulatory framework, the brainchild of Fahbulleh and department boffins,
town centre.
Miatta Fahnbulleh meeting with Peckham constituents
Harriet Harman, former MP for Peckham
Miatta Fahnbulleh speaking in the House of Commons
cash-strapped leaseholders will be protected by price ceilings as part of regulation.
Council-managed district heating networks, many antiquated and well over 40-years-old, warm 17,000 homes in Southwark. Nationally, roughly 500,000 households are connected to the systems, which are causing residents problems from London to Scotland, with Chris Murray, MP for Edinburgh East and Musselburgh, echoing such warnings.
The introduction of new regulation that Fahnbulleh has overseen should introduce more protections for suffering leaseholders. Ofgem will now have powers to investigate and intervene on networks where prices appear to be disproportionate or unfair. The Energy Ombudsman will also have powers to take enforcement action against operators that break the rules on metering and billing.
A ‘PUnChy’ StArt to goVErnmEnt
There is no doubt that the first six months in government have been bruising for Labour. “Punchy” is the word Fanhbulleh comes back to time and time again. Labour policy is “punchy” but so is the current political climate, she says.
The boxing-ring rhetoric reflects the position Labour arguably now finds itself in; not yet on the ropes, but in the corner, breathing through its mouthguard, eating jabs, praying for
former grand desIgns dIrector brands toWn centre redevelopment a ‘horror shoW’
that 30-second rest period.
One incoming haymaker is rising interest rates, which threaten to flatten the government’s economic plans. Treasury officials are briefing the media about potential cuts to restore the government’s fiscal headroom. All this compounds the reality that the Office for Budget Responsibility estimated the government’s economic plans were unlikely to increase growth over the next five years.
Labour has been clear that it aims to fix the “foundations” of the economy, with a £22.6bn increase in the dayto-day health budget (a real-terms hike of 4%), a significant boost to the minimum wage, and £5bn on housing investment in 2025-26.
“No government wants to go into the legacy that we’ve inherited. The thing I often say to people is think about every realm that people care about; the state of the economy, the cost-ofliving, where our public services are, and all of it was broken.”
She continues: “I don’t use our inheritance as an excuse. It is what it is. Our job is to turn that around.
The thing we will say is, try and change anything in your life, change your office, your workplace, it takes time. Six months was never gonna be enough time to do that. Let’s have a conversation in two years, let’s have a conversation in four years.”
EXCLUSIVE
By Herbie Russell
t he former director of grand designs has branded peckham town centre’s looming redevelopment a “horror show”.
Berkeley plans to build 877 apartments in towers of up to 20 storeys slap bang in the middle of the low-rise neighbourhood.
Ann Lalic, who spent ten years working on the hit Channel 4 architectural show, said: “On the show, you see how a small house affects everyone in the area and that’s what strikes me about this horror show - the impact on
everybody around it.”
She continued: “There’s too much of it, too tall, the space between will be like wind tunnels, they are flimsy and, to me, it’s an insult to be building this in a place like Peckham.”
Local campaigners are furious about the development’s affordable housing offer of twelve per centwell below Southwark Council’s 35 per cent target on all new developments.
Ms Lalic continued: “Working on Grand Designs pointed out to me big time the state of the housing situation, and has clarified why the Ayelsham development is so very wrong.
“The people who are buying
those houses won’t be shopping in Peckham, they are using them to park their money.”
The redevelopment’s statutory consultation period has now ended with a planning committee decision expected by April at the earliest. The Southwark Housing and Planning Emergency, which opposes Berkeley’s scheme, will lead a march from Peckham to Elephant and Castle next month.
SHAPE has ten demands of Southwark Council. They include stopping excessively tall developments, enforcing 50 per cent council housing in developments on private land and 100 per cent council housing on council land. Berkeley declined to comment
Ann Lalic with Grand Designs presenter Kevin McCloud (left)
A computer-generated image of the Aylesham Centre redevelopment
bermondsey famIly cannot sell home over councIl’s fIre safety dItherIng
Cllr Rachel Bentley, deputy leader of Southwark Council\s Liberal Democrat opposition said the delay in issuing EWS1 forms was a ‘scandal
By Robert Firth
Local Democracy Reporter
a famiLy can’t sell their home because of council delays in issuing fire safety certificates that prospective buyers require to get a mortgage from the bank.
Victoria Gatenby, 47, who owns a flat in Wrayburn House in Bermondsey has been trying to get one of the certificates, called EWS1 forms, from her freeholder Southwark Council since 2021.
Victoria and her husband found a buyer for their flat in the tower block back in 2022. But the sale fell through after the individual pulled out because banks refused to lend to them without seeing an EWS1 form for the building.
Three years later, Ms Gatenby has
now left London for work reasons and is renting near Reading, Berkshire. But without an EWS1 form, the mum-of-two is no closer to finding a buyer for the flat— and her family are unable to buy a new property in their new home town without first selling the Bermondsey flat.
She said: “I don’t know how long I thought it would take, but I certainly didn’t think it would take four years. They [Southwark] say the building is safe but how do we know if we can’t get an EWS1?
“We’ve got two kids. We really just want to be able to buy our own home. We don’t want to be renting. But all our money is tied up in this flat and we need to be able to sell it to buy somewhere else.”
After countless emails and phone calls to council officials over the last four years, Ms Gatenby said she was losing faith that she
was ever going to get an EWS1 form from the Labour-run local authority. Without one of the certificates, her solicitor has advised her that her only solution may be to sell the flat to a cash buyer for up to 30 per cent less than the property is worth.
EWS1 forms were introduced in 2018 in the wake of new fire safety regulations brought in following the Grenfell Tower fire. They serve as evidence that a building with potentially combustible cladding has had a fire safety assessment.
At the end of 2022 six of the UK’s biggest banks updated their policies to say they would offer mortgages on properties in tall blocks where there were fire safety issues, provided there was a funded remediation plan in place.
But each bank’s specific policy on the topic differs and Ms Gatenby is unaware of
Exclusive preview of new film starring Camberwell-born actress at Peckhamplex
By Isabel Ramirez
pecKhampLex iS set to host a special preview of hard truths, a new film starring hollywood actress marianne Jean-baptiste, who grew up in camberwell and peckham.
The exclusive screening will take place on Thursday, 23 January and will be followed by a Q&A session with JeanBaptiste and director Mike Leigh.
The film reunites Jean-Baptiste and Leigh nearly three decades after their work on Secrets & Lies in 1996, a role for which she earned an Oscar nomination, becoming the first Black British actress
to achieve this.
In Hard Truths, Jean-Baptiste plays Pansy, a deeply angry and depressed woman who struggles with her relationships, except for her bond with her cheerful and sympathetic sister, Chantelle.
Set in London, it explores family relationships in the post-pandemic world.
Despite being snubbed at the Golden Globes, the film has been nominated for various awards, with rumours of Oscar nominations.
Jean-Baptiste, who attended St Saviour’s and St Olave’s secondary
school, has long been celebrated for her contributions to film and television.
She rose to prominence in the U.S. for her role in the CBS drama Without A Trace and was honoured with a blue plaque in 2013 at the former St Giles Hospital, where she was born.
Tickets for the event are priced at £5.99, including access to the Q&A session. They can be bought at peckhamplex.london
any leaseholders in Wrayburn House who have found a buyer who has been able to convince a lender to approve a mortgage without an EWS1 form.
Another leaseholder in the block, who asked to remain anonymous for fear of reprisals from council officials, said two potential buyers for her property pulled out because they couldn’t find a bank to lend without an EWS1 form.
She said: “I am desperate to sell because of my personal financial circumstances.
But I’m being prevented from doing it. I’m a bona fide leaseholder. I’ve done everything in my power to do what I should do. I keep emailing Southwark for answers and I get no reply. Communication is extremely difficult. I feel very let down.”
Ms Gatenby meanwhile has escalated a complaint she has made against the
One leaseholder, who asked to remain anonymous, said two buyers had pulled out of purchasing her fl at because they were unable to get banks to lend without an EWS1 form
council over the handling of her case after she claims Southwark responded to her formal grievance with a copy and paste response she had previously received from officials in an email in 2022.
Local Liberal Democrat councillor Rachel Bentley said: “The delay in getting EWS1 forms is yet another housing scandal from this disastrous Labour council. People are fed up with this incompetence, and the council needs to stop passing the buck and take responsibility.”
Cllr Sarah King, Southwark’s cabinet member for council homes, said: “We are working through the EWS1 requests while we move towards new, comprehensive government and RICS [Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors] legislation on building safety, which does not require an EWS1.”
The Eternal Market: East & Southeast Asian food, art, crafts, and culture
@greenwich.peninsula
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southWark councIl Invests £1.5m In lgbtQ+ venue on former xxl club sIte
By Isabel Ramirez
SouthWarK counciL is putting £1.5m towards the opening of a new LgbtQ+ venue in bankside, on the site of the former XXl gay club that closed six years ago.
The funding is part of the Community Infrastructure Levy (CIL) which developers pay towards local improvements when they build in Southwark.
Of the almost £4million available, £1.5million will be used to fit out the LGBTQ+ space, which is located in two railway arches at Bankside Yards.
Due to open in 2026, it will feature a theatre and workspace.
It is on the site of the former XXL gay club which closed in September 2019 despite a 5,900-signature-strong petition urging it to remain open.
As well as this investment, almost £2.4million from the CIL is allocated towards developing a 100 per cent affordable housing scheme at 634-636 Old Kent Road.
The site is above the planned Bakerloo Line extension tunnel and the funding will pay for extra engineering work to reduce vibration and noise, and ensure the tunnel is not affected by the building above.
The Bakerloo Line extension, which would bring huge benefits to people across London and the UK, is a priority for Southwark Council, which also allocated £30,000 towards the Bakerloo Line Extension Funding Study.
L: The former XXL club, now closed. R: The new site on Bankside
The council also agreed £50,000 of money from the levy towards design work to improve accessibility at Nunhead Station.
Cllr Helen Dennis, Cabinet Member for New Homes and Sustainable Development said: “These are major projects that will directly benefit residents and businesses and help us to build a better and fairer Southwark for all.
“Our LGBTQ+ community will massively benefit from the new space and the facilities on offer, and we’re also investing to make sure that both a new site with 100 per affordable housing and
convIcted people smuggler facIng extradItIon after polIce sWoop on elephant address
By Herbie Russell
A CoNViCtED people smuggler faces extradition after police arrested him in Elephant and Castle.
Officers swooped on Zeeshan Banghis, 20, at an address on New Kent Road, on December 18.
The Afghan national was sentenced to three years’ imprisonment by a court in Antwerp, Belgium last month. He now faces being returned to Belgium to serve his sentence and extradition proceedings have commenced.
Banghis, also known as Bangash Zeeshan, is one of three Afghan men detained in a co-ordinated effort between the National Crime Agency (NCA) and Belgian police.
the Bakerloo Line Extension can happen.
“Making sure money from developers is reinvested back into our communities is a vital part of what we do and we’ll keep ensuring that money goes towards making a real difference and improving life for the people of Southwark.”
Cllr Victor Chamberlain, who campaigned alongside former Cllr David Noakes for the space, commented: “Borough and Bankside Liberal Democrat councillors successfully suggested the Council should agree a memorandum of understanding with the developers to protect this as an LGBTQ+ space when
XXL closed.
“I’ve been working with the council and developers since to ensure this happens and encouraged the council to use CIL to make this a viable space to operate. This is a good step forward, but we need a Southwark LGBTQ+ strategy that was agreed to be developed following a successful Liberal Democrat motion last year to ensure we can see even more LGBTQ+ spaces and businesses in the borough.”
The funding was agreed at Southwark Council’s Cabinet meeting on 6 January.
Ziarmal Khan (AKA Boxer Bhai), aged 24, was arrested on 6 December by MPS officers at Stansted Airport in relation to a domestic violence offence, and further arrested on behalf of the Belgians while in custody.
NCA officers also arrested Saifur Rahman Ahmedzai (AKA Raees Hamza), 23, at an address in Hemel Hempstead on Monday, December 30.
Prosecutors in Belgium say the trio’s gang helped organise the transport of migrants from Afghanistan through Iran, Turkey and the Balkans into western Europe, mainly France and Belgium.
Many would eventually be take small boats from northern France to the UK, with the gang suspected of transporting thousands of people this way.
The NCA said the group also committed serious sexual offences against male
migrant minors, including rape which they would video and use to blackmail the victims into criminality and further sexual abuse.
NCA investigators supported the Belgian investigation for around two years, supplying intelligence and evidence to the Belgian Federal Police around suspected members of the network.
Last month, a court in Antwerp convicted and sentenced the trio and 20 other members of the gang to a total of 170 years imprisonment, with sentences ranging from two to 18 years.
Eleven members were tried in their
absence, including the three men arrested in the UK.
NCA Deputy Director Craig Turner said: “This operation shows that no matter where people smuggling gangs operate, we will find them and bring them to justice.
“These men were part of a network involved in illegally moving migrants across the globe, through Europe and eventually into northern Europe and the UK, profiting from the dangerous situations they put vulnerable people into as they were transported, and committing the most heinous sexual offences against them.”
By Herbie Russell
pierS corbyn is among those charged following a propalestine demonstration in Central london
The controversial activist, former Southwark councillor and brother of ex-Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, is accused of a public order offence.
The 77-year-old Walworth resident is among thousands of people who attended the Palestine Solidarity Campaign (PSC) protest, last Saturday, January 18.
The Met Police claims it imposed conditions on the protest, in agreement with organisers, including that they would remain static in Whitehall rather than march.
This was due to the “impact of the prolonged period of protest on Jewish Londoners” including those using a synagogue near the protest area, police said.
However, the Met Police alleges there was a “a coordinated effort to breach these conditions” on the day.
MPs Jeremy Corbyn and John McDonnell, who reportedly attended the protest, agreed to be interviewed under caution by police, the BBC wrote.
Over 70 have been arrested Commander Adam Slonecki, who led the policing operation, said: “Yesterday we saw a deliberate effort, including by protest organisers, to breach conditions and attempt to march out of Whitehall.
“This was a serious escalation in criminality and one which we are taking incredibly seriously. Officers have worked around the clock to pursue those involved.
“We will continue to work through CCTV footage, videos from social media and our body worn cameras so we can make further arrests and bring forward charges where we identify criminality.”
Zeeshan Banghis (AKA Bangash Zeeshan)
Piers Corbyn
polIce huntIng for kIllers of brIxton teen 31 years later
£20,000 reward on offer for information leading to justice
By Herbie Russell
poLice are offering a £20,000 reward in the hunt for the killers of James Akindwande who was stabbed to death in Brixton 31 years ago today.
James was just eighteen when he was beaten and slashed after a night out at Vox nightclub on Sunday, January 16, 1994.
Detectives said: “Think back to 1994 – did you attend this music event? Did you witness the attack on James?
“You may have been younger then and got involved in something you were not comfortable with, or now regret not speaking out about. If you saw or heard anything, then please come forward to talk with us.
“It is really important we find out what happened on that night, 31 years ago.”
On January 16, James left Vox
nightclub on Brighton Terrace, SW9, following a music event with his `.
`There were reports of altercations taking place throughout the event, prompting James and his friends to leave and go home as the nightclub was closing early.
At around 4.45am, James was singled out among his friends outside a Boots chemist on Brixton Road.
He was chased by a large group of young men who beat and stabbed him.
James escaped the group after getting loose from his jacket and ran towards a police van parked on Brixton Road.
He collapsed and was given first aid by officers before the ambulance arrived.
He was then taken to King’s College Hospital where he died.
Detective Superintendent Katherine Goodwin said: “It has been 31 years since James’ tragic murder and we are
James Akindwande was just eighteen when he was beaten and slashed after a night out at Vox nightclub
still actively searching for the group of young men involved in this horrific attack. We have not given up hope of securing justice for James’s family and providing them with the answers they so desperately need after such a long and painful wait.
“If you were involved in the incident, be aware that we are still looking for you. We are now offering a reward of up to £20,000 for information that leads to the successful charge and conviction of the person or people responsible.
“We have a team of specialist officers who will support you throughout, please do the right thing.”
James’ family are also appealing for information. They said: “In 1994, our family experienced an unimaginable loss when James was tragically murdered at just 18 years old.
“James was a light in our lives. He was generous, endlessly funny and
filled with a positivity that brightened every room he entered.
“His laugh, his energy and his love for life are deeply missed every single day. The perpetrators of this senseless act tore a void in our family that can never be filled.
“His mother, devastated by the loss of her son, has never been the same and finds it too painful to even visit his grave.
“The impact of James’ absence is felt in every moment, and we continue to grieve the life he was so cruelly denied.”
A post-mortem examination gave the cause of death as stab wounds to the chest and left arm.
James was wearing a distinct red and dark blue FILA jacket on the night he died.
Half of the jacket was red and the other half was dark blue. A FILA logo was across the back of the jacket.
jacket was stolen on the night of the attack and remains
Anyone with information that may assist the investigation is asked to call 101 quoting Operation Poldark or CAD1203/16Jan25. You can also call the incident room on 0208 785 8267. To remain anonymous contact the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.
Guy’s Hospital one of the first to prescribe weight loss jabs
By Isabel Ramirez
guy’S iS one of the first hospitals in the country to roll out weightloss jabs. But whilst millions across the UK are eligible, only a fraction will be able to get it on the nhS.
An investigation by BBC Panorama looked into the weight management service at Guy’s Hospital, which has recently started administering the drug Wegovy.
A brand of semaglutide, like the more
widely-known Ozempic, it mimics the hormone that is produced after eating that tells a person they are full.
Originally made as a treatment for type 2 diabetes, the effect is a dramatic loss of appetite. As a result, it has been prescribed privately for weight loss.
Patients with a body mass index (BMI) of over 35 and at least one weight-related health problem qualify for the drug.
According to BBC Panorama, that means in the UK around 3.4 million adults are eligible.
However, with a single starting dose costing £130 pcm and rising to around £269 pcm, officials say they cannot afford to treat all of these people, as it would ‘bankrupt the NHS’.
Professor Barbara McGowan, who leads the weight management clinic at Guy’s Hospital, estimated there were ‘130,000 people’ eligible for Wegovy in southeast London.
But the hospital will only be able to treat about 3,000 of those peoplethose with the ‘greatest need’.
One of the first patients to receive it
was 62-year-old Ray, who works parttime at a care home in south London.
Speaking on the Panorama episode ‘Weight Loss Jabs and the NHS’ - which aired on Monday, January 13 - he claimed to have ‘battled with his weight most of his life.’ He was refused essential surgery because of his size, at which point he weighed 24 stone.
To have the surgery he needs, Ray has to lose weight so he was put on Wegovy by Guy’s Hospital. He was one of the first to receive it on the NHS.
Four months on, he had already lost
12 kg.
Clinical trials indicate that when used alongside diet, physical activity, and behavioural support, Wegovy users can achieve up to a 15 per cent reduction in body weight after one year. That said, people who come off the drug are likely to regain the weight they lost. For example, a study. Currently the NHS is only putting recipients on it for up to 2 years.
Go to BBC iPlayer to catch up on the full BBC Panorama episode.
This
missing.
A young James Akindwande
James was wearing a distinctive Fila jacket
lambeth councIl’s neW top boss Is set to get paId £230,000 per year
By Robert Firth Local Democracy Reporter
Lambeth counciL’S new top boss is set to be paid £230,000 per year — over £40,000 more than his drink-driving predecessor.
Ian Davis’s six-digit salary is expected to be rubberstamped by councillors at a meeting this week.
Mr Davis was announced as the Labourrun council’s new Chief Executive in December, replacing Bayo Dosunmu who resigned after getting caught drinkdriving by police in June 2024.
Dosunmu was paid just under £190,000 per year before his resignation from the council in July 2024.
Mr Davis was on just over £220,000 in his previous job as Chief Executive of Enfield Council in North London, to which he was appointed in 2017.
Lambeth received 14 applications for the Chief Executive position following a recruitment campaign it launched in September 2024. Eight candidates were then longlisted for consideration by an appointments committee, which included Labour Leader of the council, Claire Holland, as well as three other Labour councillors and one Liberal Democrat.
Four candidates were then put forward for a final interview by the
committee, after which Mr Davis was recommended for appointment. He will replace Acting Chief Executive Fiona Connolly, who stepped up to the top job following Dosunmu’s departure in July last year.
Dosunmu pleaded guilty to drinkdriving, failing to stop after a crash, and driving without insurance at a hearing at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in August 2024. He was disqualified from driving for two years and ordered to complete 150 hours of unpaid work at a sentencing hearing at the same court a month later in September 2024. Dosunmu is due to be tried for possession of cocaine, which he denies, at Isleworth Crown Court later in 2025.
Ian Davis said it was an ‘honour’ to have been selected as the council’s new Chief Executive following his appointment in December. He said: “Lambeth is an iconic borough with huge potential and the borough’s Lambeth 2030 vision sets out a clear and compelling vision for the future that I look forward to working with you all to deliver.”
Cllr Claire Holland, Leader of the council, said she was ‘delighted’ to name Mr Davis as Lambeth’s new Chief Executive. Speaking in December 2024, she said: “Ian is a local government leader with significant experience
of driving service improvement and delivering better outcomes for residents.
Ian Davis is replacing Bayo Dosunmu who resigned after getting caught drink-driving by police
“His wealth of experience, knowledge and commitment will be crucial to supporting the council to deliver our
Lambeth 2030 ambitions especially in the challenging financial times that local government faces.”
building once in tv sitcom peep show could be used to address homelessness crisis
By Harrison Galliven Local Democracy Reporter
Croy DoN CoUNCil is set to approve plans to convert an old office building into 73 temporary accommodation flats, helping meet the growing demand for housing
The 1960s-built Zodiac Court, once home to Mark and Jez in the Channel 4 sitcom Peep Show as the fictional Apollo House, is now on track to play a key role in addressing the borough’s housing crisis.
The council’s proposal involves turning part of the building into self-contained flats, ranging from one to three bedrooms.
Croydon is seeking to secure a 999-year lease for the former office section, where the flats will be located.
If approved at a cabinet meeting on this week the development would ease Croydon’s temporary housing shortages. According to the council’s figures, 3,600 households
in the borough are currently living in temporary accommodation.
The borough is also under pressure from neighbouring areas, with an increasing number of residents needing to be housed in Croydon after failing to find suitable accommodation closer to home
Croydon faces mounting financial challenges in tackling homelessness, with a projected overspend of more than £15 million for 2024/25.
Council reports link this to a severe shortage of affordable homes and rising costs in the private rental market.
The council hopes initiatives like the Zodiac Court project will help reduce these pressures and alleviate strain on other temporary accommodation blocks, such as Windsor and Concord House, which are nearby on London Road.
Hoardings have surrounded Zodiac Court for years due to the site’s ongoing refurbishment. The building, which had been vacant for 30 years, and its iconic tower block, required substantial restoration
While Croydon will use part of the building for its 73 units, the rest, including its tower, will remain with the freeholder. The tower currently has space for 64 units.
The council will use a mix of its general fund, Right to Buy proceeds, £5.1m of Local Authority Housing Fund money, and borrowing to fund the lease.
The council assures residents that the decision is financially viable, with more than half of the funding coming from government grants and Right to Buy funds.
Alongside the flats, the council hopes to eventually acquire the public garden space and community building on site. Once the works are finished, the developer will lease the public square and community centre to a local group, who will be responsible for maintenance.
The council hopes this move will allow the Broad Green community to use the front of the building as a public space.
A move-in date for the new flats has not yet been set.
Ian Davis, Lambeth Council\’s new chief executive, is set to get paid £230,000 per year. Enfield Counci l
Bayo Dosunmu arriving at magistrates court last September.
Photo by Facundo Arrizabalaga /MyLondon
Zodiac Court was home to Mark and Jez the hit TV show
c ould these electr Ic bugg Ies be rolled out across l ondon?
By Noah Vickers
Local Democracy Reporter
a f Leet of electric buggies has launched on the streets of west london, with the company behind them hoping to expand across the capital.
There are currently ten Yo-Go buggies which are being operated as part of a “world-first” trial in the borough of Hammersmith and Fulham.
The buggies are the latest addition to London’s growing market of dockless, rental e-vehicles – which until now had been limited to e-bikes and e-scooters But the new vehicles were not designed to directly compete with those bikes and scooters.
“What we’re hoping is that they’ll be more of a replacement for cars,” said Yo-Go’s CEO, Dr Sam Bailey.
“Car usage in London is quite weird. Most of the journeys are under three miles, people popping out and about… There’ll be a reason they don’t want to cycle – it will be because they don’t want to get wet, or they think it’s dangerous.
“What we want to do is create something that feels more familiar, feels like driving something – where you’ve got a seat-belt, you’ve got a roll cage, you’ve got a roof, somewhere you can put some luggage – so that it’s sort of an easier swap, if you’re a car user, to move to something like this.”
The vehicles cost 20p a minute to drive or only 10p a minute if the driver takes out a £10 monthly subscription.
For insurance-related reasons, drivers must be between the ages of 25 and 70, and have held a UK or EU driving licence for over two years.
Dr Bailey said the company had been working “very closely” with Hammersmith and Fulham Council, which has essentially granted their vehicles free parking across the borough.
Yo-Go will be monitoring how people
use the buggies and what feedback is provided by users, though Dr Bailey said that the reception so far has been “insanely positive”.
After increasing the size of the fleet in Hammersmith and Fulham, the company hopes to expand into other parts of the city.
It is thought that the golf buggies, which have a maximum speed of roughly 20mph, are the first of their kind to be trialled on the streets of a major city.
“We’re fairly confident we’re a worldfirst,” said Dr Bailey. “There are places you can go to which are golf-buggy only, where you’re on a resort somewhere, [for example] the big resorts in Florida where you park your car at the entrance and then drive around in a golf buggy.
“Part of the idea was, why couldn’t you make London feel more like that?
Where you’re sharing the road with pedestrians, why can’t you make it nicer for them by making the vehicles less noisy, less polluting and less dangerous for them?
“The more vehicles you have that are like this, the more pleasant the roads become for everyone.”
A spokesman for Hammersmith and Fulham Council said: “These innovative electric buggies are another first for Hammersmith and Fulham as they offer residents and businesses an affordable, eco-friendly alternative.
“We welcome this pilot as we work to make local journeys cheaper, greener and more convenient.”
The trial has also been warmly received by the Mayor of London, Sir Sadiq Khan. A spokeswoman for the mayor said: “We welcome new micromobility options in London, especially those that encourage Londoners to use their cars less or switch to cleaner modes of transport.
“It’s good to see boroughs innovating in this way and trialling new options and we will await the data and outcomes with interest.”
‘bomb In a bush’
By Callum Smyth
SuSpected Wor Ld War two bombs have been uncovered at a south london shopping centre, with one apparently found in a bush.
Officers were called to a construction site by Bell Green Retail Park, Sydenham, shortly before 2pm on Friday, January 17.
Police evacuated residents from their homes while a cordon was erected and the items removed.
A local construction worker told us how discovered one of the suspected World War Two bombs in the bushes at Bell Green Gas Works.
He said he was scanning for cables when he came across the device in a bush against the site boundary. “I was testing the … high voltage cables with the CAT scanner and I was going along the bushes by the fence and that’s when I found it then we
Drivers must be between the ages of 25 and 70, and have held a UK or EU driving licence for over two years
[contacted] police and it was big trouble.”
A security guard responsible for evacuating and closing an Aldi adjacent to the site said: “There were rumours that it was a bomb threat”.
The Metropolitan Police stated that four devices were found on the construction site, but were unable to comment on the type of bombs or confirmation of it being WW2 era.
A Met Police spokesperson said:
“Officers were called to a construction site on Perry Hill, SE26 following the discovery of what was believed to be WWII bombs at 13:52hrs on Friday, 17 January.
“A cordon was put in place and those within that area were evacuated.
“Following the removal of the items, the cordon was lifted.”
The bombs were dealt with by an EOD squad who then disposed of it, but the Ministry of Defence failed to give more details at the time of going to press.
The construction work alerted authories after discovering the devices
Yo-Go buggies are available to rent across Hammersmith and Fulham.
BUm. soD Crumpet. Knickers! And so the scene is set and battle lines drawn for steptoe & son live as albert Steptoe (dan Lewis) makes his ‘Dirty old man’ manifest with curse words in a game of scrabble against his pseudo-snob son harold in this stage version of the classic sitcom about two rag and bone men, writes Michael Holland.
Of course, the local vicar pops round mid-game causing Harold(Giorgio Lowe) to fluster and Albert to moan ‘how much does he want this time…?’ For once the vicar is not asking for contributions but submissions to the church magazine.
Harold is soon tapping away at his typewriter and writes such a wonderful article he has the Reverend getting 5,000 copies printed. Fame and fortune looms in Harold’s head as he sees a life of high culture beyond the scrap yard. But Albert also submitted something for the parishioners perusal - a crossword that included most of his favourite swear words and led to the church man arrested by the Obscene Publications Squad. Over four classic episodes we see the odd couple continually bickering, but we also saw the love they had for each other. Harold had ideas and ambitions that he felt were hampered by his father, while Albert did not want to lose his son to a woman, another job, or to anything that would take him away and leaving him home alone.
This love-hate theme played out from 1962 to 1974 on TV with eight series and 57 episodes, and now that relationship is finely depicted on the stage. Harold gets a date but Albert would rather he brought the young woman home for dinner - fish and chips. Albert fakes a bad back to keep Harold at his beck and call. The milkman teaches Harold how to dance but Albert gets jealous and shows him better steps. Or so he believes…
the betrayal of naming names
JoSeph Jeffer Son Award winning playwright Jeffrey sweet’s the Value of Names will have its UK premiere next month.
The Value of Names will star American actor Katherine Lyle as up-and-coming actor Norma who is staying with her retired comedy actor father Benny, played by Jeremy Kareken in his Malibu mansion in 1983 Hollywood. With sharp dialogue and deeply conflicted characters, this show offers an exciting exploration of betrayal, redemption and the weight of the past on the future.
Tim Hardy will play the role of Leo, as he is forced to face the haunting consequences of his past
Everything Albert does is designed to thwart Harold’s high hopes of escape.
The social commentary on class was a highlight of the Galton and Simpson scripts, so the work now on the stage has to be able to step up to those levels and take audiences back to the zeitgeist of the 60s and 70s; which was not too difficult as most of the audience were in their 60s and 70s and remembered it well. But if it was just about delivering those legendary lines we would all be
able to do it.
Stagecraft, however, is much more than that and even more so when you are playing iconic characters that audiences know and love and are there as guardians of those characters. Dan Lewis(who also directs) and Giorgio Lowe fill those boots perfectly in their mannerisms and expressions.
As someone who grew up with Steptoe & Son it was impossible not to compare, but I also imagined myself as someone
new to these characters and storylines and decided that they would still hold up to today’s audiences because funny is funny and good comedy writing is pretty much timeless.
The actors almost becoming Harry H. Corbett and Wilfred Brambell in their portrayals are a major factor in the production’s success.
Talv Bansal skilfully fills in with other characters.
Nevertheless, this Steptoe & Son is not
actions, leading to a fierce, funny, and emotional battle between personal history and future aspirations. Norma is caught in a powerful dilemma when she lands a career-defining role in a production directed by Leo, the man who betrayed her blacklisted actor father years ago by testifying against him to the House of Un-American Activities Committee. As Norma grapples with her ambition and loyalty to her father, her father must confront the painful possibility of his daughter working with the man who destroyed his career.
Writer Jeffrey Sweet comments, The script started with my becoming aware of the fact that the father of an actor I knew was blacklisted. She told me she had just been cast in a play, and I asked her what she would do if the director in the play had been someone who had given her father’s
after gaining a new audience for a 60 year old masterpiece but to pay homage to it and raise as much money as possible for the charity Clowns in the Sky which supports children with brain tumours. A full house watched the first performance of a UK tour that continues until July 4th and could be coming to a place near you.
Full tour and booking details: www. steptoeandsontour.co.uk
name to the House Un-American Activities Committee (HUAC). She told me that the director of her show was in a sandbox during HUAC so it wasn’t likely to happen. But that got me started thinking ‘what if’. The character of Leo is inspired by Elia Kazan and Jerome Robbins, who both famously named names to the Committee and spent the rest of their lives living with the anger of much of the community among whom they continued to work.
The White Bear Theatre, 138 Kennington Park Road, London, SE11 4DJ from Tuesday 11th February –Saturday 1st March 2025.
Times: Tuesday to Saturday 7:30pm Matinee on Saturday at 2:30pm. Booking: www.whitebeartheatre.co.uk/ whatson/the-value-of-names
Photo by rock.the.lens
Heading south - our pick of upcoming winter events
The
Albany presents Love Music Hate Racism
Love Music Hate Racism is a grassroots anti-racist campaign that unites people through music. This summer, they released a statement condemning the far-right violence across the country, which was signed by many artists like Fontaines D.C., Nubya Garcia and Nova Twins, and more. For 2025, they are organising gigs in areas that have been affected by far-right violence, starting at The Albany. The event will promote a message of unity, and it is for those aged over 16. It will star Dave Okumu & the 7 Generations, David Mrakpor and a host of special guests.
Date: Saturday 1 February 2025, 7pm. Tickets: £15 to £20
The Albany, Douglas Way, SE8 4AG www.thealbany.org.uk/shows/love-music-hate-racism
The Smartest Giant in Town
Based on the book by Julia Donaldson and Axel Scheffler, Little Angel Theatre Fierylight brings The Smartest Giant in Town to Blackheath Halls this February. George wishes he wasn’t the scruffiest giant in town. So, when he sees a new shop selling giant-sized clothes, he decides it’s time for a new look: smart trousers, smart shirt, stripy tie, shiny shoes. Now he’s the smartest giant in town…until he bumps into some animals who desperately need his help – and his clothes. This tale about friendship and helping those in need is brought to life in a musical, puppet-filled adventure, following on from Little Angel Theatre’s adaptations of Julia Donaldson’s picture books, including The Singing Mermaid and The Everywhere Bear.
Date: Saturday 22 and Sunday 23 February 2025, times vary
Tickets: £17, £15 for under 16s. 23 Lee Road, Blackheath, SE3 9RQ www.blackheathhalls.com/whats-on/the-smartest-giant-in-town-8
Yarn Play with Nicola J Reid
Unleash your creativity with Firepit Studios and Nicola J Reid, and have some fun by using recycled yarn and sustainable materials to create accessories. These sessions will teach you how to think outside the box using traditional craft techniques to make and create wearable art. If you want to learn the techniques to make necklaces, you will need to be there for the whole session (from 6:30pm to 8pm). The workshop is free, but Firepit also has a donation option when you are reserving your ticket, which goes directly towards running costs.
Join Woolwich Works for a night of Taylor Swift’s greatest hits, reborn through musical arrangements by a live string quartet. The Taylor Swift Reimagined (strings version) concert blends the magic of Taylor’s most popular songs across The Eras with a performance from a modern take on a classical string quartet. But there’s a twist… In this interactive performance, you, the audience, will help shape the night. For the first time, fans have the chance to vote and decide on select songs live –influencing the setlist and making each performance completely one-of-a-kind. The show is a great way to celebrate Taylor’s songs in an intimate setting. And it’s on Valentine’s weekend – this could be ‘the 1’ for any partners who are Swifties.
Date: Saturday 15 February 2025, 7:30pm. Tickets: £20, concessions from £17 The Fireworks Factory, 11 No 1 Street, SE18 6HD www.woolwich.works/events/taylor-swift-reimagined
The Magic Bookmark
Book Worm is livid that encyclopaedias give people so much knowledge, so decides to steal all the books from Mama G’s library in this performance of The Magic Bookmark at Greenwich Theatre. Before the world can turn to chaos, Mama G – Britain’s Got Talent semi-finalist – vows to save the day by proving that books can help make the world a better place. Of course, she can’t do it alone, and that’s when she discovers the mysterious and wonderful Magic Bookmark... This show is full of panto fun for the whole family. Music and lyrics are by Katie Pritchard, with puppetry by Magic Light Productions and set design by Daniel Hanton and Harper Bizarre Art.
Dates: Wednesday 19 to Thursday 20 February 2025, times vary
Tickets: £11, under 16s and concessions £9 Greenwich Theatre, Crooms Hill, SE10 8ES greenwichtheatre.org.uk/events/themagicbookmark
SOS Dance with Eilidh
Looking to try something fun and incorporate some movement into your routine? Introducing SOS, the empowering dance classes. All SOS routines are created by backing dancers who work with stars like Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Rihanna and Dua Lipa. The same routine is then taught by certified instructors. Absolute beginners are welcome to join in and master the routine, which, this week, is I’m A Slave 4 U by Britney Spears, choreographed by Lili Hodge. The SOS dance routines are broken down so you can go at your own pace, and the classes aren’t about being perfect – they’re about moving your body, feeling good and having fun. Time to channel your inner pop princess.
Date: Tuesday 4 February 2025, 7pm. Tickets: £12 Forum At Greenwich, Trafalgar Road, SE10 9EQ www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/sos-boss-with-eilidh-im-aslave-4-u-by-britney-spears-tickets-1129412837199
Transport for London Public Notice
ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984
THE A4 GLA ROAD (TALGARTH ROAD, LONDON BOROUGH OF HAMMERSMITH AND FULHAM) (TEMPORARY PROHIBITION OF TRAFFIC) ORDER 2025
1. Transport for London hereby gives notice that it intends to make the above named Trafc Order under section 14(1) of the Road Trafc Regulation Act 1984 for the purpose specied in paragraph 2. The effect of the Order is summarised in paragraph 3.
2. The purpose of the Order is to enable mobile crane works to take place on the A4 Talgarth Road.
3. The effect of the Order will be to prohibit any vehicle from entering, exiting or proceeding in a westerly direction on A4 Talgarth Road between its junctions with Hammersmith Flyover and the access road to Premier Inn London Hammersmith.
The Order will be effective from 11:45 PM on 31st January 2025 until 10:00 PM on 28th February 2025 or when the works have been completed whichever is the sooner. The prohibition will apply only during such times and to such extent as shall from time to time be indicated by trafc signs.
4. The prohibitions will not apply in respect of:
(1) any vehicle being used for the purposes of those works or for re brigade, ambulance or police purposes;
(2) anything done with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in uniform or a person authorised by Transport for London.
5. At such times as the prohibitions are in force alternative routes will be indicated by trafc signs via Hammersmith Flyover Westbound, Great West Road Westbound, Hogarth Roundabout, Great West Road Eastbound, Queen Caroline Street, Butterwick to normal route of travel.
Dated this 17th day of January 2025
Paul Matthews
Co-ordination Manager, Transport for London
Palestra, 197 Blackfriars Road, London, SE1 8NJ
Transport for London Public Notice
ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984
THE A302 GLA ROAD (BRESSENDEN PLACE, CITY OF WESTMINSTER) (TEMPORARY PROHIBITION OF TRAFFIC AND STOPPING) ORDER 2025
1. Transport for London hereby gives notice that it has made the above named Trafc Order under section 14(1) of the Road Trafc Regulation Act 1984 for the purpose specied in paragraph 2. The effect of the Order is summarised in paragraph 3.
2. The purpose of the Order is to enable crane operational works to take place at A302 Bressenden Place.
3. The effect of the Order will be to prohibit any vehicle from entering, proceeding or stopping on Bressenden Place between its junctions with Buckingham Palace Road and Victoria Street. Local access to be maintained between Buckingham Palace Road and Warwick Row.
The Order will be effective between 25th January 2025 and 2nd March 2025 every Saturday at 12.01 AM until Sunday at 11.59 PM or when the works have been completed whichever is the sooner. The prohibition will apply only during such times and to such extent as shall from time to time be indicated by trafc signs.
4. The prohibitions will not apply in respect of:
(1) any vehicle being used for the purposes of those works or for re brigade, ambulance or police purposes;
(2) anything done with the permission or at the direction of a police constable in uniform or a person authorised by Transport for London.
5. At such times as the prohibition is in force an alternative route will be indicated by trafc signs via Buckingham Palace Road, Grosvenor Gardens, Grosvenor Place, Piccadilly, Haymarket, Pall Mall East, Trafalgar Square, Whitehall, Parliament Street and Victoria Street to normal route of travel.
Dated this 24th day of January 2025
Andrew Sherry
Co-Ordination Manager Transport for London Palestra, 197 Blackfriars Road, London, SE1 8NJ
Goods Vehicle Operator’s Licence
Mark Edwards of Bio Collectors, 11 Osiers Way, Mitcham, CR4 4NF is applying for a licence to use 11 Osiers Way, Mitcham, CR4 4NF as an operating centre for 26 goods vehicles and 13 trailers.
Owners or occupiers of land (including buildings) near the operating centre(s) who believe that their use or enjoyment of that land would be affected, should make written representations to the Traffic Commissioner at Hillcrest House, 386 Harehills Lane, Leeds, LS9 6NF, stating their reasons, within 21 days of this notice.
Representors must at the same time send a copy of their representations to the applicant at the address given at the top of this notice. A guide to Making Representations is available from the Traffic Commissioner’s Office.
Notice of Application to vary a Premises Licence made under the Licensing Act 2003
Please take notice that we, The Abbot Pub Ltd
Have made application to the London Borough Of Merton to vary a Premises Licence in respect of: The Royal Surrey Pub 1-9 Abbotsbury Road, Morden
Surrey SM4 5LH
Variation applied for:
To extend the hours of operation and licensed activities.
To remove and replace obsolete licence conditions.
If additional hours detail the days & times
Monday to Saturday 10:00hrs to 02:00hrs Sunday 10:00hrs to 00:00hrs
A register of all applications made to the London Borough Of Merton is maintained by: LICENSING SECTION, LONDON BOROUGH OF MERTON, 2ND FLOOR, CIVIC CENTRE, LONDON ROAD, MORDEN, SURREY, SM4 5DX
A record of this application may be inspected by appointment at Merton Civic Centre. Please email licensing@merton.gov.uk or telephone 020 8545 3969.
It is open to any interested party to make representations about the likely effect of the application on the promotion of the licensing objectives. Representations must be made in writing to the Licensing Section at the office or email address above and be received by the Merton’s Licensing Section within a period of 28 days starting the day after the date shown below.
Note: It is an offence to knowingly or recklessly to make a false statement in connection with an application. A person guilty of such offence is liable on summary conviction to a fine.
Date application given to the Council: 20th January 2025
Notice of application for a Premises Licence.
Notice is hereby given that Mr. Khaled Elrifai has applied to Wandsworth Council for a new premises licence at Rorro & Mizou, Unit 2, 8 York Road, London, SW11 3QA for Late Night Refreshment – Indoors and Outdoors – Monday to Sunday – 23:00hrs to 02:00hrs
Any person who wishes to make a representation in relation to this application must give notice in writing by 13th February 2025 stating the grounds for making said representation to: Wandsworth Licensing Authority, Regulatory Services Partnership (Serving Merton, Richmond and Wandsworth Councils) Merton Civic Centre, London Road, Morden, Surrey, SM4 5DX or by email: licensing@merton.gov.uk
The record of this application may be inspected Monday to Friday (except Bank Holidays) by prior appointment at the offices of Wandsworth Licensing Authority, Regulatory Services Partnership (Serving Merton, Richmond and Wandsworth Councils) Merton Civic Centre, London Road, Morden,Surrey, SM4 5DX between the hours of 10.00 a.m. and 4.00 p.m. Information on all new and variation applications received by the Licensing Authority can be viewed on the Council’s website www.wandsworth.gov.uk
It is an offence, under section 158 of the Licensing Act 2003, to knowingly or recklessly make a false statement in or in connection with an application, punishable upon conviction by an unlimited fine.
1. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that, to enable Thames Water to carry out repair works, the Council of the London Borough of Lambeth intend to make an Order the effect of which would be to temporarily ban vehicles from entering in that length of St Julian’s Farm Road, which lies between the north-western kerb-line of Knights Hill and a point 21 metres west of Knight’s Hill.
2. Alternative routes for vehicles affected by the closure would be available via (a) Casewick Road, Thornlaw Road and Knights Hill and (b) Knight’s Hill, Norwood Road, York Hill, Royal Circus, Pyrmont Grove, Canterbury Grove, Thurlestone Road, Dodbrooke Road, Hainthorpe Road, Wolfington Road and Casewick Road.
3. The ban would only apply at such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by the placing of the appropriate traffic signs.
4. The Order would come into force on 10th February 2025 and would continue for a maximum duration of 1 month (to allow for contingencies) or until the works have been completed, whichever is the earlier. In practice, it is anticipated that the works would take place between 10th February 2025 and 14th February 2025, but if the works cannot be carried out or completed during that time then the Order may also have effect on subsequent dates within the maximum period of 1 month.
Dated 24th January 2025 Ben Stevens Highways Network Manager
LONDON BOROUGH OF LAMBETH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14
TEMPORARY PARKING RESTRICTIONS – TANKERVILLE ROAD
1. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that, to enable sewer repair works to be carried out, the Council of the London Borough of Lambeth intend to make an Order the effect of which would be to temporarily ban vehicles from entering, waiting (including waiting for the purpose of delivering or collecting goods or loading or unloading a vehicle) in that length of Tankerville Road which lies between the common boundaries of property nos. 47 and 49 and 59 and 61 Tankerville Road.
2. An alternative route for vehicles would be available via Kempshott Road, Ellison Road and Guildersfield Road and vice versa.
3. The ban on waiting and loading would only apply at such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by the placing of the appropriate traffic signs.
4. The Order would come into force on 6th February 2025 and would continue for a maximum duration of 1 month or until the works have been completed, whichever is the sooner. In practice, it is anticipated that the works would be carried out on 6th February 2025, between the hours of 8.am and 6.pm but if the works cannot be carried out or completed during this time, then the Order may have effect on subsequent dates within the maximum period of 1 month.
LONDON BOROUGH OF LAMBETH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14
TEMPORARY ROAD CLOSURE – GILBERT ROAD, REEDWORTH STREET AND WINCOTT STREET
1. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that, to enable the construction of rain gardens to be carried out, the Council of the London Borough of Lambeth intend to make an Order the effect of which would be to temporarily ban motor vehicles from entering that section of: -
(a) Gilbert Road, which lies between the common boundary of Nos. 1 and 3 Gilbert Road and the north-eastern kerb-line of Wincott Street; (b) Wincott Street, which lies between the north-western boundary of No. 25a Wincott Street and a point opposite the south-eastern kerb-line of Gilbert Road; and (c) Reedworth Street, which lies between the north-western boundary of Nos. 1 to 10 Jubilee House and a point 2 metres south-east of the north-western boundary of Nos.1 to 12 Elizabeth House.
2. Alternative routes for affected vehicles would be provided via (a) Kennington Road, Kennington Lane, and Renfrew Road; and (b) Renfrew Road, Gilbert Road, Kennington Lane, Dante Road, Brook Drive, and Kennington Road.
3. The ban would only apply at such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by the placing of the appropriate traffic signs.
4. The Order would come into force on 3 February 2025 and would continue for a maximum duration of 18 months (to allow for contingencies) or until the works have been completed whichever is the earlier. In practice it is anticipated that the works will take place between the 3 February 2025 and 7 March 2025, but if the works cannot be completed or carried out during that time the Order will also have effect at a subsequent time within the maximum period of 18 months.
Dated 24 January 2025
Ben Stevens Highway Network Manager
Ben Stevens Highways Network Manager LONDON BOROUGH OF LAMBETH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14 TEMPORARY ROAD CLOSURE – ST JULIAN’S FARM ROAD
LONDON BOROUGH OF LAMBETH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14
TEMPORARY TRAFFIC AND PARKING RESTRICTIONS – NORMANHURST ROAD
1. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that, to enable gas main replacement works to be carried out, the Council of the London Borough of Lambeth have made an Order the effect of which will be to temporarily ban vehicles from entering or waiting (including waiting for the purpose of loading or unloading a vehicle):(a) in that length of Normanhurst Road:(i) which lies between its junction with Wavertree Road and its junction with Wyatt Park Road (alternative routes for affected vehicles will be via Wavertree Road and Downton Avenue and vice versa); (ii) which lies between its junction with Wyatt Park Road and Downton Avenue (alternative routes for affected vehicles will be via Wavertree Road, Daysbrook Road and Wyatt Park Road and vice versa); and; (b) in that length of Wyatt Park Road which lies between its junction with Normanhurst Road and a point opposite the common boundary of Nos. 77 and 79 Wyatt Park (alternative routes for affected vehicles will be via Wavertree Road, Daysbrook Road and Downton Avenue and vice versa); and (c) in that length of Nuthurst Avenue which lies between its junction with Normanhurst Road and a point 6 metres north-east of that junction.
Resident access to affected addresses will be maintained.
2. The bans will only apply at such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by the placing of the appropriate traffic signs.
3. The Order will come into force on 31st January 2025 and it will continue for a maximum duration of 3 months or until the works have been completed whichever is the sooner. In practice it is anticipated that the works will be carried out in two phases and that the bans referred to paragraph 1(a) above will have effect between 31st January 2025 and 14th February 2025 and that the bans referred to in Paragraph 1(b) and (c) above will have effect between 10th February 2025 and 3rd March 2025 but if the works cannot be carried out or completed during those dates then the Order may have effect on subsequent days and dates up to the maximum period of 3 months.
Dated 24th January 2025
Ben Stevens Highway Network Manager
LONDON BOROUGH OF LAMBETH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14
TEMPORARY PARKING, STOPPING, WAITING AND LOADING RESTRICTIONS ROSENDALE ROAD
1. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that, to enable gully surveying works to be carried out, the Council of the London Borough of Lambeth have made an order the effect of which will be to temporarily ban any vehicle from waiting (including waiting for the purposes of loading and unloading a vehicle) at any time, in that length of Rosendale Road (both sides) which lies between No. 170 Rosendale Road and No. 28 Park Hall Road.
2. The ban on parking, stopping, waiting and loading will only apply at such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by the placing of the appropriate traffic signs.
3. The Order will come into force on 27th January 2025 and will continue for a maximum duration of 3 months (to allow for contingencies) or until the works have been completed whichever is the earlier. In practice it is anticipated that the Order will have effect on 27th January 2025, but if the works cannot be completed or carried out during that time the Order will also have effect at subsequent dates and times within the maximum period of 3 months.
Dated 24th January 2025
Ben Stevens Highway Network Manager LONDON BOROUGH OF LAMBETH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14
TEMPORARY TRAFFIC AND PARKING RESTRICTIONS FOR STREATHAM HILL EAST CONTROLLED PARKING ZONE EXTENSION – VARIOUS ROADS
1. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that, to enable Streatham Hill East Controlled Parking Zone (CPZ) extension works to be carried out, the Council of the London Borough of Lambeth have made an order the effect of which will be to temporarily ban vehicles from entering or waiting (including waiting for the purpose of loading or unloading a vehicle) in:(i) Adare Walk; (ii) Hitherfield Road; (iii) Keymer Road; (iv) Leigham Court Road, (between the junction of Streatham High Road and Knollys Road); (v) Leigham Vale; (vi) Mountearl Gardens; (vii) Mount Nod Road; (viii) Romeyn Road; (ix) Rosedene Avenue; (x) Stockfield Road and (xi) Streatham Close.
2. The restrictions will only apply at such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by the placing of the appropriate traffic signs.
3. The order will come into force on 27th January 2025 and will continue for a maximum duration of 4 months (to allow for contingencies) or until the works have been completed whichever is the earlier.
Dated 24th January 2025
Notice of Application to apply for a Premises Licence made under the Licensing Act 2003
Please take notice that I / we Kiwi Cru Ltd
Have made application to the London Borough Of Merton to apply for a Premises Licence in respect of: Unit Z08, Big Yellow Self Storage Merton, 61 Morden Road, London, SW19 3BE
The application is as follows: Sale of alcohol online only and distribution directly off-premise to members of public addresses. No sale of alcohol onsite at premises. License applied for between Monday -Saturday 9am-5:30pm and Sunday 10am – 4pm.
A register of all applications made with the London Borough Of Merton is maintained by: LICENSING SECTION, LONDON BOROUGH OF MERTON, 2ND FLOOR, CIVIC CENTRE, LONDON ROAD, MORDEN, SURREY, SM4 5DX
A record of this application may be inspected by appointment at Merton Civic Centre. Please email licensing@merton.gov.uk or telephone 020 8545 3969.
It is open to any interested party to make representations about the likely effect of the application on the promotion of the licensing objectives. Representations must be made in writing to the Licensing Section at the office or email address above and be received by the Merton’s Licensing Section within a period of 28 days starting the day after the date shown below.
Note: It is an offence to knowingly or recklessly to make a false statement in connection with an application. A person guilty of such offence is liable on summary conviction to a fine. Date application given to the Council: 15.01.25
Dated 24th January 2025 Ben Stevens Highway Network Manager LONDON BOROUGH OF LAMBETH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 – SECTION 14
TEMPORARY ROAD CLOSURE, SUSPENSION OF THE ONE-WAY SYSTEM AND INTRODUCTION OF A TWO-WAY TRAFFIC SYSTEM - UPPER MARSH
1. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that to enable Thames Water remedial works to be carried out, the Council of the London Borough of Lambeth intend to make an Order the effect of which would be to temporarily:(a) ban vehicles from entering that length of Upper Marsh which lies between the south-western kerb-line of Westminster Bridge Road and a point 70 metres south-west of that kerb-line; and (b) suspend the one-way traffic system on Upper Marsh and introduce a two-way traffic system so that vehicle access can be maintained for businesses using the Beckett House car park.
2. Cyclist and Pedestrian access would be maintained.
3. An alternative route for affected vehicles would be via Royal Street, Centaur Street, Hercules Road, Kennington Road and Westminster Bridge Road.
4. The road closure, suspension of the one-way traffic system and introduction of the two-way traffic system would only apply at such times and to such extent as shall be indicated by the placing or covering of the appropriate traffic signs.
5. The Order would come into effect on 10th February 2025 and it would continue for a maximum duration of 1 month (to allow for contingencies) or until the works have been completed whichever is the sooner. In practice it is anticipated that the Order would only have effect on 10th February 2025, between the hours of 8.am and 5.pm, but if the works cannot be carried out or completed during that time, then the Order may have effect at other times within the maximum period of 1 month.
Dated 24th January 2025 Ben Stevens Highways Network Manager
LONDON BOROUGH OF LAMBETH ROAD TRAFFIC REGULATION ACT 1984 - SECTION 14
TEMPORARY TRAFFIC RESTRICTIONS ON ACRE LANE
1. NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that to facilitate a new electrical connection works the Council of the London Borough of Lambeth after consulting Transport for London (TfL) intend to make an Order, the general effect of which would be in: -
2. Acre Lane, between the junctions of Ashmere Grove and Strathleven Road to (a) suspend parking places and disabled parking places on the north side of Acre Lane, and (b) suspend the west-bound bus lane on the south side of Acre Lane, to facilitate traffic movement during the operation of temporary traffic signals.
3. The suspensions would only apply at such times and to such extent as shall, from time to time, be indicated by the placing of the appropriate traffic signs.
4. The Order would come into force on 8 February 2025 and would continue for a maximum duration of 1 month, or until the works have been completed whichever is sooner.
Dated 24 January 2025
Ben Stevens Highway Network Manager
NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR A PREMISES LICENCE - LICENSING ACT 2003
Notice is given that: Rupert A. Teddy Ltd, has applied for the Grant of a Premises Licence for the following premises: 32 Horseferry Place, (Unit A), SE10 9GH
A record of this application may be inspected by appointment.
Other persons may make representations to the Council on this application by no later than 13 February 2025 (Last date for making representations). Representations can be made in writing, by email or fax using the contact details above. Representations can only be made on the grounds of one of the four licensing objectives:
- Prevention of crime and disorder
- Prevention of public nuisance
- Public safety
- Protection of children from harm
Any person who makes a false statement in connection with an application is liable on summary conviction to a maximum fine of £5000.
It is proposed that the following licensable activity will take place at the premises:
7am - 11pm - off sales alcohol
11am - 11pm - on sales alcohol 8am - 11pm - recorded music
To place a notice in this paper and online, please email em@ cm‐media .co.uk or call us on 020 7232 1639
Deadline is Wednesday 3pm
and signage, including 12 bar areas, up to 15 food concession units, covered stage structures, brand activation/sponsor popups, outdoor seating areas, toilets, storage for Between the Bridges 2025. 25/00071/FUL
2A Mackay Road London SW4 OND Modification and relocation of the second-floor balustrade, as approved under application reference 21/00121/FUL, changing the material from metalwork to obscure glass and repositioning the balustrade to the edges of the building. 24/03985/FUL
County Hall Riverside Building, Ground Floor Westminster Bridge Road London Lambeth SE1 7PB Application for planning permission and listed building consent for the installation of a new platform lift and stairway beMeen the ground floor decked kiln area within the central lightwell to the basement.
(Please note: The reference number for this Listed Building Consent application is 25/00021/LB but there is also an associated application for Full Planning Permission related to these works with reference number: 25/00020/FUL. 25/00021/LB
5 The Spinney London Lambeth SW16 1LA Erection of single storey ground floor rear extension together with the removal of 2 side doors and installation of 1 ground floor window to side elevation. 24/03806/FUL Brixton Academy 2J J Stockwell Road London SW9 9SL Application for Listed Building Consent for a temporary support system to the colonnade to secure the area from cracked faience blocks to the soffit, while a repair scheme is being developed. The propping system is suspended from the columns and no permanent fixings are proposed to the historic fabric.
24/03987/LB
82 Endymion Road London SW2 2BT Demolition of existing 'non-original' ground floor single storey rear extension, and replaced with a newly erected ground floor single storey infill rear extension, including internal renovation work and associated landscaping work to the rear garden. Renovation of loft into a habitable space, including removal of skylight to the rear roof slope, and replaced with 5 new skylights to the rear roof slope. Removal of two skylights to the front roof slope, and replaced with Mo new skylights to the front roof slope. Installation of two new skylights to side roof slope. Roof to be replaced with new fibre cement slates. 24/03897/FUL
20 Trigon Road London SWB 1NH Demolition of existing conservatory, and erection of a ground floor single storey infill extension with flat roof and rooflight, including lowering of ground floor level and other internal reconfigurations. 24/03854/FUL
Land Adjacent To 24 Normandy Road London SW9 6JH Erection of 5- bed 3-storey dwelling and associated works. 24/04020/RG4 103 - 105 Streatham High Road London SW16 1HJ Retention of ground floor public house use (Sui Genesis). Change of use of the
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southWark prIde double up
Women’s side win a fifth title in Manchester before Men’s comeback
By Sports Reporter
coLa SouthWarK pride won a fifth under-18 Women’s title as the club completed a sure Shot national cup finals double at manchester’s National basketball performance centre last weekend.
CoLA made it three wins in the last four years and back-to-back titles as they beat long-standing rivals Endeavour Ipswich Basketball 6546.
Pride are the most decorated side in the history of the competition, though they had to weather a stern Ipswich fightback to make it a reality.
Pride led 16-0 and then by 26 points just before half-time.
The Suffolk side rallied to a 27-13 third quarter to set up a tense finish, though they could only get as close as six points as Pride claimed the fourth quarter 17-6.
The MVP crown went to CoLA forward Chloe Vella, who put together a fifteen-point, 21-rebound double-double, alongside a strong showing from fellow forward Adaora Dioramma (12pts, 7reb) and guard Monife Abidekun (13pts).
“We always have to remember that they’re a young group of girls, there’s
By Jeff Burnige at St Paul’s
always going to be an ebb and flow when you’re playing, so it was just about steadying the ship,” CoLA head coach Brian Nguru said about Ipswich’s fightback.
“Our girls have matured so much through the season in having the opportunity to play D1 Women and bring that experience when they play their own age group.
“Ipswich did an amazing job to stay in it and never gave up. Big shout-out to Harriet [Welham, Ipswich’s head coach], she did an amazing job.”
When asked about his feelings on picking up a first piece of silverware as head coach, Nguru added: “I am pleased. It’s been a great opportunity to coach these girls as head coach
and a massive shout-out goes to my mentor, and my coach. Jackson [Gibbons] really prepared me for this opportunity so I’m very thankful for the privilege of being mentored by him.
“For the past seventeen, eighteen years, I have been under his wing and really soaked in everything that he taught me as a player and now I’ve been able to give back to the younger generation as a coach.”
CoLA sprung a surprise on Charnwood College Riders in the under-18 Men’s National Cup after trailing by eleven points at one stage.
Charnwood edged each of the first three quarters to build their advantage before CoLa stormed back
with a 22-11 last quarter to win 6762.
The Midlanders looked to be in control of the contest, before the floodgates were opened late thanks to some key baskets from MVP Khyle Capanzana.
With seven points, an assist and a steal in the fourth quarter alone, he powered Pride’s comeback around quality outings from Isaac Fiagbe (15pts, 6reb, 6ast) and Daniel Banjoko (15pts, 7reb).
“I remember us being behind the whole game. The boys were really resilient, they stuck to the game plan,”
CoLA head coach Jay Williams said.
“We made a lot of mistakes, terrible mistakes, but they kept fighting and
believed they could win.
“It didn’t matter what the score was, they were going to keep playing right to the end and eventually it started to go our way because we were doing the right things consistently. We made some free throws down the end, the ball bounces our way and before you know it, the clock runs out. So yeah, they were really good.”
Meanwhile, London Stars won their first under-16 Boys’ National Cup with a 69-38 win over Milton Keynes Breakers.
In the Girls’ under-16 decider, holders Richmond Knights were beaten 64-62 by Manchester Mystics.
Oh Mia, oh my as Lionesses strike late Sheriff calls shots to send Dulwich down
miA loCKEtt scored a late winner as millwall lionesses remain unbeaten in 2025 after coming from behind at half-time to beat Sport London e benfica 2-1 in the L&SerWfL premier division at St paul’s last weekend.
Manager Ted Jones restored Grace Seely to the midfield, following an injury in training to Alice Wood. Winger Liv McGregor replaced another injured player in Lucy Jellett at centre-forward, and she looked at home there, causing havoc in the early stages bringing two excellent saves from the Benfica goalkeeper.
Millwall were dominant so it came as a shock when leading scorer Kimberley Castro put Benfica ahead on nine minutes
after a defensive error.
The Lionesses had beaten these opponents 3-0 in December, and they went looking for a quick response, but the visitors gained confidence from their goal and some good defending kept them in front until well into the second half after Maisie Joyce and Ciara Watling sent efforts over the bar.
As the second half wore on, Millwall were getting closer to an equaliser, mainly through Millie Connell and Watling feeding the always energetic Lockett on the right wing. From one of Lockett’s crosses, Elise Jennings fired over at the far post. The Lionesses were getting frustrated as Benfica were defending more desperately.
Young midfielder Dani de Menezes came on in midfield and looked back to fitness after injury.
Finally, on 70 minutes, McGregor scored a brilliant solo equaliser, working her way into the box and smashing home with her left foot.
Another midfielder from the under-18s, Flo Winfield, came in, and now Millwall looked likely to find a winner despite several long stoppages for treatment for their tiring opponents.
Millwall took advantage of that fatigue when Watling galloped down the right and crossed for Lockett to score at the near post with a first-time finish.
There was another positive for the hosts when Emma Squirrell was brought on for her first appearance after two whole seasons recovering from longterm injury.
The Lionesses are at home again this Sunday when they face table-topping Dartford at 1.30pm.
By John Kelly
BrADlEy QUiNtoN’s first game in charge of dulwich hamlet ended in a 2-0 defeat to top-ofthe-table billericay town at new
lodge last weekend.
De-Carrey Sheriff scored either side of the break to increase Dulwich’s relegation worries. The Hamlet are just three points above the bottom four with more games played (26) than four of the six teams below them.
Dulwich appointed Quinton, 46, last week until the end of the season.
Quinton led both Enfield Town and Braintree Town to the play-offs, winning the National League South decider with the latter in 2018. Dulwich are back at Champion Hill this Saturday when they face seventhplace Chichester City at 3pm.
Millwall’s Alice Wood
The victorious Men’s team
Southwark Pride Women’s under-18s
MVP Khyle Capanzana CoLA forward Chloe Vella
Bradley Quinton
mat drops the hammer
By John Kelly
Jean-phiLippe mateta ran amok at london stadium to help crystal palace to a 2-0 win over West ham united at the weekend.
Mateta ran on to Eberechi Eze’s brilliant through-ball in the 49th minute before firing low past Lukasz Fabianski.
Mateta was involved in Graham Potter’s side being reduced to ten men in the 80th minute when Konstantinos Mavropanos was shown a second yellow card for a high boot on him.
Mateta scored the second from the penalty spot after substitute Eddie Nketiah had been fouled by Fabianski.
Palace have only lost one of their last eleven Premier League games.
“It was a great performance, we controlled the game the whole time, we scored the goals in the right moment, so I'm really pleased with the result and with the performance, whereas at Leicester I was just pleased with the result,” boss Oliver Glasner said.
“It felt like we controlled the game. We didn't give them chances, two or three set-plays, but we defended it excellently, and then it was, ‘okay, when we come into the final third or when we come in front of their defensive five, we need to increase the pace of attack’.
“In the first situation we did amazing. We found three or four times our wing-backs, and to be honest the crosses were not as well today that we all hoped and expected. But again, great performance, and a great win at London Stadium.”
Mateta has four goals in four games in 2025 and eleven in all competitions this season.
“Of course it's always most important for a striker to score,” Glasner said. “It's his most important job to do for the team.
“In the first half I think we controlled the game but we didn't create many chances – also West Ham defended their box pretty well – but in the second half we were talking about overloading and finding good positions, and there's a build-up from the back and it starts and when Ebs gets the ball, he's
completely free because he's moving into the free space, and then he can make pressure on the defence, and then JP is always running.
“It was a little bit similar at Leicester, it was Ismaïla Sarr getting the ball in this area, making pressure and finding the right moment for the pass. And this is what we're always training and talking to them about, and then when JP gets the ball and having a free finish somewhere around the box, it's very often a goal.
“It was an important goal, but he also worked hard like all the others in our defensive shape, and it's the third win in a row, the third clean sheet in a row, so I'm really delighted.”
Glasner added: “Everybody knows how we want to defend in the back three, but it starts in the beginning.
We had five to ten minutes in the second half where West Ham were too dominant, because we got a little bit tired and we didn't close the spaces with our attacking players, we gave them passes we don't want them to give, and then we had to react.
“The subs had a very good impact, and not just Eddie who got the penalty for us, also in the defensive structure. We were more compact again, and this is always teamwork. Sometimes we need Dean Henderson with a big save, but I think he didn't need to have a big save to keep the clean sheet, so that's always the best for me as a manager.”
Glasner maintained his 100 per cent record at the home of the Hammers, after winning there with Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League.
Glasner said: “It feels great, and I was talking to Marc [Guehi] when we went to our fans after the game, because it's personally my second game here, and my second win.
“The first was with Frankfurt in the semi-finals of the Europa League, and it was on the same spot, in front of the fans, and today it felt great again.
“We could see their support. There were moments in the second half when our fans were louder than the 55,000 West Ham supporters, so thanks again – and now enjoy Saturday evening and Sunday, and then let's keep it going at Selhurst against Brentford.”
Esse thanks Lions after joining rivals Ravens’ min-slump continues
By John Kelly
romAiN EssE aid he was “grateful” to millwall after his record move across south London to crystal palace.
Attacking midfielder Esse, 19, signed a five-and-a-half year deal and the £14.5million fee shatters the Lions record for a sale, the £8million agreed with Middlesbrough for George Saville in 2018.
Millwall developed Esse through the age groups before former Lions boss Gary Rowett handed his firstteam debate at the age of seventeen in 2022.
Esse became a regular this season and is Millwall’s joint top-scorer with five goals. He left The Den after six goals in 66 appearances.
“Millwall have helped me a lot
because I've been there since the age of nine,” Esse said. “I'm very grateful for the opportunity they gave me to put myself more out there. It was a great place to learn as a young player, making my debut at seventeen. I'm grateful.”
Esse added: “I’m very excited to be here. It’s a good project and a good opportunity, so I just can’t wait to get started.
“For every young player, we're all looking for opportunities, and I think this is the best place to really take my game to the next level and push on in my career. I'm looking forward to it and I can't wait.
“The club's going in a great direction. I think the next step in my development is very crucial. I thought this would be the best place, and I just can't wait to start playing.
“It hasn't really sunk in yet, but I can't wait to play in the Premier League, but most importantly, for Crystal Palace.
“It's a great ground, it's a great stadium, we've got great fans. I just can't wait to put a smile on the Palace fans' faces when I play here.
“I'd like to say I'm a player who likes to get the fans off their seats. I like scoring goals, I like assisting. I just like making sure there's end product, and just get everyone happy. That's my job.
“As long as that's done, I'm happy and we're all happy. I just can't wait to show them that on the pitch.”
Oliver Glasner’s side beat West Ham United 2-0 with a double from JeanPhilippe Mateta.
Esse could make his debut against Brentford at Selhurst Park next Sunday.
By John Kelly
BromlEy lost a second successive league two game as Colchester united won 1-0 at hayes Lane.
Owura Edwards scored the only goal in the fourth minute after being set up by former Wimbledon and Charlton forward Lyle Taylor. The U’s dominated most of the game and it wasn’t until fifteen minutes from time that the Ravens really threatened, as goalkeeper Ellis Iandolo just about prevented Louis Dennis’ cross going in.
It is now three defeats in a row - including the 3-1 FA Cup loss at Newcastle Unitedfor Andy Woodman’s side, who had been on an unlikely play-off charge after twelve league games unbeaten. They are eight points off the top seven.
Boss Andy Woodman didn’t disguise his displeasure.
“The only player that can earn a little bit of credit is Brooklyn Ilunga, who came on and sparked us a little bit of light,” Woodman said. “I think there’s one or two players dining out on old performances, and we can’t do that.
“It was meant to be an attacking set-up, we’re at home and we want to be a team that takes the game to the opposition, but we didn’t do it. We didn’t get any passing or movement or control of the game. Everyone keeps telling me we need to be more attacking, maybe we just need to be defensively solid and go from what we are.
“You’ve got to get a group of players on the pitch there who want to give it their all and want to be brave on the ball and in their decision-making. That’s what we’ll have to pick, a team that’s brave in all departments.”
Bromley travel to fifth-place Notts County on Saturday.
By Will Scott
JaKe cooper’S 58th-minute own goal consigned millwall to a 1-0 defeat against hull city last saturday.
The Lions were bereft of attacking ideas throughout, and only really looked threatening at set-pieces. They were eventually undone by an unfortunate deflection during one of Hull’s rare attacking moves, but in truth, the Lions did not deserve to walk away with a result.
Millwall were hampered by attacking injuries and clearly missed Romain Esse’s creativity, whose move to Crystal Palace was confirmed the morning of the game, but still lacked final-third quality to a concerning degree.
Alex Neil said he wanted the Lions to sign a forward to replace Esse, and their performance only underlined their need for attacking reinforcements.
Striker Aaron Connolly was given his debut only days after joining Millwall but still needs time to bed in and was deployed out of position on the left wing.
Millwall did have a couple of early chances, both from Joe Bryan inswinging free kicks, but neither really tested Carl Rushworth in the Tigers’ net. Mihailo Ivanovic bounced a header into his hands, while Japhet Tanganga spun his marker to get free at the back post but nodded the ball well past the post. Hull came close to scoring in the tenth when they worked it to Abu Kamara on the right, but Lukas Jensen sprinted out of his goal and made a sharp save to deny the Tigers an opener.
The Lions nearly broke the deadlock in the eighteenth minute when Duncan Watmore burst through the Hull defence via an Ivanovic pass and a clever flick with his head, but he was brought down before he could get a shot off. While on the floor, he managed to pass it to George Honeyman, who curled his effort just past the post.
The rest of the half was a drab affair with little in the way of dynamic play. The two teams combined for just three shots after Honeyman’s effort, all of
oWn goal proves decIsIve as drab lIons lose snooZefest
Macaulay Langstaff and Casper De Norre walk off the pitch after Millwall’s 1-0 loss to Hull City
By John Kelly
which were by Millwall and none of which were on target.
The half-time whistle blew to bring an end to another disappointing opening 45 minutes for the Lions, characterised again by indecision in the final third and a lack of quality, much to the audible displeasure of The Den.
The majority of Millwall’s chances in the first half came from free kicks, and had yet another opportunity from a setpiece only a minute into the second half when Honeyman whipped the ball into the box, but Tanganga’s diving header bounced just wide of the post.
After that, it was more of the same from Millwall, who were soon punished by Hull for their attacking inertia.
QueenS parK rangers continued their outstanding run of form with a 2-1 win at hull city on tuesday night - their four consecutive Championship victory.
After a goalless first half, Kenneth Paal gave Marti Cifuentes’ side the lead in the 64th minute with his first goal of the season.
Koki Saito also got off the mark for the campaign when he added the second six minutes later, before Joe Gelhardt scored in the 84th minute.
But QPR weren’t going to be denied and they have now lost only one of their last twelve league games.
The R’s have remarkably gone from last place in the table in November to ninth, four points off the top six.
QPR host Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday at 3pm.
By John Kelly
In the 58th minute, Regan Slater received the ball on the right flank, drove at the box before firing in a low, fast cross that took an unfortunate deflection off Jake Cooper that wrongfooted Jensen and ended up with the ball in the back of the net. It was a soft goal to concede, especially considering the Tigers had not offered much going forward for most of the game.
The Lions had over half an hour to find an equaliser, but could only manage to conjure up four shots, none of which were on target and had a combined expected goals of 0.07.
The whistle blew to bring an end to another disappointing home performance against a side currently in
treVoh chaLobah earned praise for his performance after he got an assist on his first Chelsea start since his recall from his loan at crystal palace in the 3-1 win over Wolverhampton Wanderers at stamford Bridge on monday night.
Chalobah started alongside Tosin
Adarabioyo in the middle of Enzo Maresca’s back four, his first Blues appearance since a 2-1 win at home to AFC Bournemouth last May.
Adarabioyo put the hosts in front with his third goal in four gameshis first for Chelsea in the Premier League.
Matt Doherty levelled in first-half
Millwall sign centre-back Tristan Crama
By Will Scott
millWAll ANNoUNCED the signing of centre-back tristan crama from brentford on a longterm deal, on friday, January 17. Crama, 23, was fast-tracked to the first team and made his debut for the Lions during their 2-2 draw with Cardiff City, replacing Danny McNamara in the 63rd minute.
The Frenchman is Millwall’s second signing of the January transfer window, after Aaron Connolly’s move to southeast London was confirmed on Thursday, January 16.
The six-foot-four defender was on loan at League One side Exeter City for the first half of the season, making 26 appearances and scoring four headed goals, before being recalled by Brentford ahead of his move.
Crama originally joined Brentford from Béziers’ academy in 2020 and enjoyed a successful loan spell with Bristol Rovers during the 2023-24 season.
Millwall boss Alex Neil, speaking after the Lions’ 1-0 loss to Hull City, was delighted to add a player of his profile.
“Tristan is a very different profile from the centre-backs we’ve got in the building,” Neil said “I think he’s very quick. He’s probably more of a ballplaying centre-back.
Unused substitutes: Pandur, Vaughan, Simons, Smith, Jacob
added-time after a mistake from goalkeeper Robert Sanchez.
Marc Cucurella restored the lead on the hour before Chalobah set up Noni Madueke to make it 3-1 five minutes later as Chelsea climbed back into the top four.
With Chalobah making a Blues appearance, the rules mean he can only play for Palace again this season if he is to go back out on loan.
Maresca, though, is set to keep the defender at home.
"They did fantastic, Tosin and Trev, all of them were good, including Kiernan [Dewsbury-Hall] too,” Maresca said. “All of them had a long time without playing a game for us and overall the performance was good."
"Three goals in four games, four for the season and my first Premier League goal tonight, so very happy,”
Adarabioyo said.
"It is definitely good to contribute to the goals and for them to come from all over the pitch.
"A goal is a goal at the end of the day. Even if you get the scummy ones it is always a good feeling.
"It was gutting to concede that goal at the end of the first half but we came out all guns blazing, did an amazing job and got a great result.
"[Chalobah] came straight back in and did an amazing job. He did everything flawlessly from a tactical point of view, so I am very happy for him.”
Chalobah’s header appeared to be
“Whereas I think most of our lads are out and out defenders. They’re big, they’re strong, they’re physical, they win their headers, they defend the box really well.
“So I do think for instance if we’re trying to create assets and we want to try and develop the brand of football, we’re going to need some guys that can handle the ball and play in that manner as well.
“It just gives me more variation in the squad. We do need reinforcements. I think particularly across our back line we’ve got a lot of older players in there.”
Neil also suggested that his arrival could lead to another defender leaving “I think every club irrespective of what your shape is, will carry four centre-backs minimum,” Neil said. “We’ve got more than that at the moment. We’ll see what happens.”
going in before Madueke touched it over the line.
"It's instinct,” Madueke said. “Attacker's instinct. I knew it was going over the line. I said sorry to Trevoh after. I had to put this in the net, for sure. He was saying, 'no way you took my goal’, but I said, 'you have to understand, this is what they pay me for'."
Madueke was gushing about Chalobah. He said: "Unbelievable. Leadership, character, bravery on the ball. He slotted in seamlessly so I am delighted for him. It is no coincidence with players like him and Reece [James] back in we won the game. They are Chelsea through and through and they helped us tonight with their leadership, for sure."
Southwark
Sport INSIDE The Pride of Southwark double up
page 29
lIons collapse
Alex Neil’s side let lead slip as two defenders injured
Karoy strikes late for win
By John Kelly
nathan JoneS hailed the character of his players after Karoy Anderson scored four minutes from time in a comeback 2-1 victory against bolton Wanderers at the toughsheet Community stadium on tuesday night.
Anderson bagged the visitors’ winner after Lloyd Jones, on 71 minutes, had cancelled out Joel Randall’s 55thminute opener.
Jones was angry after the Addicks’ 4-2 defeat at Rotherham United on Saturday but Charlton have won four and drawn one of their last six League One games and have moved to within four points of the top six with a game in hand.
It was Charlton’s first league double over Bolton since 2000.
“I’m really proud after the weekend, I can’t defend the performance from the weekend because it was sub-standard, that was below what we expect from our players,” Jones said. “But today they gave me everything.
“We worked hard, we pressed them, denied them, they had one counterattack and they got fortunate with that. That’s the only time they really breached our defence.
“I’m really, really pleased, really proud of the performance because they’ve shown their character.
“Thanks to the club as well for backing us, giving us a little bit of time away so we could regroup and go again.
“I’m really proud of the team.
“I’m buzzing for Lloyd as well, at the weekend he was nowhere near the levels. Tonight he was right back.
“The club have been brilliant in backing us, allowing us to stay up here, that’s really, really helped.
By John Kelly
miLLWaLL’S reLegation worries deepened on tuesday night after they dropped points to cardiff city in injury-time at the den - and face a potential injury crisis at right-back.
The Lions took an early lead when Calum Scanlon smashed home in the second minute, before Casper De Norre doubled their advantage in the nineteenth minute after superb skill by Ra'ees Bangura-Williams.
Cardiff made it 2-1 just before half-time after Jake Cooper miscued a clearance to Chris Willock, who finished from the edge of the box.
The Lions were denied three points in the 97th minute when Yousef Salech scored the equaliser that had been coming.
Ryan Leonard started at right-back but limped off in the 59th minute and was replaced with Danny McNamara.
Four minutes later, McNamara went down holding his knee and had to be taken off the field on a stretcher.
"They don't look good, do they," Lions head coach Alex Neil said. "I think you can always tell in the manner which a player goes down. I think if they pull up or something and they sort of say, I'm not quite right…whereas the two lads literally crumbled in a heap.
"I don't know the extent, obviously we need to get them scanned and get it done properly, but I don't expect them to be ones that are going to be short-term, shall we say."
Millwall have won only one of their last thirteen league games
and are only five points above the Championship relegation zone.
"It was a huge disappointment," Neil said. "Obviously frustrating from our point of view to have what, less than 30 seconds left on the clock, and concede particularly in the manner which we did.
"Even in the first half, the first one with a minute to go before half-time, again, a hashed clearance and the ball ends up in the back of our net. So both goals were very similar in that respect. We played a part in them and it's got absolutely nothing to do with tactics. It's got nothing to do with structure. It's got nothing to do with how the team's set up.
"It's just actions in the games and we don't put our foot through the ball well enough on two separate occasions and ultimately the ball
ends up in the back of the net.”
Neil added: "I thought there was some really good quality in the first half. I thought it was two excellent goals scored. I thought Calum Scanlon was a massive positive, he's only playing his second game. Young Ra'ees came in, I thought he was excellent, made the second goal for us.
"So there's huge bits of it that I thought were really good. But the game will be remembered for the last goal because that's the last bit that you leave people with and that's my biggest frustration for my team, because what we should be talking about is how we managed to dig in in the second half and see the game out and the good bits we did in the first half - and it won't be remembered for that."
“Special mention for the fans as well, up here again. After the weekend it would have been so easy for them to go, ‘we’re not going to watch that again’. I think we’ve repaid that and they’ll be going down the M6, the M1, the M25, the A2 in far better spirits.” Meanwhile, it was confirmed on Wednesday morning that Bolton boss
